Ossining ETPA Repeal & Replacement is No Compromise but Deception

OSSINING, NY- February 21, 2019: After three years of studies, vacancy reports, public hearings, disturbing testimonies, much contention and controversy, and real estate special interest lobbying and scare tactics to homeowners, it was found that this program was a perfect fit for our community. On September 5, 2018, history was made for tenants and our overall community as we became the 20th municipality in Westchester County to enact the NYS rent-stabilization program, better known as ETPA-a program which provides fair leases and tenant protection against retribution by landlords for complaints of building safety and maintenance. In addition, EPTA provides accountability oversight on a State level to over 1,500 families. Two programs that are part of ETPA, the Senior Citizen Rent Increase Exemption and the Disability Rent Increase Exemption which were adopted by the Mayor and Board last January 2018 are also on the chopping block, hurting our most needy and vulnerable.

On the evening of Friday, February 15, 2019, Trustees Herrera and Bazemore, as well as the general public were informed that an alternative policy has been placed in the resolution calling to repeal and remove ETPA from the residents of the village. According an open letter published on February 18th- from Ossining Mayor Victoria Gearity and Village Trustees Rika Levin and Manuel Quezada, the Wednesday, February 20th village board meeting was to serve as the evening they planned on voting in favor of a resolution that will “change how ETPA applies to our community.” They announced that a “compromise” has been achieved. However, how can that be done without all stakeholders and the entire board? The prior two public hearings just held this month were solely to receive input from the community on the introduced resolution calling to end ETPA, not to review its alternative or revisions.

There has been no public dialogue, analysis or sufficient time amongst the Village Board, the public, the advocates and partners in county or state government to properly vet, review and question this last minute replacement proposal.

Stuart Kahan, the Village’s Corporation Counsel never informed the entire board that a request was made to him from Mayor Gearity, behind closed doors, to write a replacement policy for how ETPA will function in the village. A draft was never made available for anyone’s review, not even Trustees Herrera and Bazemore. The village’s local housing partner (IFCA), who just last week issued a letter from their board of directors requesting ETPA not be repealed at all- was not consulted in the draft of this new repeal as evident in February 19, 2019 recent e-mail and questions from IFCA’s executive director to Corporation Counsel. County and state officials have urged village not to repeal ETPA. Unfortunately, their input has been ignored and blame has been place on the county and state.

New York State Senator David Carlucci in a February 19, 2019 News 12 interview said: “"It could be the lifeline for someone, an aging person or someone with disabilities, so we just need to make extra sure that we're not leaving people behind. And by repealing ETPA, we might be doing that.”

Westchester County Executive George Latimer in a letter sent to the Village Board of Trustee’s on January 25, 2019 said “I request you temporarily suspend any action on ETPA, as the County is preparing to undertake a study on the provisions and impacts of ETPA across Westchester. We are engaged in an effort to expand affordable housing options across the many municipalities across the county, as we seek to satisfy the requirements of the fair housing lawsuit.”

Westchester County Legislator Catherine Borgia at the February 6, 2019 public hearing said: “I urge you to delay your decision, our housing needs assessment is done in March and the NYS legislative session is done in June.”

Ossining Village Trustee Quantel Bazemore said: “Rent Stabilization assures access to housing, prevents tenants from being taken advantage of, and benefits a huge swath of our community: low-income, middle income, young, elderly and disabled families. ETPA allows Ossining to maintain it racial, social, and economic diversity. It has a 40 year track record of stabilizing communities, it is no silver bullet, but one of the strongest arrow in the quiver for well-maintained, affordable housing. This repeal effort is a repeal on the character of our community, it actually, hurts more. The repeal effort lacks data, it haphazard and is something that cooked up in the middle of the night. This repeal effort disengages low-income, middle-income, young, elderly, disabled families. This repeal is the egregious policy since Ossining’s urban renewal (negro-removal); it will lead to further disenfranchisement and displacement of valuable members of our community. Housing is a human right.”

Ossining Village Trustee Omar Herrera said: “The majority of the board refuses to see urgency and why these actions matter and impact actual lives. We are in a strategic time where the county and especially state government (Assembly, Senate and Executive branches) are set to address our housing crisis and consider making ETPA better by revising, expanding and strengthening rent-stabilization; this is not done by stripping away current rights and protections and refusing to work with your partners in government. I am saddened to say Ossining has become the leader against such efforts and that the real estate lobby has purchased our local leaders. This last minute repeal hurts more residents, removes protections, creates a local bureaucratic process, places much administrative burdens on village resources and property owners and doesn’t actually explain how it will work, but it goes into effect immediately? The majority of landlords and big real estate owners will not voluntarily lend a helping hand before earning cash.”

