2023 ECONOMIC OUTLOOK
POLITICS
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Investment in housing, infrastructure among priorities for elected officials
Watch for progress in 2023 on promises to reduce crime, build more affordable housing and offer clarity on congestion pricing for the MTA
Adams doubles down on crime
Fighting crime will continue to be a top priority for the administration of Mayor Eric Adams in 2023. CompStat crime indicators, reported monthly by the NYPD, could reflect whether he's found the right approach.
Amid concerns about crime rates in the city, Adams, with the support of Gov. Kathy Hochul, launched a plan in October to increase the police presence on subway platforms. The joint plan adds around 1,200 additional overtime officer shifts per day.
In addition to the subway plan, Adams issued a directive in November that tasked city police, emergency medical responders and outreach workers with transporting residents with severe mental illness to hospitals for psychiatric evaluations. The public safety effects of that directive — and the potential strain on social services — may manifest more clearly this year. — Shelby Rosenberg
Mayoral Photography Office, Office of Governor Kathy Hochul
Reducing crime will be a top priority for Mayor Eric Adams, left, while Governor Kathy Hochul, right, will focus on creating more affordable housing.
Hochul lays her chips on affordable housing
At the New York Housing Conference in December, Gov. Kathy Hochul affirmed that affordable housing creation would top her list of priorities in 2023.
"We have to accept the fact that we are once again staring down a crisis that could potentially block families from realizing their dreams," she said. "But this time, it's not because of a lack of jobs. The jobs are here. But the housing is not."
Barbara Denham, an analyst with Oxford Economics, says average rents and purchase prices found in broker reports will be an indicator of how effective Hochul's efforts are at making housing more affordable in the state.
New Yorkers should also expect to see a push from Hochul to help address the Metropolitan Transportation Authority's $1.9 billion deficit during the next legislative session. That could come in the form of directing funding to the beleaguered transportation service and finding areas for budget cuts—an effort Hochul told reporters her office had already begun working on. — S.R.
Clarity ahead on congestion pricing
Like it or not, congestion pricing is on the way.
The Federal Highway Administration is expected to decide this year on whether the controversial toll on drivers entering Manhattan south of 60th Street can take shape or if the matter requires additional study. Either way, it will be a big year for the tolling plan and the Metropolitan Transportation Authority, which plans to sell $15 billion in bonds against the expected $1 billion in annual revenue.
"It continues to be an uphill battle," said Lisa Daglian, executive director of the Permanent Citizens Advisory Committee to the MTA. "We're hopefully in the last leg of that journey where we'll hear from the federal government and get to the next steps."
The city's car commuters, taxi drivers and truckers, who are all holding their breath for what the tolling plan could mean for them, will finally get some measure of clarity. — Caroline Spivack
Federal 'green' infrastructure spending will seed big projects
A number of high-profile green energy and infrastructure projects hang in the balance this year, with the state primed to receive an influx of federal funding to help reduce New York's carbon footprint.
Robert Freudenberg, the vice president of energy and environment at the Regional Plan Association, sees 2023 as a potentially "monumental year" for the city and state.
"We're going to see a bunch of federal dollars flow from the Inflation Reduction Act and the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, so it'll be interesting to see what projects come out of those dollars, how things get allocated: energy efficiency, building electrification, electric vehicle charging infrastructure, even offshore wind ports and resiliency projects could see some action," Freudenberg said. "There's a lot that'll start to play out in 2023." — C.S.
Off-shore wind development picks up
After years of delays, New York is entering an offshore wind boom.
The state's first offshore wind farm-South Fork Wind, east of Long Island-broke ground in 2022 and is expected to come online this year. Gov. Kathy Hochul has sought to keep that momentum going by seeking a third round of developer proposals for offshore wind to power at least 1.5 million homes. The effort includes the first phase of a $500 million investment in offshore wind ports, manufacturing and supply-chain infrastructure unveiled in the governor's 2022 State of the State address.
The solicitation, which is being administered by the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority, will award a spate of new projects at the start of the year and execute contracts by the second quarter to feed the industry's burgeoning pipeline of projects. — C.S.
