Scott Stringer wants to build ‘Mitchell-Lama 2.0’ and buy up deteriorating NYC buildings for housing
- Brick Underground spoke to Stringer as part of our series of interviews with the NYC mayoral candidates
- The former NYC comptroller wants to create a fund for loans to minority and women developers
Stringer touted his prior roles in city and state government, including NYC comptroller, state assembly member, and Manhattan borough president.
Brick Underground/Celia Young
In his second bid for mayor, former New York City Comptroller Scott Stringer is pitching a plan to build more Mitchell-Lama housing on city land and use eminent domain to buy crumbling NYC buildings.
The mayor will oversee city agencies that regulate landlords, the implementation of NYC’s landmark climate law, Local Law 97, and new construction enabled by the City of Yes for Housing Opportunity plan. As the race heats up, Brick Underground is interviewing the candidates who—if victorious—will go on to shape housing development in New York City.
In short, it’s a big job, and there’s a lot of candidates who want to do it. Brick Underground caught up with Stringer in February to talk about how he’d tackle housing if he were to become NYC’s next mayor.
Stringer plans to take distressed properties from delinquent landlords through eminent domain, create a loan fund to help minority and women-owned developers build, and use city land to build more Mitchell-Lama buildings, which offer affordable co-ops and rental units.
His campaign for mayor follows an unsuccessful bid in 2021 after he was accused of sexual assault by two women. Stringer has denied the allegations, and has filed a defamation lawsuit against one of his accusers.
All candidates answered a quick series of questions about major NYC housing issues before going into detail about their own proposals. This interview has been edited for length and clarity.
| Lightning round questions | Scott Stringer's answers |
|---|---|
| Local Law 97: Do you think fines should be delayed or enforced for buildings not in compliance with Local Law 97? | I think we should take a look at heavy fines for noncompliance. They may be a way to motivate co-op boards to move on Local Law 97, but I do think we have a lot of co-ops, especially co-ops that are affordable, that are really struggling with the law, and adding fines to their problem—I think it’s something that has to be revisited. |
| Short-term rentals: Would you support rolling back NYC’s short-term rental restrictions and allowing small homeowners to rent out their properties for fewer than 30 days without the owner on the premises? | I would not. |
| Rent freeze: Would you support a rent freeze for the city’s rent-stabilized apartments? | I have supported rent freezes for many, many years especially during my time as comptroller [and] as far back as when I was a state senator. I don’t think tenants should bear the burden [of rent increases] unless there are some unusual circumstances, but I’m not going to support a blanket freeze without looking at data and analysis. |
| Housing vouchers: Would you support expanding eligibility for the CityFHEPS housing voucher program, as was passed by the City Council in 2023? | Yes. |
| Affordable apartments: What would you do to incentivize affordable, family-sized apartments? | One of the ways to do that is to adopt my housing plan, which is a large-scale effort to build Mitchell-Lama 2.0 on city-owned land, where rents could be affordable and housing could be for middle-class families. There’s no reason not to have that special mix of studios and multiple bedrooms so that families can stay in New York City. |
Your housing plan mentions auditing city-owned lots for development, which is similar to what the current administration has done, along with passing the City of Yes. How does your plan to unlock NYC’s housing potential differ from that under Eric Adams?
First of all, the plan they adopted was my plan from 2021. When I was comptroller I did two audits that identified the potential of 1,000 vacant properties that could be used for housing development. Because we own the land, when we give that land to a not-for-profit or a limited-profit developer, we already have a head start on lowering the rents. Between the subsidy and the free land, we can basically get a better AMI [area median income restriction] for those properties.
While I support City of Yes and like that they were moving towards my plan, [the current administration] thinks too small, doesn’t move fast enough, and this administration ended up way behind in creating affordable housing. City of Yes will create needed density and will certainly do a lot to move housing forward. I do think we should be more robust. To separate out the Stringer housing plan, I do think we can move very fast on this land and build the Mitchell-Lama and affordable housing we need.
Another way your plan outlines creating more housing is through your “Robin Hood Plan” to seize neglected properties. How would you do this? Would this require changes in the law?
We would certainly sort out the details, but the bottom line is, we will use the legal mechanism of eminent domain to take those properties where we find that there are egregious [and] dangerous violations, or the building this other way to collapse, or there are real health hazards.
Eminent domain doesn't mean you seize the property away from a landlord without compensation. We would give the landlord the fair value of property and then we would own that property, and we would be able to convert it, clean it up, [and] maintain it. I think that would send a clear message that we’re not going to just let people live in squalor.
How would you fund this program and upgrades at NYCHA, given that the city will probably face a shortfall of federal funding?
As comptroller, I audited NYCHA 17 times. We looked at the dangerous conditions in playgrounds, the lack of repairs, Section 3 workers [vendors that work with NYCHA]. We found that local residents are not getting hired under Section 3 [as is often required under the program]. I have a lot of expertise, knowledge, and a real record with NYCHA tenants. As comptroller, I knew even during the first Trump administration that we had to think creatively about how to bring more money into NYCHA in ways that are different from how it's currently funded.
We should look, for example at Battery Park City Authority funding, and move [the surplus] into a NYCHA repair fund so at least we can keep maintaining the apartments so they don’t fall into dangerous disrepair. The Battery Park City Authority, which is actually very profitable, is a state entity. As comptroller, I sat on the Battery board with the mayor and governor, and you really have the ability to move some of that surplus money to where you see fit. I think it should go to NYCHA.
When it comes to NYCHA closing the budget gap, it’s going to be up to Congress and the White House. And we’re certainly going to have challenges for the next couple years. But I do think we need someone as mayor who understands finance, budget, and has a true record of actually moving proposals to fund NYCHA beyond the traditional funding mechanism where NYCHA always falls short.
You would also create a revolving loan program of $500 million to aid minority- and women-owned businesses secure contracts. Tell us more about the program, and is $500 million enough?
The purpose of the loan fund is to help community-based developers and communities of color access funding for the upfront costs of getting a development project. A lot of [minority- and women-owned businesses] and small firms can't access that startup money. This would be a way to do the due diligence on a property and then go to a bank to secure the big loan. This would be a startup fund to help a diverse group of developers, who have real ties to different communities, have access to the real estate industry and development projects.
Is there anything else you’d like to add?
When I was in the state assembly, I was one of the few legislators who voted against efforts to weaken the rent laws. I was a tenant activist before I was in elected office. I have been a housing activist throughout my public career. As borough president I worked on affordable housing issues. As comptroller, I financed affordable housing to the tune of $1 billion and worked on building union housing. I’m very proud of my housing record.
To do this work we need somebody who understands finance, who has a record of confidence and management. There’s no lack of great ideas, but I do think we need a competent manager who has the experience to actually do this work. I think I’m that person.
Editor’s Note: Brick Underground is interviewing candidates for the 2025 New York City mayoral election. If you’re a candidate and you’d like to talk to us, please get in touch.
