(ARMONK, N.Y.) The Welcome Home Westchester Campaign, a multi-stakeholder advocacy effort consisting of business and nonprofit leaders, homebuilders, academics, think tanks, faith leaders, and community advocates working together to drive a new public conversation around fixing the housing shortage in Westchester County, is thrilled to announce the hiring of Khush Kam-Au as its Campaign Organizer.
In this role, Khush will will be focused on developing and executing campaign strategy, increasing the number of organizations, the number of volunteers, and the number of engaged advocates working with the campaign, and launching a new effort to educate members of the cities, towns, and villages of Westchester in how they can advocate for change in their own communities. The Campaign utilized grants from the Westchester Community Foundation and the Galvan Foundation to take these efforts to the next level.
“The Partners of the Welcome Home Westchester campaign is thrilled to welcome Khush Kam-Au, a dedicated advocate and organizer with a long track record in communities like Mount Vernon, Yonkers, and lower Westchester,” said Tim Foley, CEO of The Building & Realty Institute and one of the Partners of the Welcome Home Westchester campaign. “We know from polling and from political science research that many of our neighbors are much friendlier to building housing in our communities than the loudest voices who tend to overwhelm local public hearings. Many of them know someone personally who struggled to find housing in their price range or struggled themselves! We believe our local debate is stronger when those voices are at the table, and we are confident in Khush’s ability to make sure those voices are heard.”
Khush comes from an impressive background of managing social justice campaigns in different leadership capacities and has led efforts to expand housing rights for those most vulnerable to the downturns of the housing climate. In his role as the Campaign Liaison for the Clean Slate NY campaign, he played a key part in introducing groundbreaking record clearance legislation in New York State. Throughout his experiences working for various governmental offices, including the Office of Yonkers City Council Majority Leader Michael Sabatino, the Office of Senator Shelley Mayer, and the Mount Vernon City Council, he specialized in addressing and finding solutions to a plethora of community concerns and issues and consistently prioritized constituents when creating and endorsing legislation.
Additionally, housing justice issues have played a crucial role in the criminal justice reform and economic justice initiatives that he has spearheaded with organizations such as Citizen Action of NY, Fast Food Justice, and Clean Slate NY in collaboration with Community Service Society of NY.
“I appreciate the opportunity to manage and help grow campaign efforts across Westchester County. Welcome Home Westchester’s campaign mission is close to my heart having grown up in Mount Vernon and recognizing the great need for more affordable housing throughout the entire county then and now. I am a housing justice advocate for those most vulnerable to being unhoused in Westchester and those in greatest need of affordable housing,” said Kam-Au. “Through my time working for different government offices in Westchester County and statewide advocacy campaigns, I’ve been able to learn about housing development policies and housing campaign strategies that have worked for communities in Westchester and around New York State. I look forward to connecting with constituents, community groups, advocates, business owners, legislators, and more to make Welcome Home Westchester’s vision for Westchester a reality.”
The Welcome Home Westchester campaign was launched in 2021, prompted in no small part by the findings of the 2019 Westchester County Housing Needs Assessment. The partners of the campaign believe this is truly an “all hands-on deck” moment for everyone with an interest in housing and development in our county. Through their research reports, public testimony, grassroots organizing, social media presence, and in-person and virtual educational events, they have demonstrated that a multi-stakeholder campaign can shine a spotlight on the everyday barriers to providing the housing we need, and encourage communities to make different, effective choices to secure a Westchester that is welcoming to all who wish to live and work here – to our shared prosperity!
The organizing partners of the restructured campaign include Regional Plan Association, the Building & Realty Institute, Westchester County Association, Nonprofit Westchester, Housing Action Council, Land Use Law Center, Elisabeth Haub School of Law, Pace University, Westhab, and Construction Industry Council of Westchester and Hudson Valley.
To learn more about what the Welcome Home Westchester campaign has been doing to change the conversation on housing, visit www.welcomehomewestchester.org.
#