Public Advocate candidate Jumaane Williams on Wednesday unveiled his “Housing Justice For All” platform, a three-point-plan to help end housing displacement, improve tenant protections and increase the affordable housing stock across the city.
Williams was joined by New York Communities for Change (NYCC), one the state’s larger tenants’ rights advocacy groups, in Brooklyn in meeting with tenants who have been faced with landlord harassment and poor living conditions.
“Twenty years ago, I organized my first building in East Flatbush to protect tenants, so I was proud to stand there again with my fellow housing organizers to announce an ambitious Housing Justice For All platform that will expand our rent regulations to tenants, reform our land use policies and fix our broken NYCHA facilities,” said Williams, representative for the 45th Council District.
“As Public Advocate, I will stand up for low income renters and everyday New Yorkers to combat gentrification, and expand our city’s affordable housing stock.”
Williams said his “Housing Justice For All” platform will be released throughout the campaign.
Specifically, it includes three reforms: Universal Rent Control, “which would vastly expand the rent-regulation system to tenants across the city;” Reform the city’s approach to land use and development process by calling for a moratorium on rezonings that simply transfer wealth from communities to real estate developers; and fix and fully fund New York City Housing Authority (NYCHA) facilities, “while adding NYCHA to the ‘Public Advocate’s Worst Landlords’ List.’”
Jonathan Westin, NYCC’s executive director of NYCC, said his organization was supporting the plan while endorsing Williams’ bid for Public Advocate.
“No one has done more to fight for real affordable housing in this city and against the real estate industry’s planned gentrification and displacement of our members than Jumaane, and his progressive ‘Housing Justice For All’ platform serves as an important road map toward solving our affordable housing crisis,” he said.
“We are proud to endorse his people-powered campaign, and look forward to joining him in the fight for tenants’ rights and more,” he added.
As a former tenant organizer and chair of the City Council’s Committee on Housing and Buildings, Williams said he has been a “leading voice advocating and championing pro-tenant legislation.”
