# NYC Land Use (PLUTO) AI Agent Connect

> NYC Land Use (PLUTO) MCP gives your AI client direct access to New York City's official land-record system. You can pull specific tax lot details, search by zoning or address, and track record changes across the city's 850,000 lots. It handles the complex BBL formatting and float storage for you, so you can focus on the data.

## Overview
- **Category:** government-public-data
- **Price:** Free
- **Endpoint:** https://edge.vinkius.com/vk_preview_vuU61IrNknwqvwVvAEd94hmoAkoZmNLFKLBoVniH/ai-agent-connect
- **Tags:** new-york, nyc, pluto, zoning, tax-lot, land-use, building-class, assessments

## Description

You can now query the official PLUTO land-record system directly through your AI client. This MCP provides a way to interact with NYC's massive database of approximately 850,000 tax lots without needing to manage API keys or complex data parsing. Whether you are looking up a specific building's zoning or searching for all one-family dwellings in a specific ZIP code, your agent handles the heavy lifting. It automatically manages BBL (Borough-Block-Lot) formatting, stripping hyphens and converting float values so your queries don't fail. You can also pull the PLUTO change file to see exactly how specific records have been updated, including old and new values and the reason for the change. This makes it a reliable tool for anyone needing real-time, official land-use information for urban planning or real estate analysis.

## Tools

### count_tax_lots
This tool provides a fast count of NYC PLUTO tax lots that match your specific filters. Use it to quickly see how many results exist before you pull a full list.

### lookup_tax_lot
This tool retrieves a full PLUTO record for a specific tax lot using its BBL. It automatically handles hyphenated BBLs and the float storage format used by the city.

### search_pluto_changes
This tool searches the PLUTO change file for specific record updates. You can filter by BBL, changed field, change type, reason, or the specific PLUTO version.

### search_tax_lots
This tool searches the PLUTO database using filters like borough, community district, ZIP code, zoning, building class, land use, or street address.

### top_land_use
This tool returns a list of the most common land-use codes across NYC or within a specific community district.

## Prompt Examples

**Prompt:** 
```
What is zoned and built on tax lot 4-08786-0042?
```

**Response:** 
```
The lookup_tax_lot tool returns the full PLUTO record for BBL 4-08786-0042, including the zoning district, building class, land use, owner, lot/building areas, unit counts, year built, assessments, and coordinates.
```

**Prompt:** 
```
How many one-family dwelling lots are in community district 413?
```

**Response:** 
```
Using count_tax_lots with community district 413 and land use 1, the tool identifies the total number of one-family dwelling lots in that district.
```

**Prompt:** 
```
What changed in PLUTO for lot 1-00001-0301?
```

**Response:** 
```
The search_pluto_changes tool retrieves the specific field-level changes for BBL 1-00001-0301, showing the old and new values, the change type, the reason, and the PLUTO version applied.
```

## Capabilities

### BBL Normalization
Your agent can pass BBLs with or without hyphens and the MCP handles the formatting automatically.

### Filtered Lot Searching
The AI can find specific properties using ZIP codes, zoning districts, or street addresses.

### Data Change Tracking
Your agent can query the change file to see historical updates to specific tax lot records.

### Land Use Aggregation
The AI can rank land-use codes to identify common property types in specific areas.

### Rapid Result Sizing
The AI can use a fast count tool to determine the scale of a search before retrieving full data sets.

## Use Cases

### Property Due Diligence
An agent can quickly pull the year built, unit counts, and zoning for a specific BBL to assist in property evaluation.

### Neighborhood Analysis
You can ask your agent to find all lots with a specific land use code within a certain ZIP code.

### Audit Record Changes
Use the change file tool to see why a specific field in a tax lot record was updated.

### Zoning Verification
Verify the exact zoning district for a street address to ensure compliance with local regulations.

## Benefits

- No API keys are required to access NYC Open Data.
- BBL formatting is handled automatically by the MCP.
- Direct access to 850,000 tax lot records.
- The change file allows for precise tracking of record corrections.

## How It Works

Connecting to this MCP gives your AI client immediate access to the PLUTO database.

1. Connect your AI client to the NYC Land Use MCP via Vinkius.
2. Ask your agent a question about a specific BBL, address, or zoning district.
3. The MCP processes the request and handles any BBL or data type conversions.
4. The tool returns the raw PLUTO data or filtered results directly to your agent.

## Frequently Asked Questions

**Do I need an API key for NYC Open Data?**
No. This MCP provides keyless access to the PLUTO data.

**How does the MCP handle BBLs with hyphens?**
The MCP automatically strips hyphens from BBLs, so you can pass them in any standard format.

**Can I see why a property record was updated?**
Yes. The search_pluto_changes tool provides the reason for changes found in the PLUTO change file.

**What kind of data is included in a tax lot lookup?**
A lookup provides zoning, building class, land use, owner, lot/building areas, unit counts, year built, assessments, and coordinates.

**Can I filter by street address?**
Yes. The search_tax_lots tool allows you to filter by exact street addresses.

**Do I need an API key?**
No. NYC Open Data serves all public datasets anonymously over its SODA API (data.cityofnewyork.us). This MCP defines no credentials and needs nothing configured.

**How are tax lots identified?**
By the 10-digit borough-block-lot code (BBL), e.g. "4-08786-0042". Dashes are optional and stripped. PLUTO itself stores the BBL in a float form, which lookup_tax_lot and search_tax_lots handle for you; the PLUTO change file stores plain digit BBLs, which search_pluto_changes normalizes the same way.

**Which borough values does PLUTO use?**
PLUTO stores boroughs as two-letter codes — MN (Manhattan), BX (Bronx), BK (Brooklyn), QN (Queens), SI (Staten Island). The tools accept the full name ("Manhattan") and convert it to the code automatically; the raw code works too.