NYC NOW - March 25, 2024: Evening Roundup

Episode Date: March 25, 2024

24,000 new affordable housing apartments have been built since 2022. But who has access? WNYC’s Jaclyn Jeffrey-Wilensky reports. Meanwhile, a new lawsuit against a top aide for New York City Mayor Eric Adams calls into question the treatment of women throughout the entire NYPD. WNYC’s Elizabeth Kim explains the implications of the suit. Finally, dozens of activists have taken to the state Capitol to persuade lawmakers to create new protections against eviction. Albany Reporter Jon Campbell has more.

Welcome to NYC Now, your source for local news in and around New York City from WNYC. I'm NYC now producer Jared Marcel. About 24,000 new affordable apartments have been built in New York City since the start of 2022. WNYC's Jacqueline Jeffrey Wollinsky has been digging into the data to learn more about these new homes. Developers seem to be aiming for the extremes of the affordable housing spectrum. They built more than 8,000 units that are reserved for New Yorkers making less than $50,000 a year, and about the same number for people making up to $130,000 per year. For folks in the middle, though, there's not as much on offer.

Only 5% of the new units are aimed at people who make about the average median income for our area. Data suggests that even these middle-income New Yorkers are having a hard time finding an affordable place to live. For a visual breakdown of New York City's newest affordable housing, check out the story on our news website, Gothamist. Up next, a new lawsuit from a former NYPD sergeant alleges that a top aide for New York City Mayor Eric Adams sexually harassed her. We're going to look into the broader implications of that case. That's after the break. A former sergeant is suing a top aide to Mayor Eric Adams for sexual harassment. WNYC's Elizabeth Kim, Sister. with my colleague Michael Hill to talk about how this lawsuit has opened up a wider look at how women are treated within the NYPD and what it means for the mayor.

Liz, walk us through this lawsuit. Who are the people involved and what are the allegations? The suit was filed by a woman named Roxanne Ludeman. She's a retired sergeant with 18 years of experience in the NYPD, and she's come out publicly with her allegations. Her complaint centers on a alleged sexual harassment from Timothy Pearson. Pearson himself is a former NYPD inspector, but more importantly, he's a longtime friend to Mayor Adams, and he plays a central role in his administration as a top advisor. Back around 2022, Pearson was put in charge of a special NYPD unit that the mayor created and where Ludeman also worked. During that, time, she says Pearson made repeated, unwanted sexual advances toward her. He'd rub her shoulders

and back. He'd try to ask her personal questions, like about the state of her marriage, all of which was not welcomed according to the lawsuit. And when she rebuffed him, she says that he torpedoed her efforts at a promotion. So she's suing Pearson, the city, and two other top NYPD brass members. What's significant about this lawsuit? It's both the fact that she's suing a member of the mayor's inner circle, but it's also the level of detail that's included in the complaint that suggests a broader culture of sexual harassment in the NYPD.

This complaint is 55 pages long. And she talks about the behavior, things like unwanted touching, things like lewd facial expressions that Pearson would make, like licking his lips at her. And she says that it was, quote, commonplace. Now, there's a history of sexism and harassment against women in the city's police force. Like Tech and Wall Street, it's a very male-dominated place. Out of roughly 34,000 police officers, only around 20% are women. Just to give you an example, she said,

said Pearson asked her or wanted her to be his personal driver. Now, the complaint says that that's a common sexual harassment tactic in the NYPD. It's a way for male supervisors to have close one-on-one interaction with female subordinates. The suit also has witnesses to Pearson's behavior. It names two other women who are allegedly also sexually harassed and a supervisor who the complaint says walked in on Pearson while he was touching Ludeman at a party. According to the court filing, her supervisor tries to get her to file a complaint, as is required. But she initially says no.

