[0:00] [Music]

[0:56] Heat. Heat.

[0:59] [Music]

[1:44] Heat. Heat.

[1:46] [Music]

[2:01] [Applause]

[2:01] [Music]

[2:18] Heat.

[2:20] Hey, Heat.

[2:24] [Music]

[2:39] Heat.

[2:41] [Music]

[2:53] Hey, Heat.

[2:55] [Music]

[3:17] Hey, hey.

[3:22] Heat. Heat.

[3:25] [Music]

[3:46] Hey. Hey. Hey.

[3:51] [Music]

[4:12] Heat.

[4:13] [Music]

[4:31] Heat.

[4:35] [Music]

[5:24] Heat. Heat.

[5:30] Hey, hey, hey.

[5:32] [Music]

[6:24] Heat. Heat.

[6:26] [Music]

[7:14] Hey, hey, hey.

[7:18] [Music]

[7:40] Heat. Heat.

[7:46] [Music]

[8:30] Hey. Hey. Hey.

[8:36] [Music]

[9:07] Heat. Heat.

[9:11] [Music]

[9:57] Okay.

[10:03] » I'd like to call to order the city

[10:05] caucus meeting for Monday, July 14th,

[10:08] 2025.

[10:11] We have 14 items for original

[10:13] consideration and one item for

[10:15] introduction only. If the clerk would

[10:18] please read the local law being

[10:19] introduced.

[10:22] A local law to create article 5 section

[10:25] 210-20 to chapter 210 of disconnectity

[10:28] city code prohibition of eviction

[10:31] without good cause.

[10:33] >> Thank you. If the clerk could please

[10:35] read item number one.

[10:36] >> Item number one for final consideration.

[10:38] An ordinance to amend article 7 trucks

[10:41] section 248 of the Skenctity city code

[10:44] to exclude trucks, tractor and tractor

[10:47] trailer combinations over eight tons on

[10:49] Kings Road from Albany Street to the

[10:51] city line.

[10:52] >> Discussed in committee without objection

[10:54] on consent. Item number two.

[10:56] >> Item number two for original

[10:57] consideration. A resolution calling for

[10:59] a public hearing to create a local law

[11:01] for article 5 section 210-20 to chapter

[11:05] 210 of the Skenctity city code

[11:07] prohibition of eviction without good

[11:09] cause.

[11:10] >> Mr. McDar

[11:12] call for roll call.

[11:14] >> Roll call on item number two. Item

[11:17] number three.

[11:18] >> Item number three for original

[11:19] consideration. A resolution authorizing

[11:21] the Department of Finance to make a

[11:23] second budget amendment to the 2025 golf

[11:26] course budget.

[11:28] >> Discussed in committee without objection

[11:30] on consent. Item number four. Item

[11:32] number four for original consideration,

[11:33] a resolution to authorize the mayor or

[11:36] his designate to enter into supplemental

[11:38] agreement number one with New York State

[11:39] Department of Transportation for the

[11:41] Crane Street Bridge Rehabilitation over

[11:45] CSX Amtrak, City of Skenctity, New York

[11:48] State, DOT, pin number 1762.36.

[11:53] » Discussed in committee without objection

[11:54] on consent. Item number five. Item

[11:57] number five for original consideration,

[11:58] a resolution authorizing a 2025

[12:01] reallocation related to an agreement

[12:03] between the city of Skenkity and CSEA

[12:06] local 1000 AFS CME AFL CIO unit 8501

[12:12] >> discussed in committee without objection

[12:14] on consent. Item number six.

[12:16] >> Item number six for original

[12:17] consideration. a resolution authorizing

[12:19] a 2025 budget reallocation related to

[12:22] the to an agreement between the city of

[12:23] Skenkity and the International Union of

[12:26] Operating Engineers, local 158 district

[12:29] 106 operating engineers.

[12:31] >> Discussed in committee without objection

[12:33] on consent. Item number seven.

[12:35] >> Item number seven for original

[12:36] consideration a resolution authorizing

[12:39] the mayor to enter into an agreement

[12:41] with for the city hall parking lot 27

[12:44] Broadway license. discussed in committee

[12:46] without objection on consent. Item

[12:48] number eight.

[12:48] >> Item number eight for original

[12:50] consideration, a resolution authorizing

[12:52] the sale of 652 Sunset Street for

[12:54] $1,500.

[12:56] >> Discussed and committed without

[12:57] objection on consent. Item number nine.

[12:59] >> Item number nine for original

[13:01] consideration, a resolution authorizing

[13:03] the sale of 714 Broadway for $31,000.

[13:07] >> Discussed in committee without objection

[13:08] on consent. Item number 10. Item number

[13:11] 10 for original consideration, a

[13:12] resolution authorizing the redemption

[13:14] and withdrawal of 2110 Lennox Road from

[13:17] foreclosure.

[13:18] >> Discuss in committee without objection

[13:20] on consent. Item number 11.

[13:22] >> Item number 11 for original

[13:23] consideration. A resolution authorizing

[13:25] the settlement of a tax certary action

[13:27] by the owner of of property located at

[13:30] 433 State Street.

[13:32] >> Discussed in committee without on cons

[13:35] discussing committee on without

[13:36] objection on consent. Item number 12.

[13:39] for original

[13:40] consideration, a resolution authorizing

[13:42] the settlement of a tax certary action

[13:44] by the owner of a property located at

[13:47] 450 Dwayne Avenue.

[13:49] >> Discuss the committee without objection

[13:50] on consent. Item number 13.

[13:52] >> Item number 13 for original

[13:54] consideration, a resolution authorizing

[13:56] the settlement of a claim by Mount

[13:57] Pleasant Bakery, Inc. and Joseph Ratano.

[14:01] >> Discussed in committee without without

[14:03] objection on consent. And item number

[14:04] 14.

[14:05] >> Item number 14 for original

[14:07] consideration. A resolution recognizing

[14:08] the March for Jesus 20th anniversary

[14:12] >> discussed in committee without objection

[14:13] on consent and this will be presented at

[14:15] their march on July 26th.

[14:21] » Thank you. If there's nothing further to

[14:23] come before the city council caucus, I

[14:25] ask for a motion to adjurnn. Motion by

[14:27] Mr. Mutar, second by Miss Patrick. All

[14:29] in favor? I. We are adjourned. I'd like

[14:32] to call the city council me meeting to

[14:34] order for Monday, July 14th, 2025.

[14:37] And I'd like to call on Reverend JC for

[14:39] the prayer invocation.

[14:48] » Father, we thank you once again for this

[14:51] in this place.

[14:54] We thank you for giving us another day

[14:57] in this land of the living.

[15:00] Now we pray for wisdom, Father.

[15:03] Wisdom to ask the right questions.

[15:06] Wisdom to get the right answers.

[15:10] For you are the God of wisdom. Without

[15:13] that wisdom in display this tonight, oh

[15:16] God, in this place and we give you

[15:19] thanks in Jesus name. Amen.

[15:22] >> Amen. I'd like to call on Harleen

[15:24] Andress to lead us in the pledge of

[15:25] allegiance. I aliance to the flag of the

[15:30] United States of America and to the

[15:34] stand

[15:39] with

[15:41] all.

[15:42] >> Thank you.

[15:48] » I'd ask the clerk to please complete the

[15:49] roll call.

[15:51] >> Mr. Toro,

[15:54] >> Mr. Farley,

[15:56] >> Mr. Mancini

[15:58] >> here,

[15:59] >> Mr. Muver.

[16:00] >> Present.

[16:01] >> Thank you.

[16:02] >> Miss Patrick

[16:03] >> here.

[16:04] >> Mr. Williams is absent. Miss Porterfield

[16:06] >> here.

[16:10] » Thank you. I'd ask for approval of the

[16:12] minutes for June 23rd, 2025.

[16:15] >> Moved by Mr. Mudarin, second by Miss

[16:17] Patrick. All in favor?

[16:20] >> Thank you. I'd ask the clerk to please

[16:22] read any communications and petitions.

[16:26] >> Communications presented to the city

[16:28] council for Monday, July 14th, 2025.

[16:30] Under official, there were none. Under

[16:32] general, there were none. And under

[16:33] petitions, there were none.

[16:35] >> Thank you. Calling on council members to

[16:37] provide any committee reports.

[16:43] Okay. At this time, we will have

[16:45] privilege of the floor related to the

[16:47] legislative agenda. And

[16:52] I'm going to guess at a number, but it

[16:54] looks like we have about 23

[16:58] people signed up to speak.

[17:05] Okay.

[17:07] The first person signed up is Justennia

[17:09] McCully.

[17:12] Just McCully.

[17:21] She did submit an online she does we do

[17:23] have an online submission for this uh

[17:24] individual.

[17:36] She wrote, "Nitrous oxide, often sold in

[17:38] small canisters as galaxy gas or

[17:40] whippets, is being used by teens and

[17:42] young adults across the country,

[17:44] including here in Skenctity. New York

[17:46] Public Health Law Section 338

[17:49] 3380.

[17:52] It is unlawful to sell or deliver

[17:54] nitrous oxide for inhalation purposes

[17:56] except for lawful medical, dental, or

[17:58] industrial use. Vendors must have a

[18:00] legitimate reason for sale and cannot

[18:02] knowingly sell for recreational

[18:04] inhalation.

[18:06] The New York General Business Law 339-H,

[18:10] retailers must post signs warning

[18:12] against unlawful use of nitrous oxide.

[18:15] Failure to do so can result in fines.

[18:18] I am proposing adopting language to make

[18:20] the sale of nitrous oxide outside of

[18:22] grocery stores illegal in Skenctity.

[18:25] >> Thank you, James Samino.

[18:36] Good evening.

[18:38] >> Good evening.

[18:39] >> I am speaking about good cause eviction.

[18:43] Now, if it was my choice,

[18:46] um I would like to see uh code

[18:50] enforcement have enough uh staffing to

[18:53] make sure that every apartment in New

[18:55] York uh state, but Skenctity

[18:58] specifically, is safe

[19:00] and habitable by any reasonable

[19:02] standard. I would also love to see a

[19:04] fund created so that people with low

[19:06] income in an emergency would have access

[19:09] to some way to maintain their residence.

[19:12] But it's not Christmas and as far as I

[19:15] can tell, there are no saints here for

[19:18] miracles.

[19:19] What we can do very realistically

[19:23] is do what New York State has already

[19:25] given us the opportunity to do, which is

[19:28] pass good cause legislation in

[19:31] Skenctity.

[19:33] I just want to toss a few quick stats at

[19:35] you. um for this is 2022 and it's

[19:39] according to that infamous communist

[19:41] organization the United States Census

[19:45] if you live in the zip code

[19:48] 12307

[19:52] one in every 6.8 renters faces eviction

[19:57] 12308

[19:58] one in every 9.5305

[20:04] one in every 10.2 2 1 2 12304

[20:08] one in every 8.4

[20:11] 123

[20:14] one in every 10.6.

[20:17] Now, if we go to some of the um other

[20:20] zip codes, Roderdam 12306, one in every

[20:24] 27,

[20:26] Glennville 1 2302,

[20:28] one in every 922,

[20:33] and in Isuna,

[20:36] one in every 70.

[20:39] Now,

[20:41] I agree that landlords should have the

[20:43] right to protect their buildings, but

[20:46] here are the rights that landlords still

[20:48] have under good cause. You can evict

[20:50] someone for non-payment of rent. You can

[20:52] evict someone for violation of the lease

[20:55] as long as you've provided a 10-day

[20:57] notice to cure. Nuisance behavior,

[21:00] neglect of property, gross negligence,

[21:03] still can evict someone for that. Um the

[21:06] occupation of the of the unit is not um

[21:10] safe. Failure to give access. Using the

[21:15] apartment for illegal purposes,

[21:17] plans for the owner or or close family

[21:19] member to occupy.

[21:22] Um no longer going to be a rental.

[21:25] Tenant refuses uh

[21:28] to sign a new lease with proper notice.

[21:31] And the rent increase, of course, is

[21:33] limited to um 5% plus uh the rate of

[21:39] inflation

[21:40] or 10% cap.

[21:43] As I read through these today, again,

[21:46] kind of reviewing the good cause law, it

[21:48] struck me that I can't understand why

[21:51] someone would oppose

[21:53] this.

[21:56] You can still evict someone for all the

[21:58] reasons you used to be able to. What you

[22:00] can't do is evict someone randomly. Hey,

[22:03] I don't like them. I don't like their

[22:05] attitude.

[22:07] Well, tough.

[22:10] There's a process for people to be uh a

[22:14] lease not renewed or evicted should that

[22:17] process go forward. So, with all of that

[22:20] and all these landlord

[22:23] protections,

[22:24] >> I need you to summarize.

[22:25] >> Thank you. I don't understand. I mean,

[22:28] it just seems like to oppose this is

[22:30] more of an act of cruelty

[22:32] >> than it is responsibility.

[22:37] >> Thank you.

[22:39] [Applause]

[22:51] Ladies and gentlemen, we do have a full

[22:53] house. I want to remind speakers that

[22:55] you do have three minutes and also

[22:57] please do not boo other speakers.

[22:58] Everyone has a right to their opinion.

[23:01] Greatly appreciate that. Thank you.

[23:08] Can Canyon Ryan?

[23:23] Hello, my name is Canyon Ryan. I'm the

[23:24] executive director of United Tenants of

[23:26] Albany, but we have a vested interest in

[23:27] the capital region tenants and

[23:29] especially good cause eviction. Um, what

[23:31] I've asked the council member to

[23:32] distribute is a little document that I

[23:34] wanted to share with everybody. It's a

[23:36] list of the publicly available

[23:37] information that I think is relevant to

[23:39] good cause eviction. The one thing I

[23:40] wasn't able to get was the amount of

[23:42] evictions that have been executed. I had

[23:44] to submit a FOYA to Skenctity County and

[23:46] that hasn't been responded to yet.

[23:47] Between 2022 and 2023, Skenctity was the

[23:51] uh third highest county for evictions

[23:54] per 100 renters as the former speaker

[23:56] kind of already acknowledged. Um the

[23:58] capital region tenants

[23:59] disproportionately are impacted by the

[24:02] eviction crisis is demonstrated by Wler

[24:04] being number one and Albany being tied

[24:05] for number four, but Skenctity is tied

[24:07] for number three. Um I've also included

[24:09] some statistics about evictions for the

[24:11] major uh zip codes in the area. On the

[24:14] second page, you'll see the types of

[24:15] eviction in the city. Um, between 2022

[24:18] and 2025, we see that holdovers

[24:20] represent about a fifth of all eviction

[24:22] proceedings, of which could cause

[24:23] eviction would likely reduce that

[24:25] significantly. Um, we also see that the

[24:28] total number of eviction filings have

[24:29] gone down. Um, not significantly, but

[24:31] they have. I just want to note that in

[24:33] Albany, eviction proceedings have gone

[24:34] down about 20%, but eviction executions

[24:37] have actually increased. So there's less

[24:39] frivolous lawsuits or frivolous eviction

[24:41] proceedings being taken uh into into the

[24:43] courts, but there's still an issue here

[24:45] nonetheless. I also included below this

[24:48] um oh and sorry. So just to say that

[24:50] demonstrates that one in every 10

[24:51] renters across the city face eviction

[24:53] here in Skenctity. Um next is the fair

[24:56] market rent between 2020 and 2025 as

[24:59] well as the area median income between

[25:00] the same period. What it demonstrates is

[25:02] that for a one-bedroom and a

[25:04] two-bedroom, there's been a respective

[25:05] increase over the last 5 years of a

[25:07] 43.85%

[25:09] and a 41.08%

[25:11] for two bedrooms. U meanwhile, the area

[25:13] median income has only increased 17%,

[25:15] which demonstrates that over the last 5

[25:17] years, fair market rents have increased

[25:19] at a rate of higher than 2:1 um the

[25:21] tenants average income, which I think is

[25:24] really remarkable actually um that rents

[25:27] are outpacing our wages by 2 to1 over

[25:29] the last 5 years. Um, and they also

[25:31] included a list of the localities that

[25:33] have opted into good cause as of April

[25:34] 23rd, 2025, according to DHCR's website.

