Here's Where Astoria Candidates Stand On Your Issues

ASTORIA, QUEENS — Eight people are vying to represent Astoria in NYC's City Council, and Patch asked them all to respond to the issues that residents care the most about.

We went through neighborhood groups, forums, and Patch comment pages, and found three main issue on locals' minds: climate change, affordable housing, and development.

Now, with early voting beginning on June 12, and the election ten days later on June 22, we asked all District 22 candidates to respond to those issues.

The issues

Here's each question we asked, with excerpts of each candidates' response (barring Tiffany L. Cabán and Catherina Gioino, who did not respond to our survey):

1. What would you do to address climate change in the district, specifically thinking about the high asthma rates/peaker plants? Please give a concrete example.

Leonardo Bullaro, Edwin DeJesus, and Evie Hantzopoulos all said they would move forward with former City Councilmember Costa Constantinides' legislative plan to transform Rikers Island into a hub for renewable energy sources and wastewater treatment (known as "Renewable Rikers").

Nicholas Velkov said "globally, we must end our use of fossil fuels. Nationally, we must implement Extended Producer Responsibility laws against plastic manufactures. Individually, we must reduce our consumption of meat."

Felicia Kalan said she would continue her efforts, in partnership with local churches, to "get the trash off the streets and expanding composting and recycling."She also would "expand and preserve our green spaces and create community garden spaces."

Hantzopoulos also pointed to the importance of public space in efforts to address climate change in the district, saying she would fight for infrastructure that decreases dependence on cars and "promotes safety for all."She would also "mandate climate education" starting in Kindergarten and "continue NYC's groundbreaking climate justice work and implement all aspects of the Green New Deal to bring jobs, justice, and resiliency especially to our Black, Brown and frontline communities."

2. What will you do to tackle rising rent costs and access to affordable housing in your district? Please give concrete examples.

DeJesus would "propose rent stabilization for all residential and small business properties such that rent can only be increased by a set amount each year."

Hantzopoulos would "empower the Housing and Preservation and Development department (HPD) to truly hold negligent landlords accountable," institute "resident management corporations to manage NYCHA," and in lieu of mandatory inclusionary housing policies implement "flip taxes."

Kalan and Velkov also proposed solutions in lieu of mandatory inclusionary housing policies.

Velkov would "build community land trusts on public land and preserve public housing" and Kalan would "provide housing vouchers that protect individuals from losing their housing, and support long-term housing solutions rather than a failed shelter-based system for homeless individuals, while also protecting small landlords to ensure they can collect rent."

Bullaro would "[legalize] basement apartments and [subsidize] homeowners to make the conversion to safe, legal dwellings" and use strategic zoning to "increase the number of housing units and drive down rents" and work with developers that include "community development corporations, land trusts, and faith-based developers who are drivers of affordable housing and related social benefits."

3. District 22 has become home to many large corporations in the past several years. What will you do to help small businesses rebound from the devastating impacts of the pandemic? Please give a concrete example.

Both DeJesus and Hantzopoulos would focus on direct cash aid.

DeJesus would aim to "cut taxes for essential workers in the form of Weekly Survival Checks ($600/week) aka UBI" and "refund direct stimulus payments to public school teachers, healthcare workers, MTA operators, grocery store workers, taxi drivers, delivery workers, fulfillment center workers."

Hantzopoulos said "direct cash assistance, no-to-low interest loans, and grants should be used to support small businesses, those in the performing arts/cultural space, and local restaurants." She would also aim to pass the Small Business Jobs Survival Act, and focus on "childcare" and "economic democracy ecosystems and worker cooperatives" that benefit families (especially women) and entrepreneurs/artists, respectively.

DeJesus, Bullaro, and Velkov would also focus on instituting rent control laws.

Bullaro and Kallan also focused on "streamlining the bureaucracy and reducing red tape" for small business owners, as Bullaro put it.

Kallan would also focus on tax laws, like instituting "Local Business Sales Tax Free Tuesdays to incentivize shopping local" and "cutting burdensome laws and regulations that hurt small businesses."