Press conference - Asian American Legal Defense and Education Fund - possible legal action regarding preemptive taxation of property owners in Chinatown

Chinatown property owners with Asian American Legal Defense and Education Fund attorney Bethany Li and communications coordinator Ujala Sehgal held a press conference today 

to Protest Thousands in Illegal "BID" Fees Charged by Department of Finance

On March 20, 2012, the Asian American Legal Defense and Education Fund (AALDEF), the Property Tax Payers' Association, and small property owners in Chinatown held a press conference to protest the illegal and excessive fees that the New York City Department of Finance has charged small property owners in Chinatown.

Last year, the City Council voted to require property owners in Chinatown to pay additional fees by creating a Business Improvement District (BID), despite vigorous protests from property owners that the BID fees would put them out of business and lead to increased gentrification of their community.

Now that the Chinatown BID is in place, the Department of Finance has charged the same property owners fees for being within BID boundaries for months before the BID even existed. Property owners were charged fees on their property tax statements for the full fiscal year of 2011-2012, even though the Chinatown BID did not exist until January 31, 2012.

"Chinatown property owners should not be retroactively charged a period of time for an entity that did not even exist until just a month and a half ago. The Department of Finance must take immediate corrective action," said Bethany Li of AALDEF, which is representing the Property Tax Payers Association, a group formed to protect the rights of small property owners in Chinatown.

"Hundreds of property owners objected to the BID and now the City is charging us for something we didn't want, for a period before the BID even existed." said Jan Lee, a property owner in Chinatown.

AALDEF is prepared to file a lawsuit if the Department of Finance does not correct the unlawful assessment for the Chinatown BID.


To see the Sinovision story click here

....and another thing....... (a property owner sets the record straight about the Chinatown BID)

To the editor:
Re: Support the Chinatown B.I.D. (Downtown Express editorial, July 20)

We, the Chinatown B.I.D. opponents, do not believe the Chinatown B.I.D. steering committee’s claim that everyone will be paying a small amount for large benefits. Their own formation documents lay the keys to their power and their ability to increase their collection of much more money from the taxpayers if they so desired.

This fine print in the B.I.D. (Chinatown B.I.D. N110156BDM Source of Funding) places the property owners in the vulnerable position of potentially being liable for increases up to 20 percent. An additional 20 percent in taxes is a frightening prospect for anyone, let alone for small property owners who have had to pay steadily increasing property taxes, increased water bills, increased utility bills, increased fuel bills, increased maintenance costs, and comply with Local Law 11 (periodic inspections of building façades).

If the B.I.D. is mismanaged and fails, the B.I.D.’s proponents can smile with their hands in the till, while the property owners are stuck scrambling to pay the bill ad infinitum. If the property owner cannot pay for the levied taxes assessed by the B.I.D., they will lose their property!

Considering how the pro-B.I.D. organizers have prevented their opponents from legally voicing their opposition to the B.I.D., attempted to distort their own ballot results, and bashed us in the press when we have tried to educate the community about a B.I.D., how can we trust them? We cannot. Therefore it is likely they will use similar deceptive tactics in the future when attempting to persuade the City Council to increase their B.I.D. fees up to 20 percent, maximum, if they so desired. At that point, the property owners and businesses will be devastated!

Unlike other B.I.D.s, which have many large properties or a large number of commercial tenants that can help offset the costs, many of the Chinatown properties are small. There is a limit as to how much the owners and businesses can realistically afford the B.I.D. fees/taxes before pulling up stakes — thereby leaving fertile ground for developers who will, in essence, force the small businesses and Chinatown residents out. The B.I.D. is steering our Chinatown community not toward boom, but bust!
Eugene Leung, Mott St.

The Chinatown B.I.D. will tax Property Owners and Businesses to clean up The City's Property !!!!

" The BID will clean the sidewalks in front of the parks, as it will clean all the sidewalks, including those in front of schools, churches, government buildings and your home and place of business."  - David J. Louie, Chinatown BID steering committee - Chairman Chinatown Chamber of Commerce




Hundreds of hours will be billed to Chinatown property owners and businesses to clean up NYC's government and public spaces if a Chinatown B.I.D. is passed in City Council.

• The CPLDC has quietly, very quietly added these properties to their service area. Not one piece of 56,0000 mailed "outreach" materials explains that Chinatown Businesses will be paying to keep City property clear of litter. Talk about triple taxation. 
• How many hours will BID workers spend cleaning in front of government owned property? 
• Non Profit organizations don't own brooms and dustpans? Aren't BIDs supposed to be failsafes against free loaders? Last we checked NYC school budgets come from NYC Taxes - so does the school janitor's salary.
• Why arent' the public buildings cleaned by the BID pointed out in the BID literature?

Since they don't tell you all facts associated with the Chinatown BID, we will:


There's quite a number of city-owned government properties that the community will have to pay to maintain the blocks. They include:

• Columbus Park (which was promised to be removed by CPLDC, yet remains in the BID)
• Roosevelt Park
• DCAS building at 125 Walker Street (between Centre & Baxter Street)
• Former school at 70 Mulberry Street
• Police Department at 19 Elizabeth Street
• Federal parking garage at 137-145 Lafayette Street
• School at 145 Baxter Street
• School at 137 Baxter Street
• DEP at 57 Monroe Street
• DEP at 144 Madison Street
• DOT at 127 Madison Street
• Sanitation at 72 Henry Street
• DEP at 141 Madison Street
• School playground at 34 Catherine Street
• School at 2 Henry Street
• New York Public Library at 33 East Broadway
• Park at 10 Market Street
• DOT at 87 East Broadway
• DOT at 85 East Broadway
• City of NY Building at 88 East Broadway
• Post Office at 128 East Broadway
• Fire Department at 75-79 Canal Street
• IS 131 at 36 Forsyth Street
• NYCHA housing (Seward Park Extension) at 45 Allen Street
• DCAS at 117 Chrystie Street
• Fire Department at 363 Broome Street
• DEP at 142-148 Grand Street
• And finally the Louis J. Lefkowitz Building at 141 Worth St. (the ENTIRE SQUARE BLOCK!) which is now the City's marriage Bureau, formerly the motor vehicles building.

City owned properties and all houses of worship are BID tax exempt. Also Asian Americans For Equality's office at 109 Division Street is BID tax exempt. Asian Americans For Equality is lead agency in support and creation of a Chinatown B.I.D. for well over a decade. Councilmember Margaret Chin is a principal at Asian Americans For Equality as a founding member. According to The Chinatown Partnership Local Development Corp. (also founded by Councilmember Margaret Chin) IRS 990 filings for fiscal year 7/1/06 to 6/30/07  $71,508.00 was paid to Asian Americans For Equality from The Chinatown Partnership LDC.