NYC Council Elections 2021: Marni Halasa Seeks Village Seat

WEST VILLAGE, NY — Voters in New York City's 3rd Council district — which includes Greenwich Village, West Village, Chelsea, SoHo, Hell's Kitchen, Times Square, Hudson Square, and the Flatiron — will see six names on their ballots when they vote in the June 22 primary election.

One of those will be Marni Halasa, a lawyer and small business owner, who is among the Democrats seeking to replace the term-limited incumbent Corey Johson.

Patch reached out to all candidates in the election to create these profiles. Halasa's responses are below.

Answers have been lightly edited for clarity.

Marni Halasa

Age (as of Election Day)

55

Position Sought

City Council

Party Affiliation

Democrat

Neighborhood of residence

Chelsea/Clinton

Family

Peter Cecere (Husband)

Does anyone in your family work in politics or government?

No

Education

JD University of Pittsburgh School of Law, MS Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism, BS Carnegie-Mellon University

Occupation

Legal and Business Reporter for 15 years. Figure Skating Coach at Chelsea Piers for 27 years.

Previous or Current Elected or Appointed Office

None

Campaign website

www.marniforcitycouncil.com

Why are you seeking elective office?

Because the Corey Johnson/Erik Bottcher administration are not responsive to the constituents in the District and their actions are putting people in harm's way -- (1) no substantive relief for small businesses (refusal to pass the Small Business Jobs Survival Act) and give rights to small business owners for a long-term affordable and renewable lease, (2) privatizing NYCHA with RAD/Blueprint, which will evict low-income POC public housing tenants since rents increase under privatization, as well as (3) refusal to solve the homelessness crisis by repurposing empty buildings in the district for low-income housing with quality supportive services in the buildings 24/7. Corey Johnson and his right-hand man Erik Bottcher have prioritized luxury development over a social safety net. For the given reasons, both are unfit to lead this district. Mr. Bottcher is also concerned with issues like tree beds and sanitation, while I am concerned with the recovery our economy -- bringing back the small businesses and the jobs they create so we can have a city -- as well as housing people so we can solve homelessness. I am interested in solving the large problems of our district, and putting the needs of people first.

The single most pressing issue facing our (board, district, etc.) is _______, and this is what I intend to do about it.

Most pressing issue is that our small businesses are dying. If we don't save our businesses and the jobs they create, we will not have a city to live in. Small businesses are one of the major revenue generators for the city -- in terms of the taxes they pay -- which in turn, pay for city services. They also provide the majority of the jobs that New Yorkers have -- jobs that are crucial during a pandemic. Yes there are things we can do -- namely, an emergency vote on the SBJSA tomorrow in the Council so small business owners can renegotiate their leases, and renew their leases at an affordable rate. This could be done since there is a majority of support in the Council for the SBJSA. Additionally, in many cases, we also need to cancel the rent for small businesses hit hard by covid -- they don't need a loan to pay back, they need substantial rent relief so they can dig themselves out of a hole. Lowering their property taxes, and not taxing them for their outside spaces is also an issue on the table to give them relief. If we really truly care about our small businesses, we need to genuinely help them. This could all be done if there was political will. In addition, paying for this could happen with a 1% corporate income tax on the 50 largest companies doing business in the city, and this is a very reasonable, non-punitive tax that such companies would rarely feel. Even if taxation is the province of Albany, city pols could still at least push these solutions publicly.

What are the critical differences between you and the other candidates seeking this post?

I push the hardest. As a former Occupy Wall Street activist as well as tenant activist that was part of a social movement to successfully stop the demolition of 2 Fulton Houses NYCHA buildings -- saving over 75 homes of public housing families -- I know how to work hard and push even harder. I am here for genuine reform to improve people's lives. I think one of my most valuable traits is that I am an outsider, not aligned with any elected official or any group, so I am unusually independent. I am not here to make friends, climb any political ladder or enrich myself. I am extremely outspoken and here to tell the truth -- something desperately needed in local politics today. So when Mayor De Blasio, Corey Johnson (and other elected officials), Legal Aid Society, Community Services Society and Community Board 4 all pushed to demolish/privatize NYCHA, against the wishes of Fulton and Elliott-Chelsea tenants, I protested with the tenants/activists against them, and got the media's attention on this story to move this issue.

