By Gus Saltonstall
Melissa Rosenberg has served on the Upper West Side’s Community Board 7 for the last seven years. Now, she is looking to extend her public service to the New York State Assembly.
Rosenberg is one of five Democratic candidates running to represent the 69th Assembly District, which stretches from West 80th to 125th streets, and includes large sections of Riverside Park and Central Park.
She previously worked as a vice president at a lobbyist and government relations firm, and before that as a policy analyst at the Supportive Housing Network of NY, and also with the city’s Office of Management and Budget.
Election Day for the primary is on June 25, with Early Voting starting in the 10 days prior.
Members of the Assembly create legislation on the state level, which includes elements that affect our daily life, such as Good Cause eviction, bail reform, and, in general, helping to craft the budget for the entirety of New York each year.
West Side Rag continues its coverage of the upcoming election in the following conversation with Rosenberg. It has been condensed and edited for clarity.
We also spoke and published interviews Thursday with candidates Eli Northrup and Micah Lasher. Additionally, the Rag reached out to candidates Jack Kellner and Carmen Quinones, and we will be publishing their interviews next week.
We asked all the candidates versions of the same questions, in hopes of giving prospective voters a heightened understanding of where the different candidates stand on important local issues.
The Interview
West Side Rag: What is one of the first pieces of legislation you would introduce?
Rosenberg: My background is really focused on housing advocacy, and that is an issue close to my heart. I’d like to see more focus on increasing housing supply overall, but I do think something we’re not seeing enough focus on now is the preservation of existing affordable housing, both subsidized and rent stabilized.
I’d look at policy solutions to address the crisis we’re seeing in a lot of affordable housing buildings, tenants got behind on rent during COVID and there is a lot of affordable housing that is potentially on the brink of foreclosure and economic jeopardy. I’d like to find a state-level solution to make sure we don’t lose any of this really precious stock of older housing.
West Side Rag: Along those lines, which Assembly committees would you be most interested in joining?
Rosenberg: Definitely Housing. But then second to that, Mental Health. I’d use my past work around supportive housing, and work to ensure that we have policy solutions in place for those experiencing the most mental illness. We’re seeing a lot of incidents on the subways, on the streets, but really across the spectrum of needs. I’d work to make sure people are getting the support they need post-COVID.
West Side Rag: Zoning laws in Morningside Heights haven’t change since the 1960s. It is one of the few areas in Manhattan where there are no requirements to build affordable housing. In recent years, there has been a community push on the city-side of the legislature to rezone the neighborhood. Do you have a stance on whether the neighborhood should be rezoned, and how would you look to generate more housing in the area in general?
Rosenberg: We can all agree there is a housing crisis and that every neighborhood needs to be doing their part. There is a really strong desire in our community to be able to play a part. I am in favor of a proposed rezoning that would ensure we can create new housing, specifically affordable housing in the district. I’d love to see the plan in some form move forward, but also potentially improvements that would allow us to do even more when it comes to creating new affordable housing.
West Side Rag: What role does Columbia University as a landlord play in the push for affordable housing in Morningside Heights?
Rosenberg: When I’ve been door knocking in Morningside Heights, it’s been rare to find a building that is not owned by Columbia, and they are holding a huge amount of rent-stabilized units.
Given the history of the school’s Manhattanville expansion, and obviously the tax benefits they enjoy as an exempt institution, I do think they have a role and responsibility in ensuring that community members outside of the institution can benefit from the affordable housing. Some of the commitments made during the Manhattanville expansion were supposed to be creating affordable housing opportunities for folks in the district and beyond that I don’t think were well executed.
West Side Rag: Continuing on the housing front, do you think the version of Good Cause Eviction that passed in this year’s budget went far enough in protecting tenant’s rights?
Rosenberg: It is a really tricky framework of Good Cause Eviction that ended up getting included in the final budget. Putting the burden on tenants to bring forward cases is really problematic. I’m not sure it will lead to the outcomes that we want, and that landlords will err on the side of caution in ensuring they are not violating this version that was passed.
