Mayor Zohran Kwame Mamdani: Good morning, everyone. It is a pleasure to be back in Hunts Point with so many friends and partners as we break ground on Casanova Residences. This is a 100 percent affordable housing development that will transform the lives of hundreds of New Yorkers here in the Bronx. And I wanna acknowledge the fact that we are joined by leaders both inside and outside of our administration today to announce this. We have Jennifer Mitchell, the president and CEO of The Doe Fund [and] John McDonald, the executive vice president of real estate at The Doe Fund. We have our deputy mayor for housing and planning, Leila Bozorg; our HPD deputy commissioner, Patrick Love; and our Bronx borough president, Vanessa Gibson. And I know that we will be joined by our Council member, Justin Sanchez, shortly. And I also want to acknowledge Bronx CB2 leadership that is here with us as well.
And truly, when we acknowledge everyone by name, I also want to make it very clear that there are so many staff members at every level of every organization that we've spoken of that have made this possible. And I especially want to acknowledge the hard work of those at The Doe Fund for bringing this day to reality. Thank you so much. Now, for decade after decade, the presence of the Spofford Juvenile Detention Center loomed over this neighborhood. It was a complex synonymous with brutal conditions and physical abuse. And it was the place where Raymond Santana of the Exonerated Five wrote a poem entitled, "Time" in 1991. In it, he said, "I just want to go home." Those words carried a meaning that went far beyond Spofford's walls.
The people of Hunts Point had long suffered from an intentional City government disinvestment that made it difficult to go home. It was neglect that manifested in broken streetlamps and windows boarded with plywood and sidewalks covered in rubble and a landscape littered with buildings gutted from fires that some landlords had set to collect the insurance payout. But the people of this neighborhood refused to let destruction become their norm. In the 35 years since Raymond Santana wrote those words, the people of Hunts Point have rebuilt. The livable, walkable streets where we stand today are proof of residents coming together to organize, to advocate [and] to demand something better. Each paved sidewalk, each tree planted, was won by the people of the Bronx in spite of that neglect. And I stand here today with a commitment to bring that era of disinvestment to an end.
This groundbreaking here at Casanova Residences stands as proof of what this commitment will look like in the lives of Bronxites. Once completed, the building will be comprised of 96 affordable homes. Fifty-eight of these apartments will be designated as supportive housing for people with histories of homelessness and those living with serious health conditions. New Yorkers who have historically been denied the services they need to live lives of dignity. Here at Casanova, they will be able to address critical supports right outside their doorstep, thanks to The Doe Fund. Services including case management, financial literacy classes, paid work training, legal referrals and more. The other 38 homes will also be rent stabilized and truly affordable for working New Yorkers with one apartment designated for a live-in super.
All residents will have access to free broadband internet across the building, as well as onsite laundry, a fitness center and community spaces. This project is just one example of our broader efforts to rewrite the relationship between City Hall and the people of the Bronx. Through our historic housing plan "Block by Block," we are taking a targeted approach to the lasting housing inequities that disproportionately affect those in this borough, holding bad landlords accountable and supporting organized tenants along the way. And directly across the street from where we stand today, the former Spofford Center is being transformed from a site of trauma and abuse to a state-of-the-art mixed-use campus, known as The Peninsula, featuring 740 new affordable homes as well as open outdoor space. It will not only provide much-needed affordable housing, [but] it will also house New York City's first-ever city-run grocery store.
There, food will be fresh, staples will be set at 30 percent below typical retail prices and workers will be paid fairly and treated with respect. This store will open before Casanova Residences is completed. So, when New Yorkers move in, they will be moving into a neighborhood equipped with the resources they need. From affordable groceries to outdoor space where they can play a game of chess or simply enjoy the breeze that just came in.
As we break ground on Casanova Residences today, we are writing that new chapter for this corner. One where those who live here no longer experience neglect as a norm, but one where New Yorkers can instead go home to a decent, dignified space and where City government fulfills its fundamental responsibility to make that possible. Thank you very much. Now, I'm gonna pass it over to our emcee for the day, Deputy Mayor for Housing and Planning Leila Bozorg.
Deputy Mayor Leila Bozorg, Housing and Planning: Thank you; [it's] nice to see you all. I'm actually gonna pass it over to [the] president and CEO of The Doe Fund, Jennifer Mitchell.
Jennifer Mitchell, President and CEO, The Doe Fund: Thank you, mayor. Thank you, deputy mayor. It is so thrilling to be here with both of you and everybody else today. Good morning, everybody. Thank you all for joining us for this exciting moment. And it's overwhelming to be in this moment. Having worked in the Hunts Point community since 2016, I have seen firsthand the resilience, the determination and the pride that define this community. And today's groundbreaking and the future Casanova Residences will build on that strength, helping to ensure that Hunts Point remains a place where people, families and local businesses can thrive.
