Zohran Mamdani wants more rental vouchers, but would he actually make them easy to use as mayor? This requires administrative skills, an eye for detail and tenacity.
So far, no mayor has been willing, let alone able, to reform the bureaucracy that keeps apartments from failing inspection for the most infuriating reasons.
As one landlord tweeted this week: “I had a unit failure due to a single screw missing in a four-screw window guard. The super was on site, with the correct tools, and corrected the problem in 5 minutes. Nope, failed. The next available appointment for inspection was a month later.”
The Department of Homeless Services claims that most reinspections occur within 72 hours. If that’s true, it must be because landlords who are asked to wait longer say “no thanks” – and rent to someone without a voucher.
Regardless, an inspector should never reject an apartment because of a missing screw that the chief inspector replaced on the spot.
In another case, a unit failed inspection because a 79 cent exhaust cover was cracked. Can you imagine it? “Back to the homeless shelter, folks, this apartment is unsafe!”
These are of course not unsafe homes. They are perfectly legal for tenants without vouchers to rent, but not for tenants with vouchers. Think about that. The city discriminates against voucher holders – which is illegal for landlords.
This results in situations where a homeless mother with a four-year-old child finds a place she wants, and the landlord is willing to rent it to her, but can’t because the second bedroom is one floorboard short of 80 square feet.
Why not have the tenant sign a waiver allowing her to move into the apartment despite the 79 square foot bedroom or the cracked cover of the 79 cent electrical outlet? These are not dangerous conditions.
I’m sure Mamdani would agree. But that doesn’t mean that, if elected, he will hire a DHS commissioner who can solve the problem and hold the commissioner’s feet to the fire.
The other problem with being mayor is that a thousand other fires pop up and some of your original goals fall apart.
No doubt some readers are saying, “Cuomo could solve the voucher problem.” He has more experience in getting things done than Mamdani, but Cuomo has left many issues unresolved as governor. Real estate taxes, for example.
I once asked Cuomo, when he was governor, why he didn’t change Labor Code 240, the infamous “scaffold law,” which makes insurance more expensive for public and private projects.
The governor responded that the law was vigorously defended by trial lawyers, whom he called the most powerful lobby in Albany. Plus, he said, he focuses on a few priorities at a time, but the scaffolding bill was about eighth on the list. That means he wouldn’t get around to it.
A governor or mayor only has so much political capital and so much bandwidth. To solve many problems at once, you need to delegate them to staff. Mike Bloomberg was a delegator. Cuomo was a micromanager.
What would Mamdani be? Nobody knows.
What we’re thinking about: In response to a previous Daily Dirt, one reader opined, “No right-thinking owner who understands the construction process will willingly flag a property.” The reader is a real estate professional who has been on the board of a religious institute for years that went against the wishes of its leaders. “The additional cost and time is significant for even the simplest items,” the reader complained. “Car hits your fence, [it takes] more than a year to replace it.”
Have you ever had a bad experience with the Landmarks Preservation Commission? Send your thoughts to eengquist@therealdeal.com.
Something we learned: The early days of electrification caused much opposition in New York City. In 1889, the mayor sent employees to remove wires from roofs because he thought they were ugly. New Yorkers cheered as utility poles were cut down on Broadway.
Elsewhere…
Because a multifamily project’s eligibility for 421a and 485x is determined by whether the foundations are installed before or after June 15, 2022, to move from the first tax abatement to its successor, developers would have to rip out the foundations and put them back in place.
As ridiculous as that may sound, state law offers no alternative, said Daniel Bernstein, an attorney at Rosenberg & Estis who is working on the tax cuts.
It is not recommended to tamper with the installation dates of load-bearing elements. A project’s architect typically certifies the start date, but city officials review the construction permit to make sure it is consistent with the submission, Bernstein said.
Because 421a is more generous than 485x, the only reason a developer would switch is if the project misses the 421a completion deadline – which for affordability is Option C June 15, 2026. The other 421a options – which require deeper affordability, but still not as deep as 485x – have a 2031 completion deadline.
“We’ll have to see what happens with stalled 421a projects that for whatever reason can’t meet those deadlines,” Bernstein said.
To avoid the absurdity of forcing a developer to remove and reinstall a foundation, state lawmakers could remove June 16, 2022 as the opening date of the 485x participation period. A fair question is why they included it in the first place.
Closing time
Residential: The highest housing deal recorded on Tuesday was $12.3 million for a 2,783-square-foot condominium unit for sponsorship sale at ONE11 Residences, 111 West 56th Street in the Plaza District. Douglas Elliman’s Maria Mainieri, Taylor Middleton and Peter Evangelidis did the entry.
Commercial: The best recorded commercial deal was $42.3 million for 6201 and 6310 15th Avenue in Borough Park.
New on the market: The highest price for a home that came on the market was $6.5 million for a 2,793-square-foot condominium unit at 60 Beach Street in Tribeca. Mark Jovanovic and Compass’ Paradigm Advisory team have the listing.
Groundbreaking: The largest new building permit submitted was for a proposed 1,039,645-square-foot, 16-story jail at 125 White Street in Civic Center. Eric Van Epps of HOK Architects submitted the permit on behalf of Eduardo del Valle of the NYC Department of Design and Construction.
— Matthew Elo
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