Chin: Landlords should pay to relocate vacated tenants BY SAM SPOKONY
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PHOTO BY MILO HESS
ouncilmember Margaret Chin on Feb. 4 introduced legislation aimed at helping tenants who are forced out of their homes by city vacate orders. Buildings can be vacated unexpectedly by agencies such as the Department of Buildings or the Department of Housing Preservation and Development based on healthcode violations or structural hazards, and tenants in those situations are essentially left homeless for indefinite lengths of time. Chin’s bill would mandate that H.P.D. require landlords to deposit money in escrow — with H.P.D. holding the escrow — in order to supply reliable funding for tenant relocation in the event of a vacate order. “In the midst of the all the disorder of vacating one’s home, residents should at least have the assurance of a place to go until they can make more permanent arrangements,” said Chin, in a statement after the bill was introduced. “Holding building owners responsible for the welfare of their tenants after a vacate makes things a bit easier for families, and takes some of the uncertainty out of an already difficult situation.” Given the fact that much of the city’s affordable housing stock is aging — and, in
some cases, deteriorating — the problem of sudden vacate orders has significant implications for thousands of tenants, especially those in Chinatown and the Lower East Side. D.O.B. issued 1,496 partial-vacate orders and 346 full-vacate orders in 2013, according to an agency spokesperson. Those numbers, however, include orders for all types buildings, not just residential. In Chinatown, vacate orders at 47 Bayard St. left nearly 30 people without homes last month. Last July, around 50 tenants struggled after their 17 Pike St. building was vacated. In her Feb. 4 statement, Chin highlighted the sense of urgency and panic that overwhelms residents dealing with this problem, stating that emergency shelter and aid currently offered by the city, the Red Cross and community organizations is often “too little and too late.” There are some questions, though, surrounding the bill at this early stage, which may affect it moving forward. Most notably, H.P.D. is struggling severely with multimillion-dollar budget shortfalls due to a recent decrease in its federal funding, and it’s hard to know at this point whether the agency can handle this kind of new administrative burden. Additional funding and staffers would likely be required for H.P.D. to effectively enforce the proposed mandate on landlords.
Hope and youth spring eternal The Hope Generation Benefit to aid young victims of the Philippines disaster was held at P.S. 41 on Jan. 30. Organized by 41 Cares, the charitable arm of P.S. 41, it was an evening of art, poetry and music performed by current P.S. 41 students, alumni and special guests. Above, kindergartener Caroline Vigil Moore played “Twinkle Twinkle Little Star.” All proceeds — $8,341.64 was raised — were donated to UNICEF to help its continuing work in the Philippines.
A live performance concert series celebrating the would-be 50th anniversary of the legendary 1960s venue February 24 - Scenes from a Café with DAVID AMRAM, TERRI THAL and MATT UMANOV, Moderated by ASHLEY KAHN Live Performance by STEVE CUIFFO as LENNY BRUCE
Celebrate the would-be 50th Anniversary of Café au Go Go with a screening of original footage from the Café in “Seven Years Underground: A 60s Tale,” followed by a discussion about the history of the Café as music venue.
March 6 - Dom Flemons and Eli “Paperboy” Reed
Two classic Americana artists present an evening of acoustic blues.
March 13 - Falu
Known for her fusion of rock, jazz, funk and traditional Indian music, Falu explores the quieter, classical side of her musical heritage.
March 20 - Pharaoh’s Daughter
Weaving Middle Eastern music, psychedelia and modern pop, Pharaoh’s Daughter updates the Flower Child aesthetic for the new millennium.
March 27 - Michael Daves and Tony Trischka
Daves, a young Atlanta prodigy, joins one of the all-time-great string players for an illuminating evening of country/bluegrass.
April 3 - Julia Haltigan
New York native, Haltigan, proudly carries the torch for the modern West Village singer-songwriter tradition.
April 10 - Getz Au Go Go Revisited: Another Look at Bossa Nova in the 1960s
With Stan Getz’ influential album Getz au Go Go as inspiration, a stellar line-up of NYC’s top Brazilian musicians explore the ‘60s US and Brazilian Bossa Nova sound.
April 17 - David Amram meets The Amigos
Renaissance man David Amram returns to his Village roots with the electrifying Americana group, The Amigos.
April 24 - Deva Mahal
Vocal phenom Deva Mahal performs invigorating blues and R&B grounded in the 60s-era Southern Soul tradition. All 2014 CaGGR concerts begin at 8:00 pm at Greenwich House Music School, 46 Barrow Street For ticket and artist info visit www.greenwichhouse.org/music_school/cafe-au-go-go-series-schedule
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February 13, 2014
TheVillager.com