Neighborhood Support Teams

Mayor Adams is calling upon community boards, community-based organizations, council members and  business improvement districts to submit a Request for Expressions of Interest for the development of a Neighborhood Support Teams (NST).  The RFEI package should include a detailed description of the Quality-of-Life problems facing each community including but not limited to geographical area, a description of the problem, and previous mitigation history, as well as additional community stakeholders supporting the creation of a NST. 

Neighborhood Support Teams will work with existing city resources in addressing quality of life issues in specific geographic areas over the course of one year. NSTs use the insights and ideas of local communities to develop a creative strategy for addressing the identified quality of life concerns. 

 

Background and Overview

Local Law 102 requires the city to develop a list of no fewer than three (3) geographic areas that would benefit from interagency collaboration in addressing issues such as sanitation services, transportation, social service needs, public health issues, and public safety concerns. Including concerns about graffiti, road and sidewalk quality, street cleanliness, noise pollution, public space issues, and equal access to city services or community centers. Support teams will work within existing city resources to address quality of life issues in select geographic areas.  

This Request For Expressions of Interest (RFEI) is designed to draw on the insights of community stakeholders to better understand the specific quality of life issues affecting New York City’s neighborhoods. RFEI’s will include a written form and may have other components such as additional documentation including news articles, stakeholder interviews, community meetings and/or objective observations of the conditions in the relevant communities. Each RFEI will be evaluated on its merits and scored based on objective criteria, to be determined by the city. Sample criteria may include: the comprehensiveness and complexity of the issue, whether addressing this issue would promote equal access to public resources and services, whether there have been prior attempts to address these concerns, and the level of community buy-in. 

The city will then choose no less than 3 RFEI’s per year. Additionally, there will be no more than three applications selected per Borough of the RFEI’s submitted to receive neighborhood support teams. Each team will consist of the appropriate city agencies and community members and will develop and execute plans to address quality of life conditions identified by the support team. The city reserves the right to conclude that none of the proposals are feasible and to select locations and Neighborhood Support Teams through an alternative method. 

Neighborhood Support Teams will work to create and execute a one-year action plan for each stakeholder. At the end of one year, the support team will determine any relevant next steps, though in all cases support teams will aim to establish a sustainable, community-driven framework for continued city agency responses. Support team recommendations are advisory. City services will be offered subject to agency review, budgets, and the resources required to correct identified conditions. 

Program Details

2024 Program Timeline

2024	Neighborhood Support Team Timeline
2/12/24	Request for Expressions of Interest Released.
Ongoing	The city will respond to questions received from interested parties/potential applicants.
4/04/2024	Expressions of Interest Due.
4/05 - 4/19	The City will review / select RFEI applications.
5/06/2024	Selection of Neighborhood Support Teams to be announced.

Who can submit an expression of interest?

Submissions for RFEI’s can come from Community Boards, Council Members, or Business Improvement Districts, with no more than one application per entity. We encourage these groups to gather input and information from local stakeholders and to work with other interest groups when drafting their submission. 

Submissions must list a contact person to serve as the community liaison to work with the city in order to further evaluate an area or convene stakeholder interviews or community meetings. The city’s preference is a community liaison with a demonstrated outreach ability that can assist in identifying and engaging local stakeholders. 

Any applicant who previously submitted and was accepted in the prior stakeholder of RFEI’s will not be considered until one RFEI cycle after their application was accepted. 

What types of issues and areas qualify?

Identified issues should affect a significant cross section of the community and must cover a geographic area no smaller than three contiguous blocks and no larger than a Community District. 

Submissions should identify issues that can be addressed at the city level and that require city services as a core part of the solution. Issues should impact multiple community stakeholders and require coordination amongst several agencies to be addressed comprehensively and effectively. 

While we recognize that the availability of affordable housing, access to transportation, and job opportunities are paramount to quality of life for individuals and families, these issues are currently being addressed as a priority at a citywide level. To avoid duplication of efforts the Neighborhood Support Teams will be focused primarily on issues impacting the neighborhood experience on a more local level. 

What does it mean to have a Neighborhood Support Team (NST)?

The areas selected to receive neighborhood support teams will be announced on May 06, 2024.   NSTs will consist of relevant city agency staff and community stakeholders. The exact composition of the support teams will depend on the information received in response to the submitted RFEIs. 

NSTs will work within the community to clearly identify and understand the issues and create and execute a one-year action plan. Action plans will utilize existing city resources, and they will vary for each NST depending upon the specific location, the issues identified, and community participation. At the end of one year, support teams will help develop a sustainable, community-driven framework for continued implementation and evaluation by the community stakeholders engaged in the NST program. 

What is the timeline for the support team to start/finish their work?

After the teams are announced, an initial meeting will be convened for each Neighborhood Support Team so that all participants have a shared understanding of the issues and develop an action plan for addressing the concerns. Neighborhood Support Teams will meet based on the availability of all the NST stakeholders. 

The formal work of the support teams will last at least one year, at which point there will be a survey of satisfaction to determine the next steps. In all cases, support teams will aim to establish a sustainable, community-driven framework for continued city agency response. 

Submission Details

Fill out and submit an expression of interest form by April 4, 2024.  Mailed forms must be postmarked by April 4, 2024.   Any responses or amendments to responses received after the deadline will not be considered in the review process. You may submit your form either:

Online (preferred method): Click here to access the form. You will be able to save and return to your application before submitting.

By Email: Click here to download a PDF version of the form. Save a copy to your computer, open the document, and click below the questions to enter your answers. Save it as a PDF and send it back to us via email. Email completed PDF forms to neighborhoodsupport@cityhall.nyc.gov.

For more information, contact: neighborhoodsupport@cityhall.nyc.gov 

Prior Year NST Reports

2017 Report
2018 Report
2019 Report
2020 Report
2021 Report
2022 Report
2023 Report