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ALBANY – After allocating $23 million of the 2023 budget for housing, Governor Kathy Hochul has taken a step further to create affordable options across the state.
“Yesterday, we signed a package of nation-leading laws to address how we want to protect New Yorkers… Today, we take a step toward protecting the dignity of New Yorkers, and deal with the shortage of affordable housing, because I deeply believe that housing is a human right.” says Hochul.
The Governor explained that with inflation being seen across the board, affordable housing is more important now than ever.
“And with hotels hit so hard by the pandemic, many of them never reopened, an opportunity has arisen to use vacant hotels in a way that’ll lift people up and give them yes, the dignity of a home,” assures Hochul.
The law allows Class B hotels within residential zoning districts or within 400 feet of such districts to operate as permanent residential spaces.
“First time ever, a historic $25 billion to create 100,000 new housing units, as well as on top of that, at least 1.5 billion for an additional 10,000 supportive housing units. Who are we supporting? We’re supporting our neighbors. People have been left on the streets who are homeless, people who have mental health challenges, people have addiction problems like many of our family members had or still have today, our returning veterans who come back with PTSD after they served our nation, they deserve a home. LGBTQ seniors who don’t have children to take care of them as they age. This is what supportive housing is all about. This is why I believe in the power of harnessing government spaces and the private sector together toward this cause,” says Hochul.
Tenants of this new permanent housing can earn no more than sixty percent of the area median income. All units will be rent stabilized and subject to permanent affordability restrictions.
State funding is also going towards the Housing Our Neighbors with Dignity Act, to convert commercial and distressed hotel properties into affordable housing.
Of the twenty legislators to vote no to the bill, one of them was Senator George Borrello.
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