Governor Hochul’s Housing Compact is a necessary policy to address the city and the state’s dire housing crisis. The plan calls for 800,000 new homes across the state over 10 years.
In New York City and throughout the state, we trail behind many other state’s and municipalities. The plan suggests a three percent growth in the housing stock for every three years in the downstate region while suggesting a one percent growth in the housing stock every three years in the upstate region.
The plan also has a focus on transit-oriented development by requiring “that localities with rail stations run by the MTA undertake a local rezoning or higher density multifamily development within half a mile of the station unless they already meet the density level.”
In a town of 10,000 homes, the town would have the option to build 100 homes to hit their target or 50 affordable regulated homes as “affordable multi-family units” are given two times the weight as regular market rate homes.
While the plan suggests many good things, it is lacking in expanding tenant protections, chiefly the Good Cause Eviction law. Strengthening tenant protections and capping rent increases to three percent annually, will help ensure we have quality housing stock.
A combined plan to expand our housing stock and make sure that tenants are protected is the recipe needed to alleviate New York of the crisis we are in now. What good is new housing if your Landlord astronomically raises prices and forces you out of your home? In order to have more sustainable development, we need a pro-building agenda that also robustly protects tenants.