For nearly 40 years, The Doe Fund has been a citywide leader in addressing homelessness. We provide safe places to call home, offer the services people need to build stable, fulfilling lives and help them to develop the skills to succeed in the workforce. Here's what that looks like in practice. The Doe Fund operates three transitional housing sites serving 660 New Yorkers experiencing homelessness with care and compassion. We also own and operate 12 affordable and supportive housing buildings with 1,300 safe, high-quality apartments that New Yorkers call home. Combined, we serve more than 2,000 New Yorkers every single day. Next month, we'll be adding 200 new beds to our shelter capacity. And with projects like Casanova Residences, we have more than 800 additional affordable and supportive housing apartments in various stages of development.
Our work doesn't end, though, when someone moves in. Every resident in every one of our buildings has access to onsite supportive services from case management to healthcare coordination, from employment support to other engagement activities, all designed to help residents remain housed and build healthy, stable lives. These services are what transform apartments into homes and what transform buildings into communities. Further, at all of our transitional and all of permanent housing, residents have access to our signature Ready, Willing & Able program.
Ready, Willing & Able has helped 15,000 New Yorkers experiencing homelessness to achieve employment, housing, and more often than not, both. Through paid transitional work, occupational classes, case management and individualized support, trainees build the skills and stability needed to create lasting, sustainable change. In fact, just last week, we had DM Arteaga go there; we celebrated more than 130 people who found jobs and apartments through the Ready, Willing & Able program. Seeing our graduates in their caps and gowns, surrounded by friends and family, was a powerful reminder of what's possible when people have the tools and the opportunity and the support to succeed.
Everything we do at The Doe Fund is rooted in dignity, informed by leaders who have lived experience with homelessness, and guided by the belief that every New Yorker should have access to a brighter future. Providing this programming is a huge part of addressing homelessness, but we can't solve this crisis without more housing that people can afford, and that's why projects like Casanova Residences are critical.
I am so very grateful to our partners for investing in this community and for tackling the affordable housing crisis head on. To Mayor Mamdani, who is committed to building a city where everybody can thrive: Thank you so, so much. To Deputy Mayor Bozorg, to Patrick Love, Deputy Commissioner of HPD, and to the entire Housing Preservation and Development team who championed this project: Thank you, thank you, thank you. To the teams at Department of Health and Mental Hygiene, to the teams at Human Resources Administration: We are so excited to work with you to directly place people out of homelessness and into our supportive housing units here. Thank you so very much. To Borough President Vanessa Gibson, Council Member Justin Sanchez and District Manager Ralph Acevedo: Thank you for standing by us and supporting us as we deepen our commitment to the Bronx. And to our development partners who are literally surrounding us and we're putting turf in and creating stages over the weekend: You are with us every step of the way, and we are forever appreciative, so thank you so much.
Together, we are building so much more than apartments; we are building the foundation for brighter futures. I am so proud that The Doe Fund will be part of making that possible here in Hunts Point and I can't wait to welcome our first residents home. So, thank you all for joining us today, and I'm going to turn it back over to Deputy Mayor Bozorg.
Deputy Mayor Bozorg: Thank you, Jennifer, and truly congratulations on this very exciting day. It's really great to be here with everyone to mark this step forward for Casanova, for the Greater Hunts Point neighborhood, and really, for our city at large. I'm particularly grateful for the work The Doe Fund does. As you just described, it's so important to our whole city. I also want to really thank the financing partners and the agency partners, a lot of whom Jennifer named, who really make days like this possible.
As the mayor and Jennifer laid out, this project is going to be an asset to the entire neighborhood, and it's really a model for supportive housing across our city, and it builds on much more investment that is coming to Hunts Point, as the mayor described. As you know, housing is truly one of the biggest challenges facing our city. And ensuring that New Yorkers have housing that fits their specific, unique needs is critical to the future of our city. That's why we're making investments that meet the scale of our housing challenge across the city.
As part of our housing plan - and in our first budget - we've invested a historic $22 billion over the next five years alone in affordable housing. And I'm very proud to say that that includes $1 billion specifically over the next two years just for supportive housing, which represents a 60 percent increase in funding over the previous two fiscal years. That investment will help more projects like Casanova become a reality faster. But we know that building new supportive housing is not just what we need; we're also making new investments in preserving supportive housing as part of our plan. And HPD recently launched a new supportive preservation program to help with the maintenance and investments that so much of our existing supportive housing needs to be able to continue to provide the vital services that New Yorkers need. So, this is all just one piece of our broader housing plan including, as the mayor mentioned, a real focus - what we call a spotlight - on the Bronx to try to manage and plan for the acute housing quality challenges that folks in the Bronx are dealing with. With that, I'm now going to introduce our borough president, Vanessa Gibson.
