Kathy Hochul Signs Flurry of Executive Orders on Housing

Hochul also directed state agencies to identify vacant state-owned sites that could become multifamily housing. She also announced a request for proposals for a parcel of land next to the Javits Convention Center in Manhattan for residential development.

Some real estate leaders called Hochul’s moves a crucial step forward.

“This was both strategic as well as tactical,” said Ken Fisher, a member of the business law department at Cozen O’Connor. “She’s leveraging a rezoning that had broad support, but she’s also showing the legislative leadership that she means business.”

But tenant advocates said the governor must re-engage with the legislature to craft more substantive policies.

“These actions are necessary, important, and yet insufficient to address the scale of our housing crisis,” Annemarie Gray, executive director for Open New York, a grassroots housing organization, said. “While we welcome these actions, New York will only see changes that match the magnitude of the crisis when the governor and the state legislature come together to pass major legislation.”