Who This Helps: Forest Hills, Kew Gardens, Rego Park, Middle Village and Maspeth residents in Queens; East Side and Midtown South residents in Manhattan; anyone who has wondered how a local zoning vote or a new bike lane actually gets decided in this city.
Two of New York’s most active community boards just spent the past two weeks working through votes that will shape building heights, liquor licenses, summer Open Streets and millions in capital budget asks. If you have ever stood at a Queens Boulevard intersection thinking somebody should fix this, or watched a 21-story building rise on your block in Manhattan and wondered who signed off, the answer almost always passes through one of these 59 unpaid neighborhood boards first.
Here is what Queens Community Board 6 and Manhattan Community Board 6 just decided, what is on their committee agendas in early June 2026, and exactly how to walk into a meeting and be heard.
Queens CB6: Rezoning Votes in Forest Hills, a Summer Open Street, and a New Civics Scorecard
Queens Community Board 6 covers Forest Hills, Kew Gardens, Rego Park, Middle Village and parts of Maspeth. The board met on Wednesday, May 13, 2026 at 7:00 p.m. at Queens Borough Hall, 120-55 Queens Boulevard (2nd Floor), Kew Gardens, with a hybrid Zoom option. Three things worth knowing from that agenda, verified directly from the board’s published meeting notice:
1. Two Forest Hills Rezonings on the Docket — One Got Delayed
The agenda included two ULURP (Uniform Land Use Review Procedure) votes that have been making local Forest Hills news for months:
- 69-67 108th Street — A zoning map amendment from R1-2A to R7D/C2-4, plus a zoning text amendment to map Mandatory Inclusionary Housing (MIH), to facilitate a new 11-story mixed-use development with approximately 52,024 square feet of residential space (59 dwelling units) and 3,902 sq ft of commercial space. Applicant: 108 St., LLC. This item was rescheduled to the June meeting due to Department of City Planning certification timing, per the board’s published agenda.
- 108-05 68th Road — A zoning amendment from R1-2A to R7A and a text amendment to facilitate MIH, for a new seven-story mixed-use development with approximately 41,239 sq ft of residential space (29 dwelling units) and 11,519 sq ft of community facility space. Applicant: All My Children Daycare and Nursery School.
If you live within a few blocks of either site, the June meeting is where the rescheduled 108th Street vote will be heard. Public testimony is permitted; details below.
2. A Summer Open Street for Austin Street
The board considered an Open Street application for Austin Street between 71st Avenue and 71st Road, requesting Sunday closures from August 30 through September 20, 2026, 9:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. Open Streets applications routinely sail through or get rejected at CB6 — and the board’s recommendation is the major factor DOT considers before signing off.
3. A New “Better Public Meetings Scorecard”
The May 13 agenda included a presentation from the National Civic League’s “Better Public Meetings Scorecard” project, in partnership with the City Engagement Commission (CEC) and CB6. Translation: Queens CB6 is being audited on how accessible and useful its own meetings are. If you have shown up to one and felt confused, this is the moment to share that with the board.
How to Take Action: Queens CB6
- Next meeting: Wednesday, June 10, 2026, 7:00 p.m., Queens Borough Hall, 120-55 Queens Boulevard (2nd Floor), Kew Gardens, NY 11424.
- To speak (public testimony): Email QN06@cb.nyc.gov or call 718-263-9250 by 3:00 p.m. on the day of the meeting. All speakers get 2 minutes. Specify if you need to give comments remotely.
- Watch on Zoom: Connection details are published on the meeting notice each month.
- Watch the recording: Meetings are posted to the CB6 YouTube channel approximately 5 days after the meeting.
- Sign language interpreters: Contact CB6 five business days in advance at QN06@cb.nyc.gov.
- Verify the agenda: nyc.gov/site/queenscb6/meetings/meeting-agendas.page
Manhattan CB6: Cannabis Reviews, Park Avenue Vision, and the East Midtown Greenway in Focus
Manhattan Community Board 6 covers Murray Hill, Kips Bay, Gramercy, Stuyvesant Town, Peter Cooper Village, Sutton Place, Tudor City, Turtle Bay and the United Nations area. Six different CB6 committees have scheduled meetings between June 1 and June 17, 2026, and each one has a published agenda — verified directly from cbsix.org.
