New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio appointed Vicki L. Been of NYU School of Law his deputy mayor for housing and economic development, filling a role that had been held by Alicia Glen until she stepped down March 1.
“As HPD Commissioner, Vicki changed everything about affordable housing in New York City. As Deputy Mayor, she will dig deeper and ratchet up all our efforts to confront the biggest crisis facing our city: affordability,” said Mayor de Blasio. “She’ll kick anti-displacement strategies into high gear and open doors of opportunity to people who are struggling. Vicki will be instrumental in the fight to make New York the fairest big city in America.”
Ms. Been had previously been commissioner of the Department of Housing Preservation and Development for three years. The housing agency closed financing on 20,854 new apartments and preserved 41,652 over the span of three years under Professor Been. She left the role in early 2017 to return to teaching at NYU Law, where she is the Boxer Family Professor of Law and faculty director of the Furman Center for Real Estate and Urban Policy.
She will take over the position officially on May 6. Ms. Been brings expertise in housing policy and finance to her new role and will be expected to carry out Mayor de Blasio's signature promise to deliver more affordable housing and stem an ongoing affordability crisis in the city.
Read the press release.