Source: Politics<\/p>\n
DAYS THE BUDGET IS LATE: 56 <\/span><\/p>\n GETTING TO 200K: Mayor Zohran Mamdani released a wide-ranging housing plan today that he said will usher in the \u201clargest municipal housing transformation this country has ever seen.\u201d<\/p>\n The blueprint lays out how Mamdani plans to address the single biggest driver of the city\u2019s affordability crisis, the central focus of the mayoral campaign that propelled him into City Hall.<\/p>\n While the plan lays out ambitious targets that would surpass past mayors if achieved \u2014 including the planned creation and preservation of a combined 400,000 affordable homes over a decade \u2014 it also illustrates how Mamdani is not reinventing the wheel on many housing issues, but rather leaning into or expanding policies pursued by his predecessors.<\/p>\n The plan seeks to tackle a range of coinciding crises: the severe shortage of available housing; a public housing system that\u2019s crumbling and facing massive capital needs; and a rental housing stock that is experiencing growing distress as operating costs skyrocket.<\/p>\n \u201cIf the absence of good government created the conditions we now face, the presence of good government can build the solutions we now need,\u201d Mamdani said in a speech announcing the plan in Brooklyn\u2019s Gowanus section, where a city-led rezoning enacted nearly five years ago has spurred a residential building boom.<\/p>\n Mamdani is already encountering the limits of some of his campaign promises and moderating costly plans as his administration grapples with a strained municipal budget. On the campaign trail, the mayor said he would create 200,000 publicly-subsidized homes over a decade, tripling current rates of production. He is standing by that goal, while also pledging to preserve another 200,000 affordable homes.<\/p>\n \u201cScaling to these levels of affordable housing production will not be easy and cannot be done overnight,\u201d the blueprint states. The administration is aiming to create some 14,000 affordable homes in fiscal year 2027, which starts July 1, while ramping up to 21,000 units per year by fiscal year 2031.<\/p>\n Under the blueprint released Tuesday, Mamdani\u2019s housing department plans to finance 8,000 new affordable homes in fiscal years 2027 and 2028 \u2014 which would grow subsidized housing by more than 35 percent from the prior two years. But the plan does not spell out specifically how the administration will produce roughly 12,000 remaining units annually to get to Mamdani\u2019s 200,000-unit goal.<\/p>\n Much of that additional affordable housing will rely on zoning, tax and other financing tools rather than direct city subsidies. And it would require the private sector to embrace those tools. \u2014 Janaki Chadha<\/p>\n \u2018BIG UGLY\u2019 VOTE: The Legislature spent the better part of today plowing through votes on the budget\u2019s \u201cbig ugly\u201d bill, which contains most of the hot-button issues in this year\u2019s spending plan.<\/p>\n \u201cThis bill has some really good stuff in it and some really bad stuff,\u201d said Assemblymember Jeff Dinowitz, who cited Tier VI pension plan changes when speaking about his \u201cyes\u201d vote. \u201cI look forward to seeing the positive impact it\u2019s going to have on many, many state workers.\u201d<\/p>\n That was the common theme that emerged among Democratic during today\u2019s debate \u2014 they hate the rollbacks to the climate law, but they\u2019re also supportive of the inclusion of what Republican Assemblymember Michael Fitzpatrick dubbed \u201cthe mother of all pension sweeteners\u201d that they reluctantly voted yes. That line of reasoning appeared especially common from members who, like Dinowitz, have Democratic primaries in four weeks and stand to face attacks for being weak on the environment.<\/p>\n \u201cThis is not an easy vote for me,\u201d said Assemblymember Grace Lee, who\u2019s running for an open Senate seat and wound up backing the bill because of Tier VI.<\/p>\n \u201cI am voting yes because I refuse to deny hardworking union members and retirees the retirement security they have worked years to achieve,\u201d Assemblymember Jessica Gonzalez-Rojas said.<\/p>\n Gonzalez-Rojas also took time to slam the climate law changes.<\/p>\n \u201cCommunities like Jackson Heights, Corona, East Elmhurst, Elmhurst, LeFrak City have already experienced the consequences of environmental injustice,\u201d she said. \u201cClimate change is not theoretical for our communities. It is personal.