Westchester County Executive George Latimer (photo: Don Pollard/Governor's Office)

June 28, 2023 - Max Politics Podcast: Westchester County Executive George Latimer on 'The Suburbs'

Westchester County Executive George Latimer, a Democrat, joined the show to discuss what's happening in his county, suburban politics north of New York City, differences between Westchester and Long Island, and more.

Listen to the conversation and let us know what you think, on Twitter @TweetBenMax. You can listen to the show through

A potential site for housing (photo: Kevin P. Coughlin/Governor's Office)

For months, Governor Kathy Hochul and members of the Legislature have reiterated that housing is one of the state’s most pressing crises. However, throughout the 2023 Albany calendar — state budget season followed by the post-budget legislative session that ended earlier this month — they have struggled to agree on much beyond that. The Democratic governor just beginning her first full term in the role and the Democratic supermajorities in the two legislative houses did not agree on a package of substantial legislative action

Zoning and housing in focus (photo: Michael Appleton/Mayor's Office)

Zoning is often discussed like it’s an occult force with mystical powers. I’ve spent decades overseeing New York City’s zoning, and I promise, it’s not magic. It’s an important planning tool to direct where the housing, jobs, and other facilities the city needs can be added, but its mystique can obscure important realities. 

The misuse of zoning, often driven by good intentions, is a major cause of the structural housing shortage that drives up housing

Governor Hochul talks housing affordability (photo: Governor's Office)

For much of the 10-year Reign of Terror that was the governorship of Andrew Cuomo, New York’s State Senate and Assembly were subservient to his will (the strengthening of rent regulation in 2019 was the most notable policy exception). Kathy Hochul, New York’s current Governor, has had a quite different experience: in the first six months of her first full term, the Legislature flexed its muscles by rejecting Hochul’s initial nominee to become Chief Judge of the state’s highest court, and

Senator Julia Salazar, center (photo: NYS Senate Media Services)

June 13, 2023 - Max Politics Podcast: Senator Julia Salazar on State Housing Policy & Good Cause Eviction Negotiations

State Senator Julia Salazar, a Brooklyn Democrat and democratic socialist, joined the show to discuss state housing policy negotiations, the Legislature's failure to pass a housing plan, and her ongoing push for Good Cause Eviction legislation.

Listen to the conversation and let us know what you think, on Twitter @TweetBenMax. You can listen

State Senator Brian Kavanagh (photo: Darren McGee/Governor's Office)

June 14, 2023 - Max Politics Podcast: Senate Housing Chair Brian Kavanagh on State Negotiations & What Comes Next

State Senator Brian Kavanagh, a Manhattan Democrat and chair of the Senate housing committee, joined the show to discuss the lack of a state housing policy deal during the 2023 legislative session and what comes next.

Listen to the conversation and let us know what you think, on Twitter @TweetBenMax. You can listen to the show

Housing in focus (photo: Mayor's Office)

On June 27, most people in this city will do nothing out of the ordinary. More than three-quarters of New Yorkers will go about their day like any other Tuesday.

But the remaining 25% or so — if we’re lucky — will get to decide most of the 51 members of the New York City Council. The majority of those voters (including those who vote early or by mail) will also cast a ballot for a district attorney, judge, or other local office.

In yet

Governor Hochul (photo: Kevin P. Coughlin/Office of the Governor)

The most pressing issue facing New York is a lack of housing. A Regional Plan Associationanalysis shows that the state needs to build 817,000 more homes over the next decade to address shortages and meet expected population and job growth – the root cause of many symptoms currently ailing New York City.

For example, according to the city’s most recent...

Housing focus (photo: Ed Reed/Mayoral Photography Office)

Affordable housing construction in New York has declined significantly in the last few years in the wake of COVID-19 through a combination of factors including higher interest rates, inflation and supply chain instability resulting from the overall disruption of the pandemic. But a key factor that real estate developers, city and state government officials, and many housing advocates cite is the expiration of the state’s 421-a property tax exemption for the construction of affordable housing as part of larger rental housing developments.

Mayor Adams talks housing (photo: Ed Reed/Mayoral Photography Office)

Once upon a time - also known as January 10 - Governor Kathy Hochul presented her vision for New York State. The centerpiece of her agenda was her New York Housing Compact, the most aggressive and ambitious plan to tackle the housing crisis in recent memory. The

Ground-breaking (photo: Ed Reed/Mayoral Photography Office)

May 19, 2023 - Max Politics Podcast: Top City & State Housing Officials on the NYS Budget Impasse and What Comes Next, with Jessica Katz & RuthAnne Visnauskas

At the annual NYSAFAH affordable housing conference in Manhattan, Max Politics host Ben Max of Gotham Gazette moderated a discussion with New York City Chief Housing Officer Jessica Katz and New York State Housing Commissioner RuthAnne Visnauskas about the state budget failure on housing and what comes next at the state and city levels.

Listen to the

Housing (photo: Michael Appleton/Mayoral Photography Office)

New York State’s drawn-out budget process is finally done, but the largest issue in the minds of New Yorkers, housing, was virtually untouched. 

Thousands of New Yorkers are struggling to find housing options they can afford, millions of square feet of commercial space sits empty, and more than77,000

Housing on the board (photo: Michael Appleton/Mayoral Photography Office)

May 11, 2023 - Max Politics Podcast: The Push for Housing Development in New York, with Basha Gerhards of REBNY

Basha Gerhards, senior vice president of planning at REBNY, joined the show to discuss housing policy at the city and state levels, disappointment in the recent state budget agreement, and more.

