Stuyvesant Town-Peter Cooper Village Tenants Association

Stuyvesant Town and Peter Cooper Tenants To Rally in Unity in the Face of Ownership Uncertainty

...  Help promote unity day ... get and post the flyer ... make a poster ...  organize your building  ...

The Stuyvesant Town-Peter Cooper Village Tenants Association, housing advocates and the community’s elected representatives have dubbed November 14th Unity Day — a day when tenants and their champions will bring to the attention of legislators, policy makers, potential new landlords, creditors, and the general public the importance of preserving the affordability and unique character of the 62-year-old buildings that have historically been home to many of the city’s most essential workers.

“Anxiety is running high among residents,” says Tenants Association president Al Doyle.  “They read in the papers and see on TV that experts are predicting that Stuyvesant Town and Peter Cooper Village are going to fall into the hands of creditors.  They are understandably nervous about the future.  The elected representatives, affordable housing attorneys and tenants advocates who will speak at this rally will be pointing the ways that residents can help shape their own — and the community’s future."

The idea for the rally developed during Tenants Association leaders’ exploration of possible ramifications from the October 22nd New York State Court of Appeals Roberts v. Tishman Speyer ruling, which stated that Stuy Town and Peter Cooper apartments had illegally been converted to market rate while the landlord was accepting tax rebates under the City’s J-51 program. Recognizing the probability that the ruling could intensify Tishman’s already serious financial troubles, the group agreed that in order to maintain affordability, and ensure that the community’s open space and traditional family orientation would be preserved, tenants will have to take an active role in any negotiations.

Doyle notes that the Tenants Association anticipates both market rate and already rent-stabilized residents will have questions about precisely how the Roberts decision will affect them and when the ruling will result in actual change. “Our speakers, including legal experts, will be prepared to answer as many questions as possible,” he said. “This is going to be an afternoon of showing our strength. We know that keeping our membership informed has always been the most important way we have built that strength.”