The caption to this photograph in the New York Daily News called Mayor Bill de Blasio a “Sellout” on NYCHA.
Daily News publishes editorial by Fight For NYCHA member
Brad Hoylman, enemy of the people, was improbably the “front face” of the NYCHA protest up in Albany
Brad Hoylman was up in Albany, with public housing residents as a backdrop, so he could say he was not in New York City for the public housing bloodbath.
Yesterday, the seemingly “front face” of the NYCHA protesters, who were bused up to Albany by a syndicate of nonprofit groups, was none other than State Sen. Brad Hoylman (D-Chelsea), the former General Counsel to the Partnership for New York City, itself a syndicate of corporate interests, which rivals the Real Estate Board of New York in subverting Government for big money donors in New York.
State Sen. Hoylman has been deceiving tenants into believing he’s on their side, when in reality he has never stopped working for the corrupt interests of Big Business. Last year, he folded all support for the pied-à-terre tax on non-primary residences with a market value of $5 million or more as soon as, you guessed it, REBNY’s lobbyists began to mount serious pressure against the tax. State Sen. Hoylman will never stand up to Big Business.
This year, Big Business interests are pressuring Mayor Bill de Blasio to end public housing as we know it, including in State Sen. Hoylman’s own district. And State Sen. Hoylman has not once denounced the mayor or the mayor’s plans. Like last year, Fight For NYCHA reasonably expect State Sen. Hoylman to put on a big show about how much he supports public causes, and then he will fold at the very last minute, like he always does.
This is a repeat of 2010, when State Sen. Hoylman, at that time then as chair of Manhattan Community Board 2, claimed that he supported saving St. Vincent’s Hospital in Greenwich Village, but then turned his back on the community when Partnership for New York City director (at that time then) Willaim Rudin began to call in mortgage notes from the public charity hospital, setting off a chain of events that led to the hospital’s bankruptcy and liquidation at pennies on the dollar.
Is it no coïncidence that, finally, on the same day when Mayor Bill de Blasio moves word of his rapid expansion of RAD conversions in Brooklyn and Manhattan, it would take place as State Sen. Hoylman was leading this charade up in Albany ?
It’s like that famous scene in the Godfather (1972) movie, when the main character Michael Corleone attended the baptism of Connie’s baby. As Michael was being made the godfather of the baby in a church service, his henchmen carried out assassinations so Corleone could seize power. Up in Albany, there was State Sen. Hoylman at the metaphorical alter. Meanwhilst, down in New York City, Mayor de Blasio, who, as REBNY’s henchman, was earnestly carrying out the hits on public housing.
Mayor’s NYCHA Working Group holds another meeting at Hudson Guild
The resident meeting of the Mayor’s NYCHA Working Group was called after Fight For NYCHA announced its town hall meeting.
Fight For NYCHA protested outside of Hudson Guild as a resident meeting of the Mayor’s NYCHA Working Group took place inside on Thursday evening, Feb. 6.
The meeting did not discuss anything material, except that it was reportedly alluded to that no agreement has been reached on the RAD conversion of Fulton Houses, according to information obtained by Fight For NYCHA.
Another meeting of the Mayor’s NYCHA Working Group is expected to take place on Monday, Feb. 24, according to a source.
There is no substitute for public housing !
IN THE ZONE — Manhattan Institute: De Blasio housing program has not lived up to promise, by POLITICO’s Janaki Chadha
A signature de Blasio administration policy that requires developers in rezoned areas to build affordable housing has failed to live up to its promise, a new Manhattan Institute report concludes. Mayor Bill de Blasio hailed the program, known as Mandatory Inclusionary Housing, as a game-changer when it was approved by the City Council in 2016. The policy, which he promised during his 2013 mayoral campaign, was billed as an essential tool to spur the construction of apartments for low- and middle-income people citywide. But the report — authored by former Department of City Planning official Eric Kober — argues flaws in the design of the program have made it ineffective in much of the city without public subsidy, “limit[ing] its utility” without additional financial commitments to affluent areas in which the city has largely shied away from pursuing rezonings that would boost density. The policy was presented “as another way to finance affordable housing that would go beyond the public funding that has historically been available” but has not worked out that way, said Kober, now an adjunct fellow at the fiscally conservative think tank. It was estimated by the city to generate 12,000 affordable apartments over 10 years.