[25:38] What you'll find here is that the only

[25:40] changes uh aside from so two things the

[25:43] city can change is the maximum fair

[25:44] market rent and then the definition of a

[25:46] small landlord. All of these cities have

[25:48] opted to define a small landlord as

[25:50] those with one unit anywhere in New York

[25:51] State within their rental portfolio. And

[25:53] they've only changed the maximum fair

[25:54] market rent, which I think is the right

[25:57] call here. And the reason for that is

[25:59] because it's very difficult for tenants

[26:00] to know if they're protected by good

[26:01] cause eviction if it's not in their

[26:04] home. If they look upstairs, they know

[26:05] that there's a renter upstairs, they

[26:06] know that they're protected. If they

[26:07] look upstairs and their landlord lives

[26:09] there, they know that they're not

[26:10] protected. They're exempt from good

[26:11] cause eviction. And then on the um the

[26:14] final two pages, I've just included some

[26:16] case studies, one from Danker Village uh

[26:18] and one from Bleecker Terrace where

[26:19] tenants were facing egregious rent hikes

[26:22] um and we were able to win good cause

[26:23] eviction in both of these cases at

[26:25] different time periods. what's and I

[26:27] I'll kind of rest my case there. I hope

[26:29] that this is helpful. Um I heard council

[26:31] member Mancini say that he wanted to see

[26:33] more data and I thought that it would be

[26:34] helpful if I prepared some for you.

[26:35] Thank you so much.

[26:36] >> Thank you

[26:38] [Applause]

[26:45] >> Vivian Zazzley.

[26:56] Good evening.

[27:04] I'm here tonight because I'm stoked

[27:08] about having an opportunity to speak.

[27:11] Can you hear me? All right.

[27:13] >> Not really.

[27:14] >> Yeah.

[27:14] >> No.

[27:15] >> Can you take the mask?

[27:21] I can't

[27:21] >> I'll take care of it. Young PE people,

[27:23] please. Thank you.

[27:25] >> Would you just like to You could leave

[27:26] your statement with us if you would

[27:27] like.

[27:28] >> I don't I have a a notepad. I I can't

[27:31] take my mask off. I'm

[27:33] >> If you Okay, ma'am, if you want to. Uh

[27:36] um ma'am,

[27:38] >> yes, ma'am. Excuse me. Can Can you let

[27:42] me do this? I appreciate it. if you

[27:44] could just go ahead and speak and we'll

[27:45] try the best if you can get as close to

[27:47] the mic as you can. Okay.

[27:49] >> Thank you.

[27:53] One of my main concerns

[27:56] is landlords don't need to show that

[27:59] they have good reason to get rid of a

[28:01] tenant. So, they're non-renewing tenants

[28:04] in retaliation for asking for basic

[28:07] repairs.

[28:10] I am here to speak for a group of people

[28:12] that have no voice and get no respect.

[28:16] For the past 10 years, I lived in the

[28:19] YW.CA of Skenctity and the stockade.

[28:26] The assumption is that people who live

[28:29] in the YW.CA CA are illiterate and

[28:33] ignorant and that they are old hookers

[28:36] who can no longer make a living selling

[28:38] you know what

[28:41] I have two master's degrees

[28:45] I taught at Sunni

[28:48] and I can speak for myself

[28:53] something happened and my life took a

[28:55] turn and that's how I ended up at the Y

[28:59] moved out of the main building because

[29:01] they're shutting it down

[29:03] because of it needs repairs.

[29:08] And I moved into a house in the stockade

[29:12] for the past two weeks.

[29:15] My temperature in my house, my I'm on

[29:18] the top floor of a two apartment house

[29:21] has been between 85 and 100 degrees.

[29:26] When I left home this evening at 6:15,

[29:30] it was 90 degrees.

[29:33] I have no air conditioner

[29:36] and I can't open my windows because they

[29:40] either don't have screens or the screens

[29:42] are in the windows but they're not in

[29:44] the grooves.

[29:46] When I first moved in in November of

[29:48] 2024, I couldn't open the windows

[29:51] because they were painted shut.

[29:54] Because the house was built in the

[29:56] 1800s, it's got some peg in it, and

[29:58] nobody told me how to open the windows

[30:00] that I could get open.

[30:03] Now,

[30:06] I'm in an apartment for over two weeks

[30:08] since the heat wave started.

[30:12] between 85 and 100 degrees every day. I

[30:15] can't open the windows because when I

[30:17] do, there's no screens and the bees and

[30:20] the mosquitoes come in and I'm allergic

[30:22] to them. I'm 65 years old. I have asthma

[30:26] and have dealt with atrial fibrillation.

[30:34] When I moved into the apartment in

[30:36] November of 2024,

[30:39] I told them that there were problems

[30:40] with the windows. It's now July. They

[30:43] still haven't been fixed.

[30:46] I also requested a peak hole because I I

[30:49] can't see who comes to the front door or

[30:51] my apartment door. That was in November

[30:54] of 2024.

[30:56] I only got the peak hole a few days ago.

[31:02] Recently, a man came to the door. He was

[31:05] wearing a helmet and a yellow reflective

[31:07] vest, and he wanted to come in and see

[31:09] my meter. I don't have a meter. I

[31:13] refused to let him in because I was

[31:15] alone in the house, and I was scared.

[31:17] When I called the utility company,

[31:21] there was no work order for a man to

[31:24] come into my house.

[31:25] >> I need you to summarize, please.

[31:28] My point in coming tonight in summary is

[31:32] that I have no rights.

[31:36] I can't I'm living in an unsafe

[31:39] environment.

[31:40] I'm paying rent, but my landlords don't

[31:43] have to do anything. And it's the YW.CA.

[31:48] They're supposed to be taking care of

[31:50] women.

[31:53] And it's not that way at all.

[31:57] Some of them, the women who live there

[31:59] are hookers and they are on drugs.

[32:01] >> I need you to summarize, please.

[32:03] >> But not everybody is. So what I'm saying

[32:06] is is please remember not everybody is

[32:10] worried about their rent being raised

[32:12] because I'm in rent control and I only

[32:15] pay onethird of my very small income.

[32:20] >> Thank you.

[32:23] [Applause]

[32:29] Ellie Pepper. Ellie Pepper.

[32:40] Good evening, Mayor, Madame President,

[32:43] city council members. My name is Ellie

[32:45] Pepper. I live in the city of Skenctity.

[32:48] We often hear landlords describe

[32:50] themselves as small business owners, and

[32:52] they are. But every other small business

[32:55] knows that to stay open, you have to

[32:57] treat your customers well. If a coffee shop gave you burnt coffee or

[33:03] refused to fix a broken table, you'd

[33:05] stop going there. Tenants are housing

[33:08] customers, but unlike other customers,

[33:11] they can't just walk out the door

[33:13] because housing is essential and moving

[33:16] is expensive and disruptive.

[33:18] That's why some baseline protections are

[33:20] necessary. Good cause doesn't prevent

[33:23] landlords from making a fair return. It

[33:26] just asks them to have a good reason for

[33:28] ending someone's tenency.

[33:31] I also want to correct something the

[33:33] mayor recently said. He claimed he

[33:35] hasn't heard from anyone who fears

[33:36] retaliation for requesting repairs.

[33:39] That's simply not true. Just a couple

[33:41] weeks ago at the rail, a few people

[33:44] talked about this very issue. One woman

[33:47] in particular, who's here again tonight,

[33:49] spoke about how she has lived in her

[33:51] apartment for 12 years and always paid

[33:54] rent on time. When a new owner took over

[33:57] and neglected maintenance, she asked for

[34:00] the needed repairs. The response, she

[34:03] was told she could move if she didn't

[34:05] like it. That is retaliation, and it's

[34:08] exactly what good cause is meant to

[34:10] prevent, and she stood up here and

[34:12] talked about it.

[34:14] Finally, I want to raise concern over

[34:16] the mayor's repeated framing of this

[34:18] issue as about protecting the middle

[34:21] class. That may sound neutral, but it's

[34:24] a dog whistle. It implies that tenants,

[34:27] especially those in need of protection,

[34:29] aren't part of the middle class. That

[34:32] they're somehow other. In reality,

[34:35] tenants are middle class. They're also

[34:37] workingass, retired, disabled, parents,

[34:42] students, and essential workers. And

[34:45] even if they're not middle class by

[34:47] income, don't we want a city where

[34:50] everyone is protected from unfair

[34:52] treatment, regardless of their

[34:55] socioeconomic status? This is a moment

[34:58] to show that we value fairness,

[35:00] stability, and dignity for all

[35:01] residents. Please pass good cause

[35:03] eviction protections. Thank you.

[35:07] [Applause]

[35:09] Thank you.

[35:12] Jamaica Miles.

[35:28] one copy.

[35:30] Good evening everyone. Um, I first want

[35:33] to start off by saying thank you to the

[35:36] council members that moved this out of

[35:38] committee, that made sure that good

[35:39] cause didn't stay in some perpetual

[35:41] turning cycle of of debate, but did move

[35:44] it forward is very much appreciated. And

[35:46] not just that it was moved out of

[35:47] committee, but that yeah, it's just one

[35:50] copy of all the petition signatures. I

[35:52] apologize. Um, but that it's the

[35:54] strongest possible version of this

[35:56] legislation that Skinnctity didn't just

[35:58] cowtow and say we're going to

[36:00] compromise, but went forward with

[36:02] finding the most

[36:06] powerful piece of legislation that we

[36:07] could in this moment to support

[36:11] renters in this city. It's a copy of the

[36:14] petition signatures that have been

[36:15] collected over the last few weeks. The

[36:18] total number of signatures happens to be

[36:20] 194 and of those 148 of them in

[36:23] Skenctity. Some of the comments that

[36:25] you'll see is John Romano who said

[36:27] stable housing lowers the crime rate or

[36:30] Sabrina Henkins I agree things need to

[36:32] change. These are real people having

[36:34] real issues. Or Alex Solomon, this would

[36:36] be a tremendous good cause for the

[36:38] people of Skenctity. Or Karen Dixon who

[36:40] said rent is outrageous. Rent don't

[36:43] match pay. or Lisa Russo. Tenants need

[36:46] time to find an alternative if things

[36:47] aren't working out. They need solid,

[36:49] helpful, free resources and support to

[36:51] help them understand their rights and

[36:52] their opinions. I mean, their options

[36:54] and the support to be able to follow

[36:56] through. Or Kima Haynes, they also need

[36:59] to put a cap on how much rent can be

[37:01] charged up here. These landlords are

[37:03] living in New York City and charging

[37:04] rent up here like it's New York City and

[37:06] people's incomes can't even afford the

[37:08] rent. Christine Walder, stop outrageous

[37:10] rent increases for our people of

[37:12] Skenctity. People should have affordable

[37:14] places to live if we want skinnity to

[37:16] thrive. We need a place for all people

[37:18] to live with dignity and affordable

[37:19] homes. Or Andrew Tobias Nelson, our

[37:22] communities thrive with stable housing.

[37:24] Without a safe place to rest, it is more

[37:26] difficult to keep a job, to learn in

[37:27] school, to stay healthy. Affordable

[37:29] housing makes livable communities for

[37:31] all of us. For all of us. Or Leanne

[37:34] Earing, evictions upend lives. Moving

[37:37] when you can't or don't want to is

[37:39] traumatizing. People who pay their rent

[37:41] should not live in fear of losing their

[37:43] home because of greedy or lazy

[37:44] landlords. Owning a rental property

[37:46] doesn't make you a god. You aren't

[37:48] providing housing. You are extracting

[37:50] wealth from the working class. Or

[37:52] Juliana Ratigan. I hope the council sees

[37:55] this for what it is. A chance to sew

[37:57] what's best for the a chance to do what

[38:00] is best for the people of Skenctity

[38:01] instead of doing what is best for the

[38:03] personal profit. That's just an example

[38:06] of the sentiment that has been expressed

[38:08] for a very long time. I myself stood

[38:10] here and talked about my own personal

[38:12] experience in the city of Skenctity,

[38:14] which apparently fell on some deaf ears

[38:16] and not recognizing what I shared, the

[38:18] personal stories I shared of my life in

[38:21] this city and the number of times I had

[38:23] to move and the hardship that it caused.

[38:25] But here we are with this great

[38:27] opportunity to ensure that we move the

[38:29] city in the right direction because I

[38:31] was told this is a new skenctity. So if

[38:33] this is a new skenctity, then I look

[38:34] forward to good cause passing

[38:36] unanimously and supporting the idea of

[38:38] there being a new skenctity, one that

[38:40] supports everyone regardless of their

[38:43] economic base, the neighborhood they

[38:45] live in, or any other determining factor

[38:48] that might treat someone as an other.

[38:51] Thank you.

[38:52] [Applause]

[39:03] Thank you, Shimina Bong.

[39:16] » Good evening. Thank you to the ladies

[39:18] and gentlemen of the council and for our

[39:20] city for hosting this. My name is Shima

[39:22] Bong. Um, I'm coming here to speak on

[39:26] behalf of the consumer and someone who's

[39:28] had to navigate the crazy housing market

[39:33] and the completely disruptive habits of

[39:38] um, agencies and uh, the processing of

[39:43] having to do a transfer of housing or to

[39:47] transition from a stable renter who is

[39:52] paying their rent on time and being

[39:56] placed into a position where um where we

[39:59] referred to and I'll use a quote by um

[40:01] used by some of the people opposing uh

[40:04] those people. And I'm just going to read

[40:06] some of the um the effects of having to

[40:10] be upended um unfairly as a consumer and

[40:14] someone and the constituency that I've

[40:17] had to basically battle homelessness

[40:20] when it wasn't supposed to be an enemy

[40:23] of mine.

[40:24] Emotional and mental health, strength,

[40:26] anxiety,

[40:28] and this is the impact on children.

[40:30] interrupted education, loss of routine

[40:32] insecurity, uh debt and instability,

[40:36] barriers to future housing, the way that

[40:38] it impacts your credit or your

[40:41] credibility when you're trying to

[40:42] transfer from one unreactive housing uh

[40:46] providing office to another. So, I feel

[40:49] that it is unfair to undermine the

[40:51] importance of the consumers. Um, it

[40:54] seems obvious that if you were to deny

[40:57] or uh oppose fair evictions that you

[41:01] actually um should understand and do

[41:05] understand that directly causing social

[41:08] impacts like displacement uh from social

[41:10] networks, weaken community ties. um it

[41:13] affects a certain demographic. Um and

[41:17] those people um where the burden falls

[41:19] on them to then send applications to

[41:23] landlords who are not local, who are out

[41:25] of town to wait for unresponsive

[41:28] uh processing uh paperwork and uh

[41:33] including the fees and those of us who

[41:35] have to deal with time constraints

[41:36] because of these unreactive actors. I

[41:39] feel like all that burden found

[41:41] themselves on top of the consumer. It

[41:44] would make it obvious that the the

[41:45] consumer and people who are paying rent,

[41:47] who are struggling to pay these

[41:48] mortgages um for landlords that are may

[41:51] or may not be here, they are the

[41:53] backbone. They are the backbone of the

[41:55] city. The consumer is the backbone of

[41:57] the city. So having a legislation that

[42:00] lacks any language that protects those

[42:03] people, it seemed would be obvious that

[42:06] it's clear um

[42:08] health risks. Um and in particular being

[42:12] again one of those consumers who had to

[42:14] deal with bouncing from health provider

[42:16] to health provider to find out whether

[42:19] my son was exposed

[42:21] to lead when it's the properties that

[42:25] contain the lead. And again the burden

[42:27] is on the consumer not to be sick and

[42:29] not the land the landlord to clear their

[42:32] house of uh hazardous um materials.

[42:36] It again it it sheds light that the

[42:38] consumers bear the burden of this

[42:42] housing uh this housing market and they

[42:45] should be protected and that's why you

[42:47] should pass good evictions

[42:49] >> for the consumers because they're the

[42:50] backbone.

