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PUBLIC TESTIMONY
Testimony by Todd Baker, Project Manager at Northwest Bronx Community and Clergy Coalition
4:15:10
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171 sec
Todd Baker from the Northwest Bronx Community and Clergy Coalition testified about the importance of community land trusts (CLTs) in promoting community ownership and local decision-making. He requested enhanced funding of $3 million for the Community Land Trust Initiative in the FY26 budget to support their work in empowering tenants to become owners and residents to become developers of their neighborhoods.
- Highlighted the success of their work at 2201-2205 Davidson Avenue, where tenants are transitioning to cooperative ownership with CLT support
- Emphasized the need for expanded CLT initiative funding to meet the demand for community-driven development and affordable homeownership across New York City
- Stressed the importance of CLTs in ensuring long-term affordability and democratic governance in community-owned properties
Todd Baker
4:15:10
Good afternoon.
4:15:11
My name is Todd Baker.
4:15:12
I'm a project manager at the Northwest Bronx Community and Clergy Coalition.
4:15:16
Thank you to members of the committee for this opportunity.
4:15:18
We have been building power in our community for fifty years, but five years ago, in order to advance our goal of promoting community ownership and local decision making, we incorporated the Bronx Community Land Trust.
4:15:30
Since that time, we've organized to secure control over vacant and abandoned sites, sites that we are now actively developing into permanently affordable and cooperatively owned housing.
4:15:40
And we have also worked hand in hand with tenants in buildings experiencing severe physical and financial distress.
4:15:47
And while our organization has historically organized tenants to build collective power and to demand accountability from their landlords and from city agencies, our community land trust work now goes even further.
4:15:58
We are empowering tenants to become owners of their buildings and residents to become the architects and developers of their own neighborhoods.
4:16:05
And the financial support of the CLT initiative has been essential in allowing us to expand that work, to cultivate the deep leadership and the relationship building, and to offer the necessary technical assistance which prepares tenants to become cooperative owners.
4:16:19
Today, I wanna ask the city council to ensure enhanced funding of $3,000,000 for the Community Land Trust Initiative in the fiscal year twenty six budget as speaker Adams committed to last year in the city for all funding package.
4:16:32
To illustrate the impact of this funding, I'll speak briefly about our work in just one building, one that the committee chair, Council Member Sanchez, is very familiar with, and that's 22012205 Davidson Avenue.
4:16:44
After over a decade of severe mismanagement, it was the collaborative impact of the tenants, of her office, of legal aid, and of years of consistent organizing that resulted in the property being taken from its private landlord and in a pathway being opened for the residents to become owners.
4:16:59
But now it is the organizing work supported by the Community Land Trust Initiative that will help make stable and affordable homeownership a reality.
4:17:07
We are constantly building the leadership and collective decision making capacity of the building's tenant associations so that upon conversion there will be a seamless transition to cooperative ownership.
4:17:17
And it is the CLT that is prepared to support this HDFC for generations to come, ensuring that it remains affordable, that resident governments remains resident governance remains democratic and transparent, and that residents are always connected with the necessary partners to thrive.
4:17:33
Our community land trust and the more than 20 others across New York City come across these opportunities on a weekly basis, but we don't have the capacity to address all of them.
4:17:42
And with the operating support of an expanded community land trust initiative, with the capital offered through programs like Neighborhood Pillars and Open Door, our groups can better meet the strong demand throughout New York City for community driven development, for home ownership, and for the deep lasting affordability that our people need and deserve.
4:17:59
Thank you for this opportunity to testify.