4 MARCH 7, 2019 RIDGEWOOD TIMES WWW.QNS.COM
Holden blasts de Blasio basement apartment plan
current administration to pack in as
many people as possible with little
thought to quality of life.”
The city Department of Buildings
is adjusting its standards to
require a minimum ceiling height
and window sizes, and there must
be adequate emergency exits
and fire safety.
“Finding a path to create safe, legal
basement apartments that will add
to our city’s affordable housing
stock while stabilizing homeowners
is an idea whose time has come,”
HPD Commissioner Maria Torres-
Springer said. “We are grateful to
Council members Lander, Espinal
and Barron for their leadership
on this issue and our partner city
agencies for helping us to advance
this innovative pilot program
that promises to unlock more safe,
quality housing opportunities.”
The program will also fund
community organizations who can
help homeowners secure loans to
complete renovations and meet
city standards to better navigate
the approval process through
the city Department of Housing
Preservation and Development.
Up to $11.7 million was invested
in the pilot program by the city
for residents to secure
low-interest loans.
Community Board 5 will hold
its next monthly meeting this
coming Wednesday night,
March 13, in Middle Village.
As announced by District
Manager Gary Giordano, the
session gets underway at 7:30
p.m. in the cafeteria of Christ the
King High School, located at 68-02
Metropolitan Ave.
The agenda includes a
presentation by the Waterfront
Alliance, an organization that
focuses on the development and
maintenance of the New York
City waterfront.
Also on the regular meeting
agenda are the public forum;
a review of liquor license
applications and demolition
notices; reports by Chairperson
Vincent Arcuri and District
Manager Giordano; and
committee reports.
For more information, call the
Board 5 offi ce at 718-366-1834.
BY MARK HALLUM
MHALLUM@SCHNEPSMEDIA.COM
@RIDGEWOODTIMES
After Mayor Bill de Blasio
launched the first step
toward legalizing certain
basement apartments to address the
housing need, one Queens lawmaker
spoke out against the plan.
Signed into law on Monday, de
Blasio said there would be a threeyear
demonstration program for
basements in qualifying homes to
be renovated for occupancy starting
only with Brooklyn’s Community
Board 5.
The proposal to legalize basement
apartments in Queens has been
unpopular at best. Opponents believe
legalizing basement apartments
would increase congestion, impact
already limited street parking
and be unsafe, with many homes
not having a mode of egress
through the basement. However,
administration has considered the
concept over the last few years as a
means of combating the housing and
affordability crisis.
“There are thousands of basement
apartments in our city, but too
many are illegal and unsafe. This
program will help New Yorkers
secure safe, affordable homes and
give homeowners a new legal source
of income,” de Blasio said.
De Blasio announced the
pilot program on Monday with
community members from East
New York where the administration,
A block of homes in Ridgewood Photo: Mark Hallum/RIDGEWOOD TIMES
which will be transferred to a new
mayor in 2021, will supervise the
launch and decide whether to move
forward with expanding across
the city.
But Councilman Robert Holden
was less than enthusiastic about
the possible outcomes of allowing
homeowners to rent below-grade
space, and was one of the few
council members to vote against
the legislation which passed with
44 votes.
“I have been fighting against
basement apartments for most
of my adult life as a civic leader
because of the effects they have on
districts like ours, and that’s why I
voted NO on this program,” Holden
said in a statement. “Adding more
apartments to one- and two-family
homes creates parking nightmares,
adds to our already woefully
overcrowded school district and
strained infrastructure, and
sometimes contradicts zoning laws.
I see no advantages to this program.
It is just another attempt by the
The children in nursery through second grade at St. Matthias Catholic Academy in Ridgewood put on happy faces and
wild hats during ‘Crazy Hat Day’ on Feb. 28. The students were tasked with creating their craziest looks, with prizes
awarded to the winners. The kindergarten class is shown in the above photo with Principal Barbara Wehnes.
Photo courtesy of Angie Rotundo
Board 5 to
meet Wed.
Crazy Hat Day celebrated at R’wood school in Midville
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