I’m concerned about the tenant burden, and I also think it’s tricky in establishing what your landlord’s portfolio is. Again, it is a lot of burden on community members to do the work to ensure they are being protected, as opposed to the legislation proactively protecting them.
West Side Rag: There seems to be a Venn diagram of sorts between storefront vacancies, the proliferation of illegal smoke shops, and the state’s struggle to roll out legal cannabis sales. How can the Assembly play a part in helping local businesses, and with this topic in general?
Rosenberg: The rollout of legal weed was really problematic, and, I think, emblematic of an Albany that is not always thinking of what policy looks like on the ground, and ensuring that it is most effectively written. There was a real lack of education and outreach when it came to potential storeowners. I do think that a lot of these businesses, even though I am in no way an advocate for them, are immigrant owned, and there may be a lack of awareness about the legality of smoke shops.
That being said, if we could do more around rapid licensing, and be able to parcel out the bad actors, we can start getting legal shops open and begin getting that revenue the state is counting on.
We’re going to see enforcement by the city now on illegal smoke shops after being given that power by the state, but there is a concern that this will lead to a re-proliferation of vacant storefronts that is also a negative. We have to look at other policy solutions to deal with the vacancy crisis, such as taxing landlords and working with landlords who are honestly looking to rent their storefronts and find ways to get short-term activations to create a more lively streetscape.
West Side Rag: Central Park and Riverside Park are major components of the 69th Assembly District. Both have strong Conservancies. What do you see as government’s role in finding ways to support the parks?
Rosenberg: Given that the two major parks have such strong conservancies, I’d like to see more emphasis on our smaller community parks, ensuring that we get upgrades, especially for parks that are located around public housing. I’d want to ensure we’re using the lens of equity when we’re thinking about investment in parks, and get resources to spaces that don’t have strong Friends of Groups or Conservancies. To do that type of fundraising would be something I’d prioritize.
West Side Rag: Crime statistics are up in New York City compared to the period before the pandemic, but there also remains a conversation about the perception of safety vs. the reality of the crime numbers. How do we make people feel safe in this neighborhood, and what is the right way to help an emotionally distressed person who is not committing a crime?
Rosenberg: It is a really difficult issue. From my past work in supportive housing and homeless policy, I’ve talked a lot to those providers that do street outreach, and heard first hand about how challenging it is to get folks to accept services. The number one thing is creating places for folks to be that is not on the street, and in my mind, that’s creating safe havens that [have] low-barrier entry, in which people suffering from serious mental illness would accept a place in.
I think that’s really the first step toward stabilization. And then, ensuring we have that spectrum of community mental health programs, whether it is community residences for folks who are not ready to live independently, and also supportive housing.
It’s about creating those opportunities, so when we approach them on the street, the options we are presenting them are more plausible, and something they are ready to work toward. We don’t have to just turn to forced hospitalizations and incarceration, which are really expensive short-term solutions that put people back on the street in a number of days or weeks.
West Side Rag: Continuing on the topic of safety, street safety has become a louder conversation since the pandemic. Electric bikes are a leading topic from constituents within that subject. What do you see as ways to improve the conditions around e-bikes in the district right now?
Rosenberg: I’ve spoken with the deliveristas as I previously worked with a nonprofit that does a lot of advocacy for ensuring they get the services they need. To me, the problems really exist with the apps. I’m sure there are bad actors in terms of the actual delivery workers, but the incentives and pressures that the apps put on these workers to achieve certain timeframes, to achieve certain quotas, the way they are tracked geographically, really incentivizes the bad behavior we see playing out on the street. So, rather than seeing this really intense enforcement against what is majority low-income people of color, I would like our focus to be on these app companies that are profiting off their unsafe situation.
West Side Rag: You’ve been on the Upper West Side Community Board 7 for a number of years. How do you see your experience as part of that at group as something you can use within the Assembly?
Rosenberg: My last seven years has really helped me understand some of these issues we’re taking about, local issues, and what people are experiencing. I have not been up in Albany the last 10 years making policy from a lofty place, I’ve been down here hearing people come into meetings and voicing their concerns.
