NYC zoning for AI assistants: lot zoning, FAR, unused floor area, district rules (NYRezone data).
Read-only MCP server that gives AI assistants NYC zoning facts from the public data on NYRezone: which zoning district a tax lot is in, built vs. allowed FAR, lot and building area, an estimated unused floor area, and the rules for each zoning district.
It exposes only data that is already public and unauthenticated. No owner names, no assessed values, no paid report data, no account access.
Requires Node 20+.
npx -y nyrezone-mcp
Add to claude_desktop_config.json:
{
"mcpServers": {
"nyrezone": { "command": "npx", "args": ["-y", "nyrezone-mcp"] }
}
}
claude mcp add nyrezone -- npx -y nyrezone-mcp
All tools are read-only (readOnlyHint: true).
| Tool | Input | Returns |
|---|---|---|
lookup_lot | address (starts with a house number, include the borough) or bbl (10-digit borough-block-lot) | Zoning district(s), overlays and special districts, built FAR vs. maximum FAR, lot area, building area, estimated unused floor area, year built, land use. Ambiguous or unknown input returns an error, never a guess. |
get_zoning_district | code, e.g. R6A, C4-2, M1-2/R6A | FAR, height rules and bonuses as NYRezone publishes them, citywide lot counts, average built FAR. Unknown code returns the list of valid codes. |
list_zoning_districts | optional family, e.g. R6 | The 51 districts NYRezone documents, each with its district-family description. |
Every result ends with a source line (MapPLUTO release as stated by NYRezone, the matching nyrezone.com page, and for lots a Full report link) and a disclaimer.
Not included: a borough-level "underbuilt" summary. NYRezone publishes that only as web pages, not as a data endpoint.
lookup_lot with bbl: "3052410015" returns, in part: zoning R7A, lot area 4,675 sq ft, building area 2,606 sq ft, built FAR 0.56 against a 4.0 residential maximum, and an estimated 16,094 sq ft unused.
maximum FAR x lot area - existing building area, using MapPLUTO's residential FAR (commercial or community-facility FAR if there is no residential FAR). It is a screening number only. It does not account for street width, special districts, overlays, split-zoned lots, mapped streets, or City of Yes / Universal Affordability Preference bonuses. If the building already exceeds the maximum, the tool reports 0 and says the lot is over-built.
/api/pluto, /zoning, /zoning/<code>, /methodology): lot data and district pages. Data is NYC DCP MapPLUTO; the release is read from NYRezone's own methodology page.geosearch.planninglabs.nyc): used only to turn a street address into a BBL, because NYRezone has no address endpoint. This is the one third-party host; the address you ask about is sent to it. BBL lookups and district lookups never contact it.The owner name and owner type that NYRezone's lot API returns are dropped in this server and never appear in a tool result.
User-Agent (nyrezone-mcp/<version> (+repo URL)).Informational only. Not legal, architectural, or zoning-compliance advice. Confirm with the NYC Department of City Planning or a licensed professional before relying on it. Not affiliated with the City of New York.
npm install
npm test # builds, then runs node:test against recorded fixtures (no live network)
Fixtures in fixtures/ are recorded public responses; the lot fixtures keep the raw owner fields on purpose so the tests prove they are dropped. Environment variables NYREZONE_MCP_BASE_URL, NYREZONE_MCP_GEOSEARCH_URL and NYREZONE_MCP_MIN_INTERVAL_MS exist for the end-to-end test only.
MIT. See LICENSE.
Source-derived launch command. Check the maintainer’s required arguments and credentials before running:
npx -y nyrezone-mcpMerge this template into ~/Library/Application Support/Claude/claude_desktop_config.json. Keep existing servers. Add any arguments, credentials, and permissions required by the maintainer; this template has not been install-tested.
{
"mcpServers": {
"io-github-gbrussich52-nyrezone-mcp": {
"command": "npx",
"args": [
"-y",
"nyrezone-mcp"
]
}
}
}Restart Claude Desktop completely for changes to take effect. Confirm the server appears connected in the client’s tool list, then try a read-only example from its documentation.
Claude Desktop setup referencenyrezone-mcpnpmio.github.gbrussich52/nyrezone-mcp works with any MCP-compatible client. Copy the config snippet from the Configuration section above and add it to the file shown for your client, then restart the application.
~/Library/Application Support/Claude/claude_desktop_config.jsonRestart Claude Desktop completely for changes to take effect.~/.cursor/mcp.jsonRestart Cursor for changes to take effect..vscode/mcp.jsonReload VS Code window for changes to take effect.~/.codeium/windsurf/mcp_config.jsonRestart Windsurf for changes to take effect..mcp.jsonSave at the project root, then start Claude Code in that project and review the MCP server approval prompt. Keep real credentials out of shared files.