Mayor Mamdani Nominates Housing Policy Leader John Mangin as Chair of the Board of Standards and Appeals

Today, Mayor Zohran Kwame Mamdani announced the nomination of John Mangin as Chair of the Board of Standards and Appeals (BSA). Mangin currently serves as Director of the Housing Division at the Department of City Planning, where he has played a leading role in many of the City’s most significant housing and land-use initiatives over the past decade.

“We are leaving no stone unturned and no body of government untapped in our work to deliver for New Yorkers. John Mangin has spent his career advancing the housing solutions our city needs and I am proud to nominate him to lead the BSA at a moment when we must move faster to build the affordable homes New Yorkers deserve,” said Mayor Mamdani.

“John Mangin is uniquely qualified to lead the BSA as we work to create more affordable housing across the city. I know he will bring his deep knowledge of the city’s housing and land use policy to the position, and I am excited about the prospect of working with him in this new role,” said Leila Bozorg, Deputy Mayor for Housing and Planning.

“It’s an honor to be nominated by Mayor Mamdani to chair the BSA. The housing crisis calls for urgency, and the BSA plays a crucial role in an active, all-of-government approach to build a more affordable city. I hope to work with colleagues at the BSA and in the administration, the City Council, and stakeholders across the city to uphold the responsibilities of this role,” said John Mangin, BSA chair nominee.

At the Department of City Planning, Mangin led the development of City of Yes for Housing Opportunity, a landmark package of citywide zoning reforms designed to create “a little more housing in every neighborhood.” He also helped develop Mandatory Inclusionary Housing and neighborhood plans across the five boroughs.

Mangin previously served as Director of Policy and Research for the 2025 Charter Revision Commission, which proposed the most significant changes to the City’s land-use review process since 1989. Before joining City government, he advanced fair housing policy and litigation at Fair Share Housing in New Jersey. He is also an Adjunct Associate Professor of Urban Planning at the NYU Wagner Graduate School of Public Service and a graduate of Yale Law School.

The BSA is an independent five-member board that reviews zoning matters and grants variances for certain types of development. In 2025, New York City voters approved the creation of a new Affordable Housing Fast Track action, allowing the BSA to approve certain affordable housing proposals.