The Issue

Williamsburg, a vibrant and diverse neighborhood in Brooklyn, NY, is facing a serious threat: the formation of the Northside Business Improvement District (BID). Led and paid for by Council Members Lincoln Restler and Jennifer Gutierrez, this BID is being developed with the wealthiest landlords and interests that will prioritize privatization and profit over the community’s well-being.

NYS Assembly Emily Gallagher came out publicly in favor of the BID. She recently said the biggest issue in her district is the 40% rent increases her Greenpoint constituents face since the pandemic.  Ironically, in her hometown of Rochester, NY the DSA (her political party) successfully stopped the greedy BID from privatizing public government and exploiting people's cost of living.  By supporting the BID, she is rubber-stamping 100% + increases in property taxes and endorsing high rent for her constituents. Williamsburg is worth more per square foot than Greenpoint and we were also effected by the pandemic.  Brooklyn's median rent is currently $5,500 higher than Manhattan.  Astounding hypocrisy!

Northside BID threatens to alter the very fabric that makes Williamsburg unique and inclusive.  The BID will decimate any below market commercial or residential spaces that exist. 

What Is a BID?

A BID (Business Improvement District) is a designated area where a private business, Northside BID, collects mandatory taxes from property owners quarterly which are trickled down to commercial and residential renters and includes people on fixed incomes (seniors, retirees, etc.). These funds are then spent in ways that benefit the largest property owners—often at the expense of residents and small businesses.  The BID then becomes the solo lobbying group for the entire area.   The BIDs absolute power displaces public participation and becomes the only voice recognized by local and city government. 

Q: How much money is Northside BID seeking to collect annually? 

A: $4.6 million annually and they say it will go up every year. Northside BID will be one of the largest in NYC.

Q: How much will  Northside BID increase your rent? 

A: They haven't published the chart on their website, but they flashed it on a screen at their information session held at Wythe Hotel on September 10, 2025. It showed a range of $300 (single family), condos $?, through $6000 to 2-3 family $?, commercial with residential $?, 6 units $?, up to $60,000 for commercial spaces.  Please call NYS Emily Gallagher, CM Lincoln Restler, and CM Jen Guiterrez and ask them how much your expenses or rent will go up. Since they funded and organized it they should have these numbers at their finger tips. 

Q: Who is on the board of the Northside BID?

A: The Steering Committee has finally published their names on the BID's website Northside Steering Committee.  What they are hiding from the public are the big developers who will be on the board once BID is formed.

The Steering Committee is made up of non-profits exempt from paying the BID tax, affluent entrepreneurs, part-time residents, and  non-residents who will not pay increases in rent, but perhaps stand to gain a salary increase.  The steering committee members are connected to the groups North Brooklyn Parks Alliance (supported by Two Trees), North Brooklyn Neighbors, People's Firehouse, and North Brooklyn Chamber of Commerce. This is not a "grassroots" effort. Perch Advisors was hired as the consulting firm to organize this financial opportunity. 

Q: Does the tax the BID collect go to public schools or fund the parks department?

A: No. The tax collected by the BID is called an assessment and it is collected as revenue for the BID to spend however the BID decides. The BID is a private entity and doesn't pay into city services. 

While BIDs are intended to support struggling communities by improving streets, parks, and local commerce, Williamsburg is thriving, not depressed. Establishing a BID here risks privatizing essential public functions, increasing taxes, raising the cost of rent and diminishing community control. Once established, BIDs can raise or reallocate taxes without community input or oversight, undermining local democracy.

Why We Oppose the Northside BID

Increased Taxes - Increased Rent: The BID proposes raising property taxes, which will be passed onto tenants and small businesses in the form of higher rents or fees. Additionally, upcoming property tax reassessments (a REBNY-led initiative) will increase city-wide taxes, further burdening residents and merchants that are not major corporations (still a minority presence in Williamsburg) like Nike, Sephora, Abercombie & Finch, Chanel, etc. These increases will unfairly punish businesses like yoga studios, independent salons, small food businesses, etc. 

Threat to Diversity and Small Business: Instead of supporting Williamsburg’s eclectic character, privatization favors wealthy landlords and developers, leading to displacement, rising rents, and the erosion of local culture and opportunity.  When small businesses and small landlords can not afford to high pay property taxes they are forced to sell creating a large inventory for big developers and real estate companies to swoop in and buy up the neighborhood build towers and more storefronts that cost $50,000 + a month. When the BID business model is used in a place like Williamsburg it inevitably pushes out people and businesses that can not afford it. It leads to a conformist neighborhoods and the BID can gate-keep which businesses can open.  

Lack of Community Benefit: BIDs duplicate city services like sanitation and parks, which are already funded and managed by NYC. This redundancy wastes taxpayer money and diverts funds from essential city programs. They often install surveillance and AI technology as well.  Northside BID is so out of touch with what our community is and needs they are desperately fishing and surveying for reasons to justify such large increases in rents and the presence of their absolute power in our community. The BID branded their platform on sanitation, parks and safety. All these services are covered in our city budget and are already paid for by constituents in democratic way.

