Help landlords fix rent-stabilized units

Staten Island: The op-ed by David Jones (“Put bad NYC buildings into better hands,” Sept. 2) is not the answer for the serious deterioration of rent-stabilized properties in NYC. Tenant advocates’ and extremist local politicians’ passage of extreme rent regulations caused the destruction of rent-stabilized buildings.

When I visited the South Bronx in the early 2010s, I was amazed at how clean it was. It was becoming gentrified, and some local merchants wanted to change the name of a local section to the “Piano District.” In 2016, Mayor Bill de Blasio started with the rent freeze, and with the 2019 Housing Stability and Tenant Protection Act (HSTPA), the South Bronx started to fall apart. Today, the Bronx is becoming a slum again, and with the current rent freeze, the slums are spreading across the city.

Once buildings are taken away from private owners, it seems that the city is willing to provide grants, low-interest loans and technical support to bring them up to code. The Rent Guidelines Board has stated that 9.2% of buildings are in distress. Why can’t the city work with owners of the distressed properties and bring them back to life now? Politicians are forcing 92,000 tenants to live in decrepit conditions. The state is paying $917,000 to build one affordable unit. Give us a few dollars to provide affordable housing, maintain it and survive.

Long Branch, L.I.: Once again, we have a fatal police shooting (“Carnage in Midtown,” Sept. 1). Yes, the shooting victim had two knives and had stabbed two people, killing one. However, she was said to be mentally........

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