FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: November 12, 2025
Contacts:
Will Spisak, Senior Policy Strategist at New Economy Project, will@neweconomynyc.org
Patricia Santana, Director of Communications at the office of Council Member Sandy Nurse, PSantana@council.nyc.gov
Community Groups and Electeds Rally at City Hall for Passage of Community Opportunity to Purchase Act (COPA) to Bring Land and Housing Into Permanently Affordable Community Control
Event Comes as COPA Reaches Veto-Proof Supermajority in Council, and as Legislation to End the Predatory Tax Lien Sale Gets Pivotal Hearing
Rally Follows Historic Election Mandating Bold New Action on NYC’s Affordability Crisis
New York, NY – Community groups and electeds rallied on the steps of City Hall on Wednesday in support of the Community Opportunity to Purchase Act, or COPA (Intro 902), sponsored by Council Member Sandy Nurse. The bill would give nonprofits, including community land trusts (CLTs), the first opportunity to purchase multifamily buildings when they go up for sale—creating and preserving deeply and permanently affordable housing.
The rally comes soon after COPA secured its 34th City Council sponsor, making the bill veto-proof, and as the COPA coalition—comprised of 150+ CLTs, affordable housing providers, and community and environmental justice groups—continues to build momentum:
- More than 30 Community Development Corporations (CDCs) and mission-driven developers recently sent a letter to City Council Speaker Adrienne Adams and HPD in support of COPA.
- Council Members Selvena Brooks-Powers, Kevin Riley and Nantasha Williams called for COPA’s immediate passage in a viral City & State op-ed last month.
- Mayor-elect Mamdani has named COPA and the entire Community Land Act package as key elements of his housing plan.
- A growing coalition of youth organizations has made COPA the top housing priority in its Livable Future package.
“In last week’s election, New Yorkers sent a powerful message: We need bold solutions to the affordability crisis that ensure all New Yorkers have access to safe, permanently affordable housing,” said Deyanira Del Rio, Executive Director of New Economy Project, which co-founded and coordinates the NYC Community Land Initiative. “COPA gives qualified nonprofit organizations and community land trusts a real opportunity to take land and housing off the speculative market and bring them into permanently affordable community control. We call on Speaker Adams and the City Council to pass COPA and the full Community Land Act now.”
“It isn’t the millionaires and billionaires who are leaving New York City – it’s working class families who are being pushed out by skyrocketing rents, greedy landlords, and a housing market that prioritizes profits above people’s needs,” said COPA’s lead sponsor Council Member Sandy Nurse, who represents Bushwick, Brownsville, Cypress Hills, and other parts of East Brooklyn. “It’s time for us to put power back in the hands of our communities and fight back against speculators by passing the Community Opportunity to Purchase Act. COPA will level the playing field so we can have a fighting chance to preserve at-risk affordable housing and keep working class families in New York City.”
COPA is part of the Community Land Act, a package of bills to prevent displacement and support deeply and permanently affordable community-controlled housing—including legislation to abolish the predatory tax lien sale. At the rally, Council Member Nurse and advocates highlighted new bills that would end the tax lien sale and replace it with an equitable system that keeps people in their homes.
The package—including Intros 1407 (Speaker Adams), 1420 and 1419 (Nurse), and Intros 1411 and 570-A (Council Member Gale Brewer)—would create a more equitable property tax collection system while expanding opportunities to preserve affordable housing. Together, the measures would increase protections for low-income homeowners, strengthen oversight of chronically tax delinquent properties, and establish a land bank to transform tax distressed properties into permanently affordable, community- and tenant-owned housing. The package heads to a City Council Committee on Finance Hearing on Thursday, November 13.
Support for COPA has grown as housing insecurity reaches crisis levels across the city:
- 87% of the city’s rent stabilized apartments are owned by the top 5% of corporate landlords.
- Landlords have filed more than 84,000 eviction cases this year.
- 200,000 Black New Yorkers have been pushed out of the city in the past two decades by rising rents, predatory displacement, and decades of disinvestment.
“There is an undeniable housing crisis in our city—one characterized by a severe lack of affordability and the active displacement of our older Black and brown neighbors who have resided in New York City for generations. Passing COPA to create deeply and permanently affordable housing that low and moderate income New Yorkers can afford is critical at this juncture,” said Council Member Crystal Hudson, who represents Crown Heights, Prospect Heights, Clinton Hill and Fort Greene. “We saw recently, with a property in the Bronx, how it is possible to put private property in the people’s hands. With COPA, we have an opportunity to do just that on a much larger scale. I’m thankful to Council Member Nurse for leading on this issue, and am proud to stand with her to protect New York families from housing insecurity.”
