Feed aggregator

Zohran Mamdani Swaps One-Bedroom Rent-Stabilized Queens Apartment for NYC’s Sprawling Gracie Mansion

Matzav -

After weeks of speculation about whether he’d stay in his modest Queens rental, incoming Mayor Zohran Mamdani confirmed that he and his wife, Rama Duwaji, will pack up their Astoria apartment and settle into Gracie Mansion once he’s sworn in. The choice, he explained, wasn’t symbolic or political — it was personal.

“My wife Rama and I have made the decision to move into Gracie Mansion in January,” he said, making clear that the move was driven by concerns close to home.

“This decision came down to our family’s safety and the importance of dedicating all of my focus on enacting the affordability agenda New Yorkers voted for.”

For years, Mamdani’s critics hammered him for his rent-stabilized, $2,300 one-bedroom — a setup they said was wildly out of sync with his six-figure earnings in the Assembly and his calls for sweeping rent freezes. The tension around the apartment only intensified during the mayoral campaign, with opponents repeatedly framing his living situation as hypocritical.

Even as the firestorm built, Mamdani stayed largely silent about whether he’d abandon the Astoria unit for the official residence on the Upper East Side. He finally broke that silence, framing the decision within his broader vision for the city.

“My priority, always, is serving the people who call this city home. I will be a mayor for the line cooks on Steinway, for the children swinging at Dutch Kills Playground, for the bus riders waiting for the Q101,” he said.

“While I may no longer live in Astoria, Astoria will always live inside me and the work I do.”

Throughout the campaign, opponents seized on his apartment as a political weak point. Andrew Cuomo — running as an independent — accused Mamdani of misusing the rent-regulated system, arguing that someone with his family background shouldn’t occupy a unit that could go to a struggling tenant.

Mamdani, the son of filmmaker Mira Nair and Columbia professor Mahmood Mamdani, pushed back throughout the race. He has long maintained that when he first moved in, he had no idea the place was rent-stabilized. His team also pointed out that he’d been earning only $47,000 at the time.

Still, even as he prepares to step into the mayoralty, Mamdani acknowledged that leaving his longtime home won’t be easy. He reflected on the details of daily life in the building that had shaped his years in Astoria.

“Cooking dinner side by side in our kitchen, sharing a sleepy elevator ride with our neighbors in the evening, hearing music and laughter vibrate through the walls of the apartment,” Mamdani said.

“To Astoria: thank you for showing us the best of New York City. We have called this neighborhood home as our city weathered a devastating pandemic, cruel attacks on immigrants, and years of an affordability crisis,” he continued.

“Time and again, this community has shown up for one another. We will miss it all — the endless Adeni chai, the spirited conversations in Spanish, Arabic and every language in between, the aromas of seafood and shawarma drifting down the block.”

{Matzav.com}

Jasmine Crockett Launches Campaign for Texas Senate Seat

Yeshiva World News -

Jasmine Crockett Launches Texas Senate Campaign Jasmine Crockett filed Monday to run in the Democratic Senate primary. She’ll face James Talarico, who raised $6.2M early. * Colin Allred dropped out and filed for the new 33rd District after the Supreme Court approved Texas’ new map. * Allred said a “bruising primary” would hurt Democrats. * […]

Pages

Subscribe to NativUSA Portal aggregator