Page two of today’s NY Daily News has two stories about Mayor de Blasio’s increasingly annoying persona.
“Blaz hits denial of building deal” is a story about his anger at the City Council for going along with community wishes. They denied a zoning change that would have allowed a real estate developer to build approximately ten extra stories in a neighborhood currently zoned for 5-8 story buildings. In exchange for the zoning change, the would have provided half of the additional units at reduced rates under the Mayor’s affordable housing program – a plan on which de Blasio has staked a lot of political capital.
The local councilman, Ydanis Rodriguez, was originally in favor of some iteration of the proposal but changed his mind after listening carefully to his northern Manhattan constituents, who felt that the building was out of character for the neighborhood. They also feared it’s construction would heat up area rents, which would then also impact future rent increases for existing affordable housing units. The Council voted 45-0 against the proposal.
The Daily News quotes de Blasio as warning other neighborhoods not to “cut off your nose to spite your face” by turning down affordable housing. The Daily News goes on to quote the mayor:
“They end up with zero affordable units, just luxury housing. Someone tell me why that’s a win for the community.”
The Star-Revue is a community newspaper. We believe good, strong local government that reflects community consensus. We have been blessed with that here in Red Hook since Councilman Menchaca was elected.
The mayor, in his rage at not getting what he wants, seeks to constrain local control to enable his own master plan of a vision for the city, which coincidentally takes financial care of his monied backers as well as giving him a platform for his reelection campaign. Who doesn’t want cheap rent, after all.
We have written in our paper about how the mayor decided not to use his power when it came to the issue of Long Island College Hospital. But he has used his power to ram through the City Council a mandatory inclusionary zoning plan that would enable greater profits for real estate developers in exchange for throwing in some lower cost units – in a system that some say are very loosely regulated.
We would have liked these questions to have been part of the conversation:
1 – How have existing community residents been helped by lottery based affordable housing schemes?
2 – How much should the city grow? Will the outlying boroughs eventually mimic Manhattan’s density? Is there such a thing as too much success?
3 – Can the city survive without the jobs provided by a continuous building boom?
4 – How long before our infrastructure can no longer support our population?
5 – Can the city be made more livable with more rent regulation and less profit for property owners?
6 – Is there a density problem that all citizens are willing to make sacrifices in order to correct?
A second Daily News article, at the top of the page, is headlined “Builders may get tax break.” This story is about the mayor’s reaction to Governor Cuomo’s proposal to restore a version of 421A tax breaks for developers – something that the mayor has been lobbying for himself.
The governor has worked with the Real Estate Board and the trade unions to craft a deal that would require reasonable wages for construction workers on new subsidized projects- with part of the wages being paid by government
“If the state wants to subsidize wage levels for affordable housing, God bless ‘em,” de Blasio is quoted. ”What’s not acceptable to us is to add to the cost of the city’s affordable housing program.”
The mayor – who we have claimed is the instigator of a toxic feud with the governor by publicly demanding the governor approve tax increases to pay for another one of his pet programs – universal Pre-K – is characterized by the Daily News as “tepidly” supporting the governor’s proposal. We have no doubt that were he in charge of these negotiations, and were he to come up with the same plan, he would be trumpeting that same plan all over the media.
Instead, he is willing to raise billions of dollars to pay for a trolley car system serving real estate developers. A plan, whitewashed with an aura of Progressivity, that he could then take credit for.
6 Comments
Just look at the mayor’s first affordable housing rezoning in Gowanus, until the market rate units are rented the affordable units can’t be occupied, and it doesn’t look like the market rate units are renting. Who do they think can pay the 6500 smooth for two bedrooms?
It’s Long Island COLLEGE hospital, not LI Community hospital
(7th paragraph)
Brain freeze! I’ll fix it Monday when I’m back in town. Thanks!
Deblasio was an awful Public Advocate & Council Member. Unfortunately he kept all the staff he had when he was public advocate and gave them fancy titles & salaries. Yet, those not so progressive staffers have no experience in govt, housing policy, transportation and good luck if they can write a constituent letter. What’s even more sketchy is how HPD decides on their developers. Nobody knows and they say they have a vetting process but the same L&M Development, Ron Moelis owned group continues to get contracts. What’s even more astounding is how awful their track record is when it comes to construction quality. Follow the $, and the REBNY board members who receive contracts.
One term Bill is just that- a one termer
Marsha Rimler
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De Blasio abandoned LICH when he realized he could make big money from developers who wanted to buy and demolish the site to build luxury housing. He really has gottne into PAY TO PLAY.. .. This happened even before the rezoning proposal passed in the City Council….a proposal that will encourage overdelopment all over the city. Well, people are waking up. These porposals are being shot down by the communities and their councilpeople all over the city. Basically they don’t want these proposterously large hi rise buildings — with a few “affordable” units as a sop — going up in low density neighborhoods and they fear the impact they will have — higher density, higher rents, so called gentrification, overburdening of the schools, hosptals, parking, transportaton, etc., more traffic — all the negative results of de Blasio’s master plan. His arrogance is unbelievable, his unpopularity growing every day. He gives a bad name to progressive politics. Let’s hope he will be a one term mayor.