A proposed law to make it easier for churches to build affordable housing on part or all of their property has garnered opposition from local officials in the Hudson Valley.
The idea of the Faith-Based Affordable Housing Act is to free up unused school buildings, rectories or other structures owned by churches, synagogues and mosques. The bill, a brainchild of the New York State Council of Churches, would enable religious organizations to bypass local zoning to develop mixed-income and 100 percent affordable housing on unused property that many cannot afford to maintain.
However, many local officials don't want Albany to touch local zoning laws.
"While I agree that we face housing challenges in Rockland and across New York State," Rockland County Executive Day said in a statement released to the media, "Local municipalities understand the needs of their current and future residents best and are perfectly capable of creating the conditions that support appropriate housing opportunities."
Greenburgh Town Supervisor Paul Feiner was more skeptical.
"I think what would happen is that so-called religious organizations would say they're building a place of worship, but the goal would be to build housing," he said. "They would not have to go through the zoning and planning process, and they could get a lot more housing which would not have to be approved."
The bill includes comprehensive training and financial support through pre-development grants for interested congregations.
It's not a new idea: churches in the U.S.A. were historically involved in community issues like health care and education, and the number one community issue today is the housing crisis, supporters said.
In recent years, many churches have called with questions about building housing, the Rev. Peter Cook, executive director of the New York State Council of Churches, told Patch. In some cases they've been approached by a developer, or they're in financial trouble and looking for the means to keep operating. "Others want to fulfill their mission and feel their property is not being fully or appropriately used."
The NYSCC has tips and resources for congregations considering creating housing on their property. Its deputy executive director Rashida Tyler, an active member of the AME Zion Church of Kingston and project manager for the Interfaith Affordable Housing Collaborative.
"The missions of many faith-based organizations call for them to take action to help feed, clothe, and shelter those in need. We have worked with faith leaders across New York state in rural, suburban, and urban communities, all of whom would like to find ways to assist their communities by creating housing. Although there is the will there are many impediments to doing so, such as zoning laws that prevent projects from being considered viable to those who would like to build," she said in testimony Feb. 14 at a Joint Legislative Budget Hearing on Housing in Albany.
Learn more about the NYSCC's involvement here: Affordable Housing Partnership Open House
Although this is a far smaller, more specific concept than the one state officials proposed and dropped last year, to override all local zoning for affordable housing, Day criticized the Hochul administration for a "one-size-fits-all approach" to housing and accused it of "constant attacks" on "home rule."
He pointed out the state deputized the County to handle building and fire code inspections in Spring Valley due to lack of code enforcement in the village, plagued by unsafe illegal housing.
"Allowing organizations to conduct development that bypasses zoning will only compound the issue," Day insisted. "Let’s not forget, while creating affordable housing is an admirable goal, bypassing regulations is extremely problematic."
Cook disagreed, saying that zoning restrictions and building codes were separate issues and that local officials should not lay blame elsewhere for problems enforcing safety laws.
Day said Rockland will support towns and villages working to improve their local housing stock through events like its upcoming Housing Forum.
Clarkstown Town Supervisor George Hoehmann said he objected to losing authority to conduct environmental reviews of religious institutions' proposals. "The Town of Clarkstown vigorously opposes any legislation that would strip our constitutional home rule authority, especially in relation to zoning and planning," he said. "We urge the New York State Legislature to reject this bill. We will use the full authority of the Town government to push back against misguided attempts by out-of-touch New York City Legislators to dictate the character of our local community."
Clarkstown is currently embroiled in a legal fight over unused church property with the Hasidic girls' school that tried to buy the former Grace Church property in Nanuet.
An appeals court ruled that neighbors' opposition and the town's subsequent actions "predictably" prevented Ateres Bais Yaakov from securing the regulatory approvals necessary to acquire the property, cut off its access to public and private financing, and led to Grace Church’s termination of the contract, according to the appeals panel ruling, which was published in The Journal News. The town bought the property after the initial court ruling — which the school said in its appeal was evidence of "disingenuous intentions" — and town officials have spoken of the possibility of senior housing and parking for the Nanuet school district.
Feiner said the Faith-Based Affordable Housing Act reminded him of the fight over the Fortress Bible Church. "We had a situation when I first took office where a church basically applied for permission to build a church on Dobbs Ferry Road and we denied it because of traffic and safety concerns. We lost a federal court case. The court basically said they have the right to build. They never built, they took the $6 million."
Feiner said the state should instead consider a new version of the STAR tax rebate, which homeowners in a community receive if the municipality or school district stays under the state's tax cap.
"What if every town has a target for a certain amount of affordable housing in a given year, and if they hit it everybody who lives in the community would get a tax rebate check. The money would go not to the government but the homeowners," he said. "That would make residents feel that they're going to benefit from affordable housing and might lead to less NIMBYism."
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