Council Member Restler explains vote on COPA and horse carriage ban
Council Member Lincoln Restler speaks in support of banning horse carriages and passing COPA. He explains that COPA targets severely distressed properties and gives nonprofits an opportunity to preserve affordable housing.
Thanks.
Permission to explain my vote.
Permission granted.
Today we are tackling multiple issues that have been debated in the halls of New York City government for decades.
It is long overdue that we ban horse carriages in Central Park, and I want to commend everyone for their hard work on getting this over the finish line.
And I especially want to commend Councilmember Nurse for her leadership on COPA.
When I worked in the de Blasio administration,
We tried hard to get the city of New York to follow San Francisco's lead almost a decade ago on this important tool.
And council members and advocates have fought for years to get to this very day.
overcoming vetoes and missed veto overrides and lots of hysterical opposition.
This bill is simple.
It takes severely distressed properties, properties with high concentration of violations, and it gives nonprofits an opportunity to match what the private sector is willing to buy
and bring those properties into decent condition.
It preserves affordable housing, and it delivers the conditions that tenants deserve.
We are seeing predatory entities purchase real estate all across our communities with the goal of just making money and not caring about our blocks, our neighborhoods, our communities.
COPO will make a difference.
This is a step in the right direction.
And so I really want to just say thank you to the speaker, Councilmember Nurse, and all of the folks who pushed hard here to get this done.
Thank you.
And I vote aye on all.
Thank you.