[42:51] >> Thank you.

[42:53] [Applause]

[43:00] Sean Ratigan.

[43:14] All right, you can hear me. Um, yeah.

[43:16] Hi. Uh, good evening. On June 23rd, the

[43:20] council heard from both sides of this

[43:22] issue. I was a bit taken back at so many

[43:24] of those speaking against good cause

[43:26] eviction using the fears of bad landlord

[43:29] behavior being used as an argument to

[43:31] not regulate landlord behavior as good

[43:34] cause eviction would do so. Several of

[43:37] the individuals speaking against opting

[43:39] in were concerned that somehow by

[43:41] requiring a reason for eviction or

[43:44] limiting rent hikes to a maximum of 10%

[43:47] without justifiable reason would push

[43:49] out landlord good landlords and we'd

[43:52] only be left with predatory absentee

[43:55] landlords. This is fear-mongering and

[43:57] the opposition has offered no data to

[44:00] back up these claims. I did a little

[44:02] processing of the tax uh assessment from

[44:05] 2025 and

[44:09] estimated that at least 11,000 units

[44:13] would likely be affected by good cause

[44:15] eviction law. That's over 11,000

[44:18] individuals and families that passing

[44:20] this law can benefit. Those 11,000 units

[44:23] are estimated using the 1,00 the 2,100

[44:28] one family, 2,900 two family, 300 three

[44:33] family, and 590 apartment properties

[44:37] listed in the tax assessment. I

[44:39] estimated four units for each of the

[44:41] apartment properties to be conservative,

[44:43] but that could be way higher than that.

[44:45] So, that's really not accounting for all

[44:47] of the large apartment buildings and

[44:49] complexes in the city because most of

[44:52] the buildings in the city likely were

[44:54] built before 2009. And I excluded any

[44:57] properties where the owner's address

[44:58] matches the property's address to

[45:01] account for owner occupied units. So, I

[45:03] feel 11,000 units is a fairly solid

[45:06] estimate. So, you have the numbers.

[45:09] You've read the law. You have heard

[45:12] tenants tell you how they need these

[45:14] protections. You've heard about how

[45:17] concerns of the courts being overwhelmed

[45:20] will be was has been proven to not be

[45:23] the case in areas implementing similar

[45:25] law.

[45:27] You know that landlords can still evict

[45:29] tenant tenants who damage property,

[45:32] cause nuisance and don't pay rent or

[45:34] otherwise breach breach the lease

[45:36] agreements. You know that landlords can

[45:40] still raise the rent beyond 10% for

[45:42] various reasons in the law. So please

[45:46] let's build a better skity where tenants

[45:48] can lay down roots and stay in their

[45:51] homes. Thanks.

[45:53] >> Thank you.

[45:55] [Music]

[45:56] [Applause]

[45:59] Thank you, Laurel Barnes.

[46:08] Good evening, Madame President,

[46:10] Councilman, Mr. Mayor.

[46:12] As you remember my last speech here,

[46:17] I feel it was very powerful and

[46:18] meaningful.

[46:20] I have heard from many people

[46:24] uh a lady that

[46:27] has a shop down on J Street. Her sister

[46:31] was kicked out of her apartment and she

[46:33] had a family all because the landlord

[46:36] had a relative that needed the

[46:38] apartment.

[46:40] You can't tell me that that's not

[46:41] disgusting cuz it is.

[46:44] They had no right doing that to her and

[46:46] her family. She had kids.

[46:50] I'm still afraid to even talk to my

[46:52] landlord

[46:54] for fear he is going to remember what he

[46:57] said and he's going to kick me out next

[46:59] year.

[47:00] And believe me, none of you want to see

[47:02] that happen because I will not be in a

[47:04] good way.

[47:07] I will not.

[47:09] This is new skenctity.

[47:12] Why don't you make it a better light

[47:16] that it will bring people in who want to

[47:19] stay here and live here

[47:23] and bring their light to all of us.

[47:28] And if you don't feel that's fair,

[47:33] I really don't understand.

[47:36] You'll be hurting a lot of mentally ill

[47:39] people who can't take being thrown out

[47:43] because we don't have the money. I live

[47:46] off disability.

[47:48] I make about $15,000 a year. I don't

[47:52] have a I don't have the good graces of

[47:56] being able to move. And I like where I

[47:58] am.

[48:01] The landlord is just a jerk.

[48:06] He has no respect for anybody in his

[48:08] buildings.

[48:11] Nothing.

[48:12] And he hardly ever shows up for anything

[48:15] unless it's a serious emergency.

[48:18] And he goes over to his gas station at

[48:22] the Sicko Place, which is right across

[48:25] from us. He never comes by to check to

[48:28] see if everything's okay, cuz he doesn't

[48:30] care. I've got windows that allows bees

[48:34] to come in and all these other

[48:38] bugs.

[48:41] And

[48:43] you know,

[48:45] one of the things I think we all want

[48:46] are better windows so we could keep the

[48:48] heat in and keep the cool in and not

[48:52] have to worry about it. I live on the

[48:54] second floor

[48:56] and the first two years I was there, I

[48:58] didn't have an AC.

[49:00] I lived on ice packs and a fan.

[49:05] And the landlord, even before this one,

[49:08] he was a good guy, but he still didn't

[49:11] care enough.

[49:15] And I want to leave you with all this

[49:17] one quote.

[49:20] Please don't hurt the people that are

[49:22] part of this city.

[49:25] Just don't hurt them. The landlords are

[49:27] still protected. But this is basically

[49:30] going on the LLC's who are the evil

[49:32] ones.

[49:34] Thank you and have a good night. Thank

[49:35] you.

[49:37] [Applause]

[49:41] >> Mohamad Hz.

[49:54] » Good evening, Mr. Mayor, Madame

[49:56] President, city council member. My name

[49:58] is Muhammad Hafes and I'm here to speak

[50:01] as a land connecting landlord.

[50:05] I'm speaking again is to propose good

[50:07] cause eviction law because there are

[50:09] plenty of new apartment that the city

[50:11] has built for lowincome tenants on

[50:14] Albany Street, Crane Street, Van Rankin

[50:16] Avenue that we actually have to compete

[50:18] against. It's this low rent and a bunch

[50:21] of other places. For those tenants who

[50:23] are unhappy with their current landlord,

[50:25] please move out to one of these control

[50:27] controlled uh rent apartment that the

[50:30] city has built or other projects that

[50:32] are being built right now.

[50:35] You will be happier in another place.

[50:37] And for those people who complain about

[50:39] a screen window, I mean the Home Depot

[50:41] sells a screen window for 15 $15 that

[50:44] will protect you. And landlords, I know

[50:47] a lot of landlords just provide that if

[50:48] the screen is missing. I had screen

[50:50] windows that tenants just push out to

[50:53] put on air conditioners and they don't

[50:55] bother picking it up from the ground and

[50:57] then they wind up having no screen

[50:58] window. We replace it with a $15 screen

[51:00] window from the Home Depot. So, it's

[51:02] always a tenants damage that caused

[51:04] this. For years, the city of Skenkity,

[51:07] HUD, and banks have been selling homes

[51:09] for a lot less than the market price.

[51:11] So, go ahead, try to buy a new house.

[51:13] Try to get a loan like we did. We

[51:15] started that way. We started with

[51:17] applying for a loan to buy a property

[51:19] and it went on and on. The 5% the 5% or

[51:23] yearly increase that some of the council

[51:25] members are talking about. It's way too

[51:27] low to cover the increase in operating

[51:29] cost. We have the water, sewer, and

[51:32] trash collection fee that you have

[51:34] increased on us. The city has increased

[51:36] on us. We have the material and supply

[51:38] costs that quadruple in some cases.

[51:42] We have insurance premium that increase

[51:43] for about 30% on average. I know because

[51:46] I'm in the insurance business. We have

[51:48] the higher legal cost. We have to hire a

[51:50] lawyer if we have a corporation or LLC.

[51:52] We have we have higher legal cost to

[51:54] evict non-paying and problem tenants.

[51:57] And the char the retaliation issue they

[52:00] all talking about

[52:02] and they all worried about, you know,

[52:03] being retaliated against. There's a

[52:06] bunch of other federal and state laws

[52:08] that protect you from retaliation. Why

[52:11] add another law? It's useless. There's

[52:14] no need for it.

[52:17] If this law passes, I promise you a lot

[52:19] of the landlords will keep the apartment

[52:21] vacants until we sell the property. I

[52:23] promise you I'll keep mine vacant until

[52:26] I sell my properties. And that's guess

[52:28] who's going to buy? The absentee

[52:30] landlord that everyone dislikes in this

[52:33] town.

[52:36] We all know that pressing this law

[52:37] before November election is a

[52:39] politically motivated issue. While it

[52:43] may appear to be helping tenants to, you

[52:46] know, to get their votes,

[52:48] it will just make it finding affordable

[52:51] apartment a lot harder for them in the

[52:53] long run. So, please do not vote for the

[52:56] good cause eviction loans connector.

[52:57] Thank you.

[53:02] [Applause]

[53:04] >> Thank you, Valerie Triano.

[53:12] Hi. Uh, good evening, city council

[53:15] members. I'm here tonight to urge you

[53:17] all to vote yes on Skenctity opting into

[53:19] the good cause eviction law. Skenctity

[53:22] residents desperately need good cause

[53:25] eviction law protections. According to

[53:27] the city of Skenctity 2020 through 2024

[53:31] consolidated 5-year strategic plan

[53:34] overview in the capital region housing

[53:35] affordability study by CDRPC. In 2020, a

[53:40] household in Skenctity would need to

[53:41] earn at least $44,600

[53:44] per year. That's $2144

[53:47] an hour to avoid a two-bedroom rental

[53:50] unit at fair market rates. However, the

[53:52] hourly mean wage for a renter in

[53:54] Skenctity County was only $15.16.

[53:57] As of 2023, the average hourly wage

[54:00] needed to afford a one-bedroom apartment

[54:03] in the capital region, including

[54:04] Skenctity, was $20.25.

[54:07] Renters in Skenctity County face rent

[54:09] deficient

[54:12] with their hourly wages insufficient to

[54:14] cover housing cost for both one and

[54:16] twobedroom apartments. This is not just

[54:19] a housing issue.

[54:23] It's a wage gap, a cost of living

[54:25] crisis, and a public policy failure

[54:27] allinone. Good cause eviction does not

[54:29] eliminate a landlord's right to evict.

[54:32] Landlords will still be able to evict

[54:33] tenants for non-payment

[54:36] uh illegal activity, lease violations,

[54:39] and property damage. They will still be

[54:41] able to raise rent so long as those

[54:44] increases are reasonable and based on

[54:45] actual costs. What this law does do is

[54:48] protect tenants from unjust evictions,

[54:52] retaliation, and unaffordable rent

[54:53] hikes, especially when those tenants are

[54:55] simply advocating for safe and livable

[54:58] housing. This is not about punishing

[54:59] landlords. It's about protecting

[55:01] residents, particularly those who rent

[55:03] from small local property owners. In

[55:06] fact, this law can help preserve local

[55:08] ownership by preventing corporate

[55:10] landlords from artificially inflating

[55:12] rents and pricing out community-based

[55:14] landlords. At the last meeting, I heard

[55:16] concerns from landlords suggesting that

[55:18] if good cause passes, they may

[55:22] leave units vacant, tighten rental

[55:24] requirements, or sell their properties

[55:26] to corporate owners. But let's be clear,

[55:29] those are choices.

[55:31] If a landlord responds to fairness with

[55:33] retaliation, that reflects their values,

[55:36] not the intent of the law of this law.

[55:39] I'm sorry. Good cause does not force

[55:42] anyone's hand. It simply sets a baseline

[55:45] of decency. So, I urge each of you to

[55:48] read the good cause eviction law

[55:50] carefully, set aside disinformation, and

[55:54] reflect honestly on what this means for

[55:56] the people's connectity. We need

[55:57] policies that support stability,

[55:59] dignity, and affordable

[56:02] living for all residents. Thank you for

[56:04] your time and consideration.

[56:07] Thank you.

[56:12] [Applause]

[56:15] Thank you, Joan Justice. Joan Justice.

[56:28] Good evening,

[56:30] Madame President, council members, and

[56:33] Mr. Mayor.

[56:37] I believe that many residential property

[56:40] owners are conscientious.

[56:43] They maintain their properties well, and

[56:46] they are truly concerned about good

[56:49] tenant relations.

[56:51] We don't need good cause eviction

[56:55] for those

[56:56] rental property owners.

[57:00] There are many who are not

[57:03] conscientious

[57:05] and interested in good communications

[57:07] with their tenants.

[57:10] I also request that you consider that

[57:14] many business investments

[57:17] do not involve people's

[57:21] homes.

[57:24] I do feel threatened about retaliation

[57:29] because I have asked for proper care of

[57:32] my appointment apartment and maintenance

[57:35] even in involving proper ground faults

[57:39] protections.

[57:41] This is what I heard.

[57:44] You play with me and I'll play with you.

[57:49] Is that possibly a threat of

[57:51] retaliation? I have to operate under

[57:53] that concern.

[57:56] I too am a person who having worked for

[58:00] pay since I was 14

[58:03] am now no longer able to work both by

[58:06] age and by granted full disability

[58:10] status.

[58:12] My income is very limited.

[58:15] I do have access to all the help

[58:19] available to me and I am very grateful

[58:24] and I appreciate it.

[58:27] But I'm here to tell you that there are

[58:29] some landlords who are so emboldened

[58:33] by abilities to remove tenants without

[58:39] good cause

[58:42] that just this Thursday,

[58:45] an adjacent property owner, not my

[58:49] building owner, one who shared a

[58:53] property line with my building owner,

[58:58] This is an owneroccupied

[59:01] building.

[59:03] One of the partners in this business

[59:05] that own this building does occupy an

[59:07] apartment.

[59:09] Since their arrival for two months, we

[59:12] have been unable to use our parking lot.

[59:16] Access has been dei denied regardless of

[59:18] easement rights.

[59:21] Parking on other people's property is

[59:24] taken because this owner occupier allows

[59:30] guests.

[59:31] I do I've witnessed it's been encouraged

[59:36] that such a thing

[59:40] be allowed. I've heard it and recently

[59:43] the other property owner adjacent same

[59:46] building threatened to contact my

[59:50] building owner to indicate that I was an

[59:55] issue

[59:57] because I wanted

[59:59] less noise after 12 midnight

[1:00:04] because I can't go anywhere. I have no

[1:00:08] options and I beg you, I am begging you,

[1:00:14] protect

[1:00:16] us.

[1:00:18] >> Thank you.

[1:00:23] [Applause]

[1:00:30] Bridget Savage Spies

[1:00:32] Bridget

[1:00:41] Hello, my name is Bridget Savage Spees.

[1:00:44] Um, I wanted to thank the council for

[1:00:46] moving forward with the strongest

[1:00:48] possible version of good cause eviction.

[1:00:50] Um, we really appreciate it. Um, I

[1:00:54] really appreciate you guys giving this

[1:00:55] topic the consideration that I think it

[1:00:57] deserves. Um, I've heard I heard last

[1:01:00] time that the council would like a

[1:01:01] little more information on as to the

[1:01:03] impacts of good cause. Um, while Sean

[1:01:05] spoke to that a little bit, I want to

[1:01:07] say that over half of skinnctity is

[1:01:09] renters. Um, and 88% of those renters

[1:01:12] would be covered by this version of good

[1:01:15] cause that you guys have presented. Um,

[1:01:19] so with that, the impacts are wide

[1:01:22] reaching um, with the potential to

[1:01:24] significantly improve the lives of

[1:01:25] tenants throughout Skenctity.

[1:01:28] Now, it can be hard to track how many

[1:01:30] lease non-renewals there are um because

[1:01:33] they're not filed with the courts like

[1:01:35] an eviction is, but studies by Rand

[1:01:37] suggests that there are five and a half

[1:01:39] informal evictions, they call them, for

[1:01:40] every eviction filed in the court. Um,

[1:01:43] further research suggests that children

[1:01:45] are more than twice as likely to

[1:01:47] experience any type of eviction with the

[1:01:48] problem being dramatically worse for

[1:01:50] black children.

