Jess’s Vision

Housing is a right, not a luxury. But right now, sky-high rents and a lack of affordable options are pushing us out of our city. Too many families and young people feel powerless, unsure if they can afford to stay, and stuck in a cycle of anxiety. The solutions are too simple to accept excuses. 

Fix the Rigged Market

• Slash restrictive zoning laws that foster segregation and drive up rents.

• Increase the supply of housing to reduce landlord power and give tenants real choices.

Empower Renters, Not Landlords

• Strengthen Good Cause Eviction, allowing tenants to challenge outrageous rent hikes.

• Expand cooperatives and community land trusts to give New Yorkers ownership, not just leases.

Public Housing That Works

• Pass a Social Housing Development Authority to build permanently affordable, mixed-income housing.

• Fully fund NYCHA and repair crumbling public housing.

• Expand the Unlocked Doors pilot and reform the Third Party Transfer Program to restore neglected housing and preserve affordability.

Nobody should feel unsafe walking in their neighborhood or riding the subway to work. Our current approach isn’t working—mental health crises go untreated while fear and disorder grow. It’s time to tackle public safety at its roots.

Housing First: Address Homelessness at the Source

• Expand outreach teams and transition individuals into stable housing.

• Invest in long-term supportive housing with on-site mental health services and streamline the application process.

Real Crime Prevention

• Crack down on repeat offenses by expanding diversion programs that connect low-level offenders to jobs and treatment instead of prison.

• Keep kids on the right path by funding universal after-school programs and guaranteeing summer jobs for at-risk youth.

• End the cycle of crime and homelessness by building thousands of supportive housing units with mental health and addiction services.

Fix Our Public Spaces

• Tear down the scaffolding that plagues our streets through better enforcement and reforming inspection requirements.

• Improve lighting and maintain vibrant, welcoming public areas.

• Regulate app-based delivery services to manage e-bike use, reduce unnecessary trips, and prevent exploitative policies incentivizing unsafe riding.

Crack Down on Hate Crimes

• Demand real enforcement and training to ensure that hate crimes are properly handled by law enforcement.

• Restore funding to the Office for the Prevention of Hate Crimes.

Lower Manhattan is leading the city in pedestrian deaths and vacant storefronts. Our streets are gridlocked, our sidewalks are crumbling, and our small businesses are struggling. This isn’t the New York we deserve or should accept. 

Put People First, Not Cars

• Expand pedestrian plazas and Open Streets to boost foot traffic and create vibrant public spaces.

• Make streets safer and more comfortable for pedestrians by expanding daylighting and slow zones.

• Stand up to President Trump and preserve congestion pricing to cut traffic and fund better transit.

• Fully fund and implement the NYC Streets Plan to improve bike and bus infrastructure.

Clean Up Our City

• Get trash bags off the sidewalks by expanding containerization citywide.

• Crack down on illegal placard parking by revoking placards and enforcing real accountability.

Support Small Businesses

• Fix the flawed outdoor dining program so more restaurants can participate.

Fund Our Public Spaces

• Fully fund the Parks Department to maintain and improve our green spaces.

• Create Public Space Teams to manage and maintain public spaces.

New York City has some of the most segregated public schools in the country. Large class sizes, underfunded programs, and admissions policies that reinforce inequality hold back our students. Every child deserves a world-class education, no matter their zip code.

Fair and Transparent Admissions

• Standardize admissions procedures to promote diversity while giving families real choices.

Invest in Our Schools

• Raise teacher pay to attract and retain top talent.

• Expand after-school programs and universal summer jobs to close the opportunity gap.

• Allocate more funding to reduce class sizes and comply with state law.

Access to quality health care isn’t a privilege—it’s a right. Too many New Yorkers are stuck navigating an underfunded system, waiting weeks for appointments, or watching their local hospital close. We need real investment in public health.

Mental Health Care, Not Just Policing

• Expand Comprehensive Psychiatric Emergency Program (CPEP) beds to ensure New Yorkers in crisis can get treatment—not be sent to Rikers or the streets.

• Reopen and fully fund the Manhattan Psychiatric Institute to provide long-term care for those who need it most.

A Fully Funded Health System

• Fully fund NYC Health + Hospitals, ensuring all New Yorkers—regardless of income or immigration status—have access to high-quality care.

• Create a Health Care Stabilization Fund to prevent hospital closures, protecting critical services in underserved neighborhoods.

Investing in Prevention

• Expand harm reduction services and substance use treatment to prevent overdoses and keep people healthy.

• Improve air quality and reduce environmental health risks, tackling pollution that disproportionately harms vulnerable communities.

New York is a union town. However, corporate interests and weak labor laws have undermined workers’ rights, driving down wages and making it harder to organize. It’s time to rebuild worker power and ensure every New Yorker has a fair deal.

Strengthen Unions, Protect Workers

• Defend the right to organize by cracking down on union-busting and protecting workers from retaliation.

• Expand project labor agreements and pass the Fair Share Act to ensure construction workers on publicly funded projects receive fair wages and benefits.

• Guarantee fair pay by closing loopholes that allow wage theft, raising wages for tipped workers, and enforcing prevailing wage laws.

Secure Stable Jobs & Benefits

• Pass the Secure Jobs Act to stop unfair firings and ensure workers have real job stability.

• Expand paid sick and family leave so workers don’t have to choose between their job and their health.

• End misclassification that robs workers—especially in construction, transportation, and gig work—of their rights and benefits.

New York has always been a beacon for LGBTQ rights, but too many still face discrimination, violence, and barriers to living freely. It’s time to go beyond symbolic gestures and ensure that every LGBTQ New Yorker has the support, safety, and dignity they deserve.

Protect Gender-Affirming Care

• Prohibit city agencies from sharing information about individuals seeking gender-affirming care to protect them from harassment and out-of-state prosecutions.

• Expand access to gender-affirming healthcare by increasing funding for clinics and prohibiting insurance discrimination.

Support LGBTQ Youth

• Fund and partner with nonprofits specializing in LGBTQ youth housing to combat homelessness and create safe, affirming spaces.

• Expand mental health services targeted to LGBTQ youth to address bullying, isolation, and suicide prevention.

Support LGBTQ Seniors

• Establish a Commission within NYC Aging to advocate for LGBTQ seniors, ensuring access to housing, healthcare, and community support without fear of discrimination.

• Expand funding for LGBTQ-friendly senior centers and services to combat isolation and discrimination in elder care.

Lower Manhattan is on the frontlines of climate change. Rising sea levels threaten our homes and businesses, while outdated policies make us more dependent on cars, aggravating the crisis. We can’t afford half-measures—we need real action to protect our neighborhoods and cut carbon emissions.

Fortify Our Communities

• Secure state and federal funding to complete long-overdue resiliency projects—no more delays, no more empty promises.

• Build infrastructure that protects Lower Manhattan from flooding and extreme weather.

Cut Car Dependence, Build for the Future

• Encourage dense, transit-oriented development by ending zoning laws that force people into cars.

• Reinstate congestion pricing to cut traffic and fund subway improvements.

Fix Public Transit, Fight Climate Change

• Fully fund the MTA’s capital plan to expand service and make transit the best option, not the last resort.

• Improve bus and subway reliability so more people can ditch their cars for good.