Jimmy Carter’s Housing Legacy Honored by E. 6th St. Renaming

The intersection of East 6th Street and Avenue D was named “Jimmy Carter Way” on Oct. 6, to commemorate the late president’s repair work on a home situated at mid-block, 742 E. 6th St.

Before the green street sign was formally unveiled, the nonprofit Housing for Humanity—which partnered with Carter and his wife, Rosalynn, on the 1984 repairs, their first in NYC, kicking off an annual Carter family tradition in the process—held a reverent press conference in front of the home, also known as Mascot Flats.

The home was famously watched by Carter’s Secret Service detail during the duration of the repairs, aided by volunteers, which replaced (among other things) a missing roof and a stolen marble staircase.

Carlina Rivera, who just stepped down from her role as the local City Council Member to become the president & CEO of the New York State Association for Affordable Housing, helmed the proceedings.

It was one of her first public appearances in her new capacity. She began by saying that New York City had arrived at a “pivotal moment for the housing movement and the housing crisis that we’re having.”

“It’s really important that we commemorate, and we celebrate, and we try to revel in as much joy and optimism as possible . . . to remember the legacy of people who sometimes did things that were seemingly unpopular, but who did so with such dignity and such commitment,” she added, referring to Carter. She described him as a “dedicated public servant and a humanitarian.”

Sabrina Lippman, who leads the NYC & Westchester branch of Habitat for Humanity, followed Rivera. “It is so humbling to stand here today. We have reunions happening. We have folks that were here in 1984, volunteering. We have homeowners who still live in these homes, from 41 years ago,” she said. “It is incredible.”

State Senator Brian Kavanagh and State Assembly Member Harvey Epstein were also on hand, and gave remarks, as was NYC Public Advocate Jumaane Williams.

Kavanagh said that both Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter “emulated” values that he tries to embody: “Humility, and real solutions to real problems that ordinary people are facing.”

Epstein echoed Kavanagh, calling Carter a “true champion” of the housing repair work that he conducted on East 6th Street, while Williams praised Carter’s “honorable focus and purpose.”

Yet the crowd seemed most enraptured by the speeches of the house’s longtime resident Don Kao, who knew Carter’s legacy there firsthand, more or less.

In a sharp all-black outfit and bright red tie, Kao said that he “actually avoided” the weekend that Carter was at Mascot Flats, because “he didn’t have much faith in government” at the time. “I didn’t know the Carters, I knew he was gonna come and help us out, but I didn’t believe it would really do anything,” he explained.

”Now, 40 years later, I’ve been so blown away by the fact that he continued to come back [to Mascot Flats,]” he said. “They weren’t about the publicity. They were about doing what makes sense.” Now, Kao considers Carter a “kindred spirit.”

After the speeches concluded, those gathered made their way to the street corner. The fresh sign, as is the case with NYC street unveilings, was obscured by a piece of cloth tied to a string—which the speakers lined up in ceremonial tug-of-war fashion to grab onto, after which a grand countdown began.

Yet a piece of stray cloth remained after the string was yanked, which was heroically removed by a man named Angel, who happened to have a device that could reach the sign. The hitch did nothing to damper the good cheer.