Dear Friends,
For years, New Yorkers have been told that more affordable housing is on the way.
We've seen the bulldozers; we've seen the construction signs-and then another luxury high rise appears. This may be affordable housing for Mayor Bloomberg, but for most New Yorkers, it just doesn't cut it.
For too long, the real estate industry has been writing our City's housing policy. It's a wrong-headed approach that is hurting our middle class.
Last week, I put forward a bold new vision to change this dynamic-creating and preserving nearly 200,000 affordable homes in all five boroughs.
To make New York affordable again, we need to change voluntary guidelines into hard and fast rules that require developers to build more affordable homes. We also need to better align our subsidies and incentive programs with community needs to ensure new construction is occurring where it's needed most. And we must not forget untapped opportunities like the thousands of vacant lots, converted basements and backyard flats that can be transformed into new affordable housing units.
We cannot allow more New Yorkers to be squeezed out because of rising rents. This won't happen overnight, but there's no time to wait. To learn more, visit http://advocate.nyc.gov/affordable-city.
Thanks,
Bill de Blasio
NYC Public Advocate