The New York City Council has approved zoning changes in Manhattan�s garment district to allow more space for use by a variety of businesses, while boosting what�s left of apparel production in a neighborhood that once clothed many Americans.

Council members voted unanimously Thursday in favor of easing a 1987 rule that required landlords to lease a certain amount of square footage to the fashion industry . They�ll now be able to convert more buildings into office space � an acknowledgment of the dwindling number of clothing workshops.

But landlords setting aside at least 25,000 square feet for garment manufacturers� long-term leases will get a tax break. And the city will use $20 million to acquire a building dedicated to clothes production at below-market rents. A grant program will be expanded to buy new equipment.

Democratic Mayor Bill de Blasio said the Council�s action ensures that the area just south of Times Square � from about West 35th to West 40th streets and from Broadway to Ninth Avenue � �will continue to thrive as a mixed-use neighborhood.�

Also planned is a 200,000-square-foot clothing production hub in Brooklyn�s Sunset Park.

In recent years, China has absorbed much of the U.S. apparel production, leaving only several thousand garment workers in the Manhattan neighborhood and a lot of empty space that had been zoned specifically for such work. New boutique hotels, chic restaurants and commercial offices have moved in � some with short-term leases uncertain how long they could stay while the city considered the outdated zoning requirements.

The 1987 zoning reserved about 4 million square feet in the district�s high-rises for apparel businesses. Today�s garment workshops occupy only an estimated 700,000 square feet, according to the city�s Economic Development Corp.

Barbara Blair, president of the Garment District Alliance, a not-for-profit representing fashion businesses, thanked property owners �for playing a critical role in developing a plan that would preserve apparel manufacturing while positioning our neighborhood for continued growth.�

Current garment workshops tend to serve higher-end designers compared to those going back more than a century, filled with elbow-to-elbow, underpaid workers who toiled long hours.

(AP)