Int. No.
By Council Member Wong
A Local Law in relation to a cool pavements pilot program for parks and playgrounds under the jurisdiction of the department of parks and recreation
Be it enacted by the Council as follows:
Section 1. a. Definitions. For purposes of this section, the following terms have the following meanings:
Cool pavement. The term “cool pavement” means pavement or pavement coatings that are designed to reduce pavement or ambient air temperatures.
Department. The term “department” means the department of parks and recreation.
Heat vulnerable community. The term “heat vulnerable community” means a neighborhood tabulation area: (i) that is in the top 40 percent of neighborhood tabulation areas for daytime summer surface temperature, as used by the department of health and mental hygiene for the report on heat vulnerability and heat-related deaths pursuant to section 17-199.14 of the administrative code of the city of New York; and (ii) where the median income of a household in such tabulation area is no more than 80 percent of the local median income.
Hyperlocal temperature monitoring. The term “hyperlocal temperature monitoring” means monitoring and measuring of hourly average temperature on a block-by-block basis.
Local median income. The term “local median income” means the median household income for New York city according to American community survey data for the year 2025, as published by the United States census bureau.
Neighborhood tabulation area. The term “neighborhood tabulation area” means a geographical area defined by the department of city planning for the purposes of providing neighborhood-level data.
b. No later than July 1, 2027, the department, in consultation with the department of environmental protection, department of health and mental hygiene, department of transportation and the office of long-term planning and sustainability, shall commence a 2-year pilot project for the use of cool pavement within a park or playground under the jurisdiction of the department in at least 3 heat vulnerable communities in each borough. As part of such pilot project, the department shall conduct hyperlocal temperature monitoring in the areas immediately adjacent to each selected park or playground and assess no less than 2 types of cool pavement, including the technical feasibility, environmental impacts, and costs of each such type. The department shall post on its website and submit to the mayor and the speaker of the council a report on the results of the pilot project no later than October 1, 2029.
§ 2. This local law takes effect immediately.
Session 14
KS
LS # 259
3-10-26
Session 13
LS # 259
1/19/24