Recommended Reading
- POLITICO New York Real Estate : Report finds MIH falls short of promises [POLITICO New York]
Bill de Blasio agrees to meeting with Fight For NYCHA, Fulton tenants, and U.S. Rep. Nydia Velázquez
de Blasio agrees to meet with Fight For NYCHA
Bill de Blasio was confronted with two options to fully-fund NYCHA : (i). The People’s Budget, and (ii). the Public Housing Emergency Response Act (H.R.4546)
At Mayor Bill de Blasio’s disastrous NYCHA town hall in Chelsea on Thursday, 19 déc 2019, the Mayor was confronted with two options to fully-fund NYCHA : (i) the People’s Budget that proposes new taxes on the rich to fund new Government policy on housing, justice, and dignity for all New Yorkers, and (ii). U.S. Rep. Nydia Velázquez’s bill, the Public Housing Emergency Response Act (H.R.4546).
Fight For NYCHA have reached out to the office of U.S. Rep. Velázquez to schedule a meeting with Mayor de Blasio.
Read the People’s Budget
- The People’s Budget [Archive.org]
- El Presupuesto del Pueblo [Archive.org]
AOC angry by plans that take 30-40 years to save NYCHA, but her green “New Deal” plan takes 10 years to be fully-funded
Without $3 billion in immediate funding, up to 90% of NYCHA tenants are predicted to experience heating outages this winter.
Admittedly, it is noble for U.S. Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY 14) to focus on climate change. But she, like French President Emmanuel Macron, bypassed industry and the military in order to extract climate justice outcomes by causing suffering amongst average people.
U.S. Rep. Ocasio-Cortez is blind to how her plan makes NYCHA residents wait for basic, but emergency, repairs, like upgrades to heating systems. In a secret video of a remarks she gave to an event, where her campaign bussed NYCHA residents up to the Bronx, U.S. Rep. Ocasio-Cortez attacked plans that took 30-40 years to fully-fund capital repairs at NYCHA. But her own plan takes 10 years to fully-fund its plan.
In all those years, NYCHA tenants can expect to go without basic necessities. For example, without emergency upgrades in heating, NYCHA tenants face another winter where up to 90 per cent. of residents will experience heat outages, according to predictions separately made by Fight For NYCHA and the Legal Aid Society.
AOC’s Green New Deal for Public Housing makes NYCHA tenants wait years for heat
Reference Video
NYCHA Tenants, Activists Held A Press Conference, Protesting the Lack of Democracy of, and the Exclusion of Many from, de Blasio’s NYCHA Working Group
In what could be a first in New York City, NYCHA tenants and activists heckled Greg Russ, the public housing authority chair.
NYCHA tenants and activists heckled Greg Russ, the new chair of the New York City Housing Authority, or NYCHA. The confrontation took place outside of PS 33 in Cheslea on Tuesday night after NYCHA tenants and activists from Fight For NYCHA, Holmes-Isaacs Coälition, and Justice For All Coälition had concluded their press conference, denouncing the Mayor Bill de Blasio‘s NYCHA Working Group.
NYCHA tenants, activists heckle Greg Russ as he tries to sneak into the rigged #WorkingGroup.
Activists confront U.S. Rep. Jerry Nadler’s corrupt aide, Robert Atterbury, and call for a primary against Assemblymember Dick Gottfried.
NYCHA tenants also renewed calls for Robert Atterbury to be fired by U.S. Rep. Jerrold Nadler (D-NY 10). Activists allege that Atterbury violated New York State’s open meetings’ law when he told a Fight For NYCHA member to leave the first meeting of Mayor de Blasio’s undemocratic NYCHA Working Group.
Tenants and activists also jeered Assemblymember Richard Gottfried (D-New York City), when he tried to sneak into the second meeting of Mayor de Blasio’s NYCHA Working Group.
Fight For NYCHA calls on Jerry Nadler to fire Robert Atterbury for violating democracy, transparency.
NYCHA tenants and activists were denied entry to the secret, closed-door second meeting of the Mayor’s NYCHA Working Group.