Bronx Borough President Vanessa Gibson: Thank you so much, deputy mayor. Good morning, ladies and gentlemen. What a beautiful day to be here to support this important project. I told Jennifer Mitchell, I'm still coming even though it's raining. But it's important to still be here. Thank you all for being here and thank you, Mr. Mayor; and my colleague, Council Member Justin Sanchez; of course, Ralph Acevedo, our district manager at Community Board 2; and the team at CB2 who reminded me that they have been working with The Doe Fund on this project for the last several years. Thank you for recognizing the importance of coming together with a shared agenda for the City of New York.
Right here, this morning, in the heart of one of our borough's most critical and important economic engines, Hunts Point, it's a pleasure to be here with all of you today as we officially break ground on Casanova. This project lays the foundation for expanding affordable and supportive housing in our borough and giving all residents and New Yorkers the opportunity to strive and thrive in the communities that they truly call home. It is with great pride and joy that we come together to support The Doe Fund's eleventh affordable housing development in the Bronx, a remarkable milestone in an enduring legacy of providing hope, stability, justice and opportunity for many New Yorkers. Jennifer Mitchell knows I've been counting all the projects because we were just on Creston Avenue not too long ago in the West Bronx.
This project will provide 96 new homes, including 38 affordable units and 58 supportive housing units for individuals who need not only a place to live, but access to services and support and continuity that can help people build stable, self-sufficient and independent lives. This development recognizes that housing is more than the walls and a roof; it's a foundation upon which people can pursue opportunities, improve their health, get social services and access to care, and strengthen their connection to their community.
I want to acknowledge and say thank you to The Doe Fund for your continued leadership, for your unwavering commitment. Our president and CEO, Jennifer Mitchell, who is a dear friend - she and I work together on many projects in The Doe Fund's portfolio, and prior to that, when she served as the leader of Sustainable South Bronx. I want to say thank you, Jennifer, to you and your team. This development is truly worthy to be celebrated and recognized, and it demonstrates that permanent housing paired and aligned with comprehensive supportive services can truly transform lives. The dedicated community space, which we love, on-site services, security, landscaped outdoor areas, fitness center, and so many necessities - not amenities - planned for this building will help ensure that residents have not only a safe place to call home, but a community where they can flourish.
I want to acknowledge John McDonald and the team again at The Doe Fund. I've known The Doe Fund for a very, very long time, and I want to acknowledge the late leader, George McDonald. I want to recognize the many public agencies and financing partners, elected officials and stakeholders whose collaboration has made today's groundbreaking so possible. Thank you to our mayor, Zohran Mamdani, for your leadership. To Jennifer Mitchell and The Doe Fund, to John McDonald, to Deputy Mayor Leila Bozorg, our deputy mayor of housing and planning, to Deputy Commissioner for HPD Patrick Love, to our New York City Councilmember Justin Sanchez, and all of the partners, the developers, the architect, the financing, Citibank, everyone that poured so much into this project.
As borough president, my highest priority is expanding housing across our borough that reflects the diverse needs of our residents, and that means creating homes that are truly affordable and accessible for working class families, for vulnerable neighbors, and thoughtfully integrated into our communities. Hunts Point has long been a neighborhood defined by courage, resilience, strength and determination. People often counted Hunts Point out, but it was people that stood their ground that said Hunts Point will not be left behind, but rather Hunts Point will lead from the Food Distribution Center to the work at La Peninsula at La Central and all parts of the South Bronx. I want to say thank you to our heavy hitters and the OGs in our neighborhood that never gave up. That's what Casanova represents, an investment in building a legacy based on the hard work of those that came before us.
So, ladies and gentlemen, today we celebrate the beginning of a project that will create a lasting impact for generations to come. I look forward to the ribbon cutting on time and on budget - two important phrases, Mr. Mayor and deputy mayor - and the transformation of this site to a place where individuals and families can build bright futures together. Let us celebrate this incredible moment as we usher in a new chapter filled with hope, renewal and endless possibilities. Ready, Willing & Able, thank you, The Doe Fund, and we look forward to the partnership ahead. Thank you so much.
Deputy Mayor Bozorg: Thank you, borough president. On time and on budget is music to my ears as well. Next up, we're going to hear from Council Member Justin Sanchez, who's been such a great advocate for housing all across his district.
Council Member Justin Sanchez: Good morning, Hunts Point. Oh, I know we can have more energy than that. Good morning, Hunts Point. Oh, the rain is louder. How is everyone? It is - and if this is the kind of construction that we're going to build, we just wait to see the building. My name is Justin Sanchez, and I'm proud to represent Hunts Point.
