Citylights at City Hall
BY JENNA BAGCAL
Citylights residents and elected officials rallied in
front of City Hall on July 17 to protest the rising cost
of their Long Island City co-op.
Residents of Queens’ largest affordable housing co-op
demanded that Mayor Bill de Blasio cancel a “massive,
unfair tax bill levied against the complex on July 1.”
“When I moved to Citylights over 20 years ago, it
was because the government promised it would stay
affordable. Now, we are at risk of losing the homes —
and community — we helped create. Please Mayor de
Blasio, save Citylights,” said resident Brett Crandle.
A deal made between the city and the state resulted
in the Citylights residents being saddled with a $5.8
million tax bill, a heavy debt that co-op members claim
is impossible to be paid in full. Many of the people who
live in the building are middle-class residents, a number
of whom are at or nearing retirement age.
During the protest, the residents brought a copy
of the tax bill to City Hall, with the words “return to
sender” written on it.
In addition, the Citylights inhabitants have been
faced with mortgage costs, repair bills and annual
rent to the state in the form of a payment-in-lieu-of-
taxes (PILOT) agreement. Residents also pointed
out that they pay more in maintenance costs per
month than those who live in the nearby luxury high
rises pay in rent.
“With each day that passes, I – and many other
middle-class families like mine – worry about losing
our homes. Our government must keep its promise
and keep our homes affordable,” said resident Shelley
Cohen, who mentioned that her daughter was the first
baby born in the building over 20 years ago.
Following pressure from Citylights residents and
elected officials, a spokesperson for Empire State
Development (ESD), which was responsible for building
Citylights, said they were ready to work with the city
to come up with a workable solution for those living
in the co-op.
ESD added that they were “waiting on the city’s
mandated written consent to move forward.”
According to residents, the mayor has said he believes
affordable housing is a priority, yet they have “sent multiple
letters to Mayor de Blasio” asking that he authorize re-negotiation
22 AUGUST 2018 I LIC COURIER I www.qns.com
of the PILOT agreement to no avail.
Joining the longtime co-op residents at Tuesday’s rally
were elected officials including Councilman Jimmy Van
Bramer, Senator Michael Gianaris and representatives
from the offices of Assemblywoman Catherine Nolan
and Congresswoman Carolyn Maloney.
All four officials have called on the mayor to take
action to help the residents keep their homes.
“The city needs to step up, too,” Gianaris said. “These
are the people who have made the community what it
is; these are the people who have made it so desirable
to come here. The last thing we want to do is drive
them out of the neighborhood because it became too
expensive. They came here because it was supposed
to be affordable and it’s supposed to continue to be
affordable.”
The mayor’s office did not immediately respond
to an inquiry about what the city will do for Citylights
moving forward.
On July 9, the New York City Department of Finance
responded to a letter that Assemblywoman Nolan wrote
to the mayor in June on behalf of the Citylights residents.
The DOF said that Citylights had filed an appeal with
the New York City Tax Commission for the property’s
tax year 2018-2019 assessment. They added that the
Tax Commission was an independent agency who had
the authority to review DOF assessments and that they
had tentatively scheduled a hearing to review the tax
assessment in mid-August.
DOF mentioned that while Citylights’ appeal is pend-ing,
they do not have the legal right to make any changes
or adjustments to the property’s valuation. However, they
would “continue to work with the property owners and
board, as well as you Nolan and other elected officials,
within the parameters allowed by law.”
Community News
Photo by Jenna Bagcal
/www.qns.com
