Queens pols blast
Gov’s seawall veto
BY MARK HALLUM
A bill that would initiate
studies of the state’s
coastlines to implement more
effective flood mitigation
measures and other storm
damage prevention was
vetoed by Gov. Andrew
Cuomo, inviting criticism
from the law’s two main
proponents: Queens state
Sen. Joe Addabbo and
state Assemblyman Brian
Barnwell.
Although there has been
no word from the governor’s
office yet as to why it was
nixed, Addabbo said during
his tenure he has seen not
only Superstorm Sandy,
but other storms which
have brought him to the
conclusion that state may
need to rethink how coastal
waterways are managed.
“As I have witnessed
devastation caused by
Superstorm Sandy and the
frequency of damage caused
by subsequent storms, I truly
believed this bill, which
was approved by every
member of the Senate and
Assembly, would have been
a step in the right direction
towards addressing the dire
need for flood mitigation
and resiliency,” Addabbo
said. “This bill would have
created a New York City
Seawall Study Commission,
which at no expense to the
state, would have quickly
gathered data solely for the
city areas prone to storm
damage and determine the
feasibility and time frame
for a seawall that has been
discussed for decades.”
The commission, which
would be made up of 13
members appointed for life,
would examine the feasibility,
expenses and environmental
impacts of the construction of
a seawall and determine the
best locations for it.
“The fact that the study
would have focused on New
York City made it unique to
the state legislature and its
veto by the Governor only
hampers our efforts to solve
future flooding issues, at
a time when we should be
moving forward to protect
an individual’s home,
personal property and life,”
Addabbo said.
“While I agree
wholeheartedly that the
state must take steps
necessary to address the
hazards and risks associated
with climate change, State
resources dedicated to this
effort must nevertheless
be committed in a prudent
manner. There are already
several efforts underway
to address the specific
risks associated with sea
level rise,” Cuomo said in
the veto memo, listing off
agencies already working
on sea level rise.
“In light of the State’s
existing commitment to
addresses the same areas
of study highlighted in
the bill, the creation of a
new commission and the
concomitant obligation to
hold hearings and develop
a report is unnecessary,”
Cuomo added.
But Barnwell disputed
the claim that the bill would
be redundant in that the sea
wall commission would focus
solely on New York City.
“The governor maintains
that other studies are pending
that deal with issues mentioned
in our legislation, however this
is an error. The bill we passed
in the Legislature studies the
whole NYC coastline under
one comprehensive study,”
Barnwell said.
“The governor’s veto is
dangerous, as now it leaves
portions of our coastline
without a dedicated
comprehensive study to
determine how to protect
it from future storms,”
Barnwell added. “By vetoing
this measure, the governor
is leaving areas throughout
NYC vulnerable to future
sea level rise and deadly
storm surge. The only thing
we can expect from future
storms, is the unexpected.
Hence why we must study
the entire NYC coastline,
not just certain areas. We
must study technologies that
will protect all New Yorkers
along our coastline.”
Barnwell said there are
still people without homes
after Superstorm Sandy
while the subways and other
infrastructure still suffering
and undergoing repairs after
the 2012 disaster.
Reach reporter Mark
Hallum by e-mail at mhallum@
schnepsmedia.com or by phone
at (718) 260–4564.
City Comptroller Scott Stringer said that he would help residents of the Citylights co-ops in Long
Island City seek tax relief and stay in their homes. Photo by Alejandra O’Connell-Domenech
Fighting for their homes
Stringer stands with Long Island City co-op residents
BY ALEJANDRA O’CONNELLDOMENECH
City Comptroller Scott
Stringer announced he would
immediately start work on
preventing residents at the
Citylights co-op from losing
their homes at a rally Jan. 3
in Long Island City’s Gantry
State Park.
A fixture of the Long
Island City skyline long before
the development boom, the
42-story co-op loomed behind
its residents, circled around
the Stringer as he spoke to the
media. His plan: get the city
Department of Finance and
the Empire State Development
Corporation together to
agree on what to do about
the building’s now expired
abatement and the $500,000
annual ground lease tenants
must pay.
This was not the first time
such a gathering had occurred.
Residents rallied on multiple
occasions in 2018 to bring
awareness to the 20-year tax
abatement that was phased out
July 1, resulting $5.8 million
tax bill and a property value
increase by nearly 100%.
“We love it when people
come here. We love it when
new immigrants and new
industry from all over the
world want to be in our city,”
Stringer said at the Jan. 3
rally as a crowd of Citylights
residents waved signs behind
him. “But there is a covenant
that must be kept.”
That covenant to which
Stringer referred is Mayor
Bill de Blasio’s affordable
housing plan.
Last year, the city of New
York spent $1.582 billion on
financing 32,116 affordable
homes in order to make a dent
in the city’s affordable housing
crisis, according to the New
York City Housing website.
According to Stringer, the
fact that long-time affordable
housing residents — Citylights
is Queens largest affordable
co-op — are struggling to pay
their mortgages goes against
the spirit of his plan.
“People who build our
community, they must stay
and they must be celebrated for
building our city,” said Stringer.
The irony of the situation is
not lost on Citylights tenants.
Shelley Cohen, a tenant of
Citylights for 21 years, said
that when she first moved to
the co-op it was surrounded
by warehouses and trash. At
the time, the neighborhood
didn’t have many
supermarkets, major drug
store chains or restaurants.
It was a difficult place to live,
according to Cohen.
For two decades, tenants
of Citylights have suffered
through noisy construction,
poor building conditions and
even soil remediation. But
they stuck it out. Now, Cohen
and her fellow “pioneers” feel
especially entitled to stay in
the neighborhood they took a
chance on.
“Now, the city and the state
are extending handouts to big
companies, like Amazon, while
my middle-class neighbors
and I suffer,” said Cohen. “If
the city and the state can work
together to lure Amazon, they
can find a way to relieve of us
our ground lease.”
TIMESLEDGER,4 JAN. 11-17, 2019 TIMESLEDGER.COM
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