This project is another great project that shows the future of housing in the district. It is so great to be on stage with partners that look at Hunts Point, not what it was in the 1990s but what we should be looking towards in the 2030s and the 2040s. The things that we break ground now, the communities that we build, the grocery stores that we bring in are laying the stage for the neighborhoods that the kids right across the street are growing up [in] every single day. As kids prepare to start school again at our local Hunts Point schools, as they go to our local train stations and see all this construction, it creates a world of possibilities. And that world of possibilities is no longer the ones where we see folks dealing with substance use disorder on our streets but rather, they're in quality homes getting care and actually connections to services so that they can build the lives and become the community members that we want to see and thrive and flourish.
And that is what announcements like today are about. They're about building the communities of the future while also dealing with the hard-hitting issues of today. Our Deputy Mayor Leila Bozorg aptly said the "Spotlight on the Bronx" is for that reason, because the housing that we face and the challenges that exist are unlike any other place in this city. But with partners like our mayor, like our deputy mayor, like our borough president, together we can build a future that we actually believe in. And that starts with this groundbreaking today; it starts with finishing the projects in the past. And making sure that as we bring in our supportive housing, we're able to close down some of our shelters that have overrun our communities for so long. And that is what partnership and community is all about. So, I look forward to this groundbreaking today and I look to the communities that we get to build in these next years ahead. Thank you all so much.
Deputy Mayor Bozorg: Next up we're going to hear from our deputy commissioner for development at HPD, Patrick Love.
Patrick Love, Deputy Commissioner for the Office of Development, HPD: Morning everyone. It is an honor to stand with you all today to mark this important milestone to mark the continued transformation of the Hunts Point neighborhood. Thanks to the hard work of so many people, we can see that soon 96 families and individuals will have a safe, affordable place that they can call home. This project would not be possible without the partnership and persistence of so many. I always say it doesn't take a village; it takes a city to get these projects done. Our elected officials, our development and financing partners, and the members of the Hunts Point community played an integral role in the development of this project. I also want to thank the members of our team who worked tirelessly to get us here: Elizabeth Eastman, Sarah Leitson, Natsumi Yokura, Daniel Girard, thank you for helping bring this vision to life.
As we face a historic housing crisis, we are proud that 60 percent of the apartments here will be reserved for the formerly homeless individuals and families who will have access to supportive services, case management, adult education, work training and more. The remaining units will be a reserve for low-income New Yorkers via the New York City Housing Lottery. This will be dignified place to live. All residents will have access to free broadband internet in apartments and in common areas. Onsite laundry, a fitness center, landscaped outdoor space, and dedicated community and service spaces operated by The Doe Fund. While today is about what is being built here, it is also about the city's broader commitments that we're ensuring that New Yorkers have access to safe, supportive, stable housing that they need regardless of their income level.
At HPD, we are moving full steam ahead to preserve the affordable housing that we currently have while building the affordable housing we desperately need in the future. As we celebrate this milestone, let's stay focused on this work. The work to remove barriers to affordable housing, to cut the red tape, to get shovels in the ground more quickly, to bring everyone in the table to work together to build a city where no one has to worry about where they're going to be sleeping at night. That is the true measure of success, and we are proud to add the Casanova Residences to this list of projects that'll help us achieve this goal. Thank you.
Deputy Mayor Bozorg: And last, but certainly not least, we're going to hear from The Doe Fund's executive vice president of real estate, John McDonald. And I'll just take a moment to recognize B.P. Gibson mentioned his name, but John is the son of George McDonald, founder of the Dole Fund. And if you don't know about his legacy and that of Mama Doe, The Doe Fund is named after, I definitely recommend you learn more about it. But join me in welcoming John McDonald!
John McDonald, Executive Vice President of Real Estate, The Doe Fund: Thank you, Deputy Mayor and it's truly a blessing to be here today. The Doe Fund was founded to fulfill a promise, to provide New Yorkers with an opportunity to work and to achieve long-lasting stability after homelessness, a room and a job to pay for it. That's The Doe Fund's mantra. That's what people living in Grand Central Terminal asked my father for time and time again. When he brought them sandwiches for 700 consecutive nights. That plea is what inspired him to start The Doe Fund nearly 40 years ago.
Today, we are following through on my father's visions in ways that we both never dreamed of. I get a little emotional, as you can see, when I think about what we are building here, because this is one of the last sites we bought together before my father passed away. I know he would be proud that we are keeping our promise and expanding upon his vision. We purchased this site in February of 2020. In March, the world shut down and my father passed away 10 months later. This project was delayed partly because of the disruption of COVID.
