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Syracuse residents and advocacy groups gathered Monday evening at the Southwest Community Center for a Good Cause Community Town Hall, where they discussed the potential impacts of implementing New York state’s Good Cause Eviction Law in the city.

The town hall included a panel of seven local officials, including Syracuse City Auditor Alex Marion, Onondaga County Legislator Maurice “Mo” Brown and 3rd District Councilor Corey J. Williams. Panelists introduced themselves by affirming their support of Good Cause.

If the Syracuse City Common Council opts the city into Good Cause, the law would prevent unnecessary evictions and excessive rent increases while still allowing landlords to reasonably increase rates to reflect rising costs. A vote on Good Cause has been on the council’s meeting agendas since September, but has been repeatedly delayed.

“That eviction crisis is leaning towards increased homelessness and other societal ills and instability,” Marion said. “So Good Cause Eviction will not be the only thing you need to do to address some of these challenges, it’s a huge part of that puzzle.”

The town hall began with attendees asking panelists questions about how the law works and what local problems it would address. Many attendees highlighted the increasing number of people who are experiencing homelessness in Syracuse and the need to hold landlords responsible for unreasonable evictions.

“Why is it not assumed that people have some basic rights, and it’s the government’s job to protect those rights?” Peter McCarthy, a resident of Syracuse’s Eastside neighborhood, said. “Wealth and power increasingly concentrated at the top of this country and the power of the government is being increasingly used to oppress people that don’t have power.”

In January 2024, the Housing and Homelessness Coalition of Central New York reported that the rate of homelessness in central New York had increased by 75% from 2023. The Syracuse City Court issues around 160 eviction warrants a month, and many of those tenants end up homeless, syracuse.com reported.

Rent prices for one-bedroom apartments in Syracuse have increased an average of 22% in the past year — the greatest one-year increase of any municipality in the country.

Some attendees called attention to landlords who they said are unreliable and ignore complaints about lead and sewage, among other issues. Some alleged their landlords have evicted tenants so they can increase prices for incoming renters, including Syracuse University students.

In response, Marion urged tenants to advocate for Good Cause to their friends and neighbors, as well as contact their local officials.

“How can we hold landlords accountable?” Marion said. “What we need to be doing right now is to be contacting our common councilors to say, ‘We need to pass Good Cause,’ and keep it as simple as that.”

Brycen Pace | Asst. Photo Editor

If the Syracuse City Common Council opts the city into Good Cause would prevent unnecessary evictions and excessive rent increases while still allowing landlords to reasonably increase rates to reflect rising costs.

Before the meeting, its organizers also hosted a Tenants’ Rights and Resource Fair, where groups who support the law set up tables with information, pamphlets and apparel. Some included Syracuse Tenants Union, Central New York Fair Housing and Citizen Action of NY.

“It’s kind of a great group of organizations that are supporting the community in different ways,” Jocelyn Richards, a tenant organizer with the union, said.

Richards said one of the organization’s goals is outreach to encourage community members not only to petition for Good Cause and hold their elected officials accountable, but also to educate themselves on how the law works.

Brown, the 15th district county legislator, said while Good Cause is a step in a positive direction, it’s only one portion of the housing problems in Syracuse.

“Good Cause is the sauce. You still need the cheese, you still need the bread, you still need the garlic, but you need the sauce,” Brown said. “Yes, we need to build more housing. Yes, we need to invest in these communities … but you gotta have the sauce.”

Another issue attendees brought up in the town hall was how Good Cause could hurt landlords, though several panelists said they believe some well-intentioned landlords would be unaffected by the law.

Many attendees and panelists stressed that seven out of nine common councilors will be up for reelection next November and, if they don’t support Good Cause, then the community has the power to elect new officials.

At the end of the meeting, volunteers and panel members distributed a flier that pointed attendees to a petition calling on councilors to support the strongest version of Good Cause, along with other initiatives about rent stabilization and improving housing conditions.

Cities across New York state, including Albany, Nyack, Kingston, Ithaca, New Paltz, Beacon and Poughkeepsie have already opted into Good Cause.

The Common Council is currently deliberating the law while weighing input from the community. Its next opportunity to vote on the law will be during its Nov. 25 meeting.

Published on November 20, 2024 at 1:04 am

Contact Kate: kjacks19@syr.edu