[1:01:52] any type of eviction or housing

[1:01:54] instability can be extremely harmful to

[1:01:56] those children with a study from NYU

[1:01:58] Grossman showing that instability

[1:01:59] regardless of the degree if it happens

[1:02:01] one time or 10. Um it can lead to worse

[1:02:05] health health outcomes later in life. Um

[1:02:08] and of course if children need to

[1:02:10] transfer schools it's disruptive to

[1:02:11] their education socialization.

[1:02:13] Displacement impacts um the whole

[1:02:16] community, not just those who are

[1:02:17] displaced. Um but the community and the

[1:02:20] city, the whole city feels the loss when

[1:02:22] a community member or a family is forced

[1:02:24] to leave.

[1:02:26] Telling someone that they need to leave

[1:02:27] their home is extremely serious. Um I

[1:02:30] heard a property manager at the last

[1:02:32] comment period in June say that under

[1:02:34] good cause they would have to provide

[1:02:36] proof to get a tenant out of their home.

[1:02:38] Um and I hope so. Um

[1:02:42] it If a decision to remove a tenant or

[1:02:45] and their family can be made

[1:02:47] unilaterally in silence without

[1:02:49] supervision from or oversight from

[1:02:51] courts or anyone um then it can and as

[1:02:55] we've heard today does go wrong. Um good

[1:02:58] cause if nothing else at least brings

[1:03:01] that process out into the light. Um it

[1:03:03] at least shows us where the problems

[1:03:05] are. It determines whether or not a

[1:03:07] landlord has a good cause to remove a

[1:03:09] tenant or if it is something simply ret

[1:03:11] like simple retaliation. Um

[1:03:15] while there are laws that prevent

[1:03:17] retaliation, they protect tenants after

[1:03:19] they've been displaced. Um whereas good

[1:03:22] cause prevents that from happening in

[1:03:24] the first place. Um, I really urge you

[1:03:28] to vote yes on good cause eviction

[1:03:30] because I believe that it makes the

[1:03:32] fabric of the city stronger and it has

[1:03:34] done so for other cities across New York

[1:03:36] and I hope it can do so for Skenctity.

[1:03:38] So, thank you.

[1:03:38] >> Thank you,

[1:03:40] [Applause]

[1:03:46] » Chris Sue. Chris Sue.

[1:03:52] » Hi, my name is Chris. I'd like to speak

[1:03:54] on behalf of tenants like myself in

[1:03:56] support of good cause eviction. So 17 is

[1:04:00] the number of cities and villages that

[1:04:01] have already opted into good cause

[1:04:03] across the state. Um and good cause is a

[1:04:06] state law that's already a compromise

[1:04:08] that doesn't punish good landlords while

[1:04:10] providing necessary stability

[1:04:13] um and uh tenant protections to ensure

[1:04:16] stability in people's lives.

[1:04:18] Um, good cause eviction should really be

[1:04:22] called common sense protections. Clear

[1:04:24] guidance on what constitutes good cause

[1:04:27] should lead to less backlogs in the

[1:04:30] courts and better outcomes for tenants

[1:04:33] and landlords. Um, so the limit of 5%

[1:04:38] plus CPI for a one-bedroom home, which

[1:04:41] is currently um 1,265

[1:04:45] according to the HUD for 2025, is $14

[1:04:50] per month. That's a allowable rent

[1:04:53] increase, which is $1,245

[1:04:57] per year. So I I think that's already a

[1:05:00] pretty large amount for people um um to

[1:05:04] see as um an annual increase and there

[1:05:09] are already carveouts to consider

[1:05:11] property tax and other tax increases and

[1:05:14] expenses for the landlords.

[1:05:18] So, I encourage the council to pass the

[1:05:21] strongest version of good cause because

[1:05:23] there are already these carveouts for

[1:05:25] the landlords and um to close the small

[1:05:30] landlord loophole of having one unit and

[1:05:33] um having the fair market rent at a high

[1:05:35] level. Um and in summary, um vote yes to

[1:05:40] pass good cause eviction. It'll help the

[1:05:42] community grow in the future. Thank you.

[1:05:45] >> Thank you.

[1:05:47] [Applause]

[1:05:51] Holly Loth.

[1:05:59] Oh goodness.

[1:06:01] Good evening. Um, we've been very

[1:06:04] focused so far on who would benefit from

[1:06:07] or be harmed by opting into good cause,

[1:06:10] but we haven't really talked about who

[1:06:12] benefits from the status quo. who gets

[1:06:15] the best deal if things stay exactly as

[1:06:18] they are. And I think Slick is making

[1:06:20] the case that landlords as a group are

[1:06:23] the ones who benefit from the status

[1:06:25] quo. But I don't think that's true

[1:06:28] because I think there's actually a

[1:06:29] really big really fundamental divide

[1:06:32] among landlords and the status quo

[1:06:35] really only protects one subgroup and

[1:06:38] it's not the good landlords.

[1:06:40] As things stand now, the people getting

[1:06:42] the very best deal are the ones who

[1:06:45] benefit the most from renters being

[1:06:48] unprotected.

[1:06:49] The people who benefit the most from the

[1:06:51] status quo are the landlords who want to

[1:06:54] take advantage of people, whose business

[1:06:56] model depends on being able to evict

[1:06:59] people for no good reason, whose

[1:07:01] business model depends on providing

[1:07:03] substandard housing, whose whole

[1:07:06] business is just being as horrible as

[1:07:08] they can possibly get away with in order

[1:07:10] to make a buck. Good landlords. And I'm

[1:07:13] confident that lots of the folks in

[1:07:15] Slick are good landlords. Good landlords

[1:07:19] are not protected by the status quo

[1:07:22] because their own standards and ethics

[1:07:25] are already imposing stricter limits

[1:07:28] than the new law would. If you are

[1:07:30] already using eviction only as a last

[1:07:33] resort, if you are already worrying

[1:07:36] every time you have to raise the rent to

[1:07:38] cover your costs. If you're already

[1:07:41] making sure that the heat actually works

[1:07:43] and the dryer gets fixed in a reasonable

[1:07:45] amount of time, then your personal

[1:07:48] standards are already higher than the

[1:07:50] standards that this law would apply to

[1:07:52] you. But decent landlords are competing

[1:07:56] in a marketplace with people who do not

[1:07:58] have high personal or professional

[1:08:00] standards. Decent landlords are

[1:08:03] competing in a marketplace with people

[1:08:05] who treat tenants like scum and

[1:08:07] properties like trash. And I know that

[1:08:10] my neighbors in Slick know probably way

[1:08:13] better than I do exactly which landlords

[1:08:15] I'm talking about. And those are the

[1:08:18] landlords who are protected now. Those

[1:08:20] are the landlords who will win if

[1:08:22] Skenctity chooses not to opt in to to

[1:08:26] good cause. And so I would invite my

[1:08:28] neighbors who are good landlords, who

[1:08:30] know that nobody would describe them as

[1:08:33] slum lords to look very closely at

[1:08:36] what's actually in the good cause law.

[1:08:38] And then to ask yourselves, who exactly

[1:08:41] does it benefit for our city to keep

[1:08:44] giving slum lords a pass? Thank you.

[1:08:53] [Applause]

[1:08:56] » I'm not sure the first name, the last

[1:08:58] name. Suk Dwan.

[1:09:07] » Mr. Mayor Counelors,

[1:09:11] good evening.

[1:09:13] Good cause eviction would bring more

[1:09:16] hardship on landlord.

[1:09:20] As it stands,

[1:09:22] most tenant

[1:09:24] remain in their rented apartment without

[1:09:27] paying rent for at least six month. That

[1:09:31] is what it stands now.

[1:09:34] How are the landlord going to maintain

[1:09:36] their property and go on? And if we make

[1:09:39] it worse, what would happen?

[1:09:43] Many

[1:09:45] tenants are deliberately withholding

[1:09:47] their rent because they know they can

[1:09:50] stay in an apartment for 6 months

[1:09:52] without paying any rent and then they go

[1:09:55] find another one and the system continue

[1:09:58] like that. We observe those pattern.

[1:10:04] If the good cause eviction is accepted

[1:10:08] by the city of Skenctity,

[1:10:12] tenants would abuse the privilege.

[1:10:16] Landlord would not be paid their rent.

[1:10:19] As a result,

[1:10:21] they would not be able to

[1:10:24] maintain their property. Skenctity would

[1:10:27] once again deteriorated like it used to

[1:10:30] be before.

[1:10:31] and abandoned building would abong once

[1:10:34] again. Thank you.

[1:10:36] >> Thank you,

[1:10:40] [Applause]

[1:10:43] >> Chris Morris.

[1:10:49] Look what I got.

[1:10:56] » Good evening everyone. Can you hear me?

[1:10:58] >> Yes.

[1:10:59] >> This is too high for me.

[1:11:02] Don't get old, you get shorter.

[1:11:07] » My name is Chris Morris. I'm the founder

[1:11:09] and director of Slick

[1:11:12] Connectity landlords influencing change.

[1:11:16] We are the only organized group of small

[1:11:18] landlords, realtors, and property

[1:11:20] managers in the city. And our ultimate

[1:11:23] goal has always been to provide

[1:11:26] education, information, and updated data

[1:11:30] on how to properly run properties,

[1:11:35] rental properties. That is always

[1:11:38] strictly our goal, our main goal. There

[1:11:41] are three major factors in the housing

[1:11:42] rental equation. First, the rental

[1:11:45] property itself.

[1:11:47] Second, the owner of the property. and

[1:11:50] third, who the owner chooses to live

[1:11:53] there.

[1:11:54] It should be clear that a much larger

[1:11:57] investment is made by that property

[1:11:59] owner and taxpayer

[1:12:02] when there is a problem with upkeep,

[1:12:04] repairs, trash removal, trash removal,

[1:12:07] code violations.

[1:12:09] It's the owner's responsibility to

[1:12:11] comply even if the problem is caused by

[1:12:13] the tenant and it's his expense.

[1:12:16] Without question, we agree that tenants

[1:12:19] should be provided safe, affordable

[1:12:22] housing. And of course, that affording

[1:12:24] is determined when you're signing your

[1:12:27] lease or when you're you're getting on

[1:12:28] board with the property before you move

[1:12:30] in. So, the stability of the housing

[1:12:34] depends largely on the tenants's ability

[1:12:37] to coexist within the home and abide by

[1:12:40] the terms of a signed rental agreement.

[1:12:44] Certainly, the owner is continually

[1:12:48] bombarded with rules and regulations and

[1:12:50] requirements and spiraling expenses by

[1:12:53] both the city and the state and the

[1:12:56] material and service providers.

[1:12:59] Bottom line, owning and operating a

[1:13:02] rental property is a business and should

[1:13:05] be understood as such. Property owners

[1:13:08] should have the right to determine who

[1:13:11] lives and continues to live in their

[1:13:14] properties.

[1:13:16] We urge the council to hold off on this

[1:13:19] good cause and give Slick the

[1:13:21] opportunity to get back on track with

[1:13:24] that proposed preferred properties

[1:13:27] program.

[1:13:28] a collaborative that was designed by a

[1:13:31] task force of city and Slick officials

[1:13:34] which features both a required landlord

[1:13:37] and tenant training program and Slick

[1:13:40] membership and meeting attendance. In

[1:13:42] return, landlords would be recognized as

[1:13:45] a preferred properties on a preferred

[1:13:47] properties list that would be made

[1:13:49] available and recently I heard that that

[1:13:50] was something that tenants would be

[1:13:52] looking for. Who are the good

[1:13:54] properties? Who are the considered good

[1:13:56] by the city? and you would be uh that

[1:13:58] would be made available to you by the

[1:14:00] city. Participants would also be

[1:14:03] eligible for some yet to be determined

[1:14:05] incentives such as maybe some reduc

[1:14:07] reduced price of required rental

[1:14:09] certificates. And one last thing, for

[1:14:11] some reason I been affected by this. Why

[1:14:15] is it that only the tenant seems to be

[1:14:17] considered people? For some reason, I

[1:14:20] hear people re in regarding to tenants

[1:14:22] by themselves and by others as well. It

[1:14:24] must be stated that small landlords are

[1:14:27] people too. They are hardworking

[1:14:30] investors in our city. They have

[1:14:32] families. They have hopes and dreams for

[1:14:34] their future. And they deserve respect

[1:14:36] and work hard to survive and provide.

[1:14:40] Thank you.

[1:14:40] >> Thank you,

[1:14:44] [Applause]

[1:14:47] >> Pearl. Ha.

[1:14:51] » Could you hear me?

[1:14:53] Yes, I could hear you.

[1:14:55] >> Good evening,

[1:14:56] >> Pearla.

[1:14:58] >> Good evening, Madame Chair, council

[1:15:01] members and mayor. My name is Pearla.

[1:15:05] I'm here to speak to urge you say no to

[1:15:09] good cause eviction. First of all, the

[1:15:13] vast majority of landlords are

[1:15:16] incentivized to keep landlord in their

[1:15:19] homes simply because it provides stable

[1:15:23] income and avoids very costly vacancies.

[1:15:29] Secondly, there are already legal

[1:15:32] protections in place for retaliatory

[1:15:36] evictions and unsafe housing.

[1:15:42] New York State Real Property Law Section

[1:15:46] 223B

[1:15:48] explicitly prohibits retaliatory

[1:15:52] evictions.

[1:15:53] New York State Real Play Law Section

[1:15:57] 235B

[1:15:59] ensures that landlords must maintain

[1:16:03] livable, safe, and sanitary conditions.

[1:16:09] Therefore, strengthening enforcement of

[1:16:12] current laws makes sense then upending

[1:16:17] the tenant and landlord relationship.

[1:16:20] Thank you.

[1:16:21] >> Thank you,

[1:16:24] [Applause]

[1:16:28] >> Mina. Badu.

[1:16:31] >> Mina bedu.

[1:16:35] » Mina.

[1:16:37] >> Okay.

[1:16:39] Is she still here?

[1:16:43] » Okay, Steve Markham.

[1:16:54] » Good evening to all. I appreciate your

[1:16:56] time and attention here. Uh, my name is

[1:16:58] Steve Markham. I am a member of Slick,

[1:17:00] but I'm speaking for myself tonight as

[1:17:02] well. I am urging you to vote no on the

[1:17:05] good cause eviction law. I see this as a

[1:17:07] New York City mandate to deal with the

[1:17:09] issues that this bill addresses there

[1:17:11] and I really have my doubts to its

[1:17:13] actual significance in the city of

[1:17:15] Skenctity. We now have city codes,

[1:17:18] rental inspections with a landlord

[1:17:20] registry to help weed out the less than

[1:17:23] adequate apartments. There is a landlord

[1:17:25] and tenant training available through

[1:17:27] SCAP and other entities that oversee our

[1:17:30] commitment to provide safe, stable

[1:17:31] housing and educate both. Uh, I would

[1:17:35] prefer to see the city's plan landlord

[1:17:37] registry program have the opportunity to

[1:17:40] refine and help remedy the issues rather

[1:17:43] than a knee-jerk situation brought to

[1:17:46] the attention of the city council by a

[1:17:47] paid activist and a group from Albany

[1:17:49] wanting us to jump in the boat with

[1:17:51] them. I have been a rental home provider

[1:17:54] for 25 years in Hamilton Hill. I rent

[1:17:57] five apartments out and I've lived in

[1:17:59] one for 18 years. Um,

[1:18:03] the three two family houses I have were

[1:18:05] all previously boarded up, as was most

[1:18:07] of the street. The rents I currently

[1:18:09] charge are far below the section 8

[1:18:11] rental allowances and do not even

[1:18:13] compare to New York City rents and

[1:18:15] quality of units offered. Such as

[1:18:18] tenants need a good, stable, and

[1:18:20] affordable place to call home. We need

[1:18:22] good, stable tenant to afford us the

[1:18:25] capacity to provide, do the necessary

[1:18:28] repairs, and come out more ahead than

[1:18:31] not. As of last Thursday, I currently

[1:18:33] have a water mane leak that is being

[1:18:35] addressed. There is no procrastinating

[1:18:37] on an issue like this. The price tag

[1:18:39] $5,500.

