On Monday, New York City Public Advocate Jumaane D. Williams pushed for increasing funding for both enforcement and development by the Department of Housing Preservation and Development (HPD) in the city’s budget. Earlier that day, HPD secured an arrest warrant for Daniel Ohebshalom, number one on the Public Advocate’s Worst Landlord Watchlist. In a Council preliminary budget hearing with the Committee on Housing and Buildings, the Public Advocate emphasized the importance of increasing resources and staffing to support creating additional affordable units and improving dangerous conditions.
“Our housing agencies have faced high attrition rates, with the Department of Housing Preservation and Development losing nearly a third of its full-time employees, many of whom were experienced staff, in the period between April 2020 and October 2022,” Public Advocate Williams stated. “As of January 2024, the vacancy rate for HPD was 7.7%, accounting for 205 positions. While there are clear indications that HPD has rebounded from pandemic lows with production in fiscal year 2023, which we’re happy about, rising from the low point of the previous fiscal year, staffing shortages continue to negatively impact the agency’s capacity.”
On Ohebshalom’s arrest warrant, the Public Advocate noted “He was on the list for many years, and number one two years in a row, and as I said before, I don’t think anything is going to change until arrests are made or buildings are taken away – and what I’m glad to see is that the administration is moving in the right direction.” Public Advocate Williams made increased resources for HPD enforcement a central point of releasing the 2024 Worst Landlord Watchlist, which Daniel Ohebshalom and Johnathan Santana topped.
In his statement, he highlighted the urgent need for infrastructure safety measures and precautions against fires, specifically the more recent and deadly lithium-ion battery fires, and their relation to landlord abandonment. “We need more inspectors in both HPD and DOB who can identify violations that can potentially cause collapses and fires and further address emergency complaints. It just shows how the type of cuts that we’ve heard about before really impact people’s lives.”
At a press conference earlier Monday, the Public Advocate spoke in support of the “Homes Now, Homes for Generations” initiative which would invest $2 billion in HPD over four years in order to help support the creation of deeply affordable housing. To close the hearing, he reiterated this message: that preservation is necessary for any housing plan to work effectively.
The Public Advocate's full statement as delivered is below.
STATEMENT OF PUBLIC ADVOCATE JUMAANE D. WILLIAMS TO THE NEW YORK CITY COUNCIL COMMITTEE ON HOUSING AND BUILDINGS MARCH 11, 2024
Good afternoon, My name is Jumaane D. Williams and I am the Public Advocate for the City of New York. Thank you very much to Chair Sanchez and members of the Committee on Housing and Buildings for holding this hearing and allowing me the opportunity to provide a statement. Just first before I even get this statement, before the statement was written, this morning there was an announcement, an arrest of Daniel Ohebshalom, so I just want to congratulate HPD and the administration. I did read in your press release that there was a reference to his name being on lists of worst landlords, I’m sure it was an unintentional omission, but those lists are Public Advocate lists, we’re very proud of those. He was on the list for many years, and number one two years in a row, and as I said before, I don’t think anything is going to change until arrests are made or buildings are taken away, and what I’m glad to see is that the administration is moving in the right direction. New York City’s housing crisis has progressively worsened over the past couple of years with the COVID-19 pandemic exacerbating it in every aspect. Our housing agencies have faced high attrition rates with the Department of Housing Preservation and Development (HPD) losing nearly a third of its full-time employees, many of whom were experienced staff, in the period between April 2020 and October 2022. As of January 2024, the vacancy rate for HPD was 7.7%, accounting for 205 positions. While there are clear indications that HPD has rebounded from pandemic lows with production in FY23, which we’re happy about, rising from the low point of the previous fiscal year, staffing shortages continue to negatively impact the agency’s capacity. The average time for capital project completion has increased as well as median times for application approval in the housing lottery, up to 192 days from the previous median of 88 – leaving affordable units sitting empty for months on end. And I will be speaking about DOB later, but I’d like to say: With a vacancy rate of 5.6%, the Department of Buildings (DOB) faces similar staffing challenges, having met only 43% of its goals in the first few months of FY24. From building and parking lot collapses to dangerous crane incidents, there is a concerning trend in overall infrastructure and building safety. According to the Preliminary Mayor’s Management Report, enforcement inspections fell 4.3% even as development inspections completed rose by 9.5%. DOB also issued fewer violations and average wait times for construction and plumbing inspections increased as a result of ongoing budget constraints and staffing shortages. Finally, I want to highlight a trend in all five boroughs—fires and crippling infrastructures. The Bronx, in particular, has experienced many tragedies due to landlord abandonment and neglect and it’s no surprise that these fires are taking place in communities of more color. There has also been an increase in lithium-ion battery fires throughout the city. In 2022, these batteries caused 220 fires and six deaths and in 2023 they caused 243 fires and 17 deaths and 124 injuries. The most recent lithium-ion battery fire that took place last month in Harlem causing the death of Fazil Khan, a young journalist, was truly a tragic incident that could have been prevented. It is critical that we maintain the ample funding that provides these vital services to residents that survived a fire. In addition, we need more inspectors in both HPD and DOB who can identify violations that can potentially cause collapses and fires and further address emergency complaints. It just shows how the type of cuts that we’ve heard about before really impact people’s lives. I hope during today’s hearing the administration will provide more information on the issues I highlighted in my statement. We cannot have unsafe and weakening infrastructure that puts New Yorkers at risk everyday. I would also like to know if the administration plans to end the hiring freeze and meet the goal of being fully staffed for HPD and DOB. For any housing plan to be successful, preservation has to be a large part of it, and that means making sure we’re taking care of the infrastructure. Thank you so much.