She says that this would be, quote, career suicide. Now, to add to this, the lawsuit also names the chief of department Jeffrey Madry. He himself was sued for sexual harassment in 2016. How did Pearson and City Halls? respond to this lawsuit? Pearson has not publicly commented on the lawsuit, and he has not responded to our request for comment. The mayor's office initially put out a statement defending Pearson and even tried to discredit Ludeman.

A spokesperson maintained that a city investigation had not substantiated her claims and that investigators had tried to reach out several times and she didn't cooperate. Is that unusual for them to do? Close those details? Yes, because this is a pending lawsuit. You know, it's fair for them to say that a city investigation did not substantiate her claims. But the mayor's office took it a step further. And you can argue they crossed a line here by providing more details about the investigation.

Now, her lawsuit actually contradicts City Hall's claims. In her complaint, it says that she did speak to investigators several times, but that no action was taken. against Pearson. We should note that the mayor is also facing a lawsuit of his own involving sexual misconduct. Tell us about that, Liz, and how Adams has responded to that one. Mayor Adams is being sued for sexual assault under the Adult Survivors Act. That's a law that allowed a one-year window for people to file civil lawsuits over incidents that would normally be outside the statute of limitations. A Florida woman filed a claim in November against the mayor, but the details of that complaint have only come out recently. She and Adams both previously worked in the Transit Bureau of the

NYPD, and she says that in 1993, Adams asked her for oral sex in a car. She says that when she refused, he forced her to touch his genitals. Like the lawsuit against Pearson, the lawsuit accuses Adams of offering to help the accuser get a promotion. Now, we should point out, the mayor has vehemently denied these claims, and he said he does not recall knowing the accuser. But the lawsuit will cast a cloud over the mayor at a time when he's facing multiple campaign finance investigations and also showing signs of growing unpopularity with New Yorkers. That's my colleague Michael Hill, talking to.

to WNYC politics reporter Elizabeth Kim. The New York State budget is due by the end of March, and tenant activists are looking to convince Governor Kathy Hokel and lawmakers to include new protections against evictions. But as WNYC's John Campbell reports, their battle has been filled with ups and downs, literally. It's noon on a Tuesday, and dozens of activists are dressed in colorful t-shirts and wielding signs.

They're waiting to hop on a busy, escalator up to the main floor of the state capital. You guys have unminded by ride this with you for a little bit? A state trooper watches as the demonstrators reach the top of the escalator and turn right around and head back down and then up again and then back down. How long have you guys been doing this? 45, 35 minutes. It's state budget season in Albany and everyday activists and lobbyists are cramming

into the Capitol building. Sometimes they've got to rely on interesting ways to attract lawmakers' attention amid a sea of people trying to do the same thing. This year, housing policy is in the spotlight, and it's why people like Dorka Reynoso of Inwood

Manhattan are clogging up the escalator, trying to get their message across. We want to slow them down to listen and take a moment to make sure that they understand the power of the tenants. We're here, we're here in high numbers, and they need to see that, they need to hear that.

They're pushing a measure known as good cause eviction. It would limit annual rent increases and prevent landlords from evicting a tenant without a good cause, like non-payment. Democratic lawmakers like Senator Mike Giannarius of Queens say it has to be part of a final

housing deal. There will be no comprehensive housing program without good cause eviction protections being built from here. But the real estate industry hates the measure, and Governor Hockel has and hesitant to support it too. She says the problem is supply.

She wants to provide tax breaks to New York City developers and state grants to local governments that create new housing. I'm going to be focused on building supply and I'm certainly willing to have conversations, but it is very early in the process in terms of what will actually happen at the end of the day when a deal is struck.

Back at the Capitol, the activists keep up their protest well into the afternoon when suddenly... Did they just shut down the escalator? They just shut down. We're not stalled. The protesters are totally unfazed. They keep trudging up and down singing their songs.

That's WNYC's Albanying reporter, John Campbell. Thanks for listening to NYC now from WNYC. Catch us every weekday three times a date. I'm Jared Marcel. We'll be back tomorrow.