[1:18:41] Eviction when necessary is not used

[1:18:43] hastily by any landlord as it is an

[1:18:46] expensive and timeconsuming prospect.

[1:18:49] always leaves us with an enormous

[1:18:51] cleanup and rehab afterward. Not to

[1:18:54] mention the incredible personal stress

[1:18:56] and anxiety and in some cases fear and

[1:18:59] actual retaliation.

[1:19:01] Not to mention the loss of income while

[1:19:03] the cost and time and funding come out

[1:19:05] of our pockets and any savings we have

[1:19:08] managed to acquire towards maintenance.

[1:19:10] Quite a few of our landlords in this

[1:19:12] city have followed this recipe. Invested

[1:19:15] literally blood, sweat, and tears,

[1:19:17] family money, credit card debt, mortgage

[1:19:19] debt, pay skinnity city and school taxes

[1:19:22] while improving the over 115year-old

[1:19:25] housing stock in the existing Skenctity

[1:19:28] communities in order to create some form

[1:19:30] of wealth and in my case the only

[1:19:32] retirement I am looking forward aside

[1:19:36] from social security. We have skin in

[1:19:38] the game. And lastly, I not I do not

[1:19:41] believe a worthy and realistic due

[1:19:44] diligence has been performed for the

[1:19:46] rate of perceived occurrences that this

[1:19:49] new law will impact. Help very few, if

[1:19:51] any, and have adverse effects on

[1:19:53] potential tenants looking for a place to

[1:19:55] call home while quality housing

[1:19:58] providers contemplate staying in

[1:19:59] business, re-evaluate selling, and

[1:20:02] changing course. Should this be passed

[1:20:04] by the city council, I would request

[1:20:06] that Mayor McCarthy veto it and have the

[1:20:09] city council be profess be professional

[1:20:11] and do a real study that we can revisit

[1:20:14] next year. Thank you.

[1:20:17] >> Thank you.

[1:20:18] [Applause]

[1:20:24] » Last name Husan. Han.

[1:20:30] Last name Husan.

[1:20:32] Uh, no, that's not you, sir.

[1:20:34] >> Nan.

[1:20:48] » Good evening.

[1:20:50] My name is Fadila Hussein.

[1:20:53] [Music]

[1:20:55] Good evening.

[1:20:56] My name is Fidila Hussein. I'm a small

[1:20:59] landlord in Skenctity. And do you know

[1:21:01] what landlord need most in their

[1:21:04] business? Tenants. We are happy to

[1:21:07] provide tenants with safe and decent

[1:21:09] housing as proven by the rental

[1:21:12] certificate. We want long-term tenants

[1:21:14] who will show care and pride in their

[1:21:16] units. So why would we want to evict our

[1:21:19] tenants? We are not we are not in the

[1:21:23] business to do evictions. This is our

[1:21:25] last resort to regain possession of our

[1:21:28] property. Eviction cost us money, time,

[1:21:31] and stress. Both landlord and tenants

[1:21:33] have an agreement through a lease. So,

[1:21:36] what is good cause eviction? What's the

[1:21:38] reason for this proposal? And what is

[1:21:40] the benefit? Any violation to the lease

[1:21:43] is a good cause for eviction. However,

[1:21:46] some violations cannot be proven in

[1:21:47] court. Example, if the lease say no pet

[1:21:50] and there is obviously pet in the

[1:21:52] building, a dog in the building, how can

[1:21:55] we prove that the dog moved in? Another

[1:21:57] example we face is more people moving

[1:21:59] after the lease is agreed upon.

[1:22:02] They are seen there over a period of

[1:22:04] time. They suble and collect money from

[1:22:07] these illegal residents. How can we

[1:22:10] prove this is violation to the lease?

[1:22:13] Then they destroy the property. I have

[1:22:15] seen beds set up in the basement.

[1:22:19] Us landlords want to be protected from

[1:22:21] these devious and unethical behaviors.

[1:22:24] And how do we get these extra names of

[1:22:27] these illegal residents?

[1:22:30] The sheriff need all the names for a

[1:22:32] lockout. This is why good cause eviction

[1:22:35] is a threat to landlords.

[1:22:37] The authorities making these rules

[1:22:39] against us has no idea of our struggles.

[1:22:42] They take away our ability to manage our

[1:22:44] business. I had a tenant behind four

[1:22:46] months in rent. She had a roof leak did

[1:22:48] not inform me. The roof cave in and she

[1:22:50] called codes. codes issue issue a notice

[1:22:53] to vacate. This notice is meaningless

[1:22:56] because the tenants still continue to

[1:22:58] live there and code does nothing about

[1:23:00] this. They don't even enforce their own

[1:23:03] notice. How unprofessional and

[1:23:05] disrespectful to us. It took nine months

[1:23:08] to finally get her out with zero rent

[1:23:10] for nine months while I had lawyer fees,

[1:23:13] late payments of mortgage, taxes,

[1:23:15] insurance, all with penalty. But we

[1:23:17] collect late fees. But we cannot collect

[1:23:20] late fees in an eviction. They left

[1:23:22] almost every this these tenants left

[1:23:24] almost everything behind. Caused me to

[1:23:27] dispose of it plus repairs the floors,

[1:23:29] bathroom, replace kitchen cabinets,

[1:23:31] toilet, sink, and refrigerator. This was

[1:23:34] only one of my experiences with tenants.

[1:23:36] I have had others over the years,

[1:23:38] including verbal and physical abuse. How

[1:23:42] can we survive like this? I vote no to

[1:23:45] good cause eviction. Thank you.

[1:23:52] » Tom Kennedy.

[1:24:05] » Good evening, Mr. Mayor, City Council.

[1:24:07] Name's Tom Kennedy. I'm a chair of the

[1:24:09] Republican party. I stand to oppose this

[1:24:12] good cause eviction. I'm not a home. I'm

[1:24:15] not a landlord, but I represent many.

[1:24:17] Um, I'm going to do a little walk

[1:24:19] through of little history for maybe some

[1:24:22] people that weren't here as long as some

[1:24:25] of us were. There was a time in which we

[1:24:27] walked through the city and every other

[1:24:29] house was boarded up. uh and uh the gy

[1:24:35] people came from New York City, spent

[1:24:38] their time, energies, and capital and

[1:24:42] basically rebuilt a lot of the city of

[1:24:43] Skenctity. Um that's just the truth of

[1:24:46] it. Um Mr. Hz, I'd like to I'd like to

[1:24:50] repeat his uh testimony because it it

[1:24:54] means something. Uh he's lived here.

[1:24:56] He's been a part of the community that

[1:24:58] has rebuilt Skenctity. Uh so we hear

[1:25:02] tonight a lot of different things a lot

[1:25:03] of everybody has a lot of stats and a

[1:25:06] lot of you know different uh things that

[1:25:08] you know let's say you know figures

[1:25:10] lying liars figure that's it's an old

[1:25:12] saying so we have 11 cities in the city

[1:25:15] in in New York state that has this um we

[1:25:18] have 944

[1:25:20] cities and towns

[1:25:22] so um just want to make make that clear

[1:25:25] we also have said that um there's no

[1:25:28] there's been No um no reports or no

[1:25:32] problems. Well, you go to Wall Street

[1:25:34] Journal

[1:25:35] and I apologize for doing this, but uh

[1:25:39] Wall Street Journal

[1:25:42] uh June 26, 2025,

[1:25:45] New Yorkers vote to make their housing

[1:25:47] shortage worse. Well, I I can I can uh

[1:25:51] attest that is what's going to happen to

[1:25:52] the city of Skenctity. These these these

[1:25:55] landlords are going to say it's not

[1:25:56] worth it. Uh they we They they've had

[1:25:59] tax increases of 3% this year. You guys

[1:26:02] know you did it. Um you got garbage fees

[1:26:05] that went up. Now I mean these fees and

[1:26:09] on top of what Mr. Markham said about

[1:26:10] fixing his property and having to do

[1:26:12] that, those are real expenses. You can't

[1:26:15] walk away from those. So you know their

[1:26:18] expenses are going up and so therefore

[1:26:21] the rents are going up. Now here's the

[1:26:24] other problem that you have is in CSK.

[1:26:26] We can't build our way out of the the

[1:26:28] housing shortage. Can't do it. So,

[1:26:30] they're going to build this huge place

[1:26:32] out in St. Clair's. They're going to be

[1:26:34] 240 apartments. They're all going to be

[1:26:36] about 700 to,000 square ft. So, that

[1:26:39] means you're going to have one family uh

[1:26:41] not even one family in there. They're

[1:26:43] basically studio apartments. So, the

[1:26:45] studio and those studio apartment,

[1:26:46] they're going to be about $2,000 a

[1:26:48] piece. Well, what do you think that's

[1:26:49] going to do to the housing market or the

[1:26:51] rental market? Boom. They're going to go

[1:26:53] up. So, I mean, you know, and if you

[1:26:55] look in into our all our hotels

[1:26:58] downtown, they're all full of DSS

[1:27:00] recipients because they can't find

[1:27:01] places. So,

[1:27:04] I agree with Mr. Markham, Mr. Hz. We've

[1:27:07] got to take a pause here before we do

[1:27:10] anything that can really do irreparable

[1:27:13] harm to the city of of Skenctity. You

[1:27:15] guys have that power and I I suggest

[1:27:18] that you look at the preferred uh

[1:27:20] properties list uh that the mayor is

[1:27:22] working on with that with the task

[1:27:23] force. That may be a I don't know. I

[1:27:26] don't know enough about it. But I uh

[1:27:28] thank you madam Porterfield for

[1:27:31] indulging me after the time. And uh I

[1:27:34] just think that it's time everybody

[1:27:36] starts working together here and fixing

[1:27:38] this problem because it's going to get

[1:27:39] bad very quick if we do something that

[1:27:42] not is not good for everybody. Thank

[1:27:43] you. Thank you.

[1:27:47] [Applause]

[1:27:51] Heat.

[1:27:54] >> Hey, Hemat.

[1:27:56] No. Okay, no worries. Um, Mike Dorenzo.

[1:28:13] Good evening, mayor, council president,

[1:28:15] council members. This is the first time

[1:28:17] I've appeared before you. You cannot

[1:28:19] hear me. You're going to hear me. Good

[1:28:23] evening, mayor, council president,

[1:28:25] council members.

[1:28:27] There's no good cause to pass this bill.

[1:28:30] The tenants already are afforded many

[1:28:33] venues to air their grievances. They

[1:28:35] have the court system. In many cases, if

[1:28:38] qualified, it's free. It's not free to

[1:28:41] us.

[1:28:43] They can report their agreements as the

[1:28:45] code. They can make sure the apartment

[1:28:47] has a rental certificate before renting

[1:28:50] it.

[1:28:52] I don't understand how some people come

[1:28:54] here and testify that they've been

[1:28:56] evicted many times.

[1:29:00] No property owner evicts a good partner.

[1:29:06] [Applause]

[1:29:10] The goal is to keep a good partner.

[1:29:15] I use the term partner because it is

[1:29:18] what they are. They are partners.

[1:29:22] It is not a one-way street.

[1:29:27] The eviction process is long, arduous,

[1:29:30] and expensive. Eviction is the last

[1:29:32] resort.

[1:29:34] Landlords have to follow arduous

[1:29:37] procedures.

[1:29:38] I no longer interview prospective

[1:29:41] partners. I can't ask them have they

[1:29:44] been evicted. I can't ask them if they

[1:29:48] are felons. I don't know what are the

[1:29:50] things I can't ask to protect my

[1:29:53] property. So I hire a professional that

[1:29:57] costs.

[1:29:59] The eviction process is so cumbersome

[1:30:01] that I no longer do it.

[1:30:05] I've only used the court system once in

[1:30:07] 30 years, and I have a worthless

[1:30:09] judgment for $1,200.

[1:30:12] I will sell it to any council member for

[1:30:14] $1.

[1:30:19] Therefore, I must hire a lawyer

[1:30:22] more money.

[1:30:27] Don't add another regulation to an

[1:30:30] already overburdened business. Don't

[1:30:34] make me raise my rent to my good

[1:30:37] partners to compensate for the bad. Good

[1:30:41] partners don't deserve this. Thank you

[1:30:44] for your time.

[1:30:44] >> Thank you,

[1:30:46] [Applause]

[1:30:50] >> Rocky Palmer.

[1:30:58] Hi, mayor, council.

[1:31:01] >> Hi, mayor, council president, and the

[1:31:03] council members. Um, I just want to

[1:31:06] address a few things I keep hearing. Um,

[1:31:08] there are already already baseline

[1:31:10] protections from New York State and the

[1:31:12] city. Um,

[1:31:14] I heard something about lead levels and

[1:31:17] um, apartments. As soon as a lead level

[1:31:20] is registered, the county is notified.

[1:31:22] They notify the property owner. I'm

[1:31:24] speaking from experience.

[1:31:25] Um, let's just say they make sure that

[1:31:28] the problem is rectified.

[1:31:31] Um,

[1:31:32] I read all 16 pages

[1:31:36] of the of the law

[1:31:39] and um,

[1:31:42] there's not one sentence about bad

[1:31:43] tenants.

[1:31:45] the tenants who abuse constantly abuse

[1:31:48] the system,

[1:31:50] destroy property,

[1:31:52] and um make the landlord and ultimately

[1:31:56] the good tenants pay more. Not one

[1:31:59] sentence, and I don't think I've heard

[1:32:01] anybody from the other side bring it up.

[1:32:04] And I just find it surprising in all

[1:32:06] this law here, there's not one reference

[1:32:09] to

[1:32:11] dealing with these bad tenants. and we

[1:32:13] all have our stories. Uh I would urge

[1:32:16] you to vote no. I just think the bottom

[1:32:18] line is good cause will allow tenants to

[1:32:22] challenge

[1:32:24] um an eviction just meaning again longer

[1:32:28] court times and just more unpaid rent

[1:32:31] and it will just mean higher uh rents

[1:32:33] for future tenants. Thank you.

[1:32:35] >> Thank you.

[1:32:42] Okay, this um not uh Chem

[1:32:48] last name. It's really hard to to

[1:32:55] Chemraj.

[1:33:02] » Good evening everyone.

[1:33:05] Uh most of my brothers and sisters say

[1:33:08] what I had in mind but it have good and

[1:33:12] bad in all. You have good tenants, you

[1:33:15] have good landlords. They are slum lards

[1:33:17] too and they're bad tenants too.

[1:33:20] For example, I know in a guy right

[1:33:23] through my street where I live. He

[1:33:25] didn't had rent for 6 months. He had to

[1:33:27] go through all the eviction process to

[1:33:29] get the guy out. lose six months rent

[1:33:32] plus they throw the garbage out on the

[1:33:34] street and obviously we got to pay to

[1:33:37] remove the garbage because the city of

[1:33:39] Sket passed that. So I'm just trying to

[1:33:44] say no.

[1:33:46] All right. Thank you.

[1:33:47] >> Thank you.

[1:33:52] [Applause]

[1:33:55] Raymond Player.

[1:33:59] » Raymond Player.