When we received the tax credits from HPD, we couldn't obtain equity or debt financing. Not until Raymond James and Webster Bank stepped up to the plate. So, I want to thank Raymond James, Darryl Seavey and Kelly McCollum. Unfortunately, I don't think they're here today but thank you from the bottom of my heart. And also, Webster Bank, who stepped up; James Dittbrenner, Anthony Russo and Vanessa Veras at Webster. Thank you so much. You guys are great partners to us.
And speaking of funding, it's thanks to the HPD that we are here today. And I just want to, again, thank a few members from the HPD Supportive Housing Loan Program team, Dan Girard and Elizabeth Eastman; and Sarah Leitson, she's assistant commissioner of special needs housing. I also want to thank the Commissioner and Deputy Commissioner for their tireless commitment to helping one of the city's most vulnerable populations. It's very important that we help these folks. We all want more affordable housing in the city. We wish we could just wave a magic wand and make it appear. But the reality is that it's a difficult, time-consuming and expensive process.
It takes coordination, hard work, financing and commitment - the kind of commitment shared by this administration and by the elected officials who have joined us here today. Mayor Mamdani, Council Member Sanchez, Borough President Gibson, we are truly grateful for your dedication to addressing the affordability crisis. This building will not only help play a major role in reducing homelessness; it will also aid in the revitalization of Hunts Point and benefit all who visit or call it home. It will serve as a beacon of hope, providing nearly a hundred New Yorkers with safe and affordable housing. Alongside the support they need to continue to thrive and become productive members of the community.
Casanova will be The Doe Fund's 13th permanent residence, bringing our portfolio to more than 1,400 units across the city. Each one provides so much more than a place to call home They have on-site case managers who help the tenants on their path to progress They have paid work training and vocational classes to help tenants realize their potential. They even have activities like yoga, mindfulness, meditation, gardening classes, storytelling workshops and more. Because what is a home without a community?
Speaking of community, I also want to thank our development team, Curtis + Ginsberg, Architects; Darby Curtis leads them up, and Bryan Tooze is our project manager. And also, our wonderful GCs, Crescent Builders, who laid the start down today. It's our third job with them. We look forward to many more. [Crosstalk.]
Our financial consultants, Ametrine Group, Amy Larovere, and Ester Rim over there in the corner. And where is he, Tim Flanagan, our owner's rep? He's been with us since way back; who knows when. And then get this, we actually had two pre-development lenders to thank; that's interesting. First is the FJC, they're not here today, led by Lorin Silverman and Sam Marks, and also [the] Leviticus Fund, led by Greg Maher. Leviticus took them out, and thank God for their patience. And I have to put in a plug for 100 percent loan-to-value financing for not-for-profits. If that wasn't the case, we all wouldn't be here today.
Also, our esteemed attorneys Goldstein Hall, thank you. David Goldstein, Jane Chang and Meghan Boland. Without your commitment to this project, there is simply no way we would be breaking ground today. In addition, I want to thank all the members from the community board too, especially its chair, Roberto Crespo and district manager, Ralph Acevedo. We've been deeply appreciative of your passion and enthusiasm throughout this process. I know we came to you a while back. Thank you.
We also appreciate the advocacy of NYSAFAH, New York State Association for Affordable Housing, which [is] led by Carlina Rivera. I'm on the board of that, just throwing that out there. And also, the Supportive Housing Network of New York, led by Pascale Leone. And Jen's on the board of that one, too. And then Homeless Services United, led by Kristen Miller. She's on [the] board of that one too. So, thank you all for your advocacy. And lastly, this one's important. We wouldn't be here today without the rest of The Doe Funds Real Estate team. Larry Gordon and the guys sitting up there in the first row, Jesse Schwartz. Words cannot express my gratitude for what you guys do. You guys do all the heavy lifting, and that's why we're here today. Thank you from the bottom of my heart, guys.
And above all else, people will have a community in which they can maintain their stability and thrive. At the end of the day, that's what this work is all about. But you know what? There's still a lot of work to be done. Soon, this empty lot will provide 96 homes for people experiencing or at risk of homelessness. They will receive comprehensive onsite support from The Doe Fund as well as having access to our work training program. Guys, thank you so much for joining us on this journey and making our vision a reality.
Question: There are roughly 100,000 people sleeping in City homeless shelters. Your administration released a housing plan in May that sort of touched on that, but I'm curious if you expect to release a separate blueprint kind of focused on how you're planning to address homelessness and bring down that shelter population. And then relatedly, does the city need more homeless shelter space in addition to housing?
