Politically influential labor unions with a stake in real estate development joined City Council leaders on Monday on the Lower East Side to rally public opposition to city charter changes soon to go before voters — arguing that proposals to bypass the Council on some approvals would weaken public influence.
The Hotel and Gaming Trades Council, building workers union 32BJ SEIU and District Council of Carpenters stood with Council Speaker Adrienne Adams, Majority Leader Amanda Farías, and other Council members to urge a no vote on the items, put forth by a charter revision commission convened by outgoing Mayor Eric Adams.
Items 2, 3 and 4 would allow developers to bypass Council review for subsidized affordable housing developments and minor zoning changes, while creating an appeals process. Those projects would still be voted on by the City Planning Commission, of which seven of 13 members are appointed by the mayor.
The Council frequently uses its decisive power over proposed land use changes to wrest concessions from developers, and sometimes reject projects when the local Council member objects.
Speaker Adams argued at the event that the charter commission’s proposals to fast-track some projects will get developers off the hook on doing more than the minimum required to create affordable housing.
“They’re using misleading language that claims they are a solution to the housing crisis, when in fact they take away your power to get more affordable housing to developers and unelected appointees chosen by the mayor,” said Adams.
Manny Pastreich, whose 32BJ union represents more than 90,000 building workers in New York City, warned the ballot proposals will discourage developers from considering feedback from community stakeholders, including organized labor. Standing in front of Essex Crossing, a major real estate project coordinated by the city in an area left undeveloped for decades, he said the existing land use review process allowed developers and the union to agree to a fair recognition process, which gave workers an opportunity to eventually join 32BJ and obtain benefits.
The union, he added, intends to communicate with its 90,000 members “by phone and by mail” about the ballot proposals.
“If you want to make sure that workers aren’t being exploited on a construction project, then you better make sure there’s a way to force them to the negotiating table,” Kevin Elkins, political director of the New York City District Council of Carpenters said at the rally. “Unilaterally disarming and allowing developers to do whatever they want in your neighborhood is not the answer in this situation.”
Electioneering Concerns
The Council’s campaign against the housing reforms is testing the limits of the city charter, which bars elected officials from using government funds to support or oppose a referendum or candidate. The Council leadership created a site and sent mailers telling voters that the measures “take away your community’s power.”
Richard Briffault, legal scholar and former chair of the New York City Conflicts of Interest Board, says City Council members are free to speak their mind, but using taxpayer dollars to send out mailers may cross over the law.
“I think by not literally saying ‘vote no,’ they will claim that they’re not electioneering. The law says they shouldn’t be sending out messages designed to urge the public to elect or defeat, vote for or against something,” Briffault says. “So it doesn’t just say they can’t urge, but the messages can’t be designed to urge.”
When asked by a journalist on whether the council was engaging in electioneering, Councilmember Crystal Hudson (D-Brooklyn) responded, “We’re not electioneering because we haven’t told people how to vote.”
Divided Support
Council leadership had sent a letter to the Board of Elections calling for the three ballot questions to be rejected, arguing that the misleading language violates state laws. The Board of Elections dismissed the request and certified all the ballot proposals.
Members of the council’s conservative Common Sense caucus, Rep. Nicole Malliotakis (R-Brooklyn/Staten Island), and other state lawmakers and civic groups had also filed a lawsuit on Sept. 30 against the Charter Revision Commission, Mayor Adams, and the Board of Elections alleging that the ballot measures violate state law by forgoing the environmental review process, which is a required part of the city’s zoning procedures. That case is still pending.
Meanwhile, YES on Affordable Housing, an independent spending committee in support of the housing-related proposals, is campaigning in support of the measures. Initial funders are Chloe Phitoussi, Jamie Rubin and Dr. Rachael Bedard, state filings show. (Rubin is a donor to THE CITY.)
“People are running scared and spreading misinformation because they know the truth: these measures are widely popular, will pass overwhelmingly, and help keep New York the most diverse and dynamic city in the world,” said YES on Affordable Housing spokesperson Lapeyrolerie.
Supporters of the ballot measures include Gov. Kathy Hochul, City Comptroller Brad Lander, Brooklyn Borough President Antonio Reynoso, Queens Borough President Donovan Richards, Manhattan Borough President Mark Levine, and pro-housing organizations.
NY1 reported that democratic mayoral nominee Zohran Mamdani, endorsed by the labor unions support, declined to take a position when asked about the ballot measures.
“This will be a decision that New Yorkers will take and I am having active meetings with a number of stakeholders to better assess what the impacts and implications this will portend for housing supply and housing construction,” Mamdani said.
Editor’s note: A previous version of this story attributed a quotation to 32BJ’s Pastreich, but it was in fact spoken by Elvins of the District Council of Carpenters.
