Your guide to NYC's public proceedings.
Q&A
Council member inquires about building history and tenant relocation
0:53:54
ยท
120 sec
Council Member Kamillah Hanks asks the applicant team about the history of the building on the site, how it fell into disrepair, and the process for working with past tenants. Derrick Lovett from MBD Community Housing Corp responds, explaining:
- The building was in poor condition when MBD took over, deemed structurally unstable and too costly to rehabilitate.
- MBD proposed demolishing the existing two-story building and constructing a new one to match the eight-story buildings on either side.
- The process took over two years, transitioning from HPD's rehab department to the new construction department.
Kamillah Hanks
0:53:54
I have a few questions for the applicant team.
0:53:58
Can you briefly detail the current building on this site and how it fell into disrepair?
0:54:04
And what was the process for working with those past tenants, both in relocation and providing the opportunity for them to move back into this new building, if they so choose?
Derrick Lovett
0:54:20
Thank you.
0:54:21
My name is Derek Lovett.
0:54:22
I work for MBD Community Hospital.
UNKNOWN
0:54:24
Yeah.
0:54:24
We're gonna have to And I have
Kamillah Hanks
0:54:25
to swear you with Derek, we're gonna
UNKNOWN
0:54:26
have
Derrick Lovett
0:54:26
to Oh, I'm sorry.
UNKNOWN
0:54:27
The application.
0:54:28
It's fine.
0:54:28
No problem.
0:54:29
Panels oh, sorry.
0:54:30
Could you raise your right hand and state your
Derrick Lovett
0:54:31
name?
0:54:32
Derek Lovett.
UNKNOWN
0:54:33
And do you affirm to tell the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth in your testimony before this subcommittee and an answer to all council member questions?
Derrick Lovett
0:54:41
Yes.
UNKNOWN
0:54:44
Thank you.
Derrick Lovett
0:54:44
Okay.
0:54:45
So this was a three part question, right?
0:54:47
So you're asking how did it come to be?
Kamillah Hanks
0:54:51
Yes.
0:54:52
Can you briefly detail how the current building on this site fell into disrepair?
Derrick Lovett
0:54:57
Okay.
0:54:57
No, I cannot.
0:54:58
But what I can tell you is, when it came to MBD, we were asked to rehab the building.
0:55:05
I took a look at the building, spoke to my architect, and said, wow, this is pretty bad, and it's structurally unstable.
0:55:13
It would cost millions of dollars to rehab this building that each building has eight very small studios.
0:55:21
And as a taxpaying citizen, I couldn't justify putting a nickel into it, let alone millions of dollars.
0:55:27
So we brought it to HPD and said, hey.
0:55:29
Listen.
0:55:30
Instead of us rehabbing this, it doesn't make economic sense.
0:55:33
Why don't we take it down and put something?
0:55:35
Because right now, it's an under improvement.
0:55:36
As you can see on both sides, they're eight story buildings.
0:55:38
So this is only a two story building.
0:55:40
So right off the bat, it's an under improvement, and it's it's dilapidated.
0:55:45
So they thought favorably with us.
0:55:47
It took us two years or more to go from the rehab department at HPD to the new construction department, so that's how we got here.
Kamillah Hanks
0:55:54
Okay.
0:55:54
Thank you.