McKee's Media, 9/12/2019

ARTICLES OF INTEREST TO TENANT ADVOCATES:

OPTING INTO RENT STABILIZATION (ETPA)

Hudson Valley One: Kingston first upstate city 

to take steps to opt in to state rent stabilization 

system

WAREHOUSING and OTHER 

RESISTANCE TO NEW LAW

Georgia Kromrei: Blackstone reverses course, 

says it will rent vacant apartments at Stuy Town 

(The Real Deal)

Elizabeth Kim: Following backlash, Blackstone 

commits to renting all vacant apartments at Stuy 

Town (Gothamist)

Sabina Mollot: Landlords warn that warehousing 

could become "the new normal" (Town & Village)

Michael DeMasi: Upstate landlords organize to fight 

new rent law; 250+ landlords register for Sept. 10 

workshop; new PAC formed (Albany Business Review)

Michael DeMasi: 350+ upstate landlords attend 

workshop (Albany Business Review)

Kathryn Brenzel: Deputy Mayor Vicki Been says 2019 

rent law might have gone too far, disses bill to prohibit 

evictions without good cause (The Real Deal)

Will Bredderman: De Blasio thinks rent reforms might 

have "unintended consequences" (Crain's)

Tenants seek to join suit landlords filed against 

laws

Sarina Trangle: Tenant advocacy groups seek to join 

landlord lawsuit against New York rent control laws as 

intervenor parties (amny)

Crain's on tenant advocacy groups motion to 

intervene in landlord lawsuit against rent control laws

DHCR Goofs Then Corrects 

Michael DeMasi: State housing agency issued incorrect 

information about which landlords are subject to new rent 

law (Albany Business Review)

DHCR SUMMARY OF THE NEW RENT LAW

OTHER STATES PASSING RENT LAWS

New York Times: California rent control bill advances,

 fueled by housing crisis

TENANTS FIGHT BACK

Claudia Irizarry Aponte: Sunset Park tenants sue to 

compel restoration of building months after devastating 

fire left them homeless (The City)

https://thecity.nyc/2019/09/tenants-ousted-by-sunset-

park-blaze-fight-for-answers.html

STATE SENATE BILL TO REGULATE BUYOUTS

Georgia Kromrei: Sen. Julia Salazar introduces 

bill to crack down on buyout offers (The Real Deal)

HOMELESS

Ruschell Boone: Inside NYC's underground van life, 

where homes have four wheels (New York 1) (VIDEO)

Emma Whitford: Picture The Homeless members 

attempt to revive the organization after lack of funds 

forced it to close its doors (Gothamist)

Ahmed Jallow: The shelter wars: City's need for beds 

meets neighborhood opposition (City Limits)

Anthony Abraham Jack: I was a low-income college

 student. Classes weren't the hard part (New York 

Times Magazine)

HOMEOWNERS HIT BY RIDICULOUS FINES

Grace Ashford: After Dept. of Buildings hired

 hundreds of new inspectors, NYC homeowners 

have been hit with repeated fines for same violations (

New York Times) 

  

CAMPAIGN REFORM (FINANCES AND MORE)

Ross Barkan: Activists tell campaign finance commission 

to keep their hands off fusion voting (Gothamist)

Samar Khurshid on first hearing of campaign public 

financing commission (Gotham Gazette)

Nick Reisman: Cuomo claims that public financing 

commission will be independent, claims he is not trying 

to kill fusion voting (NY State of Politics)

New York Times editorial: State commission on public 

financing can give NYS better government by enacting 

a small donor matching fund for elections

Participate in City & State online poll: Should NYS have 

public financing of elections? Should NYS eliminate fusion 

voting? (City & State)

David Lombardo: Public campaign financing commission 

sued for violating Freedom of Information Law (Capitol

 Confidential)

Nick Reisman: Judge sets timetable for Conservative Party 

& Working Families Party lawsuits challenging public campaign 

financing commission (NY State of Politics)

Rebecca Lewis: Who are the members of the public campaign

 finance commission? (City & State)

Ethan Geringer-Sameth: New York's election administration 

accountability vacuum (Part I): "Bad choices at every step" 

(Gotham Gazette)

APPARENT CORRUPTION, MALFEASANCE

Jan Ransom: Judge refused to hire Bronx Democratic 

party boss Marcus Crespo's aide, then was demoted 

(New York Times)

Eddie Small: How Larry Gluck & Stellar Management 

got a gentrified census tract in Hell's Kitchen designated 

as a low-income Opportunity Zone (The Real Deal)

Sarah Holder: State legislators preparing bills to curb 

corporate welfare (CityLab)

MISCELLANEOUS

Jan Ransom: Trial begins in Lower East Side explosion 

that killed two people; landlord, contractor & unlicensed 

plumber charged with manslaughter (New York Times)

Rachel Holliday Smith: Brewer, Rivera hire hydrogeology 

expert to review de Blasio plan to flood-proof lower east 

side of Manhattan (The City)

David Cruz: Legionnaires' Disease found at 

Tracey Towers (Norwood News)

 Nick Reisman: A.G. Tish James files motion to 

block Trump's rule change to deny green cards 

and visas to immigrants who seek social services 

(NY State of Politics)

Schenectady Daily Gazette: Airbnb bites into Saratoga 

hotel business

Mike McKee http://www.tenantspac.org/

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