Mayor Mamdani: I think, first and foremost, we know that the preeminent crisis in New York City is that of the housing crisis. And we know the homelessness crisis is one face of that. And what makes today so exciting is that we are building not only housing that currently homeless New Yorkers, as well as those at risk of homelessness, can live in, but that we're accompanying that housing with the kind of services that make it possible for those New Yorker to transform their own lives. And we are doing this alongside an allocation of more than $5 million in the recently adopted budget, where we are putting money towards a cross-agency task force that is looking to bring vacant supportive housing units online quicker so that we can ensure that we are meeting New Yorkers' needs as quickly as we can. I'm gonna pass it over to our deputy mayor for housing and planning to speak to your broader question as well.
Deputy Mayor Bozorg: Yes, so as the mayor noted, supportive housing is a huge prong of our broader housing plan. And as the Block by Block plan noted, we are increasing the funding, not just for supportive housing, but for all affordable housing, much of which has a 15 percent set-aside for formerly homeless New Yorkers. So, the plan itself is increasing exponentially the homes that will be built for formerly homeless New Yorkers. We are also working in partnership with Deputy Mayor Arteaga and the Department of Social Services and other partners on a broader homelessness blueprint that will be issued later this year. So, it's a little bit of both through the housing plan as well as strategies that will live outside of the housing plan.
Question: I wanted to ask a little bit about the SPEED Task Force and the EO that you signed early in your administration. A lot of people on stage said that this was a long time coming, this specific project. Were there any specific aspects of the SPEED initiative that got things out of a gridlock, out of a place where they were not moving? Any permits that were kind of stuck that were able to be expedited through that initiative? And how does this go hand in hand with any LIFT initiatives happening in the area? I know we took this bus tour of a different part of the Bronx, but I was looking at your new tracker - there seem to be City-owned sites surrounding this. Is this gonna be kind of a hub for development in both of those areas, and can you go into that?
Mayor Mamdani: I'm glad that you brought up the bus tour, because what we saw on that tour were a number of sites that had been announced years ago. I met the borough president right before I got on the bus and she mentioned to me that as part of a rezoning that she won when she was a Council member, 2018 Jerome Avenue, she secured one of these sites. It's eight years later and you can go to that site, and it looks very similar to what it was in 2018. And so, I think the point of this is to say that the issue of expediting construction is not specific to any one location; it is an issue we are seeing across the five boroughs. And we never want to be able to look at a site and say that we are contributing to the delay of the building on that site. So, I am so thankful for the leadership of our deputy mayor in identifying any which way - both within city government, but also in terms of state law - that we can be expediting this, because that's a big reason why we lent our voice to the fight for SEQRA reform, because we had identified SEQRA reform as being one of the factors that was delaying construction times up to two years. And that is simply not acceptable in a city where we haven't built enough housing per demand since 1961. I'm gonna pass it to our deputy mayor for additional details.
Deputy Mayor Bozorg: I'll note just a couple other things specifically that came out of the SPEED Task Force and that we'll continue to work on. The SPEED Task Force, of course, looked at from environmental review through lease up, the different stages of the process and things we could do to speed up pre-certification, financing and the lease-up process. So, things like adding $1 billion to the budget for supportive housing - that's gonna allow us to finance more and more quickly. But the SPEED Task Force also named a couple things specific to the process of getting formerly homeless households into housing faster. One is a pilot that's called MATCH, that's really allowing developers to work directly with shelter providers to make referrals faster and easier. That's something that we're rolling out this fall. And then there's another piece looking specifically at the homeless placement process. We're introducing new technology to make that process - again, this is in the set-aside process - make that process just move faster. Those are two parts of the process that providers, both supportive housing providers and shelter providers, have told us there have been real bottlenecks. So, it's really a range of pieces across the development process that SPEED is gonna help with for projects like this.
Question: I actually had an on-topic question and then I'll ask you the off as well. My first one - great segue from the previous question about the LIFT tracker - last week, some Harlem residents sued over one of the projects that's actually on that tracker, 1727 Amsterdam Avenue. They believe their healthcare services are gonna be lost due to an affordable housing project coming there. I wonder, you talk about communities of color not being pushed out, Black New Yorkers leaving the city more than any other. Why not rethink that project if so many community members and officials don't want to see that project go forward in the form that it is right now? My separate question for off topic is, you extended the deadline for the pied-à-terre, I guess people to file for the exemption. I wanted to know why you obviously did that because there's been so many complications. I'm wondering, between the complications for the people that are filing for the exemptions and the work that your staff is doing, how do you see this tax even coming to fruition when there's so many complications early?
