City Council passes hotel conversion bill

A bill making hotel-to-condo conversions much more difficult that was strongly opposed by the Real Estate Board of New York passed a City Council vote on Thursday, despite some opposition.

The bill puts a two-year moratorium on hotel owners converting over 20 percent of their rooms to condo units without special board approval, during which time the city will study the effect of hotel conversions on the economy, Capital New York reported.

Eight members voted against it, including Councilmember Inez Dickens. Councilmember Corey Johnson is the bill’s sponsor.

“Although this new revised bill tried to address some of the issues property owners had, their property rights are still being denied without an explanation or a clear purpose,” she said.

Mayor Bill de Blasio supports the measure, along with Hotel Trades Council, which sees it as a way to protect union hotel jobs.

However, REBNY president Steven Spinola has called the measure illegal. [Capital NY] — Tess Hofmann