Statement from Executive Director Nick E. Smith on Mayor Adams’ Executive Order Requiring NYC Agencies to Review City Owned and Controlled Land for Potential Housing Development Sites

In light of Mayor Adams’ Executive Order to require New York City agencies to review city owned and controlled land for potential housing development sites, Communities Resist Executive Director Nick E. Smith released the following statement:

“Mayor Adams’ executive order requiring city agencies to review city owned and controlled land for potential housing development sites is a welcoming step in the right direction. With our housing crisis worsening, we need to utilize every possible tool to bring more affordable housing availability to our city. This new executive order builds on years of advocacy, including the 2018 signing of the ‘Housing Not Warehousing Act,’ which requires the Department of Housing Preservation and Development (HPD) to report on vacant buildings or lots under city jurisdiction that can potentially be used to build affordable housing. Kudos to those long in this fight, including the many advocates at Picture the Homeless and others organizations.”

About Communities Resist

Communities Resist (“CoRe”) is a community-based housing legal services and advocacy organization established and led by people of color to empower, educate and represent low-income communities and community coalitions preventing gentrification and displacement. Founded in 2019, CoRe has racked up several impressive wins, stopping nearly 1,000 evictions, filing 4,000+ affirmative litigation cases, engaging more than 8,000 New Yorkers at housing rights workshops and recovering settlements of all sizes for tenants across New York City.

“After years of feeling powerless against our abusive landlord who wasn’t providing heat and hot water nor repairing my apartments, my neighbors and I had no other choice than to reach out for help. With the help of our attorney from Communities Resist we were able to organize a Tenant Association and fight back against the abusive landlord. We finally won,” said Ramona Blash of 316 Suydam St. Tenant Association.

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