New York Times reporter Mihir Zaveri, whose recent five-part series explored the city’s housing crisis, appeared on “Mornings On 1” Tuesday to discuss the obstacles shaping New York’s housing landscape, pointing to resistance from neighbors and zoning restrictions as key barriers.

“It's definitely not always been like this,” Zaveri said about the changes in housing. “In the ’70s, ’80s, the city was dealing with disinvestment and very different situations in neighborhoods. Even just a couple years ago, during the pandemic, rents were dropping considerably. But what we're seeing today is really an outgrowth of what's happened over the last several years.”

Zaveri identified community pushback as a major challenge to new apartment construction.

“That's the famous phrase, ‘not in my backyard,’ right?” he said. “Nobody wants their situation to get worse. But when many neighborhoods oppose development, it just means we're all going to have a problem.”

Zoning regulations also complicate development efforts, Zaveri said, citing a stalled project in Brooklyn’s Crown Heights.

“This was a private developer who wanted to build on a vacant lot zoned for industrial uses,” he explained. “To get a zoning change, you have to go through a lengthy bureaucratic process. The neighborhood and the council member basically said, ‘No.’”

However, Zaveri noted that overcoming obstacles is possible. He pointed to a Manhattan project that transformed a city-owned parking lot into affordable housing, despite early resistance from neighbors concerned about traffic and parking.

Turning to other potential solutions, Zaveri emphasized the importance of incentives for developers.

“You need a tax incentive to build rental housing because it’s overtaxed, and you need subsidies to make things very, very affordable,” he said. “If we build a lot more, in time, things will get more affordable for everybody.”