With a reference to "dormitory"-style lodgings, Mayor Eric Adams revealed a new aspect of his plan for rescuing New York City from the present housing crisis, prompting some criticism from his fellow New Yorkers.
Adams stated that he wanted to "do a real examination" of the regulations requiring windows in bedrooms during a chat on Monday at the Greene Space, where New York Public Radio hosts live events. This significant change might make it simpler for developers to convert vacant offices into apartments.
The mayor was making a bigger argument about reducing restrictions to speed up the construction of dwellings when he made the remark. He continued by mentioning WeWork's failing "WeLive" shared housing initiative as well as his son's experience, who he claimed lives in an apartment with a stove that he ostensibly does not know how to operate.
Adams' windowless observations drew ire from New Yorkers on the street as well as from elected leaders worried about dark, stuffy spaces that resemble battleship barracks or rows of "Matrix"-style containment pods.
Tenant Protection Laws Require Bedrooms To Have Windows
An all-too-familiar concern three years into the COVID-19 pandemic, Assemblymember Emily Gallagher noted that some of the city's earliest tenant protection laws, dating back to the 19th century, required bedrooms to have windows for light and ventilation to ward off illness in the tenements housing the poorest New Yorkers.
The mayor's spontaneous comment about windowless rooms isn't new, either. The concept of dormitory-style homes is gaining popularity across the country. Windowless bedrooms are permissible in other parts of the country, as Curbed reported, which is spurring a movement to permit the same in abandoned office buildings.
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