Then, I brainstorm with my fellow community board members about how we can encourage our local elected officials to address them, or bring forward solutions ourself. So, I think that experience is really helpful. I also think the way we operate is a bit of a mini legislature; there’s the same need to build community with your colleagues, and consensus, and to put forward thoughtful policy solutions. Those skills will be very helpful as an assembly member as well.
West Side Rag: Stepping back, this is your first time running for elected office. Why was this the right moment and right district to step in and seek a leadership position?
Rosenberg: My time on the community board was definitely a big part of it, feeling that I could be a big advocate for our community. But also, my career for the last 10 years has been all about public service in one form or another, so it felt like public service on this next level would be the culmination of all this work I’ve been doing in a variety of policy areas, whether it’s housing, homelessness, gun violence, or healthcare. I bring all this knowledge to government to be a really effective advocate in Albany.
I also have not been impressed with what we’ve been seeing coming out of Albany, in terms of housing solutions especially. Watching last year, I felt the ball being totally dropped when it came to housing issues — and it was one of my biggest points of inspiration in deciding to file for a run. As someone who has been an advocate, I can be someone to stand up and push forward these difficult conversations to make some change.
West Side Rag: Finally, any favorite places of yours you could tell us about within the district?
Rosenberg: I’m a big runner so the parks are incredibly important to me. Also, I live in Manhattan Valley and this part of the district holds a really important place in my heart. It’s one of the last really great pockets of diversity, where we see amazing Dominican restaurants along with finer dining restaurants, and old community standbys like V & T. This part of the neighborhood is just special.
You can check out Rosenberg’s candidate website, which also includes her list of endorsements — HERE.
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On public safety, the responses from all of the interviewed candidates are uninformed at best, and manipulative at worst.
None of them call for fixes to sentencing or bail laws. None of them acknowledge a small group of people commit a majority of the crimes. None of them acknowledge the danger faced disproportionately by Asian Americans.
Instead; they lecture us about poverty and mental health.
It’s outrageous.
What are things she accomplished as a Community Board member, solutions or ideas where she led the charge and delivered results that she can cite as a reason why she would be effective in this job? From the meetings I used to attend, her main focus was supportive housing for homeless individuals. While that is one affecting the neighborhood, it is not the only issue. She was a big proponent of the Safe Haven on West 83 and how this was “the solution.” We still have many of the same individuals wandering the streets at night who apparently do not accept this solution. The space could have also been converted to permanent housing, which many argued for. My concern is that Ms Rosenberg is a bit too wedded to the not for profit Homeless Incorporated model tied to real estate developers at the exclusion of the needs of the many other residents in this district who are frustrated by higher taxes with decreasing services. . With her it would be more of the same and we need change. But I applaud her effort to run.
Melissa Rosenberg is the name that I associate tightly with the influx of the homeless during the first Covid summer – when hundreds of them were moved to the UWS hotels. To me she is the beacon of ultra left responsible for the decline of the UWS as we know it. I will never forget her brazen appearances during CB7 zoom meetings. How can anyone in their right mind vote for her when her only goal is to further promote turning this neighborhood into one big shelter. She has never shown to be concerned about or have any empathy for the people that already live here, some at huge financial sacrifice, that are still dealing with the aftermath of those decisions. Her true constituents are not people residing on the UWS but RE corporations profiting off milking the city budget that pays millions of tax dollars to house homeless brought from everywhere into one of the most expensive areas of the city. Shame!
How are you going to help and promote Columbia University, the number one employer, educator, and largest donor to the community?
“ I do think that a lot of these businesses … are immigrant owned, and there may be a lack of awareness about the legality of smoke shops.”
What?? So because they’re “immigrant owned” that excuses them for a “lack of awareness” about the law? Give me a break. These shops are a blight on our neighborhoods and the people operating them know fully well that they’re breaking the law. They’ve realized that our “progressive” local elected officials don’t care about ensuring the law is enforced, so they’re opening shops to make a buck. We need people who care about quality of life and not more delusional, condescending thinking like this that gives law breakers a pass because they’re “immigrants” and “didn’t know.” Give me a break!