Maya Wiley

Candidate for Mayor of New York. Maya for Mayor.

Subject of an unflattering Feb. 8 column by Matt Yglesias which featured the following quote regarding housing and upzoning:"How would you go about creating more affordable housing in New York? What about permanent housing for New York’s homeless population? Where would you put it? How would you make sure it’s actually affordable and sustainable? Would you ever support upzoning in order to create it? Will you accept money from real estate interests? Please be specific in your proposals.""If elected, my administration will fight for affordable housing in every borough on multiple fronts. First, we need rent subsidies to address the immediate eviction crisis facing our families while standing up with fellow advocates to fight in Albany for universal rent protections and to preserve affordable rentals. Next, we need to change the City’s approach to land use and re-zonings in ways that create and maintain affordable housing, with a focus on deep and permanent affordability over simple unit production. All land use and housing plans should include a fair distribution of resources, prioritize the construction of affordable housing, and take into account community needs while correcting for historic disinvestment and displacement. We must rethink our planning processes and economic development programs to be based on key principles and include real community and stakeholder engagement, so people have a real say and control over the destiny of their neighborhoods, without abandoning fair share principles. I would only support upzoning in order to create affordable housing if the zoning changes were supported by the community that they would affect. Currently, our land use process provides inadequate opportunity for substantive community input. I oppose upzoning our City’s historic districts. We can address our city’s affordable housing needs without changing the character of our City’s neighborhoods.""Also, my administration will pursue homeownership strategies and innovations such as nonprofit development, ways to increase access to credit, and community land trusts. Additionally, communities should have the opportunity to acquire their own housing. This means exploring programs where distressed properties, including commercial buildings, are acquired by the city for use as permanently affordable housing to be managed by nonprofit affordable housing developers, investing in community land trusts, keeping housing built on public land permanently affordable, and exploring measures like TOPA/COPA at the city level to put housing in the hands of residents. I will work to implement creative solutions to expand our affordable housing stock by converting tax liens, buying up vacant properties left behind in the wake of COVID, and stimulating more non-profit housing dveelopment. For too long affordable housing and homelessness have been viewed as completely separate issues. My administration will not make that mistake. I have learned that all New Yorkers are housing ready and I will work to create permanent housing for New York City’s homeless population. There are currently around 100 hotels that will likely go bankrupt due to the pandemic. As Mayor, I will explore ways for the city to acquire these properties to convert them into permanently supportive housing. My campaign has not and will not accept money from real estate interests."