NYCHA tenants and activists were denied entry to a public building (PS 33 in Cheslea), and, thus, they were not permitted to attend the proceedings of the second meeting of Mayor de Blasio’s rigged and stacked NYCHA Working Group.
NYCHA tenants, activists bum rush de Blasio’s corrupt NYCHA Working Group at PS33, get locked out.
Complete Facebook Live video
The media and public statements made by NYCHA tenants and activists were broadcast on a Facebook Live stream. Some of the speakers included La Keesha Taylor and Saundrea Coleman from the Holmes-Isaacs Coälition ; Stanely Morse from the Justice For All Coälition ; and Lindsey Boylan, a 2020 Democratic Party primary candidate, who is challenging U.S. Rep. Nadler.
Media and Further Reading
- Press Conference and Protest against the second meeting of Mayor Bill de Blasio’s NYCHA Working Group [Facebook Live]
- Climate Control is a Year-Round Issue at NYCHA, Especially for Seniors [City Limits News]
- Mayor de Blasio launches ‘working group’ to hash out NYCHA plans in Chelsea [The New York Daily News]
Press Conference and Protest of NYCHA Working Group at PS 33
Please join us for a press conference and protest outside the next NYCHA Working Group.
Mayor de Blasio has empaneled a rigged and stacked NYCHA working group to determine the future of Fulton, Chelsea, and Elliott Houses. But this working group has purposely excluded tenants from Holmes Towers, Cooper Park, Wyckoff Gardens, LGA Houses, and Harborview — even though infill has been planned at those developments.
Date : Tues., 29-Oct-2019
Time : 5:30 pm
Place : PS 33, 281 9th Ave., Manhattan
RSVP : Press Conference and Protest of NYCHA Working Group [Facebook]
What is more, Fight For NYCHA has discovered that Mayor de Blasio has instituted a gag rule, meaning that the discussions of the NYCHA working group will be kept secret. This is a violation of Government transparency. It also violates the First Amendment rights of tenants to be able to speak in informed discussions about their own future. The gag rule and the restrictions in attendance also violate the State’s open meetings law.
Fight For NYCHA raised the issue of legality to these proceedings at first working group, since any disposition of City real property must be subject to the ULURP process.
Please join Fight For NYCHA in demanding to attend and be heard at the second meeting of the NYCHA working group.
First meeting of NYCHA Working Group reveals lies, betrayals, and Electeds and police conspire to keep secret proceedings that will determine the future of public housing in New York City
Bill de Blasio’s NYCHA Working Group is a sham !
AFTER THE SUCCESSFUL FIGHT FOR NYCHA TOWN HALL, Mayor Bill de Blasio (D-New York City) reportedly freaked out. Two news articles planted in POLITICO New York reported that U.S. Rep. Jerrold Nadler (D-NY 10) opposed the demolition of public housing and was calling for a delay on the Request for Proposal for demolition and RAD conversion of Fulton Houses in Cheslea. One report, in particular, had noted that, in his desperation, U.S. Rep. Nadler had allegedly called on Comptroller Scott Stringer (D-New York City) and Public Advocate Jumaane Williams (D-New York City) to show up to community meetings about the future of public housing. The move to include Stringer and Williams was seen as a political threat to New York City Council Speaker Corey Johnson (D-Chelsea), in whose Council district the four public housing developments are located, which face some degree of privatisation.
But at the first meeting of the working group empaneled by Mayor de Blasio and other Electeds, tasked with determining the future of the New York City Housing Authority, or NYCHA, Deputy Mayor Vicki Been revealed that demolition remained on the table, despite private assurances allegedly made by U.S. Rep. Nadler and others following the Fight For NYCHA town hall.
Vicki Been presentation for Demolition, Infill, RAD, MIH, and Air Rights Sale at NYCHA Working Group
In order to get video of Deputy Mayor Vicki Been’s presentation about NYCHA’s future, a member of Fight For NYCHA had to risk arrest.
A member of Fight For NYCHA had to risk arrest in order to crash the secret first meeting of the NYCHA Working Group. Please advance to 2:00 to hear audio (and video later) of NYPD Inspector Howard Redmond and, later, other NYPD officers, threaten the Fight For NYCHA member with arrest for demanding to bear witness to the NYCHA Working Group meeting.
