For more than fifteen years, the residents of 8609 Bay 16th Street endured living conditions no family should have to get used to.
Broken floor tiles that were never replaced, faulty ovens, leaking ceilings, holes in the bathroom walls, bedbugs, roaches, and open lead paint violations were a daily reality for the 32-unit building. For twin brothers Pablo and David Paxton, 21, and their little brother Kevin, 18, these conditions were simply all they had ever known growing up.
“As far as I can remember, ever since we moved in, it’s pretty much been like that,” Kevin shared. “Our landlord has never been responding to our messages, and so we were kind of just left quiet.”
That quiet was broken in January when Colette Goggin, a tenant organizer with Fifth Avenue Committee and Neighbors Helping Neighbors, knocked on their doors. Having tracked severe housing violations online, Goggin began speaking to families about coming together.
“I asked them if they were interested in coming together with their neighbors and talked to them about the power of what they could accomplish by doing that,” Goggin recalled.
The response was immediate. At the first meeting, despite language barriers and hesitant residents, the momentum built. Organizers brought in translators—including in Urdu and Spanish—to ensure every neighbor had a voice. By the end of January, the residents took their first major collective action: drafting and sending an official letter of demands signed by 60 percent of the building’s tenants.
A Citywide Milestone and Special Recognition
Behind the effort was Partners in Preservation (PIP), a city-funded tenant organizing initiative launched through the Department of Housing Preservation and Development (HPD).
Pablo Haake, who manages the Central Brooklyn program within PIP at HPD, noticed the numbers of tenant associations climbing earlier this year as organizers across the city brought residents together. When the team realized 8609 Bay 16th Street was officially the 100th Tenant Association formed under the program, Haake saw a chance to celebrate.
“I had the idea of celebrating the 100th association created… and it turns out it was actually a building organized by Colette Goggin and Fifth Avenue Committee,” Haake said. “We got City Hall involved, and now the Mayor is here to celebrate with us.”
Michelle de la Uz, Executive Director of the Fifth Avenue Committee, emphasized the significance of reaching this milestone for vulnerable renters across Brooklyn:
“Neighbors Helping Neighbors and Fifth Avenue Committee have been organizing tenants who are facing poor conditions in their properties as part of the Partners in Preservation program that HPD launched a few years ago,” said Michelle de la Uz. “This was the 100th Tenant Association organized through PIP, and we’re just super excited to be here with the tenants and the Mayor to really demonstrate the power of tenants coming together, what it can mean to their lives, and to make their home better so they can live with dignity.”
The milestone event brought together local leaders, community organizers, and top city officials, including Mayor Mamdani, HPD Commissioner Dina Levy, and Director of the NYC Mayor’s Office to Protect Tenants, Cea Weaver , and NYC Council Member Alexa Avilés.
During the event, Mayor Mamdani presented the 8609 Bay 16th Street Tenant Association with an official City Certificate of Recognition to honor their courage and victory:
“In doing so, you are showing—not just to the tenants of your own building—the possibility to fight for what you deserve, but frankly to tenants across New York City… what it can look like when you face landlord harassment or intimidation, and how you can actually fight that.”
Organizing and Community Investment
The celebration took place at the New Utrecht Library—a location that represents broader investments in affordable housing for the district. Council Member Alexa Avilés spoke about the crucial synergy between grassroots tenant organizers and government leaders, as well as the vision for the neighborhood:
“The big credit here goes to Neighbors Helping Neighbors and FAC for sending out an organizer to meet with folks,” said Council Member Alexa Avilés. “They’re the ones that discovered the conditions of the building and really stood the course with organizing community members. Elected officials are not in a position to organize the way our nonprofit partners are, but when the time comes for escalation, we partner in that escalation and make sure folks have resources.”
Pointing to the library site, Council Member Avilés added: “This part of the district has not seen affordable housing development. In Sunset Park, Fifth Avenue Committee partnered in rebuilding a new library with affordable housing on top. Same exact model here—it was an immediate no-brainer that we would support that project to make sure we build 100% affordable housing.”
Bringing the Heat to the Landlord
For the tenants, the organizing efforts and citywide spotlight are already yielding real-world results.
After initially claiming there were no issues in the building, the property manager felt the mounting pressure of a united front—pressure that surged even higher with City Hall paying a direct visit to the community.
“She couldn’t handle the pressure and needed to do something before something bigger happened,” Kevin noted. The landlord has since agreed to an official building walkthrough with a contractor to schedule long-overdue repairs, alongside efforts to secure missing lease renewals for long-term residents.
“I didn’t think change was going to happen, because without a leader, there’s no one to lead the pack,” David reflected. “Meeting the Mayor was a pretty fun experience… I’m so happy that the Mayor has seen that issue and come down all the way to this community.”
The Power of Collective Action
Local leaders emphasized that while non-profit partners and elected officials provide support and escalation, the true victory belongs to the residents who chose to stand up together.
For organizers like Goggin, watching the evolution from hesitant conversations at their doors to receiving an official recognition from the city has been profound.
“It’s been really powerful to see them come together and believe in the power of collective action,” Goggin said. “It’s always such a privilege to work with tenants, learn their stories, and work on winning things in their building and in New York City as a whole.”
As their upcoming inspection date approaches, the 8609 Bay 16th Street Tenant Association stands as a powerful example for renters across the five boroughs—proving that when neighbors unite, even fifteen years of neglect can turn into dignity and real, material change.
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