Mayor Mamdani: So, I'll answer the first question and also bring up the deputy mayor for the specifics on the property that you mentioned. I will first just say that it is critically important that we build more housing across New York City. And the reason for that is the absence of that housing construction has been one of the factors that has pushed so many New Yorkers out of the city. As you alluded to in your question, the cost-of-living crisis, it affects every single New Yorker. The effect of it, however, is not born evenly. We've seen Black New Yorkers disproportionately hit by the impact of this crisis. We've seen 200,000 Black New Yorkers be pushed out of this city in the last few decades alone. And we've also seen that reflected even in the population of Black children and teenagers; from 2010 to 2019, our city's population went down by nearly 20 percent.
And so, one of the top priorities that we have as a city is how do we build housing that can ensure that Black history isn't just something that we celebrate in New York City, but it's something that we can also ensure can keep being written in New York City. Because one of the times that I saw a pastor in Harlem was when I met him on his way to the airport, I asked him where he was going and he told me he was going to meet a parishioner of his in South Carolina. Because now that's where she can afford to live. And I think that building more housing, especially whether it be in Manhattan, in the Bronx, in every single one of five boroughs, in Harlem. It is critical to ensuring that we can meet that, but I'll pass it over to the deputy mayor on any specifics.
Deputy Mayor Bozorg: On the specific project you named, yes, litigation has started. You know, that is a project that has been in the works for a very long time, many years, and there has been a long community engagement process. We of course want to continue to work with the community and hear their concerns. But there are health services that are both coming back in that project, as well health services and health investments that the Council member secured through the land use process that are investments we are making nearby. So, there is a shared goal of continuing the healthcare services that the neighborhood needs while also building this much needed 100 percent affordable project that has been long in the making. But we'll of course continue to work with the community and of course now through the litigation process as well.
Mayor Mamdani: And just to your second question, Kelly. Yes, we have extended the deadline to September 18. And the point of this period of time is precisely so that New Yorkers - the 17,000 homeowners who received the "you may be subject to" letters - have all the information they need and also have the time to be able to inquire with any questions, as well as appeal any assessment of their property as being one that would receive the surcharge. Again, this is a surcharge for secondary homes of non-resident New Yorkers that are worth more than $5 million. We've also made the decision to hire 24 additional civil servants across multiple city agencies precisely to be engaging with New Yorker on this question. Again, if a New Yorker does not appeal this by September 18, they still have until March to appeal this to the Tax Commission before this tax is actually levied.
Question: Mr. Mayor, I want to follow up on the pied-à-terre tax. I wonder if you have any regrets about the way this was rolled out, because you have a lot of people who are angry that they were, first of all, that their information was public anyway. But, secondly, they have been long-term residents of the city. They don't, they feel they don't have to prove that they've been living here since they've been living here all their lives. And do you regret the rollout? Would you have done it differently? And what do you want to say to these people who are angry?
Mayor Mamdani: I think first and foremost that I understand the concerns New Yorkers have, especially when it comes to a new tax, and as we know that new taxes typically present more questions than they do answers. Now when it comes to the property tax role and the "you may be subject to" letters, I do also want to state that there has been both a willful and an unintentional conflation of both the property-tax role and these letters. The property tax roll, as you know is something that the city releases twice a year annually and has been doing so for decades, frankly, if not longer. This is a tax role that was released that had more than 900,000 homes on it. And we know that the pied-à-terre surcharge is for secondary homes of non-resident New Yorkers. The city sent a letter to 17,000 homeowners; that is a fraction of the number of homeowners in New York City and a fraction of the number of people who call the city home - an 8.5 million.
And in that letter, it stated that this is the process by which you can engage with the city to ensure that if you do not believe this to be an accurate assessment of your property, you have the time to appeal this assessment. And so, whether New Yorkers are gonna call 311 or they're gonna call the Department of Finance directly, or also now if they want to go directly to a business center in person, we want to make sure that they have all the resources necessary to that.
Question: Do you have any regrets about how it was rolled out? I mean, it was supposed to be something that you thought would help raise money for the city and instead you have people who are really angry.
Mayor Mamdani: I continue to believe that the pied-à-terre surcharge will raise $500 million on an annual basis. And the importance of this tax is that it is one that will ensure that our streets are cleaner, that our city is safer, that our schools are more supported. And what we are also doing is embarking on something new in New York City where we are ensuring that we are assessing the primary residents of homeowners in homes that are worth more than $5 million. And we've sent out 17,000 letters. And now from that, we're receiving engagement from New Yorkers to assess what the final number is. The thing we did not want to do was levy this charge without giving New Yorkers a period of time where they could engage with the city. And now that's this period of engagement.
Question: This morning, the NYPD put out their crime stats for the month of July. They said the Bronx is leading the city with a 12.5 percent drop in major crime, but with just in the last few days, there was a double shooting on Friday where an 87-year-old woman was shot in the face. This morning a 50-year-old man was shot to death in Van Nest. How do you kind of reconcile these numbers that the city is touting that crime is down when the reality is not of that on the streets? How do ensure that people in the Bronx actually feel safe when these crimes are happening on their streets?