“New York City must pass COPA as soon as possible. We know from first hand experience how transformative this legislation could be,” said Brianna Soleyn, a board member of the East New York Community Land Trust. “The ENY CLT put in the work to organize residents and donors to directly purchase our first building, which was neglected by its former owner. Through COPA, the city can support acquisitions like these, of over-leveraged rent stabilized housing stock, to ensure that these buildings are kept affordable and under tenant control. These acquisitions are proven to work and directly improve New Yorkers’ lives. Now that COPA has reached a veto-proof majority in the City Council, we must get it done!”
“Across Southeast Queens, rising costs and speculation have made it harder for working families to stay in the homes and neighborhoods they’ve built over generations,” said Council Member Dr. Nantasha Williams, who represents Cambria Heights, Hollis, Jamaica, St. Albans and other neighborhoods in Southeast Queens. “COPA helps level the playing field by giving community-based organizations a fair chance to purchase buildings before they fall into the hands of speculators, preserving affordability, expanding local ownership, and keeping residents rooted where they belong. That’s how we move from crisis management to lasting stability.”
“New York City must say ‘No’ to profit-driven displacement. For too long, the NYC tax lien sale system has put profit over people. It has targeted working-class homeowners—especially Black and Brown families—stripping them of their homes and generational wealth, all to enrich private investors. It is an exploitative policy and it is time for it to come to an end,” said Majority Leader Amanda Farías, who represents Soundview, Parkchester, and Castle Hill in the Bronx. “The cost of living keeps rising, rents are skyrocketing, and the dream of homeownership is slipping further and further away for working families. All because investors are treating these homes like poker chips — betting on housing prices at the expense of entire communities. But it doesn’t have to be this way. Abolish the NYC tax lien sale and pass the Community Opportunity to Purchase Act to give the people of NYC a fighting chance.”
“Across the Bronx, Northwest Bronx Community and Clergy Coalition and the Bronx Community Land Trust are working together to demonstrate what community-driven development can look like—permanently affordable housing, rooted in local leadership and long-term stewardship,” said Sandra Lobo, Executive Director of the Northwest Bronx Community & Clergy Coalition. “The Community Opportunity to Purchase Act (COPA) would level the playing field for nonprofits and community land trusts to support and expand this work, in the Bronx and beyond. Now is the moment for the City Council to pass COPA and strengthen the infrastructure that would support New Yorkers to remain in the neighborhoods they’ve helped build.”
“Our city’s affordability crisis demands bold, community-driven solutions—and COPA is exactly that,” said Council Member Shahana Hanif, who represents Kensington, Park Slope, Carroll Gardens, the Columbia Waterfront and other neighborhoods in Brooklyn. “In my district, at 63 Tiffany Place, tenants have been fighting to keep their homes after their building was put up for sale. COPA would give residents like them, and community-based nonprofits, the first opportunity to purchase their buildings—removing housing from the speculative market and keeping it permanently affordable. This legislation would stabilize families, preserve culture, and keep New Yorkers rooted in the neighborhoods they’ve built. It’s time to pass COPA and the full Community Land Act.”
“COPA would be a game-changer for neighborhoods in the South Bronx that face severe displacement pressures, such as Mott Haven,” said Matthew Shore, Director of Planning & Development at South Bronx Unite. “Mott Haven ranks amongst the highest in the city for rent burden, evictions, and housing code violations. At the same time, new housing units produced at or above 80% AMI in our community district were double that of units at or below 80% AMI. We know that CLTs and nonprofit developers have a better track record of affordable housing development than for-profit developers, and COPA is a long-overdue legislation that we need to preserve our working-class communities and address our city’s affordability crisis.”
“Last year, this Land Is Ours CLT participated in a successful bid to develop 500 affordable homes on the site of a shuttered Catholic church,” said Valerio Orselli, Project Director of This Land Is Ours CLT. “Among other projects, we are currently working with the tenants of 438-440 West 45th Street and 331 East 14th Street and a Preservation Purchaser to acquire homes previously-owned by slumlord Ohebshalom. COPA would make these challenging acquisition processes far more efficient. City Council, we need COPA now!”
“NYC is facing a critical shortage of deeply affordable housing, small business and cultural spaces, and public green spaces,” said Jenny Dubnau, Co-Chair of the Western Queens CLT. “COPA would help Western Queens CLT to transform existing housing in Queens so it’s permanently affordable and tenant-controlled. In addition, we must pass another key component of the Community Land Act (CLA) package: Public Land for Public Good Act, which would require NYC to prioritize CLTs and nonprofit developers when disposing of City-owned land. In Long Island City, Queens, there are four publicly-owned waterfront sites which the City is upzoning for residential use. If the PLFPG bill was enacted, it would prioritize development of sites like these to mission-driven non-profits and CLTs, who can provide far deeper affordability than for-profit developers. Let’s pass the entire CLA package!”