[1:34:12] First of all, I don't know enough about

[1:34:14] all this good cause, bad cause stuff,

[1:34:17] but I hear everybody's story and I just

[1:34:21] feel like there's a lot of division and

[1:34:24] it needs to come to an agreement because

[1:34:26] at the end of the day, everyone's going

[1:34:27] to lose. I don't care what anybody says

[1:34:30] because like you said, you fighting

[1:34:32] against them building apartments. They

[1:34:34] building apartments every day. So, your

[1:34:36] property doesn't really even matter. So,

[1:34:39] And that's what I'm saying. So there's

[1:34:42] Hello. So it's just a lot of stuff where

[1:34:45] if y'all don't come to an agreement,

[1:34:47] it's going to be a lose-lose situation

[1:34:48] for everybody. And and that's all I

[1:34:51] could say is I can't pick no sides. I

[1:34:53] hear the story, but it's no

[1:34:57] it's just bad. It's already bad, you

[1:34:59] know, and that's the main point of the

[1:35:01] whole thing. So if y'all don't get it

[1:35:03] together, then everybody's going to

[1:35:05] move. There's people that got money that

[1:35:07] live here and don't like the

[1:35:09] neighborhood. Not because the landlord,

[1:35:10] not because the tenant, because of

[1:35:12] everything else that's failing. And a

[1:35:14] lot of the issues is coming from the

[1:35:16] city that nobody's addressing with the

[1:35:18] city. So they taking out on each other.

[1:35:20] So they fighting each other. They

[1:35:21] causing a riff with each other. They got

[1:35:22] to live next door to each other. But

[1:35:24] their main problem is with the city. So

[1:35:27] until they start addressing things with

[1:35:28] the city, then they always going to have

[1:35:30] this problem. They always going to have

[1:35:31] this riff. They're always going to have

[1:35:32] this beef. They always going to feel

[1:35:33] like they can't do enough and somebody

[1:35:35] else going to do enough. While y'all

[1:35:36] arguing and complaining, somebody else

[1:35:38] is building and somebody else is moving

[1:35:40] in and somebody going to continue to

[1:35:41] move in. Just like all these apartments

[1:35:43] that's coming. So everybody's getting

[1:35:45] older and nobody's getting younger. So

[1:35:47] your retirement is easily going out the

[1:35:49] window. Everything that you're holding

[1:35:51] on to is easily going out the window. I

[1:35:54] don't speak for everybody. I speak for

[1:35:55] myself. I speak how I see things. I'm

[1:35:57] not following no crowd because what

[1:35:59] worked for him is not going to work for

[1:36:00] me. how he treats somebody is not how I

[1:36:04] treat somebody. I'm not following nobody

[1:36:06] but myself. So,

[1:36:09] you know, everybody got groups,

[1:36:10] coalitions, committees, but it's all

[1:36:14] failing because no one's fighting the

[1:36:16] real fight are the people they need to

[1:36:17] fight with.

[1:36:20] Thank you,

[1:36:30] » Dan Benian.

[1:36:38] » Good evening. Good evening, Mr. Mayor.

[1:36:41] Uh, ladies and gentlemen, my name is Dan

[1:36:42] Bennison. I'm an attorney here in

[1:36:44] Skenctity. I've been practicing in

[1:36:46] eviction court for more than 11 years. I

[1:36:49] know both sides because in my first

[1:36:52] three years I worked for legal aid on

[1:36:56] the tenant side. After I got sick and

[1:36:58] tired of politics, I got out and I

[1:37:00] started on my own. Now I work for

[1:37:01] landlords. So I know both sides both uh side of the stories. Now uh my

[1:37:10] prior interlocator had a very good

[1:37:12] point.

[1:37:15] uh in in the current situation okay uh

[1:37:19] if we are keep fighting each other will

[1:37:22] be a lose lose situation everybody will

[1:37:24] lose and let me tell you why because

[1:37:27] right now the good cause eviction

[1:37:29] doesn't what does for sure it will make

[1:37:33] harder for a tenant to be evicted that's

[1:37:37] true but the other point of the story

[1:37:39] the other side of the story is that also

[1:37:42] this good cause eviction will make

[1:37:44] harder for a tenant to get in. Why?

[1:37:46] Because nobody's stupid. Uh all these

[1:37:50] increased costs which are due to uh

[1:37:53] increase in time frame that you have to

[1:37:55] evict the tenant, increase in lawyer

[1:37:57] fee, all these costs will be passed on

[1:38:00] the tenant. It's exactly like minimum wage per economy. They ask for

[1:38:05] $15 minimum wage. All those increase are

[1:38:08] passed by the to the consumers because

[1:38:10] all the products were increased. The

[1:38:12] same will happen here. So for now on I

[1:38:16] believe everything is fair and we have

[1:38:19] three great judges here and uh this

[1:38:21] court can be named uh a fair uh moderate

[1:38:26] liberal court. Uh I have been practicing

[1:38:30] in this court like I said for uh at

[1:38:32] least seven years even more and I have

[1:38:35] not heard uh any of these judges to deny

[1:38:39] a retaliation claim. Always when the

[1:38:42] tenant claims retaliation, there's

[1:38:43] always a hearing. And good side of the

[1:38:45] story is this court is not congested by

[1:38:48] like Albany court. I practice in Albany

[1:38:50] court as well. And people said it's not

[1:38:52] congested. Oh yes, I tell you as a fact.

[1:38:55] If you ask for a trial in Albany, you

[1:38:57] will get a trial in October. Here is

[1:38:59] connected. You'll get a trial in 30

[1:39:00] days. And all these judges that like it

[1:39:04] or not because again uh uh uh you cannot

[1:39:08] uh you have to obey what the judge is

[1:39:10] telling you to do. Like it or not the

[1:39:12] judge is giving you a decision right

[1:39:14] there on the spot. They don't take 60

[1:39:16] more days to render a decision. And of

[1:39:19] course all these 60 days and all these

[1:39:21] three, four, five months the tenants are

[1:39:23] not paying rent and of course the

[1:39:26] landlords are prejudiced and this

[1:39:29] creates friction.

[1:39:31] uh friction which cannot be easily

[1:39:33] repaired and also what this good cause

[1:39:37] eviction does it takes away our ability

[1:39:41] to have friendly settlements. Why?

[1:39:45] Okay. So I'll be short. Uh I I I urge

[1:39:49] the committee to vote no on this uh uh

[1:39:52] law because again it damages both sides.

[1:39:57] So that's it. Thank you so much for your

[1:39:59] attention.

[1:40:03] Colin McName Colin McNamer.

[1:40:12] Hello again, folks. I've learned a lot

[1:40:14] tonight, including that I'm a paid

[1:40:15] activist. So, if someone has my check,

[1:40:17] please send it to my home. I would

[1:40:19] appreciate it.

[1:40:22] All right. I just want to emphasize just

[1:40:25] how little we're asking for here. I

[1:40:27] really can't emphasize this enough.

[1:40:28] Earlier today uh we heard a stat I

[1:40:31] believe Sean it was I believe it was my

[1:40:33] friend Sean had it here that of no sorry

[1:40:36] it was Ellie we have uh about oneif of

[1:40:39] evictions in this court are holdover

[1:40:41] evictions okay so that's 20% which means

[1:40:44] 80% are non-payments there might be a

[1:40:47] very small percentage of illegal

[1:40:48] activity evictions which are a separate

[1:40:50] category but probably close to 80% are

[1:40:53] non-payments

[1:40:55] what's really not affected by good cause

[1:40:56] eviction y'all

[1:40:58] non-payment evictions only if it is a

[1:41:01] massive rent hike. Presuming that that's

[1:41:03] not happening, if it's just a person who

[1:41:04] just fell behind on rent and honestly

[1:41:06] not affected by good cause eviction.

[1:41:08] That is a number one of good cause to

[1:41:10] evict a tenant. I also heard earlier

[1:41:13] today that there's not a word about bad

[1:41:16] tenants in the good cause eviction law.

[1:41:19] There are so many words about bad

[1:41:21] tenants in the good cause eviction law.

[1:41:22] You can find them helpfully categorized

[1:41:25] under RPL 216, grounds for eviction.

[1:41:29] There are 10 categories that are grounds

[1:41:32] for eviction of tenants. They start with

[1:41:34] the obvious ones like non-payment of

[1:41:35] rent, like destruction of the property,

[1:41:37] like illegal activity in the property,

[1:41:39] and they move down to the more kind of

[1:41:40] weird and arcane ones like removing the

[1:41:43] property from the rental market or

[1:41:44] choosing to demolish the entire

[1:41:45] building. There are so many things about

[1:41:48] bad tenants in the good cause eviction

[1:41:49] law. If you have a bad tenant, if you

[1:41:51] have a tenant who's not paying rent, you

[1:41:53] can get them out. This does not affect

[1:41:55] you.

[1:41:59] » We are asking for very, very little of

[1:42:03] you. I was not one of the people who was

[1:42:07] incredibly thrilled when good cause

[1:42:09] eviction passed at the state level

[1:42:11] because it wasn't the bill that we

[1:42:12] wanted. It is laced with compromise. The

[1:42:14] bill in front of you, the bill that you

[1:42:16] are voting on is a product of tortured

[1:42:19] negotiation and compromise at the state

[1:42:21] level. That's why it contains so many

[1:42:23] exemptions. That's why it has a

[1:42:26] relatively extensive

[1:42:28] uh listing of grounds for eviction.

[1:42:31] This will affect a relatively very

[1:42:34] vanishingly small number of evictions in

[1:42:37] the city of Skenctity. But for those

[1:42:38] ones that it affects, it will save their

[1:42:40] lives. It will keep people from being

[1:42:44] evicted for literally no reason simply

[1:42:47] because the landlord felt it like it. I

[1:42:49] have I I know landlord lawyers. I go I'm

[1:42:51] against them all the time. I too

[1:42:52] practice in this court. I was against

[1:42:54] Mr. Benzian the other day. I know I know

[1:42:57] how it looks in here and I can tell you

[1:43:00] I had a landlord lawyer a friend of

[1:43:02] mine, a man I respect and consider a

[1:43:04] friend. He told me the other day, Colin,

[1:43:05] there's no such thing as a as a no cause

[1:43:08] eviction. Every eviction has a cause

[1:43:11] behind it. Every even these no cause

[1:43:13] holdovers, which is what would be

[1:43:14] effective. There's always a reason.

[1:43:17] Well, then say it and put it in the

[1:43:20] court papers. We're not asking that much

[1:43:22] of you. Thank you. Thank you.

[1:43:27] [Applause]

[1:43:31] I have I have no one else signed up to

[1:43:33] speak, so I declare the public comment

[1:43:34] on the legislative agenda closed.

[1:43:38] This time ask for approval of the

[1:43:40] legislative consent agenda.

[1:43:43] >> Moved by Mr. Mutiver, second by Mr.

[1:43:45] Farley. All's in favor.

[1:43:47] >> I. All right. We do have a roll call. We

[1:43:51] have one resolution for roll call this

[1:43:53] evening and the clerk would please read

[1:43:55] item number two.

[1:43:59] » Item number two for original

[1:44:01] conservation.

[1:44:01] >> Oh, yeah. Go ahead.

[1:44:04] A resolution calling for a public

[1:44:06] hearing to create a local law for

[1:44:08] article 5, section 210-20

[1:44:11] to chapter 210 of the Skenctity city

[1:44:13] code, prohibition of eviction without

[1:44:15] good cause.

[1:44:17] I need a motion.

[1:44:21] for this to move by Mr.

[1:44:24] Mutarin, second by Miss Patrick.

[1:44:29] Is there any discussion on this item

[1:44:30] before the clerk calls the role?

[1:44:35] Mr. Farley.

[1:44:44] » No.

[1:44:45] >> So, I just wanted to uh Madam Chair, um

[1:44:48] thank you. I just want to say really

[1:44:50] briefly that uh this is this is about uh

[1:44:54] the public hearing

[1:44:57] um for good cause. Is that correct? Is

[1:45:00] that that we're talking? So

[1:45:02] >> we're not voting tonight. We're just

[1:45:03] asking if it's called for a public

[1:45:04] hearing, sir.

[1:45:05] >> Absolutely. So I guess I'm surprised

[1:45:08] that we are having a roll call um to

[1:45:11] talk about just a public hearing. I

[1:45:14] think on either side of this issue, and

[1:45:18] I think there's a lot more than two

[1:45:20] sides, and there's a lot of nuance here,

[1:45:22] everyone would agree that a responsive

[1:45:26] and responsible governing body would

[1:45:29] allow

[1:45:31] time to hear voices so we can make a

[1:45:33] more informed decision.

[1:45:35] So, this is not voting right now for or

[1:45:39] against opting in. This is simply about

[1:45:43] having a public hearing and allowing the

[1:45:45] public to weigh in more extensively on

[1:45:47] this issue. And I would I think it's

[1:45:50] very telling and quite frankly somewhat

[1:45:54] embarrassing that we're having that we

[1:45:56] think that that should be something

[1:45:57] that's up for debate.

[1:46:00] >> Thank you. Any further discussion?

[1:46:04] >> Okay. Clerk, please call if the clerk

[1:46:06] would please call the role.

[1:46:09] >> Mr. Mr. Toro,

[1:46:10] >> no.

[1:46:12] >> Mr. Farley,

[1:46:13] >> yes.

[1:46:14] >> Mr. Mancini,

[1:46:16] >> no.

[1:46:18] >> Mr. Mutu,

[1:46:19] >> no.

[1:46:21] >> Miss Patrick,

[1:46:23] >> Mr. Williams is absent. Miss

[1:46:24] Porterfield.

[1:46:25] >> Thank you. I'd like to explain my vote.

[1:46:27] First of all, as Mr. Farley said, "This

[1:46:29] is simply calling for a public hearing,

[1:46:31] giving the public an opportunity, all

[1:46:34] sides of the public, regardless of which

[1:46:36] side of this issue that you're on, an

[1:46:38] opportunity to more than one time,

[1:46:40] because this is an issue that obviously

[1:46:42] is very uh passionate for a lot of

[1:46:45] people. So this gives the public and not

[1:46:48] only the people that we're accustomed to

[1:46:50] hearing from but a people that who don't

[1:46:53] normally come here are then become aware

[1:46:55] of what's going on and give those

[1:46:57] individuals an opportunity to come as

[1:47:00] well. Now we know that there well maybe

[1:47:02] you don't know there also has to be a

[1:47:03] public hearing that the mayor will have

[1:47:05] to that will have to be um before the

[1:47:07] mayor because that's how a local law is

[1:47:09] passed. So there would have been two.

[1:47:12] So, this was simply again calling for a

[1:47:15] public hearing, giving the folks that we

[1:47:18] uh represent to come before us and say

[1:47:22] whatever their whatever their position

[1:47:24] is on this. It was not this is not to

[1:47:27] pass this tonight, but simply to hear

[1:47:30] from our constituents, which I I'm not

[1:47:33] really clear on why we would not want to

[1:47:35] do either. However, we all have a a

[1:47:37] position that we we make and um so I

[1:47:41] vote yes on passing on having the public

[1:47:44] hearing. However, um the motion is

[1:47:47] defeated by four to two.

[1:48:00] It's only the public hearing motion,

[1:48:02] just to be clear, that's defeated young

[1:48:04] people tonight. It's only the public

[1:48:06] hearing. We still have things to do. The

[1:48:09] lake, the local law has been introduced

[1:48:11] tonight. Our corporation council

[1:48:13] explained what needs how that goes

[1:48:15] forward. So, the local law has been

[1:48:18] introduced and it has to lay before the

[1:48:20] council for a certain certain amount of

[1:48:22] time. It does not mean that we have made

[1:48:24] a final decision. So I just want you all

[1:48:26] to understand how that works.

[1:48:31] At this time we'll have privilege of the

[1:48:32] floor regarding general city business

[1:48:38] and I have seven people signed up to

[1:48:40] speak and the first person in is Anthony

[1:48:43] Kurada.

[1:48:52] Good evening Mr. Mayor city council

[1:48:54] madam president.

[1:48:56] Now this is just strictly my opinion. As

[1:48:59] a lawy citizen I stand with support and

[1:49:03] respect all law enforcement officers.

[1:49:08] Now

[1:49:10] for quite some time

[1:49:13] law enforcement has been getting a bad

[1:49:15] rep. Even though law enforcement itself

[1:49:19] certain brave men and women of law

[1:49:22] enforcement there has been instance

[1:49:24] where they have overcept the balance of

[1:49:26] their job now understand in certain

[1:49:28] communities where the individuals in

[1:49:30] certain communities the trust issue

[1:49:32] that's fine and dandy

[1:49:35] law enforcement for six years now has

[1:49:39] been trying to rebuild that trust with

[1:49:41] certain communities.

