Zohran Mamdani’s campaign for mayor has focused on the high cost of living in New York City and the lack of affordable housing.
But Mr. Mamdani’s embrace of an ambitious climate law — called Local Law 97 — could have as much impact on the real estate sector as his better-known plan to freeze the rent on about a million apartments.
Local Law 97, which was approved in 2019, calls for potentially expensive upgrades to the city’s largest buildings in order to reduce their greenhouse gas emissions. Mr. Mamdani, a state assemblyman, has said he intends to tighten enforcement of the measure. Some critics, however, warn that his approach would create a heavy financial burden on property owners.
“Thousands of buildings are in trouble here, and Local Law 97 and rent freezes will be the end,” said Kenny Burgos, the chief executive of the New York Apartment Association, a landlord advocacy group.
Mr. Mamdani, a democratic socialist who recently said that he didn’t believe there should be billionaires, has not been shy about asking the city’s affluent to subsidize his platform, which includes free buses and a $30 minimum wage. Mr. Mamdani has also called for freezing the rent on all rent-stabilized apartments, which has sent a chill through some corners of the real estate sector.
He has promised to take the same approach in enforcing Local Law 97, saying in a mayoral forum earlier this year that he would back the measure by “taking on the real estate industry” in the pursuit of “climate justice.”
Although in recent months Mr. Mamdani’s affordability agenda has eclipsed his stances on global warming and Local Law 97, the subjects are crucial to his platform because they are interconnected, said Lekha Sunder, a spokeswoman. “Climate change is one of the most pressing issues facing New Yorkers, and it’s hitting working-class communities the hardest,” she said.
In New York City, buildings are responsible for about 70 percent of greenhouse gas emissions, which contribute to global warming. Local Law 97 targets about 50,000 properties that are larger than 25,000 square feet, calling for a series of reductions in emissions over the upcoming years. To meet the deadlines, some properties may have to take expensive steps like replacing oil-burning boilers or installing solar panels.
Most buildings have already met the benchmarks for 2024, the law’s first deadline. There are some concerns, however, about how to keep all properties on schedule for 2030, which calls for a reduction in emissions of 40 percent. By 2050, zero emissions is the goal.
Although many environmental groups support the law, some climate activists said that it has two “loopholes,” which were proposed as guidelines by Mayor Eric Adams in 2023 and approved by the City Council. Mr. Mamdani has vowed to limit them.
The guidelines — a two-year extension for buildings not yet in compliance for 2024, and the option of purchasing renewable energy credits, or RECs, which will be able to offset some emissions in the future — weaken the law, the activists argue. It was not immediately clear how far Mr. Mamdani would seek to restrict the availability of RECs.
A spokesman for City Hall responded that the “loophole” characterization was inaccurate and described the law’s guidelines as “practical pathways” that Mayor Adams introduced to encourage compliance during a housing crisis.
Mr. Mamdani has also said that he would offer financial assistance to middle-income homeowners seeking to get into compliance with the law. The other candidates expected to take part in the Nov. 4 general election, which include Mayor Adams, favor some leniency in the implementation of Local Law 97.
In statements provided to The New York Times, Jim Walden, who is running for mayor as an independent, said that old buildings should be exempt from Local Law 97, while Curtis Sliwa, a Republican candidate, said the law “goes too far.” Andrew M. Cuomo, the former governor of New York who is considering running as an independent after losing in the Democratic primary, wants to fix “implementation challenges” by providing more support for building owners, including hardship waivers, said Rich Azzopardi, a spokesman.
Many members of the New York’s real estate industry argue that a more flexible Local Law 97 is crucial to their survival. Mr. Burgos, of the New York Apartment Association, said that about one-fifth of rent-stabilized housing — the tenants of which would benefit from Mr. Mamdani’s rent freeze goal — can’t cover expenses.
Councilwoman Carmen De La Rosa, who is pursuing a more stringent Local Law 97, said she backs Mr. Mamdani’s approach. Ms. De La Rosa, who also heads the Council’s labor committee, added that if landlords invest in the work required by the law, the result could be the creation of green jobs.
“The more we prepare our city to be more sustainable and resilient, the more jobs we will have,” she said. One report estimates that by 2030, building retrofits could create more than 140,000 jobs.
Many property owners say they want to comply with Local Law 97, but remain stymied by the costs involved. The challenge for whoever is the next mayor is calibrating the law to be as broadly helpful as possible, said Alicia Fernandez, the treasurer of the co-op board at Queensview, a 14-building campus on the border between Astoria and Long Island City, in Queens.
She said the property has already taken out a $22 million loan for almost half its value to replace roofs and some brickwork. To get off fossil fuels, a process that is often called electrification, it would cost co-op members an additional $60 million, an engineer told her.
“We’re going to have to borrow more, probably along with an assessment,” she said. The co-op does not qualify for city loans designed to help property owners comply with the law, she added, since the building already has borrowed from Freddie Mac, a national provider.
Ms. Fernandez, who supports the law, doesn’t believe that any of the current mayoral candidates have a grasp on the capital needed to decarbonize older buildings, she said.
“The goal has to be that we’re making changes and that we’re moving the needle,” she continued. “But let’s all stop pretending that we don’t need money do this. We do. I hope our next mayor is willing to hear us.”
Hilary Howard is a Times reporter covering how the New York City region is adapting to climate change and other environmental challenges.
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