Unfortunately, our local politicians have not tackled these issues vigorously or advocated for the most cost-effective and more democratic solutions such as enforcement, using their discretionary funding, increasing city budgets, or publicly supporting our local precincts concerning safety.   Are the politicians campaigning for affordable, small business, union jobs, etc. but beholden to the billionaire developers and luxury housing locally? 

Williamsburg residents have free solutions to the ALL the problems Northside BID claims they must increase EVERYBODY's rents for. Council Members could use the money they spent on the BIDs consulting firm to connect with constituents and organizing volunteer groups to lobby city council for increases in sanitation, parks and NYPD budgets.   It is the job of council members to increase budgets, get grants and subsidize services within their district NOT sell out their community. 

North Brooklyn Park Alliance is backed by Two Trees and all the politicians are board members NBKPA receives nearly a million in funding for programs they already run, please see their tax filings which describe them as an "entertainment" non-profit.  NBKPA manage the "Open Street," but sanitation is contracted to the Horticulture Society. The Hort is paid millions annually, so why is North Brooklyn Parks saying they need more money to maintain open space?  NBKPA wants the people who live here to pay for their amenities and events which are designed for tourists and people visiting.

Also, City Council Members could call for enforcement of bad actors that do not observe the law which requires maintaining the sidewalk. Currently, enforcement is not prioritized.  This is a result of CM Restler and CM Guiterrez not doing their job.  Many of us do clean our sidewalks and tree pits. We shouldn't face being relocated out of our homes or going out of businesses because city council refuses to address the issue with resources already available. For example, Chase Bank and Wholefoods can afford to clean the trash off their portion of the public sidewalk and maintain the tree beds adjacent to their storefronts. 

Undemocratic and Unaccountable: Under the management of the BID's organizers, they have a track record of excluding public participation, promoting noise pollution, and obstructions in public spaces—violations of community standards and accessibility laws such as the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA).  North Brooklyn Parks Alliance is guilty of noise pollution "Under the K-Bridge" which goes on till 3am. In an attempt to scrub the public record captured on 311 they set-up a hotline for residents to call while saying events end early publicly. A newspaper published their own advertisement showing events were scheduled till 3am and they were caught in one of many lies they have told "community."  The public has no recourse because the politicians will not hold their own accountable. 

Questionable Leadership and Transparency: The organizers behind the BID have histories of privatizing public land, promoting exclusive spaces, and operating with little to no transparency. They are either paid to organize BID, part-time residents or non-residents. Led fights for community spaces like the Firehouse on Wythe Ave., yet it remains unused and boarded up despite substantial money being raised. Where is the money?   Why isn't the firehouse being used as a community space as promised? 

 
Legal and Financial Concerns: Once approved, the BID’s boundaries and tax rates can be expanded and raised without community approval. Its primary focus is to benefit private interests and investors, not residents, not families, not small landlords or small businesses.

Why the BID Must Be Stopped

Irreversible Impact: Once established, it’s nearly impossible to dismantle or modify the BID’s scope and tax structure.
Redundant and Wasteful Spending: City-funded services like sanitation, parks, and public safety already serve Williamsburg effectively. Additional BID taxes just duplicate these efforts, diverting funds from city programs that benefit everyone equally.
Exploitation of Workers: BIDs often hire staff at wages below living standards, exploiting labor. BIDs take away city jobs which have healthcare and pensions. 
Profits Over Community: The people of Williamsburg deserve transparency, fair taxation, and community-led solutions—not privatization and profit-driven models.

Undemocratic Formation:

The core requirement for a BID to form is any geographic boundary where 51% of property owners and 51% of property value want the BID to form.

Here’s a simple example. A BID wants to form and it would have five buildings in it: one with a property value of 60M, and four with a property value of 10M. Even if the four smaller property owners vote no, if the big property owner votes yes it will go through because that would be 80% of the property owners but only 40% of the total property value voting no.

Our Demands

We call on local officials and community members to:

• Reconsider the formation of the Northside BID.
• Focus on initiatives that support affordable housing, strengthen city services, and promote small businesses.
• Keep the rent down and make Williamsburg affordable for all.
• Explore alternative funding options—such as reallocating existing city funds or securing grants—that do not impose additional taxes on residents and businesses.

Join us in protecting Williamsburg’s future.  

Sign this petition and contact:

Council Member Lincoln Restler District 33 and funder of Northside BID Telephone: 718-875-5200    Email:  district33@council.nyc.gov

Council Member Jennifer Gutierrez District 34
Telephone: 718-963-3141    Email: district34@council.nyc.gov

NYS Assembly Member Emily Gallagher District 50
Telephone:  (718) 383-7474   Email: gallaghere@nyassembly.gov

Demand they stop the Northside BID’s plans to form in 2026 and raise property taxes and rents.  

Hang a NO NORTHSIDE BID sign in your window!

Your voice matters. Together, we can ensure Williamsburg remains an affordable, inclusive, and vibrant community for all.

Visit Stop the Northside BID to read more.