[1:49:43] Now Friday while you

[1:49:47] and your county part there in the county

[1:49:50] and any government body

[1:49:53] will be

[1:49:55] uh public events

[1:49:59] that lately prior to that this

[1:50:02] government body or any government body I

[1:50:04] don't know why certain individuals and

[1:50:06] government bodies want to defund the

[1:50:10] police

[1:50:12] If

[1:50:13] you all were to defund the police, they

[1:50:17] would not be in certain situations to

[1:50:19] deescalate. You would have so dead

[1:50:22] social workers. That's where you would

[1:50:23] have a set of police officers doing

[1:50:25] their job.

[1:50:27] I understand the last time you tried to

[1:50:30] do the budget, three individuals on this

[1:50:32] council said defund the police. Why?

[1:50:36] Because you believe lies are perpetrated

[1:50:38] by the media. The cop

[1:50:41] are brain men, women in law enforcement.

[1:50:44] Now, I could be wrong about these

[1:50:45] factors, but you can look them up if you

[1:50:48] don't believe me. I forget what

[1:50:50] percentage it is, but a brave men and

[1:50:53] women law enforcement are less than

[1:50:55] likely less than likely to pull a

[1:50:58] service weapon at people of color and

[1:51:00] Hispanic origin. They're less than

[1:51:02] likely to pull the service weapon of

[1:51:04] someone like me. Okay, those are the

[1:51:07] facts. And the also the thing is that

[1:51:09] prior to at that event a 14-year-old for

[1:51:13] whatever reason was trying to disrupt

[1:51:15] that law enforcement were

[1:51:18] trying to deescalate the situation. That

[1:51:21] individual was trying to resist arrest.

[1:51:23] Why? Law enforcement are brave men and

[1:51:27] women in law enforcement

[1:51:29] have been doing the job will be doing

[1:51:31] the job. They're here to protect our

[1:51:33] safety from everybody. That's why

[1:51:36] Saturday I was dressed just as Chase

[1:51:38] from Paw Patrol, the police club at the

[1:51:41] Comic Con there at the library. I

[1:51:43] respect law enforcement unlike somebody

[1:51:46] here who thinks the race that law

[1:51:49] enforcement is racist when law

[1:51:51] enforcement is not racist. They're just

[1:51:54] doing their job.

[1:51:55] >> Mr. Kurata, address the chair. Mr.

[1:51:58] Kurata,

[1:52:02] » watch your step. M listen. That's not

[1:52:05] going to happen here.

[1:52:14] Crystal Dion.

[1:52:17] Crystal

[1:52:23] going third time. Crystal.

[1:52:25] Okay. Cynthia Farmer.

[1:52:34] » Good evening.

[1:52:37] Um, Madame President, mayor, and

[1:52:40] council,

[1:52:42] I've heard a whole lot this this

[1:52:44] evening, and um, I'm here to address the

[1:52:48] homelessness that's happening on State

[1:52:50] Street. It has become a very big

[1:52:54] problem. People are sleeping in the bus

[1:52:57] um shelters and um people are just

[1:53:00] walking around. Our children

[1:53:04] um have to walk past that in the morning

[1:53:08] when they go to school. And um I just

[1:53:12] think that there's something that we

[1:53:14] need to do. We got to come up with some

[1:53:16] kind of solution for these people to be

[1:53:18] sleeping in the shelters. I talked to a

[1:53:21] young man, his name is Tony. Um he

[1:53:24] didn't have any shoes on his feet and I

[1:53:26] said, "Where's your shoes?" He said,

[1:53:28] "It's in the bus um shelter. That's

[1:53:31] where he sleeps because he was kicked

[1:53:33] out of the car house and the Bethesda

[1:53:36] house because he talks too loud." Well,

[1:53:38] the young man is deaf,

[1:53:42] can't hear. So, May Mayor McCarthy, you

[1:53:46] got to do something.

[1:53:48] >> You have to address the chair.

[1:53:49] >> It's um

[1:53:51] dress the chair. Oh, okay. You have to

[1:53:55] do something about this. You got people

[1:53:57] sleeping in the um cemetery.

[1:54:00] People pay for their loved ones to be

[1:54:03] rested there and you got people laying

[1:54:05] and sleeping on top of them. You have

[1:54:08] the people bring mattresses

[1:54:11] in the bus shelters. They take the

[1:54:14] furniture that people put out and then

[1:54:17] they take it and put I seen a whole

[1:54:19] sectional

[1:54:21] in front of the cemetery further up

[1:54:24] where people were laying and sleeping

[1:54:26] all night.

[1:54:28] We have to do something. We got to come

[1:54:30] up with a solution. We're building all

[1:54:32] these and then you're talking about um

[1:54:35] landlords and and the tenants and people

[1:54:38] can't afford this young man that I

[1:54:40] talked to. He only gets $1,300 a month.

[1:54:43] He can't afford any um rent here. We got

[1:54:46] to think of something to to do with

[1:54:48] these people. They need help. They're

[1:54:50] not going to be able to get a job. They

[1:54:52] can't. And then I don't understand why

[1:54:54] you put the Cara House in the Bethesda

[1:54:56] House and they let the people sleep

[1:54:58] there and then they put them out in the

[1:54:59] morning and then they hang out all day

[1:55:02] until they can go back in at night.

[1:55:06] So we have to come up with some kind of

[1:55:09] solution to remed this problem. I mean I hear the other problems but you know

[1:55:16] and I don't understand this new

[1:55:18] skenctity thing. Why we have posters all

[1:55:21] up and down um 90 and all over here new

[1:55:24] skenctity. When did we change our name

[1:55:26] from skenctity to new skenctity and we

[1:55:30] got all this problem. It's embarrassing

[1:55:32] to have all these people running up and

[1:55:35] down their sleeping and walking up and

[1:55:38] down um State Street. So, thank you.

[1:55:43] >> Thank you,

[1:55:47] » Jamaica Miles.

[1:55:56] I'm going to talk really fast. Y'all

[1:55:58] gonna have to just deal with it. Um

[1:55:59] because on Friday, July 11th, the

[1:56:00] Skenctity police harassed and assaulted

[1:56:02] several black children um 14 years old,

[1:56:06] injured and restrained on the ground by

[1:56:07] multiple officers. This happened in

[1:56:09] broad daylight at a city sponsored event

[1:56:11] meant for youth and families called

[1:56:12] summer night. Yes, I talked about it on

[1:56:14] Alive. That sure as hell did happen.

[1:56:16] This is not a misunderstanding. This is

[1:56:17] not community safety. This is violence.

[1:56:19] This is system failing our children

[1:56:20] again and again. We will not be silent

[1:56:22] because back in May, an officer fired

[1:56:24] his weapon at a child who was having a

[1:56:26] mental health crisis. there was an

[1:56:28] investigation or at least the chief said

[1:56:30] there was going to be an investigation.

[1:56:31] Ain't nobody heard nothing about the

[1:56:32] investigation back in May, but we're

[1:56:34] going to just feel okay about what

[1:56:35] happened on last Friday. That's not

[1:56:37] going to happen. And when we turn

[1:56:38] ourselves back to the good cause, thank

[1:56:41] you for the honesty on telling people

[1:56:43] that they should just get out if they

[1:56:44] don't like their apartment that isn't

[1:56:46] habitable. And again, any expense that

[1:56:48] you have and can justify is allowed.

[1:56:50] Both property owners and renters should

[1:56:52] be concerned with increases in fees and

[1:56:54] taxes in this city. If you are willing

[1:56:56] to leave for being held to a standard of

[1:56:58] being a good business owner, goodbye.

[1:57:00] Tenants holding rent for six months.

[1:57:02] You're waited six months. Someone waited

[1:57:04] six months before they started the

[1:57:06] eviction process. That's um an

[1:57:08] interesting business model. Um how to

[1:57:10] run rental property is something that

[1:57:11] individuals say that they are teaching.

[1:57:14] Well, it's not going very well for a

[1:57:15] number of the property owners. Those

[1:57:17] that are doing right are doing right and

[1:57:19] those that are not should be held

[1:57:20] accountable. The property owner is

[1:57:22] responsible for the property. And if

[1:57:24] damage biz is done by the renter, they

[1:57:26] have the right to charge the tenant for

[1:57:28] those repairs. This doesn't go this

[1:57:30] doesn't change under good cause. Who

[1:57:33] lives and continues to live in a

[1:57:34] property because you rented it to them

[1:57:36] and you changed your mind and now you

[1:57:38] don't want them to live there, but you

[1:57:40] don't have a good cause. Yes, we're

[1:57:42] saying that you shouldn't be able to do

[1:57:43] that. The idea that we should just let

[1:57:45] Slick get on task with training their

[1:57:47] property owners and not continue to move

[1:57:49] forward this piece of legislation is

[1:57:51] lazy and ridiculous. Yet we all want we

[1:57:55] all want a preferred property owner

[1:57:57] list. I would have loved one for every

[1:57:59] year that I had to move out of my

[1:58:01] property. No. Nobody said that they were

[1:58:04] evicted over and over again. We had to

[1:58:06] move because we didn't have quality

[1:58:07] apartments to live in. The vast majority

[1:58:09] of landlords are incentivized to keep

[1:58:12] people in their homes based on what?

[1:58:14] Tell me where are your statistics?

[1:58:15] Because yes, we did hear a lot of data

[1:58:17] and statistics and it seems that some of

[1:58:19] the council members are not taking it

[1:58:21] seriously and don't believe in credible

[1:58:23] messengers or the data that's in front

[1:58:25] of them unless it fits their current

[1:58:28] narrative. The doubts to the

[1:58:30] significance of that data. I'm sorry

[1:58:32] that you just don't believe math and

[1:58:34] science no matter who puts it forward if

[1:58:36] it goes against your beliefs. A landlord

[1:58:38] registry program, yes, that absolutely

[1:58:40] should happen. It doesn't mean that we

[1:58:41] don't move forward with good cause. the

[1:58:43] idea that there's a knee-jerk reaction

[1:58:44] that is as if this has not been an issue

[1:58:47] for years and that there was immense

[1:58:49] compromise around good cause and it is

[1:58:50] something that's been talked about over

[1:58:52] and over again. This is not a knee-jerk

[1:58:54] reaction. It is a lastm minute call by

[1:58:56] some people who should have done this a

[1:58:57] really long time ago. But hey, do you

[1:59:00] really want to have another study and

[1:59:01] revisit this next year because we're

[1:59:03] willing to sacrifice people for another

[1:59:04] 365 days? You think it's okay to

[1:59:07] continue to kick the can and let people

[1:59:09] be homeless, to let individuals face

[1:59:11] retaliation for our children to be in

[1:59:14] the most transient city that one can

[1:59:16] imagine? Because that would make you a

[1:59:17] really good representative. Why wouldn't

[1:59:19] it? The idea that we were not even

[1:59:22] willing to have a hearing, you would

[1:59:26] deny people the right to be heard. Why?

[1:59:29] Because we're going to show up anyways.

[1:59:31] Is that what it is? We shouldn't have

[1:59:33] some type of formal hearing from

[1:59:35] individuals giving them another chance

[1:59:37] to be heard on an issue that is good for

[1:59:40] the majority of sketity. That is

[1:59:43] absolutely and yes, I'm going to say it

[1:59:45] deplorable. And with that, may God bless

[1:59:48] you and keep you because y'all need

[1:59:50] prayer.

[1:59:51] >> Thank you,

[1:59:58] Valerie.

[2:00:00] Triano. Triano. Valerie.

[2:00:06] Hello again. I'm just here to sign up to

[2:00:09] speak.

[2:00:11] Oh god. I'm sorry. I'm I'm kind of

[2:00:12] winging this one. Um, so bear with me.

[2:00:16] So I'm here to state

[2:00:20] shame on Skenctity Police Department for

[2:00:23] what they did to a child during summer

[2:00:26] night.

[2:00:28] Police are supposed to be trained on

[2:00:31] nonviolent deescalation. And I last I

[2:00:33] checked, I don't think nonviolent

[2:00:35] deescalation includes slamming a child

[2:00:38] on the ground where they hit their head

[2:00:39] on the pavement. And also,

[2:00:43] I would like Mayor McCarthy to hold

[2:00:46] those officers accountable for

[2:00:50] assaulting a minor. These are 14year-old

[2:00:54] boys. How would you feel if a man who

[2:00:57] had the power to be okay and get away

[2:01:01] was shooting somebody with a gun to slam

[2:01:04] your 14-year-old child on the ground?

[2:01:07] You wouldn't like it, now would you? So,

[2:01:11] hold those officers accountable. And

[2:01:16] if you don't, just remember, we the

[2:01:19] people are the ones who vote you guys

[2:01:22] in. and we can kick you out of your

[2:01:24] seats.

[2:01:26] Keep that in mind. Shame on the police

[2:01:29] department and hold those

[2:01:33] minor assaulters accountable. And a

[2:01:36] grown man should never lay their hands

[2:01:40] on a child. Never

[2:01:43] hold them accountable.

[2:01:46] And to the landlords who keep

[2:01:47] complaining today, I'm going to give

[2:01:50] them a little piece of advice, which is

[2:01:52] pull your boots up with a bootstrap and

[2:01:56] get a second or a third job. If you

[2:01:57] can't afford all of this, just do what

[2:02:00] everybody always tells us people who

[2:02:02] complain about being poor, which is get

[2:02:04] an actual job and a third or second job.

[2:02:08] That's what when my father was

[2:02:11] struggling with rent, that's what my

[2:02:13] grandmother told him. Stop complaining.

[2:02:15] Stop mooching and leeching off of us to

[2:02:18] help you pay your rent and get a second

[2:02:21] or third job. That's what I've done when

[2:02:24] I start started with New York State Tax

[2:02:27] and Finance and they you could get no

[2:02:30] pay for five weeks because of the

[2:02:32] processing. I pulled myself up with the

[2:02:35] bootstrap and got a second job and I

[2:02:37] worked seven days a week. I worked

[2:02:41] during the week for New York State and

[2:02:43] then on the weekends I did Instacart. I

[2:02:45] pulled myself up by the bootstraps. I

[2:02:47] made sure I was getting income in for

[2:02:48] those months. That one five weeks I

[2:02:52] would not have income coming in. Did I

[2:02:54] complain? No. I pulled myself up the

[2:02:56] bootstraps. So landlords, get a second

[2:03:00] income. Get a second or a third job just

[2:03:03] like everybody tells us to do. I heard

[2:03:06] your laugh.

[2:03:09] Thank you.

[2:03:09] >> Thank you,

[2:03:12] [Applause]

[2:03:18] Shamina Bong.

[2:03:20] Shimina Bong, is she still here?

[2:03:23] >> Okay, thank you. Terry Robin.

[2:03:33] Hi. Um I'm just um I don't know. I I

[2:03:38] read the articles in the paper recently

[2:03:40] about how this is working in other

[2:03:43] cities including Albany, Hudson, New

[2:03:47] York City, other places and it seemed as

[2:03:49] if there it was working pretty well this

[2:03:51] good cause eviction law. Um I didn't

[2:03:56] read any what I read in those in the

[2:03:59] Gazette was that uh these cities didn't

[2:04:01] seem to have any big problems with it.

[2:04:03] And in fact, they thought it was working

[2:04:05] quite well, which made me feel good

[2:04:07] because it does seem to me like it's

[2:04:10] only just that you would have to have a

[2:04:13] good reason to throw somebody out of

[2:04:14] their home. Um, I have been on both

[2:04:19] sides. I've been a renter, I've been a

[2:04:22] homeowner, and I've been a a landlord.