Listen to the conversation and let us know what you think, on Twitter @TweetBenMax. You can listen to the show through the embedded audio below or

Senator Gustavo Rivera (photo: NYS Senate Media Services)

May 4, 2023 - Max Politics Podcast: Senator Gustavo Rivera on the New State Budget

State Senator Gustavo Rivera, a Bronx Democrat and chair of the Senate health committee, joined the show to discuss the newly-passed $229 billion state budget for the 2023-2024 fiscal year, which began April 1.

Listen to the conversation and let us know what you think, on Twitter @TweetBenMax. You can listen to the show through the embedded audio below or download the episode wherever you

Gov. Hochul (photo: Mike Groll/Office of Governor Kathy Hochul)

April 25, 2023 - Max Politics Podcast: Housing Policy Falls Out of the State Budget, with Cea Weaver

Cea Weaver, campaign coordinator for Housing Justice for All, joined the show to discuss state budget negotiations, the apparent demise of negotiations over housing policy, and the left-wing perspective on the issue and key components of the debate, including Good Cause Eviction, the governor's Housing Compact, and more.

Listen to the conversation and let us know what you think, on Twitter ...

Manhattan Borough President Mark Levine (photo: William Alatriste/NYC Council)

Manhattan Borough President Mark Levine is taking aim at housing, sidewalk scaffolding, and more as his second year in the borough-wide office progresses.

This week, Levine announced an online portal for Manhattan residents to suggest potential sites or vacant lots that can be developed into housing, as part of Levine’s “Housing Manhattanites” plan. The plan, which Levine announced during his State of the Borough address in January, laid out his

A place to call home (photo: Michael Appleton/Mayor's Office)

As Governor Kathy Hochul tries to convince the Legislature to support her ambitious housing agenda focused on increasing the supply of homes, legislators seem unwilling to do so without including in a state budget deal major protections for current tenants including a new rental voucher program.

The Housing Access Voucher Program (HAVP) would provide state-funded rental subsidy vouchers to those experiencing homelessness or facing evictions and at risk of homelessness, regardless of immigration status. The bill is sponsored by

Gov. Hochul talks housing (photo: Kevin P. Coughlin/Governor's Office)

Governor Kathy Hochul is attempting a major course correction in New York’s approach to housing creation in this year’s state budget and the stakes couldn’t be higher. For the governor, weakened after a tighter-than-expected election that won her a first full-term, it could be a major legacy-making achievement even if its effects aren’t felt immediately. And for New Yorkers, it could be the first meaningful step towards truly easing the state’s acute housing shortage and reducing the atmospheric cost of housing in the

Senator Liz Krueger (photo: NY Senate)

Lawmakers in Albany are in the midst of crafting a new budget, with negotiations now stretching beyond the April 1 start of the new fiscal year. Democratic Governor Kathy Hochul and the two houses of the State Legislature, both with Democratic supermajorities, are likely to pass a budget “extender” so the state can pay its bills, especially payroll, as they continue negotiations this week.

State Senator Liz Krueger, a Manhattan Democrat who leads the Senate’s finance committee, has been at the center of the budget process, co-chairing weeks of legislative hearings on

Mayor Adams wants housing (photo: Michael Appleton/Mayoral Photography Office)

2023 began with the promise that both the State and the City of New York would finally get their acts together and take on a housing crisis that may already be handicapping our ability to recover fully from COVID-19 and certainly threatens to hamper our growth.

The good news is that Governor Kathy Hochul and Mayor Eric Adams share substantially similar visions and that the Governor, through the housing plan in her Executive Budget, is seeking to give the City the tools critical to achieving its goals. The bad news

Celebrating housing policy (photo: Darren McGee/Governor's Office)

Of the almost600,000 people experiencing homelessness in the United States on any given night in 2022, more than half of them were in one of four states -- New York, California, Florida, and Washington -- with New York alone accounting for 13% of the total homeless population, over 90,000

The Governor, Mayor, ABNY leaders, Richard Buery & Dan Doctoroff (photo: Governor's Office)

As final negotiations over the state budget take place in Albany, a panel of experts convened by Governor Kathy Hochul and Mayor Eric Adams are urging the State Legislature to support a series of proposals to tackle the state’s immense need for new housing. 

In June 2022, the governor and mayor assembled the 'New' New York panel of more than 50 experts and leaders across labor, business, academic, nonprofit, and philanthropic circles to advise them on the future of the city and state. The panel was

NYS Housing Commissioner RuthAnne Visnauskas (photo: Mike Groll/Governor's Office)

March 29, 2023 - Max Politics Podcast: Commissioner RuthAnne Visnauskas on Governor Hochul's 'New York Housing Compact'

New York State Housing Commissioner RuthAnne Visnauskas joined the show to discuss Governor Kathy Hochul's New York Housing Compact proposal, negotiations with the Legislature, meetings around the state to discuss the plan, and more.

Listen to the conversation and let us know what you think, on Twitter @TweetBenMax. You can

Gov. Hochul signs a bill for hotel to housing conversions (photo: Michael Appleton/Mayor's Office)

In 2016, the City Council adopted mandatory inclusionary housing (MIH), city legislation requiring for the first time that in any rezoning or other regulatory change that created or expanded the right to build apartments — in a neighborhood, or in a single building — at least 20% of the new housing had to be affordable, and affordable in perpetuity.  

The foundational concept was simple: if government gives a developer

Bronx Borough President Vanessa Gibson (photo: William Alatriste/City Council)

Vanessa Gibson ran for Bronx Borough President in 2021 on a platform focused on improving public housing and jumpstarting COVID-19 recovery. Now, just over one year into her term, she is advancing her agenda with a focus on public health, economic and housing development, and more. Gibson recognizes the Bronx’s many challenges, including as the borough with the highest rates of unemployment, poverty,