Of the 15 community board districts included in the pilot program, just one is in Queens, where nearly 40% of the city’s estimated 376,478 basement and cellar spaces in one- to three-family homes are located.

thecity.nyc/2024/04/29/bas…

Why does the State's basement & cellar program exclude East New York, home to the pilot that paved the way for this state law? Where residents showed overwhelming interest in the program & the Council Member supports it? City Limits looks into what happened--and what's next.

“Calling this a pilot was the fig leaf that allowed them to play politics with boundaries” -Howard Slatkin Executive Director at Citizens Housing & Planning Council (CHPC) on the state’s go-ahead for a new basement&cellar legalization pilot in select city community districts. For City Limits
citylimits.org/2024/04/29/adv…

“I’m surprised, I’m baffled, I’m angry,” Sandy Nurse told Chris Janaro in his postmortem on the state's new basement legalization pilot.

The pilot excludes Nurse's district, among many others: citylimits.org/2024/04/29/adv…

“I’m surprised, I’m baffled, I’m angry,” said Sandy Nurse who represents East New York, where the city ran an earlier basement conversion pilot.

It's excluded from the new program, which applies to 15 of NYC's 59 community districts

via Chris Janaro: bit.ly/3WlZT5J

A state pilot program to legalize basement apartments seems to include a lot of neighborhoods without basements and exclude a lot of neighborhoods with basements.

Puzzling!

thecity.nyc/2024/04/29/bas…

so, how did so many areas of need get left behind? it’s not totally crystal clear. but a source familiar with the budget negotiations said it was because certain lawmakers “made a fuss and refused to let their neighborhoods be included.” 6/6

these apt are safer when they are regulated, advocates say

and tho it’s hard to say how many are lived-in apts bc they’re mostly unregulated; in queens, where there are more basements & cellars in 1 to 3-unit homes than any other boro (39%), just ONE district is included. 2/6

NYS has a new pilot program for legalizing basement apts in 15 nyc community districts (h/t Jon Campbell), but it won’t apply to the areas that need it the most.

e.g. 8 of the 11 people who died in basements during Ida wouldn’t have been eligible. 1/6

thecity.nyc/2024/04/29/bas…

The State's basement legalization pilot will help many vulnerable tenants and homeowners, but excludes far too many. As The City's reporting makes clear, even state legislators who wanted the program in their districts 'don't understand why [they] were excluded.”

Gov. Kathy Hochul has a plan to bring NYC’s illegal basement apartments above board — but it won’t apply to homeowners and tenants in many neighborhoods where the need for legalization is most dire.

thecity.nyc/2024/04/29/bas…

Great chatting w/ @ny1 about the pilot program in the state budget to legalize basement apartments in 15 community board districts. As a legal services lawyer, I have been fighting for legalization for 15+ years. It will allow them to become safe & extend tenant protections

Manhattan Assemblyman Harvey Epstein joined Rocco Vertuccio this morning on NY1 to discuss legalizing basement apartments in the city. specne.ws/aD6tgL

ICYMI — Our statement on the basement and cellar pilot program passed in the State budget over the weekend:

drive.google.com/file/d/1sQDoRO…

So frustrating. The pilot program didn't go well, which was largely out of the community's hand. As someone who grew up in a basement apt in CH, this is needed.

We have a budget, New York. To be direct: REBNY undermined tenant protections. This isn’t good cause but I’m glad we’re extending some protections. The legalization of basement apartments pilot must go further. But I’m grateful for Sammy’s Law & increased bus frequency funding.

brutal. if I’m not mistaken this doesn’t even include the one area in the city, East New York, where there’s been a basement legalization pilot (hamstrung by state law)

NY state’s new basement legalization program excludes the specific neighborhood (East New York/Cypress Hills) covered by NYC’s basement legalization pilot, which proved they needed state law changes to actually legally convert their basements

gothamist.com/news/nyc-basem…

What makes this even dumber is that BK CB5, the only NYC district that has ever attempted this through a PREVIOUS pilot, is not even on here. NYC pulled millions from this pilot because State regs made it difficult/impossible. And now that we can do it right CB5 is not on here?