Two days before she was to give her first State of the Borough address Thursday, Melinda Katz said Queens needs more schools, more affordable housing and more quality jobs, among other priorities, while calling on the city to consider creating new zoning districts for basement apartments.
“Illegal conversions lack safety,” Katz said at a news briefing in Borough Hall Tuesday. “The problem is that we have no more housing and we need to live, and we need to make these converted spaces safe.”
She said Queens has a 46 percent of foreign-born population, and in this growing borough, “we can’t build fast enough, although this is a good problem to have as long as we can catch up.”
The borough president will ask the city Department of Buildings to look at the possibility of legalizing more basement apartments, “creating new areas for conversions.”
33 comments:
She is plain nuts!!! Community boards will never approve. If there is not enough legal housing in Queens, let people go to another borough or another state that has room. Queens is full. And tell her to stop tooting her horn. We have all known that Queens is diverse and speaks a thousand different languages. We've known it for 30 years. Her speech was so old hat and boring. And please don't try to turn Queens into a tourist stop. We want to live our lives in peace and quiet without interference from tourists. And what's her thing about "borough of families"? How idiotic! Every country , city, town, village , and suburb has families. I just don't get her.
this woman is an idiot.
although for an idiot,she seems to get that the blaz's plan for housing the poor,dying middle class and homeless is failing.As applicants for these 80-20's outnumber available units by a huge margin.Last check was 50,000 for 25 apartments,that's 2000 to 1.
what can be done to speed up the process instead of this irresponsible idea is,and it sound funny,is to improve conditions and speed up repairs at NYCHA buildings.These are the only places that are affordable and actually exist.
but their were more pressing concerns the city and state thought that were more deserving of subsidies and tax breaks,like the film industry and the blade runner towers on 57th street instead of perpetual crime and mold.
and so it goes
Anon #1 said: "She is plain nuts!!! Community boards will never approve."
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When was the last time that a community board stood up to a BP? they depend on the BP to re-appoint them, don't they?
“Illegal conversions lack safety,” Katz said at a news briefing in Borough Hall Tuesday. “The problem is that we have no more housing and we need to live, and we need to make these converted spaces safe.”
The problem is YOU, Melinda, supporting this crap.
If basement apartments are made legal watch for a conversion frenzy.
Fly by night general contractors will plague the borough, DOB inspectors will be bribed, shitty electrical work will be common, fires will abound and front yards will become parking lots.
The borough will become a third world county which is what the boy mayor and his minions wanted all along.
Women have been running Queens into the ground for years. When's the last time we had a male borough president? It's time for another one I think.
Borough President Katz should be prodding the Building Dept. to increase the enforcementon and elimination illegal apartments not encouraging the continuation of the destruction of a once beautiful borough. There is plenty of room in the borough to provide adequate housing. The people of this borough shouldn't have to live in third world conditions inhabiting below ground apartments and even garages. This bouough is unique in that it has zoning for one family homes and it is to the bourough's. the city's and state's benefit that the neighborhoods be preserved.
The civic associations, community boards and elected officials must be vigilant that misguided politicians don't due anything further to destroy the quality of life that thes neighborhoods provide.
It's official: Queens County is the Fourth World--and when Borough President Melinda Katz starts to condone and approve plans for basement living in her own house and Forest Hills community and neighbors (which only increase already overburdened water, electric and sanitation services), then I will reserve judgment until that ill conceived madness succumbs to total collapse. Can any single Queens County politician ever be trusted again with anything? Alas, the murky waters of this entrenched borough of corruption, cronyism and dysfunction just keep getting swampier by the hour!
Burden on sanitation services? Doesn't the city council mandate twice weekly garbage pickups citywide, even in low density areas that could get by fine with once weekly pickups? A few extra people living in the area won't cause trouble there.
Basement's are illegal because most don't have secondary means off escape and heating system failure can lead to death,in the 90s my team son made his apartment in the basement and someone reported me,the city made me remove the stove and bathroom,a day later I put it back,not rented,my son wanted his own space,know the city says its fine,sure everything is good when it benefits non taxpaying sponges,go figure.
If the department of buildings wanted to bust illegal basement apartments all they'd have to do is look for two family homes with three ConEd meters outside.
Bingo!
I could take the DOB inspectors for a walk around the area near Fresh Pond Road and Metropolitan Ave. and within a half hour could nab at least fifty violators.
The owners of these homes are too freaking cheap and stupid to include electricity with the rent of the illegal basement apartment.
Correct me if I'm wrong but didn't this manipulative bitch have her own basement flooded years ago. She should know the hazards associated with basement apartments.
This developers' whore is now giving them carte blanche. No surprise here. The office of beep has a history of serving developers...along with advancing their own personal political careers. Katz is just another political slut climbing her way up to the mayoralty...her secret desire.
She is not stupid! All of you are. She figured out the simple formula a long time ago: Basement apartments = democrat votes.