NYPD threaten Fight For NYCHA member with arrest at Bill de Blasio’s NYCHA Working Group
Did Robert Atterbury violate New York’s open meetings law ?
Before police showed up to menace the Fight For NYCHA member, U.S. Rep. Nadler’s aide, Robert Atterbury, made deceptive statements by materially misrepresenting the proceedings of the NYCHA Working Group as a secret meeting that was closed to the public. In New York State, Government meetings are open meetings. Yet, Mr. Atterbury repeatedly indicated that a meeting that would discuss the disposition of NYCHA public assets and City real property was not a public meeting and that, improbably, the NYCHA Working Group was not a “civic group.” Under New York State penal code, obstructing Government administration is a class A misdemeanor in the second degree. See § 195.05.
Fight For NYCHA calls on U.S. Rep. Jerry Nadler to fire his aide, Robert Atterbury, for violating democracy, transparency.
Please join us for a press conference and protest outside the next NYCHA Working Group.
Mayor de Blasio has empaneled a rigged and stacked NYCHA Working Group to determine the future of Fulton, Chelsea, and Elliott Houses. But this working group has purposely excluded tenants from Holmes Towers, Cooper Park, Wyckoff Gardens, LGA Houses, and Harborview — even though infill has been planned at those developments.
Date : Tues., 29-Oct-2019
Time : 5:30 pm
Place : PS 33, 281 9th Ave., Manhattan
RSVP : Press Conference and Protest of NYCHA Working Group [Facebook]
What is more, Fight For NYCHA has discovered that Mayor de Blasio has instituted a gag rule, meaning that the discussions of the NYCHA Working Group will be kept secret. This is a violation of Government transparency. It also violates the First Amendment rights of tenants to be able to speak in informed discussions about their own future. The gag rule and the restrictions in attendance also violate the State’s open meetings law.
Fight For NYCHA raised the issue of legality to these proceedings at first working group, since any disposition of City real property must be subject to the ULURP process.
Please join Fight For NYCHA in demanding to attend and be heard at the second meeting of the NYCHA Working Group.
First protest set to #FindTheMoneyNow to #KeepPublicHousingPublic
May 29 rally at New York City Hall
Tenants of Fulton Houses approved a rally at New York City Hall to demand that New York City Council reäppropriate the $10 billion from the capital budget for new jails and instead redirect those monies to the New York City Housing Authority, or NYCHA.
Tenants are also calling for the New York City Council to hold hearing to establish a corporate income tax for corporations of a certain size that operate in New York City.
R.S.V.P.
Since NYCHA is comprised of 90% Black and Latinx families, this means that the politicians are making a political calculation that they can exploit the very visible minorities, who are public housing tenants.
Politicians supporting the plans announced by Mayor de Blasio to demolish public housing apartment buildings and to put public housing into the hands of private landlords, are keeping quiet about the racial implications of their actions or support. This is wrong.
A corporation tax would be progressive way to fund public housing.
New York City is the financial capital of the world. There is so much money here, and yet the largest Corporations pay very little in taxes, if any at all. Amazon made $11 billion in 2018, but it paid $0 in U.S. Federal Income Taxes. Other major Corporations keep profits overseas so they don’t have to report cash as profits to the Government. As of two years ago, Apple was keeping over $200 billion in cash overseas to evade U.S. taxes. Last year, Google had about $60 billion in cash it was keeping overseas to evade U.S. taxes.
New York City already collects a Business Corporation Tax that ranges from about 4 per cent. to 10 per cent. However, New York City caps the tax at $10 million. This means that the most wealthiest of Corporations are not paying their fair share. This violates the principle that people making the most money — at the tippy, tippy tops — need to pay more money in taxes the more money that they make. This is what is called a progressive income tax. New York City can raise the money NYCHA needs by extending the idea of a progressive income tax to Corporations.
The need to pressure City officials stems from AOC’s controversial decision to turn her back on NYCHA.
The need to pressure the Mayor and the City Council for the money to preserve and expand public housing follows the controversial decision by the office of U.S. Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY 14) to reject a request to sponsor a budget resolution this year for all $32 billion that NYCHA needs. Randy Abreu is a policy advisor on staff to U.S. Rep. Ocasio-Cortez.
