New Yorkers voted in favor of five ballot proposals selected by Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s handpicked commission that will rewrite City Hall’s rulebook, including measures to speed up approvals for street safety projects and outdoor dining sheds.
The proposals were developed by the 15-member Commission on Government Efficiency, or COGE, appointed by Mamdani after he opted to dissolve the charter commission left by his predecessor former Mayor Eric Adams.
Mamdani said he voted yes on all five — but some neighborhood groups opposed all of them — with the United Neighbors of Prospect and Crown Heights issuing a statement that it “cannot support changes to the City Charter that further restrict or block public participation.”
“Our elected officials should not be willing to trade in ‘so called efficiency’ for democracy when it silences their constituents,” another local advocacy group, Brooklyn for All of Us, said.
Proposal 1 – Passed
Outdoor dining and public space. This proposal makes public hearings optional for permits covering sidewalk cafes, ramps and other uses of public space and removes the Council’s ability to veto sidewalk cafes.
Instead it gives local officials 15 days to comment.
Government watchdog groups have differing opinions with Reinvent Albany saying it supported the simplified approvals process, while Common Cause New York was against losing Council and community oversight.
The vote passed with over 63% of the vote at roughly 89% reporting.
Proposal 2 – Passed
City contracts. This charter change would let the city’s contracting officials change contractor questionnaires, require quarterly meetings of the city’s contracting policy board and allow certain mayoral approvals be handled by agency staff.
It eliminates a public hearing on agencies’ social service contracting plans and, starting in 2030, the board could raise or lower the $100,000 cutoff that determines which contracts require public comment.
The proposal passed Tuesday with over 61% of ‘yes’ votes at roughly 89% reporting.
Proposal 3 – Passed
Streets, city property and offices. The proposal would give the Department of Transportation significant leeway to start projects like bike and bus lanes before presenting them to local community boards, if the agency’s boss decides there is “risk of significant injury.”
The DOT instead would just have to make “best efforts” to notify local officials and brief community boards.
It also removes the requirement for DOT to consult with local firehouses and says a street project cannot be thrown out simply because DOT failed to consult another city agency.
These changes have attracted scrutiny with neighborhoods groups protesting, saying the changes would jeopardize safety and remove community power.
The proposal also shifts final approval of certain city property sales and leases from the City Council to the City Planning Commission, including deals that let developers buy unused building rights from city-owned landmarks to make buildings on other sites taller or larger.
Bronx Councilman Eric Dinowitz, a Democrat, opposed the loss of community power.
“Communities deserve a voice in changes to their neighborhoods. Proposal 3 weakens existing requirements for community input and oversight, and no current or future mayor should be given even more authority to disregard the voices of the people most directly impacted by these projects.”
Reinvent Albany backed faster street improvements but objected to making the proposal so broad by bundling it with the real estate changes.
Proposal 3 passed with nearly 62% approval and over 90% reporting.
Proposal 4 – Passed
Building permits. This proposal calls for one online place to apply for construction permits from different city agencies.
It also moves waterfront construction oversight from Small Business Services to the Department of Buildings and lets more deputy and borough commissioners approve building paperwork.
Common Cause and Reinvent Albany supported it, but Brooklyn for All of Us and United Neighbors of Prospect and Crown Heights opposed it.
The proposal passed with roughly 68% of the vote with over 90% reporting.
Proposal 5- Passed
Emergency savings goals. This charter change would set a reserve “goal” for the mayor to set aside at least 12% of the previous year’s tax revenue in the city’s rainy day fund or other reserves.
Deposits would follow a new city written formula and budget approval process, but it doesn’t guarantee the savings.
Common Cause supported it, but Reinvent Albany said it leaves too much room for City Hall to avoid putting money away.
Mamdani’s promotion of the five ballot proposals has drawn scrutiny.
His videos appeared on LinkNYC kiosks as part of a $1.6 million campaign that Councilman Phil Wong wants investigated for possible taxpayer-funded electioneering.
City Hall called it voter education and said it consulted city lawyers.
Voters approved proposal 5 at 72.3% with over 90% reporting.
https://nypost.com/2026/11/03/us-news/nyc-voters-approve-all-five-ballot-proposals-tuesday/
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