\u201d<\/p>\n That might be another indication of just how much budget season has blended into primary season. Not all of those neighborhoods fall within Gonzalez-Rojas\u2019 district \u2014 but they\u2019re a perfect description of the Senate district where she\u2019s challenging fellow Democrat Jessica Ramos next month. \u2014 Bill Mahoney<\/p>\n MEANWHILE, IN KNICKS WORLD: Mamdani appeared to indicate today that watch parties will be back outside Madison Square Garden during next month\u2019s NBA finals.<\/p>\n \u201cThey will be there,\u201d Mamdani said with a laugh when asked at an unrelated press conference if the partying will resume outside the iconic arena next month when the Knicks play their first NBA finals in nearly three decades.<\/p>\n But a Mamdani spokesperson told Playbook that the mayor wasn\u2019t referring to official watch parties. Rather, the spokesperson said he was talking about how Knicks fans inevitably gather outside the Garden during and after games to celebrate or mourn \u2014 oftentimes in rather raucous fashion<\/a>.<\/p>\n Whether official watch parties \u2014 replete with massive screens showing the games \u2014 will be back outside the Garden during the finals, the Mamdani spokesperson wouldn\u2019t say, adding that plans are still being finalized.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s not a question of if there will be watch parties but where,\u201d spokesperson Dora Pekec said.<\/p>\n The issue could become a bone of contention for Knicks fans.<\/p>\n Last week, the city pulled MSG\u2019s permit<\/a> to hold its usual large-scale parties outside the arena during Knicks games due to concerns from the NYPD about public drinking and other debauchery. During one of the Knicks\u2019 Eastern Conference Finals games against the Cleveland Cavaliers last week, six people were arrested in connection with the outdoor watch party.<\/p>\n The NYPD\u2019s decision to put the kibosh on the parties may infuriate Knicks fans who are ecstatic about their team making it to the NBA finals for the first time since 1999. Mamdani, an avid Knicks fan, is already facing tension with NYPD Commissioner Jessica Tisch over how to police this summer\u2019s World Cup, as previously reported by POLITICO<\/a>, and an MSG dispute could drive a further wedge.<\/p>\n With the outdoor party permit scrapped, MSG hosted a watch party at Radio City Music Hall for the Knicks\u2019 clincher against the Cavs last night.<\/p>\n No matter what, Mamdani said at today\u2019s press conference that Knicks fans will be able to cheer on their team at a variety of watch parties across the city during next month\u2019s finals.<\/p>\n \u201cWe\u2019re looking forward to making sure that it is a time for New Yorkers to celebrate, it\u2019s a time that they\u2019re also safe,\u201d he said. \u201cWe\u2019re going to have a number of different kinds of watch parties, and we\u2019ll get back to you as we keep going through those plans.\u201d<\/p>\n The Knicks will face either the San Antonio Spurs or Oklahoma City Thunder in the finals next month. The first game in the series is set for June 3. \u2014 Chris Sommerfeldt<\/p>\n DEBATE-A-PALOOZA: Got plans in June? How about a congressional primary debate \u2014 or six?<\/p>\n After forums galore across the city\u2019s competitive primaries, a slew of televised debates are on the books ahead of the June 23 election: two each for the races to replace retiring Reps. Nydia Vel\u00e1zquez and Jerry Nadler, and another two for Rep. Dan Goldman\u2019s primary challenge from former City Comptroller Brad Lander.<\/p>\n All debates will be live at 7 p.m., with the exception of the first NY-07 debate on June 3, which will be prerecorded earlier that day and air at 7 p.m. Here\u2019s when to block off your schedule:<\/p>\n \u2014 June 1: Goldman and Lander will be facing off for their first televised debate, hosted by Spectrum News NY1. NY1\u2019s Errol Louis and Courtney Gross will moderate the program.<\/p>\n Goldman\u2019s campaign has frequently criticized Lander for not agreeing to partake<\/a> in seven debates.<\/p>\n \u2014 June 3: State Assemblymember Claire Valdez, Brooklyn Borough President Antonio Reynoso and City Council member Julie Won will take the stage as they vie for Vel\u00e1zquez\u2019s seat. The debate will be hosted by NY1 and moderated by Louis and Gross. Public defender Vichal Kumar is also on the ballot, though he did not qualify for the debate.<\/p>\n \u2014 June 4: The four leading candidates looking to succeed Nadler will meet in a PIX11 debate: state Assemblymembers Micah Lasher and Alex Bores, Kennedy scion Jack Schlossberg and anti-Trump commentator George Conway. It will be moderated by Dan Mannarino.