The New York City Planning Department is hard at work. Recently, a rezoning proposal focused on permitting new construction and revitalization of the areas around Grand Central Station on the east side.
Focused on 3rd avenue, a street with an unusual number of low rise buildings for Manhattan, the idea is that the rezoning will create hundreds of thousands of construction and office jobs by allowing higher building heights and quicker approval processes.
The area that is being considered stretches from 39th to 57th Streets and Third Avenue to Fifth Avenue. Creative designs are also being given higher priority, and may be given fast track approval for heights as tall as the Empire State Building. The proposal is not yet complete, and must first be subjected to environmental reviews and approval by the community boards.