Advocating for Safe & Legal Basement Apartments in NYC 

Basement and cellar apartments are legal in only a handful of neighborhoods in New York City. But legal or not, these units are a prevalent form of housing throughout the city, and one of the only affordable options in many communities. When eleven New Yorkers drowned in their basement apartments in 2021 following unprecedented rainfall from Hurricane Ida, almost overnight this overlooked housing issue became an urgent climate justice issue. Using smart communications strategies, my team helped a group of housing advocates and organizers catalyze a movement to bring these units out of the shadows and make them safe. 

Following the storm, my team and I collaborated with longstanding partners in impacted communities, releasing new research, responding to media requests, and using this “wake-up call” moment to rally state legislators to take measures to protect vulnerable basement tenants. 

We released new research showing that unregulated basement apartments are concentrated in communities of color in Brooklyn and Queens already facing disproportionate levels of rent burden. Our policy brief made the case that basement apartments in NYC were a clear example of the intersecting crises of housing and climate injustices.   

To ensure the coalition’s communications were aligned and impactful, I helped create a policy blueprint and other tools including a slide deck and pledge cards for coalition members to use when briefing elected officials.

To mark the one- and two-year anniversaries of Ida, the coalition organized press conferences and rallies with advocates and leaders across the city. I worked with a designer on my team to create artwork for promoting the rallies, and developed campaign posters to create greater visual impact for the coalition and its members.

After 2.5 years of tireless advocacy by members of BASE, the campaign resulted in passage of a NYC Basement Apartment pilot program as part of the 2024 New York State budget.