PUBLIC TESTIMONY
Testimony by Leigh Behnke on City of Yes Plan and SoHo/NoHo Zoning Amendment
11:06:33
·
93 sec
Leigh Behnke expresses support for most of the City of Yes Plan but raises concerns about Section 1501 of the zoning amendment, which targets M1b5 districts in SoHo and NoHo with a discriminatory arts fund fee. She urges the council to rectify this issue to prevent financial hardship for elderly residents.
- Behnke highlights that the fee could amount to millions of dollars per building, potentially depriving residents of retirement funds.
- She emphasizes the unfairness of applying this fee only to SoHo and NoHo residents, while no other NYC neighborhoods face similar charges.
- The testimony underscores the need for the council to address this inequity as they move forward with the City of Yes Plan.
Leigh Behnke
11:06:33
Can you hear me?
Kevin C. Riley
11:06:34
Yes.
11:06:35
We carry.
Leigh Behnke
11:06:36
Okay.
11:06:36
Great.
11:06:37
Thank you for the opportunity to speak.
11:06:39
I support most of the city of Yes Plan in theory, but I wanna register my distress that the bill may not rectify the injustice done to the elderly SoHo residents who will be treated differently than all other groups in New York City.
11:06:54
Section 1501 of the zoning amendment includes a glaring exception, which Renee just talked about, which targets the only M1b5 stricts, mainly my neighborhood of SoHo and NoHo.
11:07:07
The DCP buried this exception in the tax amendment so they could charge a discriminatory tax of 1,000,000 of dollars per building and a so called arts fund fee from my community.
11:07:19
I beg you to fix section 1501 of the zoning amendment, which includes a glaring exception, which targets only the m 1b5 districts, namely my neighborhood.
11:07:30
The DCP buried this exception in the tech so that they could charge a discriminatory tax of 1,000,000 per building.
11:07:37
I think in my building at one point, it was projected at $4,000,000 for all of us in a so called arts fund fee from me and my neighbors.
11:07:46
Many of us will be deprived of necessary retirement funds and faced within poverty if we do not that we did not expect to going forward as it is not being required of any other residents in the city.
11:07:59
It is unfair and must be rectified as you move forward with this plan.
11:08:03
And I thank you for the opportunity to talk.
