TPT Horror Stories Aired At Packed Borough Hall

Editor’s Note: This continues a KCP investigative series by reporters Kelly Mena and Stephen Witt on how New York City is taking paid off properties from longtime small property owners, including black and brown seniors, and giving them to connected non-profit and for-profit developers as gentrification continues to sweep across Brooklyn.

Dozens of majority Black and Latino property owners packed two full rooms at Brooklyn Borough Hall last Friday as attendee after attendee told their story of how the City took their property from right under them. 

At the helm of the three-hour long legislative hearing was Brooklyn Borough President Eric L. Adams joined by State Senators Velmanette Montgomery, Kevin Parker and Brian Kavanagh, Chair of the State Senate Housing Committee and Assemblymembers Tremaine Wright and Nick Perry, who looked to Brooklyn residents for the next course of action against the Third Party Transfer Program (TPT) under the Department of Housing Preservation and Development (HPD).

Last October, city and state officials called on both the New York State Unified Court System and the De Blasio Administration to put a moratorium on and investigate the seizing of properties through the TPT Program. 

“We did a letter and I think about 20 of us elected officials signed on asking for a moratorium on the TPT Program specifically. We wrote to the Mayor and all of the leaders and everyone we could think of but we got no response. So clearly asking for a moratorium did not work, so we are wondering if we need to do something more than that and what would that be?” Montgomery posed to the attendees.  

To read the full story, visit https://www.kingscountypolitics.com/tpt-horror-stories-aired-at-packed-borough-hall/