[2:04:24] And by the way, I think that the reason

[2:04:26] Well, she's gone now. Um, I think that

[2:04:29] if landlords want to be called people,

[2:04:31] then they should stop calling themselves

[2:04:33] landlords and tenants should be people,

[2:04:36] too. So, maybe it should be property

[2:04:38] owners and renters as opposed to

[2:04:42] landlords and tenants. I don't know. Um,

[2:04:46] I think that as a landlord myself of if,

[2:04:50] you know, one building with two flats

[2:04:53] and built-in tenants that when we bought

[2:04:56] the place and we bought it as a favor to

[2:04:59] our friend who was trying to sell it and

[2:05:02] we had gotten a very lucky thing

[2:05:06] happened to us. So, we decided instead

[2:05:07] of putting our money into stocks and

[2:05:09] bonds, we would buy this place and help

[2:05:11] her out. and we kept these tenants and

[2:05:14] they're still there and they we haven't

[2:05:15] we we've only raised the rent like twice

[2:05:17] in 20 years and you know it's just

[2:05:19] because we don't really need to get more

[2:05:21] money than we're getting. Um and we want

[2:05:25] them to stay there because we they're

[2:05:27] good tenants and we'd rather not have to

[2:05:29] try to find another tenant that we don't

[2:05:31] know. So, you know, our objective was

[2:05:34] not to get rich. It was just to do

[2:05:35] something with this money that we had

[2:05:38] been fortunate enough to get. Um, it

[2:05:41] just seems like if and and you know,

[2:05:43] people that have 20 apartments or 20

[2:05:46] buildings or whatever,

[2:05:49] you know, they don't need all that. If

[2:05:51] they if they really have so many

[2:05:53] problems handling all that, then they

[2:05:55] should probably scale down and, you

[2:05:58] know, work with what they can work with.

[2:06:00] Um

[2:06:03] we uh

[2:06:05] I I lived in apartments where the

[2:06:07] landlords continued to raise the rent

[2:06:09] every six months in the stockade. This

[2:06:11] is many dec you know 30 years ago but it

[2:06:14] was like they wouldn't do anything to

[2:06:17] fix the problems at all but it would be

[2:06:20] like you'd still get a rent raise every

[2:06:23] six months and it made no sense to me.

[2:06:25] And then I there was another place I

[2:06:28] lived downtown Skenctity where the owner

[2:06:31] was a pharmacist and he would not

[2:06:34] um do anything to raise the temperature

[2:06:37] during the winter. We had to we had we

[2:06:40] had to show him how there was you know

[2:06:42] three inches of snow on the inside of

[2:06:44] the windows and we were having to wear

[2:06:46] mittens and jackets all the time and and

[2:06:49] you know tenants don't usually have much

[2:06:51] power that's for sure. So, I don't think

[2:06:53] it's a bad thing to give them a little

[2:06:56] more dignity, respect, and power and,

[2:06:59] you know, equality. I mean, land

[2:07:03] landlords

[2:07:05] shouldn't just be able to wield all the

[2:07:08] power. When you're not rich, it's hard.

[2:07:11] When you're poor, it's hard. I also

[2:07:13] lived and worked in a homeless shelter,

[2:07:15] so I know

[2:07:16] >> all about homeless people, too. And they

[2:07:18] don't all deserve to be homeless,

[2:07:20] believe me. Thank you.

[2:07:21] >> Thank you.

[2:07:25] [Applause]

[2:07:26] This is the last one. I have no one else

[2:07:29] signed up to speak, so I declare the

[2:07:31] public comment of city business closed.

[2:07:34] At this time, any miscellaneous business

[2:07:36] of council,

[2:07:40] Miss Patrick,

[2:07:49] thank you. Um, I just wanted to say that

[2:07:52] the summer lunch program that the

[2:07:54] Sycamore Collaborative has underway is

[2:07:57] in full swing. They're already seeing

[2:07:59] like a huge increase um in the numbers

[2:08:03] of uh people that numbers of children

[2:08:05] that they're feeding. Um, so I wanted to

[2:08:09] suggest that um there's a list of the

[2:08:11] sites obviously um on the Sycamore

[2:08:13] Collaborative uh website, but they also

[2:08:17] need more volunteers uh to help with the

[2:08:20] summer meals program. So I would

[2:08:22] encourage people to reach out um

[2:08:24] specifically to Carrie Wolf Picod at the

[2:08:28] Sycamore Collaborative um if you are

[2:08:30] interested in volunteering to help give

[2:08:32] out the summer meals. Um Carrie's number

[2:08:35] is 518-374-2683

[2:08:39] extension 120 over at Sickum. Um and the

[2:08:43] meal program is uh at many of our city

[2:08:48] parks um at the library and there's a

[2:08:50] whole list here that I'd be happy to

[2:08:52] share with folks, but you can find it on

[2:08:54] the Sycamore uh website as well. Um I

[2:08:57] also wanted to mention that last night

[2:08:58] was the first concert for Music Haven at

[2:09:01] Central Park. It was just unbelievable

[2:09:03] how many people uh were there for the

[2:09:06] first concert which was uh a wonderful

[2:09:09] uh Punjabi uh group called Red Barat.

[2:09:13] This Friday is the next concert which is

[2:09:15] the Sunnis skenctity faculty jazz combo

[2:09:18] with featured guest Neestor Torres. So

[2:09:20] that should be an amazing jazz concert

[2:09:23] um on Friday evening at Music Haven in

[2:09:25] Central Park and that would be at 700

[2:09:27] p.m. The concessions open at 6 pm. Um,

[2:09:31] also the Skenctity County Food Council.

[2:09:33] Um, I'm I'm a member of the advocacy

[2:09:36] group for uh the food council. Um, they

[2:09:39] are having uh another community

[2:09:41] listening session to hear more about

[2:09:44] from folks about their hunger issues.

[2:09:46] Um, that is Wednesday, July 30th over at

[2:09:50] the Electric City Barn at 5 Well,

[2:09:53] they're going to serve food as they

[2:09:54] always do at 5:30. Um, and then the

[2:09:57] program will begin at six o'clock. So

[2:09:59] again, that's the Skenctity County Food

[2:10:01] Council, and you can find that as well

[2:10:03] on on their website. Um, I also wanted

[2:10:06] to mention that the library summer

[2:10:08] reading club reading program is underway

[2:10:11] for both children and adults. It's

[2:10:14] called Color Our World this year. Uh

[2:10:16] there's really a lot of fun activities

[2:10:18] that the library has planned to try to

[2:10:20] encourage both children and adults to uh

[2:10:24] do a lot of reading this summer. Uh, so

[2:10:26] I hope that folks will take advantage of

[2:10:28] that and get your bingo card and try to

[2:10:30] fill it in by reading uh different kinds

[2:10:33] of books and poetry uh this summer. And

[2:10:36] that's all I have, Madam President.

[2:10:37] Thank you.

[2:10:38] >> Thank you,

[2:10:40] >> Mr. Farley.

[2:10:42] >> Thank you, Madam President. Um, geez,

[2:10:44] not really sure where to start. Um

[2:10:48] I think um as you know it was important

[2:10:51] to me that I was listening really

[2:10:53] intently to all sides of the issue.

[2:10:56] Again I think there's more than um than

[2:10:58] two here. Uh I think it's a far more

[2:11:00] nuance than um than people are giving

[2:11:03] credit to. But, you know, in my

[2:11:05] conversations with landlords, which I've

[2:11:08] reached out to Slick multiple times to

[2:11:10] say, "Let's sit down and have a

[2:11:11] conversation so I could better

[2:11:12] understand um your position." Because

[2:11:15] the members that I've spoken to that

[2:11:17] were members of Slick, we sat down, we

[2:11:19] had a meeting, and the question that I

[2:11:21] asked them was, "What reason as a

[2:11:25] landlord have you evicted someone or

[2:11:28] would evict someone that's not on the

[2:11:31] list?"

[2:11:32] and all of the I believe it's I'm up to

[2:11:34] six now, not one landlord has been able

[2:11:37] to provide me with a reason that they

[2:11:39] would evict a tenant or have evicted

[2:11:42] tenant that's not all already allowed on

[2:11:44] the list. Um so I understand people's

[2:11:47] emotions. Um but the reality are the

[2:11:50] facts just don't support what's said.

[2:11:52] The facts just don't support what's

[2:11:54] being said. Um, I would also just, you

[2:11:58] know, for my colleagues on city council,

[2:12:00] I think that, um, if we're not careful,

[2:12:04] we start to go to a place where

[2:12:05] sometimes we oppose things,

[2:12:09] legislation based on who who's bringing

[2:12:12] it forward more than the the um, uh, the

[2:12:16] legislation itself. I say that

[2:12:18] gracefully. I don't say that to be

[2:12:20] accusatory. I actually say that

[2:12:21] gracefully because I don't believe

[2:12:26] that we can listen to people, get up

[2:12:29] here, be extremely vulnerable, and talk

[2:12:31] about their situations and things that

[2:12:34] they've experienced and act like this is

[2:12:37] not a worthy cause or worthy legislation

[2:12:39] to pass. So, I don't think that

[2:12:42] and and to that point further, I was

[2:12:44] like, why wouldn't we at least want to

[2:12:46] have a public hearing? Well, I'm going

[2:12:48] to be graceful to say again, I know that

[2:12:49] the mayor is required to have a public

[2:12:51] hearing, but I also think that it's

[2:12:53] difficult to sit here and listen to

[2:12:54] people who are coming and saying like,

[2:12:56] "Look, this is my reality. This is my

[2:12:58] neighbor's reality." And then on the

[2:13:00] other side of the issue, even every

[2:13:01] landlord that got up here today and

[2:13:03] spoke, they didn't give one reason. They

[2:13:07] talked about people who are not paying

[2:13:08] the rent. It's already in the

[2:13:10] legislation. They talked about people

[2:13:12] who damaged property. That also is is in

[2:13:14] the legislation. So again, it's one of

[2:13:16] those issues where the facts don't

[2:13:18] support it. So I don't know how someone

[2:13:21] can really read through this legislation

[2:13:23] and disagree with it that you need to

[2:13:25] have a good cause to uproot a family. Um

[2:13:28] I'm a little disappointed, but I'm going

[2:13:30] to again be graceful gracious to say

[2:13:33] there must be something that I'm

[2:13:35] missing. And I super invite my

[2:13:38] colleagues, I've reached out to to

[2:13:39] multiple my colleagues here to explain

[2:13:41] to me um why that h what piece of this

[2:13:44] I'm missing because I just absolutely

[2:13:47] don't get it. Thank you.

[2:13:49] >> Thank you,

[2:13:51] [Applause]

[2:13:55] » Mr.

[2:14:00] Thank you. I'd like to thank everyone

[2:14:02] that came out this evening and previous

[2:14:04] evenings and repeatedly on each each um

[2:14:08] uh what they wanted to speak on. I'd

[2:14:10] like to just speak right now on um our

[2:14:12] city pool. Um so uh I just want to um

[2:14:17] let everyone know that there are many swimming lessons available at the

[2:14:23] city pool and at the high school. Um

[2:14:27] there's uh today I brought my

[2:14:29] granddaughter to the high school and

[2:14:31] coach Crannle I believe his name is sat

[2:14:34] stood there and spoke to every parent

[2:14:38] grandparent guardian and child uh before

[2:14:41] the 10:30 swim lesson. We don't want to

[2:14:45] leave any child behind when it comes to

[2:14:48] uh swimming life safety.

[2:14:51] So, there's a website that you can sign

[2:14:54] up on or Coach Crannle said just bring

[2:14:56] your child on over. Uh it's from um um

[2:15:02] levels one, two, three, and four where

[2:15:05] they're diving off the board. But I want

[2:15:06] to encourage everyone to take advantage

[2:15:09] of bringing anyone you know. He said,

[2:15:11] invite your friends, your family,

[2:15:13] anyone. It's so important. There's

[2:15:15] lessons from 8:30 in the morning until

[2:15:18] 3:00 in the afternoon with plenty of

[2:15:20] lifeguards there at the Skenctity High

[2:15:24] School pool, but also with in our public

[2:15:27] pools throughout the city. And I want to

[2:15:29] thank um all of us, the Boys and Girls

[2:15:32] Club, for making that possible because

[2:15:34] it's extremely important for our youth

[2:15:37] to know how to swim. Thank you.

[2:15:40] >> Thank you,

[2:15:43] >> Mayor

[2:15:46] Thank you, Madam President. Appreciate

[2:15:48] everyone coming out tonight and their

[2:15:50] thoughts and opinions on the issues that

[2:15:52] are facing us. Uh I believe it's

[2:15:55] slightly cooler outside than in this

[2:15:57] chamber, so I'll yield any uh time. Back

[2:16:00] to the president.

[2:16:01] >> Thank you. I'd like to thank everyone

[2:16:03] that came out tonight that voiced their

[2:16:05] opinion, whichever uh side of the issue

[2:16:09] um that you were on. Uh, I think it's

[2:16:11] important, I've always said this, that

[2:16:13] we hear from our constituents. And I

[2:16:15] know that some people say, "Well, not

[2:16:17] everyone that was here tonight uh spoke

[2:16:20] that spoke is from the city of

[2:16:21] Skenctity, but it's also important to

[2:16:23] hear from people who are well informed

[2:16:26] about the topic so that we make sure

[2:16:28] that we get the information necessary

[2:16:31] and we're not just um counting on people

[2:16:34] who just heard what someone else said."

[2:16:37] So having people even if they're from

[2:16:39] outside the community, if they're well

[2:16:41] informed, have studied the legislation,

[2:16:43] etc. I think it's important to hear

[2:16:44] those voices as well. We we listen to

[2:16:47] other um governmental um we often say we

[2:16:50] let's look what another municipality is

[2:16:52] doing and that isn't that much

[2:16:54] different. Uh in terms of um the this

[2:16:58] good housing, good um cause eviction. At

[2:17:00] the last meeting, I stated that SCAP I

[2:17:04] incorrectly ska stated um Scap's

[2:17:06] position. So, I just want to correct

[2:17:08] that. It was stated that CAP SC Scap

[2:17:11] said they were against good cause and um

[2:17:15] but then if you went to the Scap

[2:17:16] website, they said they were not taking

[2:17:18] any position on it. So, I just wanted to

[2:17:20] clarify it was brought to my attention

[2:17:22] after I said it. So, now I'm correcting

[2:17:24] it. I just als I also want to um just

[2:17:28] remind folks that there is also a

[2:17:30] housing forum tomorrow at the Skenctity

[2:17:33] Public Library. It's the second one that

[2:17:34] they've had at 6 pm. So individuals that

[2:17:37] want to go um it is really around

[2:17:40] housing in the city of Skenctity. So if

[2:17:42] you're a Skenctity resident, you want to

[2:17:43] attend talk about it, hear different

[2:17:46] things, talk about different solutions,

[2:17:48] I invite you to all to go there. And

[2:17:51] there's one more one thing that was said

[2:17:52] at the rail today that I want to

[2:17:54] correct. There was a individual that

[2:17:56] came that said that three council

[2:17:58] members um stated that they wanted to

[2:18:00] defund the police. That was not said. So

[2:18:03] I just want to clarify that they didn't

[2:18:05] give names and I don't know who they're

[2:18:07] talking about, but I know that no

[2:18:09] council member said defund the police.

[2:18:11] So I just want to clear the record on

[2:18:13] that. There's often things attributed to

[2:18:16] council members saying that they didn't

[2:18:17] necessarily say. So if I have the

[2:18:19] opportunity to correct that, I will.

[2:18:23] That's all I have this evening. So I

[2:18:25] entertain a motion to adjurnn. Moved by

[2:18:27] Miss Patrick, second by Mr. Mutiveran.

[2:18:29] All those in favor? I. We are adjourned.

[2:18:32] Have a good evening.

[2:18:56] [Music]

[2:19:04] Hey.

[2:19:06] [Music]

[2:19:40] Heat. Heat.

[2:19:41] [Music]

[2:20:02] Heat.

[2:20:04] [Music]

[2:20:18] Heat.

[2:20:22] [Music]

[2:20:58] Heat. Heat.

[2:21:01] [Music]

[2:21:03] [Applause]

[2:21:08] [Music]

[2:21:22] Hey.

[2:21:26] [Music]

Schenectady City Council Meeting, July 14, 2025

Transcript