What’s Next for Basement Apartments After Hurricane Ida?

According to Mayor de Blasio, roughly 100,000 New Yorkers live in 50,000 or more illegal basement apartments. While vital housing stock, basement apartments are often not up to building code, can pose serious health risks, and lack proper means of egress. Recent extreme weather events, including Hurricane Ida, further highlighted the challenges of basementu units, particularly as climate change disproportionately impacts the most vulnerable in our communities. Initiatives like the NYC Department of Housing Preservation and Development’s Basement Apartment Conversion Pilot Program, developed in collaboration with the Cypress Hills Local Development Corporation, are attempting to find ways to make basement apartments safe and legal in order to preserve crucial housing.

Join the AIANY + nycoba|NOMA Civic Leadership Program (CLP) as we discuss basement apartments, exploring challenges as well as lessons learned from the pilot program and opportunities to move forward. 

Leading the event from this years CLP class are Christina X. Brown, Alicia French, Jesse Hirakawa, Rocket Q. Osborne, and Alejandra Zapata.

Speakers:
Mark Ginsberg, Partner, Curtis+Ginsberg Architects
Deborah Gans, Founder and Principal, Gans and Company
Kate Leitch, Senior Policy Analyst, CHPC

About the AIANY Civic Leadership Program
The AIANY Civic Leadership Program (CLP) is designed to cultivate architectural professionals into civic leaders. Through a six-month mentorship and training program, ten designers develop skills to engage in the civic process. The CLP provides opportunities to interface with government officials, community development organizations, and local stakeholders through development sessions and public events. The program also provides opportunities to improve communication and public speaking skills and engage in community outreach and consensus building. AIA New York is excited to collaborate with nycoba|NOMA for this year’s program.

This event is offered virtually; you will receive an email with a Zoom link to access the program.