PUBLIC TESTIMONY
Testimony by Lucy Koteen on City of Yes for Housing Opportunity
10:51:58
·
179 sec
Lucy Koteen, a Brooklyn resident, challenges the narrative of housing shortage in NYC and questions the need for more market-rate and luxury housing. She argues that there are many vacant units that could be repaired or made available, and that the focus should be on providing low-income housing.
- Koteen disputes the 1.4% vacancy rate, citing over 500,000 unavailable units and 80,000 warehoused rent-controlled units
- She questions the need for new construction, pointing to recently built high-rises with empty units and ongoing construction projects
- Koteen criticizes the lack of environmental enhancements and infrastructure upgrades in the proposal, as well as the removal of parking mandates
Lucy Koteen
10:51:58
Hi.
10:51:58
Good evening.
10:51:59
My name is Lucy Colten.
10:52:00
I live in Brooklyn.
10:52:02
And I ask, HamRel is the vacancy number of 1.4%.
10:52:06
It is is it the big lie that keeps getting repeated?
10:52:09
There are over 500092 units unavailable.
10:52:13
A priority of repairs needs to be made to make them available.
10:52:16
They're around 80,000 rent control units warehouse.
10:52:21
Those landlords should be given whatever help they need to bring those units online.
10:52:25
The city must work to keep people in their homes where landlords are pushing them out.
10:52:30
It is said that around 600,000 to 800,000 people have left the city in recent years.
10:52:37
How is there a shortage of units?
10:52:39
Anyone with eyes sees new high rises going up, and recently built ones with thousands of units.
10:52:46
New buildings that have empty.
10:52:48
Why not fill them with low income people by using city subsidies rather than continue to pay exploitive rents for homeless shelters with subhuman conditions?
10:52:58
Fill the current vacant units rather than pushing for all this new construction.
10:53:04
Massive buildings are under construction employing thousands of workers in Brooklyn, Queen's in the Bronx area, thousands of new units built in the Gualnis area in Long Island City.
10:53:13
In flushing.
10:53:15
So many cranes dot the skies.
10:53:18
What is the count of empty units sitting in all the buildings that have gone up in the last few years?
10:53:23
Clearly, it is a lie that there's a need for more market and luxury housing.
10:53:28
It is low income housing that is needed and only low income housing needed.
10:53:32
Further, there's no mention of environmental enhancements for new construction that must be included and no requirements of infrastructure upgrades.
10:53:41
What who is going to monitor the build a little everywhere model?
10:53:45
It is not even mandatory to have affordable or low rent housing.
10:53:50
If you want cars off the street, you need to have parking mandates.
10:53:53
Do you think that everyone who lives in a transit rich area has the same need?
10:53:58
People can choose to live by sub voice and also have a job that demands
UNKNOWN
10:54:02
It's not expired.
Lucy Koteen
10:54:02
Disability that needs a car.
10:54:05
Sorry?
Kevin C. Riley
10:54:06
It's not expired.
10:54:07
Thank you, miss Lucy.
10:54:08
You could the rest of your testimony, your land use testimony at counseldianlawc.gov.
10:54:14
We appreciate your time and testimony.
10:54:17
Next, I'm gonna call on Richard Gibbs followed by Julie Reyes.
10:54:22
Richard, if you can hear me, please unmute.
10:54:46
Well, I just was told the star 6.
10:54:49
Excuse me.
10:54:54
Richard Gibbs.
10:54:55
If you could hear me, please unmute.