Her and Curtis must move into one. I have lived in far too many. disgusting places full of radon, remember radon?, leaks, mold, pests.
"Women have been running Queens into the ground for years. When's the last time we had a male borough president?"
Donald Manes
Mike - That's it!!! You've got it!!! Instead of electing a woman, let's elect a guy like Brian McLaughlin or Dan Halloran. What a stroke of genius!!!! How long did it take you to come up with that?
Sure, attack me for speaking the truth. The feminists have controlled the borough president's office for nearly three decades, each cycle they win because they have half the population locked up. Women are second only to blacks in herd voting. That breeds natural corruption, as we proud residents of Queens have been forced to suffer through. We need a strong male who isn't from Africa to break this cycle. Avella's showing was weak. Is anyone else ready to step up?
Keep an eye on this site, you may soon see the launch of Francesa2017
Speeding up repairs at NYCHA will help reduce demand for middle class housing? NYCHA is the worst landlord in the city AND has a waiting list.
Absolute hostility & physiological warfare to disgust, wear down and drive out the remaining middle class American's.
It wont be long before progressives like Katz, BlaBlazio & Cuomo#2 to come up with a way go after homeowners with unused basements. Likely a "wasted space" tariff that can exist as a tax on a property.
I got into a heated argument with a census worker 3 years ago. I told her I'm the owner and the only resident noting the last thing I want is stinking immigrant renters dropping baby's and all different men in the basement then STICKING ME for over a year rent & heat, destroying the house. All this as as some pinko liberal judge gives them 14 months of last chances to pay up with 100% protection from eviction.
The woman became infuriated eyeballs popping out threatening me QUOTE:
"Eventually all you "racist" homeowners are going to have no choice but to rent or pay heavily for your wasted space"
"Its being worked on right now so you better be nice and get accustom to your new neighbors or MOVE !
An unused space tariff is exactly what she was talking about.
Joe
Where does this dummy live? If she owns a house I want her to rent her basement out to someone who needs affordable housing. And let her invite her neighbors to do also. Then she would see what over crowding looks like. Sick of these useless leaders.
This is the worst thing possible for queens,and in fact the whole city. You just can't squeeze that many people into the city. Do you realize how musc all city srevices are already stretched to limits?
Queens is not a sausage STOP STUFFING IT!!!!
We can't even regulate the legal houses and the illegal activites that go on in them, i.e. building without permits, illegal conversions, renting by the night, etc.
So what does she propose... more headaches!
We are in for a rough ride if this passes. More fires and a large strain on all city services will tip this city into the third world !
There is something wrong with her reasoning. She always comes up with dumb ideas. The scary part of it is that she makes them sound so great that her brainless colleagues and voters think they're great ideas too. I still say she has a medical / psychological problem. Just look at her personal lifestyle .
@Joe
Playing devil's advocate here but basement apartments have been around way before non-white immigrants started to do so. It's always been in Queens. I was aware of this going back over 25 years ago. Queens is already a tourist hotel stop now. Starting from LIC and reaching into Queens, there's hotels everywhere. You have tourists shopping for food and going to nearby restaurants. It may be good for local businesses but seeing tourists wandering around with carry-on luggage is a bit disconcerting.
Excuse me Mike...Donald Manes really reamed us out long before his stooge Claire Shulman did. The Manes book of rules is still being followed. It has become sacred text. A handful of his old cronies still occupy positions of power.
last anon
when I was looking for apartments through century 21 all they had were basement studios.I saw at least 20 of them
I lived in 2 of them,My first one was burglarized,which was easy because the walls were made of drywall and a child can punch a hole through it.the faucets came loose easily and shot water everywhere.
the second one was o.k.in the beginning but over the years the landlords on occasion invaded my privacy.one time they roach bombed it without telling me.
so there are some drawbacks
despite the convenience.
I lay the problem here on the universities and and preservation organizations that are fully aware of why the laws were put on the books, but remain silent when this is being discussed.
Their leadership has been seduced into, as with NYU, Pratt, Columbia, predatory expansion of their own communities so they look the other way while 1000s of innocent kids and immigrants that have just moved to NYC are exploited and put into harm's way.
Someday people will look back at our era with well deserved contempt.
We're waiting with bated breath, Mike. The last mayoral/BP campaign was short on laughs.
Maybe Sliwa banged her in her basement so she has got a fondness for below stairs. But didn't she get spotted kissing a female in the Midway theater and caboodling with Alan Hevesi? This babe is confused when it comes to preference or loyalty. But she is loyal to developers and will kiss their asses to get campaign donations. Alley Katz...always on her knees for the builders.
Basements are not cellars. Cellars are (and should be) illegal. Basements are more than 50% above grade, which takes care of egress. Basements can be deemed living space under zoning - so, if 2-fam+ is allowed, basement apartments are only a matter of getting a Certif of Occ.
the very definition of "Dumb Cunt"
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