April 4, 2025
The Honorable Brian Kavanagh
New York State Senate
250 Broadway, Room 2011
New York, NY 10007
Via mail and email: kavanagh@nysenate.gov
Re: Faith-Based Affordable Housing Act (S3397A / A3647A)
Dear Senator Kavanagh:
Lower East Side Preservation Initiative – LESPI – has serious misgivings about the proposed Faith-Based Affordable Housing Act (S3397A / A3647A).
If passed, the bill would endanger our city’s historic religious buildings, by effectively denying them the protection that landmark designation would afford other significant historic properties.
As you know, religious buildings serve as beacons within their neighborhoods, both for religious and non-religious residents, workers and visitors. These sites are a critical part of neighborhood history, architecture, and sense of place. Years of tabling and petitioning in the Lower East Side have shown us that the vast majority of people from all walks of life cherish our historic structures.
LESPI has proposed for landmarking several important Lower East Side religious structures for New York City landmarking, such as the Church of St. Mary on Grand Street, the Stanton Street Shul, and several within our proposed historic districts. There are many other local historic sites that also warrant landmarking, such as Iglesia de Dios on East 7th Street, Congregation Chasm Sopher on Clinton Street, and St. Teresa on Rutgers Street. Under this legislation, even if designated these buildings would be vulnerable to demolition.
Additionally, the bill allows new residential buildings to be built to be completely out of scale with the neighboring buildings, providing they provide only minimal affordable housing. This degrades the cohesiveness of our neighborhoods and streetscapes.
LESPI understands the acute need for more affordable housing. However, we believe that with a little creativity it is possible to support smart growth, affordable housing and historic preservation.
We are concerned that this bill may very well serve as a first step to further whittle down New York City’s Landmarks Law, a frightening prospect. We respectfully urge you not to support this bill until the language has been changed so that it does not undermine our vastly important Landmarks Law. Thank you.
Sincerely,
Richard D. Moses
President
[Similar letters sent to Assemblymembers Harvey Epstein and Grace Lee]
