City Council passes bill to finance affordable housing for families
Council Member Eric Dinowitz introduced the bill in hopes it would help alleviate the housing crisis.
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The City Council passed a bill last week that would require new affordable housing financed by Housing Preservation & Development to have at least 25% of the units be two-bedrooms, and at least 15% of the units have three or more bedrooms.
Council Member Eric Dinowitz introduced the bill in hopes it would help alleviate the housing crisis.
"If we're spending our tax dollars on developing, then we're going to have to include more two- and three-bedroom apartments. Make sure families can stay here, then families can move out of shelters, and then families are not as rent burdened as they are now," said Council Member Eric Dinowitz.
Dinowitz told News 12 that the city is more focused on the number of units being built than catering to the population that needs housing, which is families. He met with News 12 outside an affordable housing building at 160 Van Cortlandt Park South, which he said is part of the problem.
"The developer came to HPD and said, we want to develop this property to build affordable housing. And HPD said, great, we will give you tax incentives and subsidized housing, but you're going to make 70% of these units, studios and one bedrooms. And that's bad enough to begin with," said Dinowitz.
As shelters fill up and more families are being squeezed into one-bedrooms, Dinowitz hopes the new bill will provide families with some relief.
