Jamaica is more than just a neighborhood. It’s the heart and soul of Queens — a community with a rich, multicultural heritage and a dynamism born from people of all backgrounds living side-by-side. But recently, Jamaica has been challenged with few housing options, high rents, and displacement pressures, leading many to wonder if they have a future in this city. We’re in a housing emergency. It needs an emergency response.
Today, the New York City Council is considering a plan to turn the tide. The Jamaica Neighborhood Plan will transform our urban landscape to help our communal and spiritual landscape remain intact. It foresees a Jamaica where someone can live in an affordable apartment, seniors can age in place, and New Yorkers of all incomes can feel secure.
As the pastor of First Presbyterian Church and co-chair of Queens Power, I’ve participated in thousands of meetings across Queens. Wherever I go, I hear from people desperately fighting to find a place to live. The workers who keep New York City running are hanging on by their fingernails or being forced out altogether.
I met with a bus operator who said to me, “It’s like we’re good enough to work in New York City but not to live in New York City.” This man grew up in Queens and wants to stay in Queens but feels like his city has turned its back on him. His story can’t be a reality that continues. We must build the homes that New Yorkers need — and that’s what the Jamaica Neighborhood Plan will do.
In an area where market-rate buildings go up today without any affordability, this plan would require that any new buildings with housing also include permanently income-restricted affordable homes. The 230 blocks covered by this policy would be the largest such zone ever mapped in New York City.
The result? More than 12,000 new homes, of which around 4,000 would be permanently affordable. That means around 10,000 of our brothers and sisters would have access to new apartments at low or moderate rents. And more than just rentals — this plan includes affordable homeownership opportunities, giving more folks a path to the dream of owning a home. This paradigm shift will help New Yorkers, their children, and their children’s children stay in the neighborhood they helped to build.
But this plan must include affordable homes for our lower-income neighbors. They’re the ones who are struggling the most and need the stability those homes provide. Jamaica can’t turn into Downtown Brooklyn. We need deeply affordable rentals for a wide range of working New Yorkers.
These new homes must be accompanied by investments in our quality-of-life as well. For too long, Jamaica has faced rampant flooding, a symptom of the ongoing inequality we face. The status quo can’t continue. Our neighborhood also needs more open space away from our busy streets.
Thankfully, this plan will fund $300 million in sewer system upgrades, on top of $2.6 billion already committed to improved drainage in Southeast Queens. With Jamaica on the front lines of the battle against climate change, this investment will make our home much more resilient. And new public plazas near Jamaica Station will make our community more welcoming.
The Jamaica Neighborhood Plan can make a real, positive difference. It’s what happens when we come together to advocate for the homes we deserve. It’s the result of hard work by our families, friends, congregations, civic leaders, seniors, and more. This housing plan isn’t theoretical. It is essential for them to stay in the neighborhood they love.
Our incredible elected officials, City Council Speaker Adrienne Adams and Councilmember Nantasha Williams, always put Jamaica first. This plan will make sure the community doesn’t get left behind in our city’s housing emergency. But this proposal can’t just sit on the shelf. We must act and get shovels in the ground in the immediate future, not decades from now.
If we can land this plane and deliver affordable homes, jobs, and infrastructure improvements for New Yorkers from all walks of life, we will succeed in rejuvenating our community and help it remain a jewel of New York City. We call on our leaders to enthusiastically vote for this plan and for a better Jamaica that works for everyone.
O’Connor is the lead pastor of the First Presbyterian Church in Jamaica and Co-Chair of Queens Power, a community organizing group fighting to create affordable housing.
