DOB NOW Continues Expansion

The NYC Department of Buildings (DOB) continues the rollout of DOB NOW, its new online portal for registered users to submit jobs. On 08.04.16, the first phase of DOB NOW, entitled DOB NOW: Build, launched, allowing online filing of applications for plumbing and sprinkler jobs. Additional components, including façade compliance filings, license issuance and renewals, and eventually applications for entire new buildings, will be transferred to DOB NOW throughout this year and next. By 2018, the system will be completed and will serve as the entry point for all DOB transactions.

AIANY continues to collaborate with the DOB to help fine-tune DOB NOW and its online offerings. In coordination with other trade organizations, AIANY is helping create a better user-experience for design professionals, and will continue to update members as the online system rolls out.

Pulse Points

• On 08.03.16, Mayor de Blasio signed Intro 1169-A, legislation that will conform the NYC Energy Conservation Code to the NYS Energy Conservation Code. The new code will go into effect on 10.03.16. Any projects filing after that date will need to comply. AIANY is hosting a number of the Urban Green Council’s “Conquer the Code” training courses to help prepare commercial and residential architects and engineers. Find dates and registration information here.
• On 09.13.16, the U.S. Department of Energy will present a webinar entitled “Fall Tech Trends: Promising New Products from DOE’s High Impact Technologies Catalyst Program.” The webinar will include previews of new and innovative building technologies and updates from DOE’s High Impact Technology (HIT) Catalyst program. Participants will also learn more about how they can engage with the Better Buildings Tech team to lower energy use in building designs.
• According to a recent report from the Real Estate Board of New York, activity in the NYC market settled in the first half of 2016, countering the heightened activity seen throughout last year. Citywide sales of commercial properties and residential rental buildings slowed in the first half 2016, with the total value of sales decreasing 20% from a year earlier to $29.5 billion. The number of deals fell by 19% to 2,581.
• Sree Sreenivasan has been named New York City’s Chief Digital Officer. Previously, Sreenivasan oversaw a 70-person team expanding digital efforts at the Metropolitan Museum of the Art.

• New NYU Furman Center “Report on Homeownership & Opportunity in New York City” finds roughly half of NYC homes are unaffordable to most households. While roughly half of the city’s households (51%) earn $55,000 or less annually, they could afford just 9% of 2014 home sales, the report states. Households earning up to $114,000 annually could only afford 42% of home sales in the city.