“Cooper Square Committee fully supports the Community Land Act and calls on New York City to pass it this year,” said Illapa Sairitupac, a Housing Organizer at Cooper Square Committee. “Our organization frequently works with tenants whose lives are upended when their building is sold to a neglectful corporate landlord. TOPA and COPA will give tenants the ability to facilitate needed improvements and preserve the affordability of their buildings in perpetuity. Such policies have already proven successful in places like Washington, D.C., and it’s high time New York brought them here. Now with federal cuts to affordable housing, we need the CLA to pass more than ever.”
“Right here in Queens, our community land trust is proving it’s possible to take land off the speculative market and develop deeply affordable homes and community spaces, all while putting people over profit,” said Alexis Foote, founder of the ReAL Edgemere Community Land Trust in the Rockaways. “We see COPA as a crucial step toward reparations for Black communities harmed by decades of redlining and disinvestment. Let’s pass COPA and Public Land for Public Good to give all New York City’s tenants and CLTs the tools they need to bring land into community control.”
“Having lived in the same apartment in Hell’s Kitchen for more than forty years and having witnessed firsthand the devastating effects the action and inaction of a predatory landlord has had on my fellow tenants and neighbors, I believe it is high time that the city allow the community to decide for itself what is in its own best interest,” said Nicholas Latimer, Tenants’ Association leader at 438/440 W. 45th Street, apartment buildings formerly owned by Daniel Ohebshalom, a NYC ‘worst landlord’ as declared by the NYC Public Advocate’s Office. “It does not take an army of outside developers to shape the future of our shared spaces. It takes a village. And the village is ready, willing, and more than able to do the necessary work.”
“TakeRoot is grateful for the leadership of our Council allies for working to abolish and replace Guiliani’s lien sale with a municipal debt collection system that is accountable to our neighborhoods and sensitive to the needs of both tenants and homeowners,” said Paula Z. Segal, Senior Staff Attorney in the TakeRoot Justice Equitable Neighborhoods unit. “Passing COPA will level the playing field for tenants and the community-based organizations when properties hit the market. The Community Land Act strikes a balance between tenant power and property rights, pointing to a City that generations of working-class New Yorkers will be able to call home.”
“COPA and TOPA would let residents like us stay in our homes and keep our neighborhoods from becoming playgrounds for the wealthy. The tenants in this city are at a disadvantage, fighting against millionaires, billionaires, and increasingly, private equity. It’s a David vs. Goliath fight. Let’s pass the Community Land Act in the City Council and TOPA in the State Legislature to level the playing field,” said John Leyva, a tenant leader at 63 Tiffany Place.
“St. Nicks Alliance urges the passage of the Community Opportunity to Purchase Act (COPA), and we are incredibly grateful for the leadership of Councilwoman Sandy Nurse in spearheading this historic campaign,” said Rolando Guzman, Deputy Director Community Preservation at St Nicks Alliance. “This legislation will provide organized tenants across New York City with new tools to interrupt the cycle of sales and purchases of over-leveraged, rent-stabilized buildings. It offers tenants a crucial first opportunity to purchase their homes, thereby preventing the displacement of more rent-stabilized residents.”
“Nonprofit developers and community-based organizations like WHEDco exist for one purpose: to put people and communities first. In neighborhoods where speculative, for-profit ownership can destabilize families and drive displacement, it is essential that mission-driven organizations have the ability to own and steward the physical assets that anchor community life. We have seen firsthand in the Bronx how stable, affordable housing preserves culture, strengthens local economies, and allows generations of families to remain rooted in the places they call home,” said Davon Russell, President of the Women’s Housing and Economic Development Corporation (WHEDco). “The Community Opportunity to Purchase Act—paired with sufficient financing and support from New York City—would give nonprofits the first chance to acquire and preserve buildings in a cash-driven market, ensuring that long-term affordability and community-serving infrastructure remain in the hands of those who are accountable to residents themselves. COPA is not just a policy tool; it is a powerful commitment to sustaining the communities and cultures that make New York City extraordinary in the eyes of the world.”
“The Community Opportunity to Purchase Act is a vital tool to combat displacement and preserve affordability in our neighborhoods. For decades, the Fifth Avenue Committee has worked to ensure that low- and moderate-income New Yorkers can remain in the communities they helped build. COPA empowers mission-driven nonprofits like ours to compete with speculative buyers and ensure housing remains affordable for community residents for generations to come. We urge the City Council to pass this legislation and give communities a fighting chance to stay rooted,” said Michelle de la Uz, Executive Director of the Fifth Avenue Committee.
“As we continue to face a housing and homelessness crisis, we must commit to building and preserving affordable housing for those who need it most,” said Will Depoo, Senior Campaign Organizer at the Association for Neighborhood and Housing Development. “COPA provides our communities with a key tool to fight speculation, move distressed buildings into the hands of responsible community stewards, and ensure that public resources go where they’re most needed.”
