A new report describes the path to social housing in New York through 20 policy proposals, from overhauling the property tax code and abolishing the city’s tax lien sale to cracking down on landlord violations and boosting public funding for tenant organizing.
“Public land is a treasure that we need to maximize for truly affordable housing,” said Councilmember Lincoln Restler, whose new bill would preventing the city from selling off land to private, for-profit developers unless no qualified nonprofit group makes an offer.
“The governor and New York State Legislature should begin a process of discarding all property tax abatements that primarily serve the interests of landlords and developers (not tenants), and end the patchwork of other taxes required to make up the subsequent lost revenue from them.”
” We propose a new hybrid financing model that would combine a land value tax (LVT) and community land trusts (CLTs) to address New York’s changing fiscal environment as well as the housing needs of working families.”
The Community Opportunity to Purchase Act (COPA) has the backing of organizations that preserve affordable housing, but has encountered criticism from the real estate industry and skepticism from city housing officials.
Kathy Hochul’s first State of the State proposal included sweeping plans for affordable housing, free legal assistance for low-income tenants and sending social workers into the subways to conduct homeless outreach. But the governor failed to address other high-profile issues, like the end of pandemic eviction protections and the “Good Cause” eviction bill.
“Part of it is a little sad. I’m looking at all these statistics—the rates of rent-burdened residents, the poor housing conditions. When you see it in print, it makes it stand out and you see the severity of the situation,” one student said.
Resisting budget cuts is just part of the plan, they say. Changing how the housing market works is the deeper goal.
The de Blasio administration has shown some openness to community land trusts, which offer a promising new approach to providing affordable housing in New York City. Now the Council is being called on to fund next steps.
A report recommends using the revenue from tax-increment financing to fund community land trusts.
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