The June Committee Calendar at a Glance
- Transportation Committee — Monday, June 1 at 7:00 p.m. Agenda includes a DOT report, continued discussion on the Park Avenue Vision Project, expanded work hours for the Kips Bay Water Main Project (MED 607), street co-naming criteria, and traffic conditions at East 23rd Street and Second Avenue.
- Parks & Cultural Affairs — Tuesday, June 2 at 6:30 p.m. Presentations on the 2026 NYC Urban Forest Plan and Scandinavia House programming, plus a Parks Department report.
- Business Affairs & Licensing — Wednesday, June 3 at 6:30 p.m. Includes a notable agenda item: discussion of CB6’s role in reviewing Community Impact Plans for cannabis licenses — a process that has been a source of confusion citywide since adult-use retail rolled out.
- Public Safety & Sanitation — Thursday, June 4 at 6:30 p.m.
- Budget & Governmental Affairs — Monday, June 8 at 6:30 p.m. Continued discussion of cost and availability of insurance for residential properties.
- Full Board Meeting — Wednesday, June 10 at 7:00 p.m. Held at the Lewis Davis Pavilion, 25 Waterside Plaza.
- Health, Education & Environment — Thursday, June 11 at 6:30 p.m. NYU Langone presents on heat stroke and how to deal with summer heat, plus FY 2028 budget asks for water, sewers, and environmental protection.
- Housing & Homelessness — Monday, June 15 at 6:30 p.m. NYC Department of Housing Preservation and Development presents on affordable housing; continued discussion of the future of the 30th Street Men’s Shelter site.
- Executive — Wednesday, June 17 at 6:30 p.m. Reviews July agendas.
Why CB6 Manhattan Matters Even If You Do Not Live There
Several CB6 committee items will set citywide precedents:
- The cannabis Community Impact Plan conversation will influence how every Manhattan and outer-borough community board reviews future retail cannabis licenses.
- The 30th Street Men’s Shelter site debate has been a flashpoint between the city’s Department of Social Services and local residents, and CB6’s position is being watched by housing advocates and shelter providers.
- The residential insurance availability discussion at Budget & Governmental Affairs is an early indicator of how property insurance availability and climate risk are working their way through city policy.
How to Take Action: Manhattan CB6
- Most committee meetings: 211 East 43rd Street, Suite 1404, hybrid with Zoom. Space is limited in person — Zoom is recommended.
- Full Board: Wednesday, June 10, 2026, 7:00 p.m. at the Lewis Davis Pavilion, 25 Waterside Plaza.
- To speak at Full Board: Complete the CB6 public-comment registration form before 7:15 p.m. on the night of the meeting. Speakers may not use the time for commercial solicitation or electioneering.
- Office contact: 211 East 43rd Street, Suite 1404, New York, NY 10017. Phone: 212-319-3750. Email: info@cbsix.org.
- Zoom registration links are published per-committee at cbsix.org/meetings-calendar.
- Watch live or archived: CB6 YouTube channel.
What Community Boards Actually Do (And What They Cannot Do)
Every neighborhood in New York City sits inside one of 59 community board districts. Each board has up to 50 unpaid members appointed by the borough president, with half of those recommended by City Council members. Boards review land use applications, liquor license applications, capital budget priorities, and Open Streets and Open Restaurants applications. They issue advisory opinions — which the city is required to consider, but not required to follow.
What that means practically: a CB6 “no” on a rezoning will not kill a project, but it carries real weight at City Planning and City Council. A CB6 “yes” on an Open Streets application is almost always determinative. And a CB6 testimony moment can put a constituent issue in front of a council member’s staff faster than almost any other channel.
If you have been waiting to engage, the next four weeks are an unusually clean entry point — the agendas are public, the topics are concrete, and both boards have published exactly how to walk in the door.
Sources Used for This Article
- Queens CB6 May 13, 2026 meeting agenda (PDF): nyc.gov/assets/queenscb6/pdf/2026/CB6-Meeting-Agenda-May-13-2026-V2.pdf
- Queens CB6 meeting agendas index: nyc.gov/site/queenscb6/meetings/meeting-agendas.page
- Manhattan CB6 meetings calendar: cbsix.org/meetings-calendar/
- NYC Community Boards directory: nyc.gov/site/cau/community-boards
Tip: Each community board publishes its agenda 5–10 days before each meeting. Bookmark your board’s calendar page — it is the single best way to know what is being decided on your block before it gets decided.