“The Belmont Arthur Ave Local Development Corporation supports the enactment of the Community Opportunity to purchase Act (COPA) by the City Council as an important housing stabilization tool to foster and help preserve affordable housing throughout New York City and especially in the Bronx where BAALDC owns and manages thousands of units,” said Joseph Cicciu, Executive Director of Belmont Arthur Ave LDC. “When and if privately owned buildings fall into foreclosure and lack the resources to remain viable, their deterioration undermines neighboring properties like ours and contributes to the deterioration of the communities surrounding them.”
“Offering non-profit Community Development Organizations (CDOs) a right of first offer and right of refusal when privately owned buildings are placed on the market for sale would yield enormous benefits for communities across New York City,” said Yvonne Stennett, Executive Director of Community League of the Heights (CLOTH). “First, it will help curb speculation and the ill-desired effect of displacement that often accompanies it—particularly in rapidly gentrifying neighborhoods. The COPA initiative would also expand New York City’s affordable housing inventory. It would enhance the viability of HPD Neighborhood Pillars Program, which would in turn help stabilize communities by ensuring that properties are rehabilitated and made affordable, with a focus on long term neighborhood development rather than the short-term term profit motive that generally accompanies private developments.”
“We have been involved with the fight to preserve and create affordable housing around Jamaica for more than 50 years. We have approached this issue from multiple angles and the Community Land Act is a common sense tactic that includes measures proven successful in other cities,” said Justin Rodgers, President & CEO of the Greater Jamaica Development Corporation. “Furthermore, this bill gives communities more control of their own present and future. We urge the NYC Council to pass this important legislation.”
“Through COPA, nonprofits like The Doe Fund would be able to fast-track highly affordable housing with on-site supportive services for our most vulnerable neighbors. We know this model works; last year, we opened a new residence through a similar program — providing long-term stability for 64 New Yorkers. We urge the City Council to pass COPA and bring the affordable housing this city so desperately needs,” said John McDonald, Executive Vice President of Real Estate at The Doe Fund.
“The Youth Alliance for Housing is made of young people from New York, and we are fighting to ensure we can grow old in the communities we grew up in. We refuse to let our city turn into a glass playground for the rich. COPA will be critical in preventing the displacement of long standing residents and preserving affordable housing in NYC,” said Justin Liriano, a member leader at The Youth Alliance for Housing.
“COPA is a crucial step forward to keep homes affordable and in community hands while creating new pathways to homeownership for lower-income New Yorkers. Speculation is still squeezing out long-term owners and boxing out new buyers, and the tax lien sale puts another target on the homes of our vulnerable neighbors,” said Christie Peale, CEO and Executive Director of the Center for NYC Neighborhoods. “The Council should pass COPA now and end the tax lien sale for good. Together we can help shape a new housing ecosystem that supports ownership models tailored to our communities and increases access to homeownership for a more equitable New York.”
“The Cypress Hills Local Development Corporation stands in strong support of the Community Opportunity to Purchase Act. This policy would be a game-changing vehicle for the preservation of affordable housing in neighborhoods like East New York,” said Michelle Neugebauer, executive director of Cypress Hills Local Development Corporation, Inc. “Paired with adequate funding, COPA would give mission-driven developers the tools to bring much-needed repairs and permanent affordability to thousands of units citywide. We call upon the City to pass this legislation and implement it without delay.”
“For decades, Carroll Gardens Association has fought to keep Brooklyn affordable for working families by developing and managing housing, and advocating for tenant rights. In the neighborhoods in Southwest Brooklyn, however, we see every day how gentrification threatens to displace long-time residents and makes it increasingly difficult for families to set down roots,” said Ben Fuller-Googins, executive director of Carroll Gardens Association. “The Community Opportunity to Purchase Act is exactly the kind of tool we need to protect tenants and preserve affordability. We urge the City Council to move now and pass these bills before the end of the year.”
“Cooperators United for Mitchell-Lama (CU4ML) strongly supports the passage of COPA, which will assist in preserving and transforming multifamily buildings into affordable social housing that is controlled by the local community. Imagine another round of neighborhood renaissances such as that which flowed from the housing stability produced by Mitchell-Lama cooperatives over the past 60 years!” said Adele Niederman, president of CU4ML.
“For domestic violence survivors, who are often left with nothing after escaping an abusive relationship, having a safe and affordable place to call home is the first step toward recovery and healing. As rent levels in New York continue to see record highs, the Community Opportunity to Purchase Act gives our city the opportunity to put more units into the hands of nonprofits that are committed to creating and preserving the affordable homes that survivors and many other New Yorkers need,” said Nicole Branca, CEO of New Destiny Housing. “We look forward to working with Council Member Nurse and our nonprofit peers to ensure COPA is passed in New York City.”