Mayor Mamdani: I think first and foremost, so long as there is crime in the Bronx and there is crime in New York City, it means that there is work for us to do. And we can acknowledge and appreciate the incredible work of the men and women of the NYPD in reducing crime and also know that there's still so much more work to be done. And I will tell you, as someone who went to see Kai's body with his family at that viewing, I can never look at the heartbreak that that family is going through and say that the work that we have done is enough. There is always more work to be done and there always will be more work to be down until every 12-year-old can ride a bike to a bodega and ensure that they're just enjoying summer as every New Yorker has the right to.
Question: [Inaudible.]
Mayor Mamdani: You know, we are looking at every different avenue that we have to invest in the Bronx. And when we're thinking about these kinds of moments where we're investing in the housing here in the Bronx, but also in investing in youth programming across the Bronx and across the city. And that continues to be a conversation that we have internally as we celebrate the investments of SYEP. Just a few days ago, I was there at the Shakespeare Steps with a number of young Bronxites who were really feeling a renewed sense of purpose thanks to this project that they were a part of because of the leadership of City Arts. And I think that's also what the key holds is, how do we ensure we have more for young people to do and not just lectures to them of what they shouldn't do.
Question: Summer Streets kicked off on Saturday, and a lot of people who were there noticed that there was expanded police presence. Streetsblog reported a story on it; they say it's unprecedented, the number of police cars they saw blocking intersections. And many people said it really interfered with their experience of what Summer Streets is meant to be. I wanted you to speak to that - and it's also, I want to point out that that's not the only type of community event where we've seen expanded police presence. It's also been reported that there are more police now at street festivals. What is the rationale behind that? And then I have a second question on Janno Lieber's comments that your talk of free buses has contributed to more fare evasion. Can you comment on that?
Mayor Mamdani: You know, I think, Janno and I will always have a difference of opinion and that's fine, because here in New York City we learn how to live with each other, no matter how many differences of opinion we have. And the place of agreement that we have is how to make the slowest buses in America fast, how to them worth the time that New Yorkers pour into them when millions of New Yorker get on buses that sometimes crawl as slow as five miles an hour. Now when I was in high school, I went to high school here in the Bronx at Bronx Science, and to get there, I would get on the Bx10. And that bus went so slow that I knew if I could see it two stops away, I would be able to run and catch up. And that's not a good thing for a city when buses are that slow. Now, when it comes to making buses free, it is something that I continue to believe is important, because what we are talking about is a cost-of-living crisis in this city where one in five New Yorkers struggle to afford the fare at $3. And we know that that is only going to be exacerbated the longer this cost of live crisis goes and we never want a New Yorker to be priced out of that.
I am thankful of the work alongside with the Council, and we have our Council Member Justin Sanchez here, looking to ensure that we're increasing the eligibility for Fair Fares in the interim, which I also think is an important program. To your first question, I will follow up on the reporting around summer streets. I'm not yet aware of that article from Streetsblog. However, what I would say is, we want to ensure that New Yorkers are safe in all of these moments and we also want to ensure that New Yorkers can enjoy themselves and celebrate. And that was also one of the real focuses that we had over the course of this summer, and we most recently saw it during the World Cup. But thank you for highlighting the article and I'll be sure to follow up on it.
Question: On the pied-à-terre tax, I wanted to check, so the city sent out 17,000 letters, is that it? Will the city be sending out additional letters? And then how many exemptions have been filed so far? Have you guys received any back? And then why not utilize the Office of Mass Engagement to try to make sure that people are checking their mail, are making sure that they're getting these notices and know what's going on?
Mayor Mamdani: So, the assessment of 17,000 properties potentially being levied with this surcharge, that is the maximum number of properties. And now the process is on engaging with New Yorkers to see whether those who filed their property in a trust or in an LLC are in fact also primary residence holders of that same property. We have been engaging with a number of New Yorkers - we can have the team follow up with you with the exact number - already, just in the time since that first letter was sent. And that engagement will continue through September 18 with the Department of Finance, and again, if a New Yorker does not engage after that point, they can still appeal to the Tax Commission until March. And right now, what we are doing is investing in civil servants across the Department of Finance as well as OATH. We know that a lot of New Yorkers have long associated those agencies with any questions that they have with their property taxes. And so, what we've done is whether they're calling 311, whether they are calling the Department of Finance directly, or whether they are going in person into a business center, that they are all able now to ensure that they can help New Yorkers navigate those conversations. And we're thankful for the work of those civil servants.
