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Tenants' attorney urges Schenectady council to adopt New York 'good cause' eviction protections
Summary
During public comment the council heard calls to opt into New York State's Real Property Law Article 6-A (good cause eviction) from tenants' advocates and residents, who cited eviction statistics and comparable actions in other cities.
Colin McNamara, an attorney who represents tenants in Schenectady City Court, urged the City Council March 24 to adopt the New York State good-cause eviction law (Real Property Law, Article 6-A) to protect renters from arbitrary evictions and sudden rent hikes.
“Every day in this court, I see firsthand the impact of housing instability,” McNamara said. He told the council that 55% of Schenectady households rent and that many are rent-burdened, paying more than 30% of household income on rent. McNamara also cited court filings he said show 178 evictions were filed in January 2024 and that “since the COVID crisis of March 2020, 7,000 evictions have been filed in Schenectady City Court.” He advocated that the council “move toward adopting 6-A to create housing stability for all of its residents.”
Catherine Quinn, a lifelong Schenectady County resident and volunteer with local charities, delivered similar remarks and asked the council to “opt in to the New York State Good Cause Evictions Protection Law.” Quinn said she sees clients whose food insecurity is driven by rent increases and listed other cities that have recently adopted or considered the law, saying “Albany, Kingston, Poughkeepsie and Syracuse have adopted or are considering similar protections” and that Ithaca and Rochester were also considering measures.
Quinn and McNamara emphasized that the law does not remove landlords' ability to evict for nonpayment or lease violations; they framed the proposal as preventing “no-cause” evictions and sudden, predatory rent increases.
Why it matters: McNamara and Quinn said the measure would provide stability for a majority-renter city where many households are rent-burdened. The council heard the appeal during the general public-comment period; the transcript shows no council vote or motion to initiate local action on the law at the March 24 meeting.
Other public comments at the meeting included criticism of the mayor's tone in a prior meeting and condolences for community members who recently died, but those remarks were separate from the eviction-advocacy speakers.