<\/p>\n \u2014 June 9: Another NY-12 debate will be hosted by NY1 and WNYC. Louis and WNYC\u2019s Brian Lehrer and Brigid Bergin will moderate. This debate is set to feature Bores, Conway, Lasher, Schlossberg and public health practitioner Nina Schwalbe.<\/p>\n Schwalbe, a progressive candidate who has struggled to break through in the crowded field, has frequently criticized<\/a> media coverage and events for not including her. A handful of other lesser-known candidates are also on the ballot next month.<\/p>\n \u2014 June 10: Valdez, Reynoso and Won will partake in a PIX11 debate, with Mannarino moderating.<\/p>\n \u2014 June 15: PIX11 will host Goldman and Lander for another showdown, moderated by Mannarino.<\/p>\n Early voting starts June 13. \u2014 Madison Fernandez<\/p>\n MUM-DANI: Mamdani is noncommittal about getting involved in the competitive race in what is now his home district.<\/p>\n When asked by PIX11\u2019s Henry Rosoff<\/a> who he\u2019s voting for in the Democratic primary to succeed Nadler, Gracie Mansion\u2019s newest resident laughed and said he hadn\u2019t made a decision but is \u201cfollowing the race as a keen constituent.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cAt this time, I would say that I\u2019ve focused on the two decisions I\u2019ve made thus far,\u201d Mamdani continued, referring to his endorsements for Lander and Valdez.<\/p>\n Bores recently said<\/a> he would \u201clove\u201d to have Mamdani\u2019s backing. Lasher, meanwhile, is getting campaign help<\/a> from political strategist Morris Katz, an architect of Mamdani\u2019s win last year. A recent Emerson College\/PIX11 poll found that Mamdani has a strong approval rating<\/a>, at 66 percent, among Democratic primary voters in the district. But a Mamdani endorsement could also turn off some Jewish voters \u2014 a prominent constituency in the district \u2014 who are not fans of the mayor.<\/p>\n \u201cIt was a pleasure to serve with both of them in Albany,\u201d Mamdani said of Bores and Lasher. \u2014 Madison Fernandez\u00a0<\/p>\n ENDORSEMENT CORNER: Abundance New York rolled out its voter guide<\/a> on Tuesday, highlighting candidates in competitive races who the group\u2019s executive director Catherine Vaughan said in a statement are \u201cwilling to actually build the things New York needs.\u201d<\/p>\n They include Reynoso and Lander, as well as a dual-endorsement for Bores and Lasher. (The group said that between Bores and Lasher, it \u201ccannot recommend one over the other at this time, but we may revisit as the race continues.\u201d)<\/p>\n The endorsements aren\u2019t exactly all glowing. In the rationale for Reynoso, it states that his \u201crecord has not always supported our agenda, but we have decided to take his evolution at face value and to commit to holding him to his word.\u201d<\/p>\n The blurb about Lander acknowledged that the group has \u201cconcerns about [his] record and some of his current stances,\u201d including opposing some rezonings during his time on the Council and supporting a ban on what the group described as \u201cinvestor-owned \u2018build-to-rent\u2019 housing.\u201d The guide also states that the group is \u201cdismayed at his demand that Brooklyn Marine Terminal development be delayed; this is a NIMBY stance that seems cynically targeted at Goldman\u2019s leadership on the issue.\u201d Despite that, Abundance New York pointed to Lander\u2019s \u201crecord on housing production, transit, and the local land-use machinery in this district\u201d and said it thinks he \u201cwould prioritize the built environment issues that we champion more strongly.\u201d<\/p>\n The group is also backing Drew Warshaw \u2014 the affordable housing nonprofit executive who\u2019s one of two primary challengers to state Comptroller Tom DiNapoli \u2014 along with a handful of candidates in the state Legislature and City Council member Carl Wilson. \u2014 Madison Fernandez <\/p>\n \u2014 THINGS GO SOUTH: Mamdani-backed congressional candidate Claire Valdez, who has called to abolish ICE, is facing scrutiny over her father\u2019s work for a firm involved in Texas border projects. (New York Post<\/a>)<\/p>\n \u2014 WHAT\u2019S IN A NAME: Internal renderings for the Penn Station overhaul project show a presidential seal featuring Donald Trump\u2019s name alongside a redesigned train hall. (Gothamist<\/a>)<\/p>\n \u2014 ACROSS THE AISLE: Brooklyn\u2019s Park Slope Food Co-op is split over a looming vote to boycott Israeli products from the socially conscious grocery store. (The New York Times<\/a>)<\/p>\n Missed this morning\u2019s New York Playbook? We forgive you. Read it here<\/a>.<\/p>\nFrom the Capitol<\/h3>\n
FROM CITY HALL<\/h3>\n
FROM THE CAMPAIGN TRAIL<\/h3>\n
IN OTHER NEWS<\/h3>\n