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George Calderaro, board member of several NYC civic organizations, on City of Yes for Housing Opportunity and affordable housing concerns

2:56:43

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168 sec

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George Calderaro, representing several New York City civic organizations, criticizes the City of Yes for Housing Opportunity initiative as part of a broader effort to deregulate development in NYC. He argues that these proposals do not prioritize or require affordable housing, and instead potentially eliminate important regulations.

  • Calderaro views the initiative as a developer-driven attempt to deregulate the city for private real estate development
  • He emphasizes that preservation efforts, including historic districts, have protected thousands of businesses and affordable housing units
  • Calderaro urges officials to focus on preventing the demolition of viable buildings that could be used for housing, citing examples like the Hotel Pennsylvania
  • City of Yes is part of a multipronged offensive to deregulate development in NYC
  • The proposal does not prioritize or require affordable housing
  • There are many empty market rate and luxury units already
  • The initiative is a developer-driven plot to deregulate the city for private real estate development
  • City of Yes eliminates important regulations including special zoning districts, landmarks commission reviews, and open space requirements
  • Preservation of historic districts preserves thousands of businesses and affordable housing units
  • Demolition of viable, historically significant buildings should be stopped
  • Criticism of City of Yes should not be dismissed as NIMBY-ism
  • Concerns for communities are considered and sincere

[EXPERIMENTAL]

Which elements of City of Yes for Housing Opportunity were discussed in this testimony?

I was not able to tie quotes from the testimony back to specific elements of the proposal. Check out another testimony here.

About this analysis:

This analysis is done by AI that reasons whether or not a quote from the testimony discusses a particular element of the proposal.

All the prompts and data are open and available on Github.

You can search for testimonies that mentioned a specific element in the table on the main meeting page.

When an element is explicitly stated in the testimony (e.g. "Universal Affordability Preference" or "UAP"), the analysis is accurate.

But the connection between a quote from the testimony and an element of the proposal is sometimes implicit.

In these cases, the AI might eagerly label a testimony as discussing a proposal when the connection is tenuous, or it might omit it entirely.

↗ Why are there transcription and diarization errors?
George Calderaro
2:56:43
Good morning, commissioners.
2:56:44
I'm George Calderau, a board member of several New York City Civic Organizations.
2:56:49
The city of yes is part of the current multipronged offensive to deregulate development in New York City often using the disingenuous, empty promise of affordable housing.
2:56:59
These coordinated efforts include city of yes, Open New York and its infiltration of community boards, and abundant New York, a pact created to fund pro develop development elected officials as well as other over and over tactics to streamline development and regulation.
2:57:17
With these pro development, pro developer proposals include including city of Jasper Housing Opportunity have in common, is that they do not prior to or require affordable housing.
2:57:28
But rather argue that we need more units, period, including market rate and luxury units despite the fact that there are many empty market rate and luxury units not to mention the thousands of units that landlords are sitting on because current rates are too affordable due to rent regulations.
2:57:45
I urge all elected officials' agencies and community boards to recognize this gambit for what it is.
2:57:50
An obvious developer driven plot to deregulate the city for private real estate development.
2:57:56
While city of yes for housing opportunity does not require or even incentivize affordable housing, it does eliminate important regulations including special zoning districts, landmarks commission, and Uler re reviews, and open space requirements among others.
2:58:12
I must emphasize that preservation generally in the city's historic district specifically preserved thousands of businesses in affordable housing units.
2:58:21
If New York City agencies and elected officials are serious about creating and preserving affordable housing, they should stop the demolition of vast, viable often historically significant buildings that are allowed to be demolished to become vast vacant lots for decades.
2:58:36
These include the Hotel Pennsylvania, whose two thousand rooms with bathrooms could have been housing for many groups, yet Vornado Realty was allowed to demolish it with impunity.
2:58:47
Midtown Manhattan is littered with similar vast vacant lots.
2:58:51
In the same area just this week, local state and local state and federal officials celebrated the Gateway Tunnel Project, which while not without merit needlessly threatens many affordable units and small businesses and important historic buildings.
2:59:07
Finally, I must ask that Mai and others criticism of of parts of city of not be branded and dismissed simply as nimbi.
2:59:16
Our concerns for our communities and how they look and function are considered and sincere, and they should be yours too.
2:59:22
Nimbi is an insult developed, promulgated, and abused by the real estate and business community embedded by the media media and politicians.
2:59:30
Thank you.

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