PUBLIC TESTIMONY
Testimony by Thomas Nayem-Huzij, Member of the Public
5:23:24
ยท
109 sec
Thomas Nayem-Huzij, a resident of Brooklyn Community District 2, speaks in favor of a housing proposal, emphasizing the urgent need to address New York City's housing crisis. He shares his personal experiences with long commutes due to housing affordability issues and argues for increased housing development to benefit both current and future residents.
- Highlights the negative impact of obstructionism by those already living in well-connected areas on housing affordability
- Emphasizes the importance of building more homes to preserve New York City's working class and keep living costs affordable
- Argues that approving the rezoning application would diversify housing options and send a message that all parts of the city must contribute to solving the housing shortage
Thomas Nayem-Huzij
5:23:24
Council.
5:23:24
My name is Thomas Stein Mahouji, and I'm speaking in favor of the proposal.
5:23:29
I'm a resident of Brooklyn Community District 2 and a lifelong New Yorker.
5:23:33
I am deeply concerned about the housing crisis facing New York City.
5:23:37
I grew up on the outer edge of the subway system and have faced hour long commutes as far back as middle school.
5:23:43
My family lived far away from our places of work and school, not by choice, but because the cost of housing in more centralized neighborhoods priced us out of them.
5:23:51
We are condemned to long commutes not by special interest boogeymen, but by decades of collective obstructionism by our fellow New Yorkers who already have the fortune of living in the core of the city with rich public transportation access.
5:24:05
It is easy for people who already have access to the homes they want to reject more housing choices for future families, especially if they perceive their arrival as a threat to their way of life.
5:24:15
And the politicians who want to keep their loudest constituents happy too have an incentive to suppress change.
5:24:21
But this is not a tenable strategy to keep the cost of living affordable for all and to preserve the working class of New York City.
5:24:29
The failure to keep building homes at the pace of new residents arriving means that we are all left to fight for the few homes that were built before the self interested ideology that afflicts some of our neighbors took hold of city policy.
5:24:42
We all want a higher quality of life, and we want to be able to live here without landlords and lenders confiscating the wages that most of us work so hard to earn.
5:24:51
Building the additional diversity of homes afforded by this rezoning means not only can existing residents afford to stay put in the neighborhood, but more families get to call Brooklyn home.
5:25:02
And it sends a message that every corner of the city, no matter how wealthy, has to be a part of the solution to the housing shortage.
5:25:08
I encourage the committee and New York City Council to approve this application.
5:25:12
Thank you.