NYC's New Zoning Laws to Promote Greener Buildings

I've been involved in many a conversation about how planning can directly influence the sustainability and efficiency of actual buildings. Do you mandate minimum greenstars? Do you allow developers to build taller buildings if they feature more sustainable features? Do you allowed levels of car parking to 'force' people to find alternatives? It's complicated, and it involves some pretty serious market regulation. 

Anyway, NYC has been finding that its existing zoning laws have been actively discouraging those wishing to install/construct more sustainable buildings and features. They are now proposing city-wide changes that do things such as allow for solar panels to exceed height limits and allow thicker, more insulating walls to be constructed and allowing some serious windmill heights atop buildings. 

Does anyone with some expertise in sustainability and our current planning scheme believe we need similar changes?

Read on.