By David Freedlander | dfreedlander@am-ny.comThere are more than 200 apartment buildings in the city that have been illegally converted to hotels, according to a report released Sunday, significantly reducing the number of rent-stabilized units available.
"It's hard enough to find housing in this city as it is," said John Raskin, director of organizing at Housing Conservation Coordinators, an affordable housing group that released the report. "The last thing we need is to lose more apartments to the illegal hotel industry."
Illegal hotel operators frequently take advantage of tax loopholes designed to encourage the construction of residential units, according to Raskin.
Legal tenants then face harassment and in some cases illegal eviction notices in order to chase them out of their homes, the report found.
The mayor's office said they are continuing to work with the city council to find a solution to the problem.
Advocates are calling for increased penalties and changes in the zoning laws to clarify where hotels can and cannot operate.
Report: 200 illegal hotels exist in the city
6 comments:
Where is the mainline preservation community?
(something that we will repeat over and over)
What is a hotel? A place that rents by the day, week, or month?
Then Queens has hundreds of them.
Of course, a good supply of cheap labor so no one will say a thing.
Maybe even a good place for a bunch of 9/11 types to get together.
I'll bet at least 30 of them are in downtown Flushing.
There are approx. 3 located about 4 blocks from Councilman Liu's home.
H-m-m-m, you say he says he didn't know about them or was he taking his cut off the top to enrich his million dollar campaign war chest when he plans on running for who know what?
Maybe comptroller?
Then NYC will really get to see some really new "creative" book keeping!
That's his field, isn't it....he's a financial actuary?
Nah....
most of them charge hourly rates so some horny Chinese men can get their "cookies off" before returning to dominating their business worlds while aiding and abetting human rights abuse.
Who won the election tonight?
Oh sure the Mayor cares and is working on it.
Example: When a member of the Rent Guidelines Board (an Architect) refused to vote for a rent increase for these suffering tenants what did the Mayor do? The Mayor didn't reappoint him to the Board the next year.
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