Senator Chuck Schumer with other elected officials at a rally in Stuyvesant Town in 2010 (Photo by Sabina Mollot)
By Sabina Mollot
One month after CWCapital’s beginning of the foreclosure process of Stuyvesant Town, city officials as well as U.S. Senator Charles Schumer have announced ways they were trying to help tenants in maintaining affordability.
One possibility is offering a tax exemption in which the owner would commit to a 40-year agreement for affordability. That possibility, first reported in the New York Times, could preserve as many as 6,000 apartments for families of four earning between $65,000 and $135,000 a year. This is just one option, however.
A city official confirmed today that there are other government programs that could be explored and there have been good faith discussions with CWCapital as well as Council Member Dan Garodnick in an effort to create more transparency going forward. CWCapital’s decision last week to take ownership of the property is being seen as an opportunity to take the time to explore options in maintaining affordability. More specifically, the idea is to avoid a repeat situation of the 2006 sale to Tishman Speyer when tenant affordability wasn’t even a factor. Because any transaction would be considered private, the city has some but not limitless sway on the outcome and currently, the administration is trying to gauge what tenants’ rents and income levels are to determine what their needs are.
Meanwhile, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, who provided crucial mortgage financing in the Tishman Speyer sale have committed to not financing a deal that would be “unacceptable to tenants and the city,” the Times quoted Schumer as saying.
In response, Mayor de Blasio called this a “positive step.”
In a written statement, he added, “We are aggressively using all the levers we have at our disposal to protect affordability at Stuy Town. Senator Schumer has been a forceful leader in pushing Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to make sure the city and tenants have a better shot at shaping this outcome and protecting this community for middle class New Yorkers.”
The administration has also been quick to note, however, that while most buyers would require help from Fannie and Freddie for such a large transaction, there are others that could possibly make a deal without those agencies’ financing.
Still, the news of their cooperation has been greeted with enthusiasm by the Tenants Association, which still plans to hold a rally in front of City Hall on Friday at 10 a.m. The rally will be attended by elected officials, including Schumer.
Susan Steinberg, chair of the Stuyvesant Town-Peter Cooper Village Tenants Association, said the news left the TA “very encouraged. Our voices have been heard and our advocacy on behalf of STPCV tenants is bearing fruit. The need to maintain STPCV as a place where ‘families of moderate means might live in health, comfort and dignity’ is important to New York City, and beyond. Middle class affordability can’t become a thing of the past. We welcome the support and participation of our state and local electeds in helping us protect our homes.”
Garodnick, along with dozens of other local city, state and federal politicians had sent a letter to Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, the Federal Housing Finance Agency and Housing and Urban Development (HID) on June 10 in an effort to get Fannie and Freddie to not invest in deals that put affordable housing at risk.
Today, he praised the commitment made by Fannie and Freddie.
“This commitment from Fannie and Freddie will help us cut off the oxygen to another predatory deal here,” said Garodnick.
