FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

May 8, 2019

MAYOR SIGNS MEMORIALIZING RESOLUTION TO SUPPORT UNIVERSAL RENT STABILIZATION

KINGSTON, NY – Mayor Steve Noble, who has made housing one of his key issues since taking office, is pleased to announce that today he signed a memorializing resolution to support Universal Rent Stabilization. Passed by the Common Council on Tuesday night, the resolution asks lawmakers in Albany to extend jurisdiction to counties across the state to regulate rent stabilization in their own communities. 

Currently state law does not provide local authority to determine annual allowable rental increases in order to protect tenants from arbitrary rent increases. New York State’s Emergency Tenant Protection Act (ETPA) of 1974 provides rental protections including rent stabilization, which subjects landlords to regulated rent increases and ensures tenants have the right to renew leases. Under the current ETPA law, only municipalities in Nassau, Westchester, and Rockland counties and New York City are eligible to adopt a form of rent stabilization. The law will expire this year, presenting an opportunity for state lawmakers to strike the geographical restrictions from the ETPA so that local governments can take an active role in addressing the cost of rental housing and providing critical rights to tenants. 

“Signing this memorializing resolution is a public statement to our community and to our lawmakers in Albany. It is the first of many steps to ensure that long-term renters don’t get priced out of their homes,” said Mayor Noble. “There is much more to do, and my administration is committed to taking all the necessary steps to ensure that everyone in our community can continue to call Kingston home. Right now, we have several initiatives that are addressing housing issues facing our residents, including the Fair Housing Plan, the Kingston City Land Bank and the Common Council’s Housing Hearings. And I am committed to continuing this work to make sure all of Kingston’s residents rise together.” 

Currently, the Office of Economic and Community Development is preparing the City’s Fair Housing Plan, and is seeking public comment. The Fair Housing Plan is a part of the Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) program and will be a roadmap for how the City will address housing issues that benefit low-and moderate-income persons for the next five years. 

Another of this administration’s housing initiatives is the Kingston City Land Bank, which was created to foster an equitable community where vacant or distressed properties are transformed into community assets that improve the quality of life for Kingston residents, stabilize and enhance neighborhoods, and create new pathways for social and economic development. The KCLB currently has a portfolio of 36 properties in the City of Kingston and is determining how it will sell or transfer these properties (called "disposition policy."). The KCLB is asking for feedback to determine the disposition rules that best serve the needs of the community with the Kingston Land Bank Survey. 

To inform policy, the Common Council has hosted a series of seven Housing Hearings, addressing the needs of various groups including homeowners, tenants, landlords, developers, and homeless or housing insecure. The final Housing Hearing will focus on Policy Advocates and will be held on May 29 at 6:30pm at City Hall.

Read the resolution.