Not surprisingly, BOMA NY opposes this legislation, as do other real estate-related organizations, including those on the residential side that rely on ground floor retail for income. We view the bill as commercial rent control that would deprive property owners from making important decisions about how their properties are used over time. We also argue that 737-A would stagnate the City, preventing new and growing businesses from finding space and taking away revenue from buildings used to modernize and to comply with new laws and regulations, including those passed by the City. Finally, we argue that the bill would be illegal, a conclusion also reached by the New York Bar Association. We submitted comments making these and other points.
The hearing drew a large crowd, with opponents and proponents represented by similar numbers of people. As is usual, the Administration testified first, represented by Gregg Bishop, Commissioner of the New York City Department of Small Business Services. His testimony, including follow-up questioning from a large number of Council Members (including from the Speaker, which is not typical), lasted several hours. About 120 witnesses from both sides signed up to testify, and the hearing lasted from 1 PM to 9:30 PM.
A couple of highlights in terms of looking at what comes next. First, the Administration does not support this proposed bill, claiming, among other things, that it could lead to a number of unintended and un-desired consequences. The Commissioner was polite and said he was willing to work with the Council and others to solve relevant issues, including rent-related matters and the high vacancy rates plaguing some parts of the City that some believe is caused by escalating rents.
Second, Speaker Corey Johnson was clear that the bill had problems. He was especially emphatic that the bill should only apply to select types of commercial establishments, such as “mom and pop shops,” as was originally intended.
What’s next? Once a bill has had a hearing, it can be passed or amended and passed, or it can quietly die. It seems evident that, at best, this bill will require extensive negotiation and amendment if it is to move. In the meantime, both sides will continue to work with the Council to try to shape the outcome.
Cooling Tower Hearing:
On the very next day, October 23rd, the Committee on Housing and Buildings and the Committee on Health held a joint hearing that included oversight on current cooling tower regulations as well as several proposed new bills. BOMA NY worked Board Member Laura Belt Ponomarev, RPA/FMA (The 58-64 40th Street Corporation) and others (thank you Ernie Conrad (Conrad Engineers)!) to develop testimony. Ms. Belt Ponomarev presented that testimony at the hearing. We were also joined by Codes & Regs Committee Member Steven Serrano (NYC Cooling Tower & Inspection Services, LLC).
The hearing went very well. The Department of Health testified and answered Council questions for quite a while. Following them, only BOMA NY and two other organizations testified, and the low turnout gave us a higher profile. Our testimony focused on the high number of administrative violations our Members have received over the last two years and the need to focus on building sectors with the biggest problems and on issues that could impact public health. We also opposed two bills that would require additional reporting requirements as not living up to the need to focus on health-related, non-administrative matters.
The testimony was well-received, and publicly and in follow up conversations with Council Members, especially the two Chairs, Robert Cornegy and Mark Levine, we were thanked for participating and for sharing BOMA NY’S unique and important perspective and expertise on the City’s efforts to regulate legionella in cooling towers.
