New York City scaffolding, sidewalk sheds may come down sooner after City Council vote

The New York City Council voted unanimously on Wednesday to "shed the sheds," setting time limits to remove scaffolding and sidewalk sheds that have blanketed parts of the city, sometimes for years.

Council members voted 49-0 on a package of scaffolding regulations, including reducing the time allowed for scaffolding permits from one year to three months, unless it is part of a building’s construction, demolition or renovation, city council officials said.

The resolutions were sent to Mayor Eric Adams to sign into law and are set to go into effect in 90 days, 

"These eyesores were crowding our sidewalks, stifling our small businesses, and darkening our city; it was time for something to change," Adams said in a statement on Wednesday. "These revitalized rules will help the New York City Department of Buildings remove unsightly scaffolding and ensure that sidewalks sheds are safer, more secure, and more visually appealing when they go up for a limited amount of time."

City officials said there were more than 8,400 scaffolding structures in the city, predominantly in Manhattan, which had been up on average for 500 days. Officials said 334 scaffolding setups had been up for more than five years.

The package of scaffolding bills, introduced by council members Keith Powers and Erik Bottcher, calls for a study on new sidewalk designs to be submitted to the council by September, and raises the minimum height to 12 feet with better LED lighting. It also requires more frequent inspections.

The law increases enforcement and penalties on building owners, depending on the age and size of scaffolding. Building owners must show proof of work done when renewing a scaffolding permit, according to the bill.

"For too long, our city has been covered in over 400 miles of ugly, dingy scaffolding that impacts the experience of everyday New Yorkers, small business owners, and people coming to visit our city," Powers said in a statement. "It doesn’t have to be this way, and this package of legislation puts forward reforms to fundamentally change our approach to scaffolding while ensuring safety is still the top priority."

Repairs under the law must be completed within two years, with additional requirements to submit construction documents and permits. Building owners may request extensions, but the building department could continue accumulating fines while an extension is being considered, based on the building’s size and proof of delays.

"What was meant to be a temporary safety measure has become a symbol of dysfunction on our streets," Bottcher said in a statement. "This is about restoring beauty, safety, and common sense to our sidewalks. It’s about proving that in New York City, we don’t have to live with problems just because they’ve always been there."

By John Asbury

john.asbury@newsday.comJohnAsbury

John Asbury is a breaking news and general assignment reporter. He has been with Newsday since 2014 and previously worked at The Press-Enterprise in Riverside, California.