The Roundtable: Jumaane Williams

Q: You have said in the past you hope the city refocuses on housing preservation more than creation. Why is that? 

JW: We have to prioritize preservation because there is no way to build our way out of the affordable housing crisis at the rate at which we are losing affordable units, in particular income-targeted units. The prior administration learned this in its New Housing Market Plan, which was aimed at creating 165,000 new units. Eventually, preservation was added, and in the end almost two-thirds of the units that the prior administration claimed were actually preserved, not created. 

Q: Should inclusionary zoning be made mandatory to satisfy the mayor’s affordable housing goals? 

JW: There is no question that inclusionary zoning should be mandated. At the same time, it is not a panacea. Mandatory inclusionary zoning must always be mentioned in the context of a larger plan to create and preserve income-targeted housing. 

Q: Will the Council make a push for home rule control over local rent laws and a repeal of the Urstadt Law? 

JW: This is actually my number one housing priority. My hope is to use whatever influence the city has to repeal Urstadt. It is crucial that New York City elected officials, not politicians from upstate New York who have different housing structures than we do, be able to control the affordable rent programs that we oversee. Over the past decade there have been changes to the rent-regulation laws that resulted in an estimated loss of over 150,000 rent-regulated apartments. These units are permanently lost. These units don’t only represent affordability but also protection against eviction that benefits all. Home rule on housing and local rent laws would allow New York City to shape its housing destiny and define affordability. 

Q: Are you in favor of the 80/20 rent subsidy for real estate developers? 

JW: The 80/20 rent subsidy is outdated and does not produce the units needed to deal with the issue of affordable and income-based housing. This formula has to be reviewed and probably completely reworked.