LID Endorses "YES" on Ballot Measures 2 - 5
On our local election ballot, New Yorkers have the opportunity to help create more affordable housing in our City by voting YES on ballot proposals 2 through 5. These proposals, the products of a thoughtful Charter Review Commission process, will help make New York’s challenging process for creating affordable housing clearer and easier, and thus help build more affordable homes. We urge you to vote YES on these important proposals.
It is no secret that we have an affordability crisis in our City. We know this crisis isn’t just about creating new affordable housing – protecting tenants from eviction and supporting much-needed renovations to NYCHA housing are absolutely critical as well. In addition, declining federal support for affordable housing construction, preservation, and maintenance is a critical part of the story, as is a wage and labor market structure that increasingly leaves poor and working class New Yorkers behind.
But with all that said, City processes that move too slowly and let exclusionary zoning hold up much-needed affordable housing development are unfortunately a big barrier and one that voters have the power to change with these proposals. Proposal 2 would fast track affordable housing development in order to build more affordable housing across the city, while Proposal 3 would simplify review of modest housing and infrastructure projects, a nod to the fact that the level of review needed for a massive neighborhood change like a massive sports complex should not be the same level as that needed for a four-unit affordable apartment building. Proposal 4 would create an Affordable Housing Appeals Board that will ensure that affordable housing projects blocked through local opposition have a chance to make their case. Proposal 5 would create a digital NYC map that will help modernize City operations and help City staff make more informed decisions about land use, zoning, and more.
Taken together, these initiatives will help move affordable housing development forward at a time when we badly need it. The LGBTQIA+ community faces high levels of housing insecurity and an influx of new arrivals fleeing transphobic and anti-queer policies in other states, and we need to put our efforts to build new housing on hyperdrive to welcome these new arrivals and keep our community housed. Time and time again, we have seen the City walk away from important projects (such as Haven Green in Lower Manhattan, which would have served LGBTQIA+ seniors) due to neighborhood opposition. These proposals offer a chance to move the scales toward affordable housing, and we are pleased to join other progressive leaders like the New Kings Democrats and Borough President Antonio Reynoso in support of these important proposals. We urge a YES vote on Ballot Proposals 2-5.