City Council Speaker Christine Quinn vowed to build 40,000 affordable, middle-class apartments over the next 10 year during her final State of the City speech as speaker Monday.
Quinn, who is widely expected to officially launch her bid for mayor soon, described the initiative — which was one of a series designed to bolster the city’s middle class — as “the biggest commitment to middle class affordability that this city has seen in two generations.”
“We face an affordability crisis in our city,” Quinn told the audience gathered in the City Council chambers. “We need to make sure that the people who want to stay in our great city can afford to stay.”
Quinn said she would pay for the effort through a combination of government efficiencies and more debt, arguing that borrowing was “the right move at the right time” because of record-low interest rates.
“This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to invest in our middle class,” she said.
Quinn also announced plans for a new childcare tax credit for families making up to $150,000 a year to help cover the costs of childcare, which are the highest in the nation.
Join the official YWN WhatsApp status