Village of Ossining ETPA Timeline

June 2016: 1st Public Hearing on ETPA

September 2016: 2nd Public Hearing on ETPA, Mayor announces the board is considering public-private partnership; Mayor reports other municipalities don’t have issue with ETPA, Mayor refuses to commit to timeline for ETPA vote or give details on public-private partnership, tells advocates they made people feel uncomfortable at public hearing.

October 2016: Mayor refuses to give tenants a seat at table to understand what the proposed public-private partnership.

November 2016: Ossining renters march to Mayor’s House. Mayor greets mothers, clergy and children with police and yelling. Then says Ossining-resident-led Community Voices Heard members do not have a seat at the table. Later that year, ETPA was never brought to a vote and tabled by the Mayor.

January 2018: ETPA eligibility process gets requested by majority of village board to re-start process.

April 25, 2018: Vacancy Study RFP Received, contract awarded in May 2018

August 2018: Vacancy Study Completed & Submitted to Managers Office then BOT

August 22, 2018: Call to schedule ETPA Public Hearing on September 5, 2018

September 5, 2018: Public Hearing #3 on ETPA. Following hearing BOT voted to declaring housing emergency & opt-in to the NYS ETPA program.

December 19, 2018: Village Mayor and Board vote to enact the Senior Citizen Rent Increase Exemption (SCRIE) and the Disability Rent Increase Exemption (DRIE)

January -February: Property registration and on-boarding with NYS DHRC begin with eligible properties. Residents begin to receive ETPA fair leases.

January 9, 2019: The Village Board & public and made aware that Mayor Gearity instructed Village Corporation Counsel (behind closed doors) to draft a resolution to rescind ETPA from the Village of Ossining. No analysis or discussion prior, proceeds anyway.

February 6, 2019: Public Hearing held to repeal/remove ETPA from the Village of Ossining

February 15, 2019: Mayor Gearity behind closed doors instructs Corporation Counsel to develop/write a last minute local ETPA replacement without any board discussion, public input or governmental vetting.

February 18, 2019: Mayor Gearity & Trustee’s Rika Levin & Manuel Quezada release open letter saying a “Compromise” has been reached.

Mayor Gearity and Trustees Levin and Quezada say in their open letter that “The state regulations inherent in ETPA prevent investment in existing substandard buildings.” That is false. The state offers mechanisms to address and decrease sub-standard living conditions through programs, such as the Small Building Owners’ Assistance Unit, within the Department of Housing and Community Renewal, which provides special assistance to owners of rent regulated buildings in the areas of rent registration, preparation of forms for allowable rent increases, lease renewal procedures, applications for major capital improvement rent increases (MCI), applications for hardship rent increases, responses to tenant complaints; and preparation of petitions for administrative review (PARs) of Rent Administrator's orders, Application, Owner's Report of Vacancy Decontrol and Petition by Owner for high income rent and deregulation request. They even have a Westchester County Office located at 75 South Broadway, White Plains, NY.

When owners make improvements or installations to a building subject to the rent stabilization or rent control laws; they can apply to the Division of Housing and Community Renewal for approval to raise in rent. These raises would be based on the actual, verified cost of improvement or installation in the unit(s). All rent increases are permanent.

Despite the rhetoric, the New York State Department of Housing and Community Renewal (DHCR) offers an ”Alternative Hardship” option which provides rent adjustments that are based upon alternative hardship and enable building owners to receive an appropriate rent adjustment where the DHCR finds that such an increase is necessary because the annual operating expenses.

Mayor Gearity and Trustee’s Levin & Quezada further claim that the recently conducted Housing Needs Assessment for the Village of Ossining did not recommend ETPA at this time. However, the report clearly states the opposite: “As such, EPTA could ensure long-term affordability for current residents at a dramatically greater scale than what could be provided through inclusionary zoning, a program whose effectiveness is limited to the increased supply of new housing units. It is possible that the number of rent stabilized units would decline due to high-rent, high-rent high-income deregulation, or the conversion of rental buildings to owner occupied condominiums or cooperatives. Nonetheless, there is no other mechanism available to the Village of Ossining that can come even close to tempering exorbitant rent increases as would adoption of ETPA.”

“The combined effect of price regulations, complaint procedures, and lease renewals all help to protect economically and racially diverse residents from being displaced as a result of rental fees, landlord retaliation for building complaints, or broader gentrification patterns.” Source: Housing Needs Assessment Technical Paper #4- Policy Framework Page 21-22

Once again, the general public is invited and urged to join us this Monday, February 25, 2019 at 7:30PM at the Village Board of Trustees Meeting legislative meeting being held at the Ossining Community Center, located at 95 Broadway, Ossining, NY. The public will have an opportunity to address the board regarding this repeal at the beginning of the meeting.

Sincerely yours,

Omar Herrera

Quantel Bazemore