Now that we’ve seen the various ways the lack of affordable housing negatively affects the lives of lower-income residents, let’s take a closer look at possible solutions we could apply in Clinton Hill.
- Current residents should contact their representatives in local government about efforts to combat negative effects of gentrification–send the letter attached on the next page!
- If you need to move out– PLEASE get educated on the application process for rent stabilized apartments here.
- All new developments in Clinton Hill must have a third of their future units auctioned off in a lottery comprising solely of local lower-income Clinton Hill residents
- There should be a tax break offered to landlords who agree to designate 50% of their units as rent-stabilized.
- We can also offer landlords other incentives, such as offering landlords substantial increases in build-able square feet (ie. more air rights). For example, a landlord owns a property with the right to build 5,000 square feet. He or she may be granted the rights to build an additional 4,000 square feet provided 50% of the total units are designated as rent-stabilized.
- Finally, there needs to be an increase in collaboration in planning between local long time residents, the City of New York, and private developers. A good example we should implore our elected representatives to follow (which includes everyone from your local block association to City Hall) is the plan the city of Portland, Oregon adopted when revamping the lower-income neighborhood of Cully. Of particular interest is the revelations the planning commission received from actually interviewing the residents, which can be found on pages 9 and 12 in the link above. Smart, collaborative can only help local residents– let’s make sure all the people involved in the future of Clinton Hill have a seat at the table.