If you are a challenger, in what way has the current board or officeholder failed the community (or district or constituency)

Like I stated before, Erik Bottcher, Corey Johnson's right-hand man, makes poor decisions that harm the community. Case in point: He did nothing to stop the closing of Sugar Deli, a Hells Kitchen bodega, that had been a staple in the neighborhood for almost 30 years. During negotiations with the landlord, Sugar Deli's rent increased from $4,000 to $60,000, and then bounced to $35,000. But even with $35,000 being the final offer, the Dominican owners still could not afford that rent. They closed within a month and were devastated. I was the person that brought the situation to a reporters attention, who then put Corey Johnson on the spot to follow up via Erik — Erik told the bodega’s owner that it’s probably best that he NOT call landlord (whom he knew personally) because $40K “was a good deal for the space in Midtown.” So you see --- Erik Bottcher couldn't even make a phone call to advocate for Dominican immigrants on the brink of losing their livelihood for three decades. With friends like that, who needs enemies. (please see: www.coreysrighthandman.com)

How do you think local officials performed in responding to the coronavirus? What if anything would you have done differently?

One of the biggest mistakes is to continue rezoning during a pandemic, when zoom hearings do not adequately inform residents or those affected on what is to happen to their housing -- and in this case, increased rents and evictions. My question is: Why is the Mayor pushing RAD/Blueprint in the middle of a pandemic, when public housing tenants do not have computers nor Wifi so they cannot participate. Even Senator Robert Jackson's aide Chris Nickel stated to CB4 several months ago that only "10 to 20 percent of public housing residents participated" out of 2,500 Fulton and Elliott Chelsea tenants. Even though that is an abysmal participation rate, privatization still goes through. Also, why do RAD when we have so many empty buildings, hotels etc. with so much space available, we don't need to build. In addition, also horrific is Corey Johnson's Master Rezoning Plan Intro 2186, that does not give the community any input in rezoning decisions, with the Mayor having final say over residents in the affected community. This means that developers can build luxury MIH buildings that do not provide genuine affordable housing, plus this gives them license to demolish rent-stabilized buildings that already exist and will displace long-term tenants. In this case, and many others, I also question the wisdom of demolition which will displace residents and fail to create more affordable units -- which is the point of all this. In these cases, which often are a pattern in our city's land-use model, demolition should be outlawed and illegal because it is not furthering its original goal.

Describe the other issues that define your campaign platform.

If I am elected, I would propose legislation where communities would have 'community-driven development' like the Chinatown Working Group plan. I also would include that communities need the final say in land-use decisions, turning the model of top-down decision-making on its head, such as the Mayor having the final say in development. I want to take out the city in a completely different direction of democratic rule by the community and its residents. I want to preserve our city's history, historic structures, its diversity of people, and this can only be done when the community has final say.

What accomplishments in your past would you cite as evidence you can handle this job?

As a small business owner with my husband of a coffee shop on 34th Street, I am keenly aware of how to balance budgets. My advocacy of the Small Business Jobs Survival Act had pushed Corey Johnson to give the SBJSA a public hearing in 2018. My advocacy also stopped the demolition of 2 Fulton Houses NYCHA buildings, which saved the homes of over 75 families. My advocacy also helped independent contractor figure skating coaches win a fair contract and have more of a voice in the workplace. I am a lawyer, as well as a former journalist. And I am passionate about helping people and 'making things right'.

The best advice ever shared with me was:

Speak truth to power, and you will guide and lead others to take those first steps towards cataclysmic change.

What else would you like voters to know about yourself and your positions?

I am on the right side.