Carlina Rivera feels like she has returned back to her roots.

The former New York City Council member stepped down in August from her term-limited seat four months early. While District 2 is still home, she said she feels more grounded now, working in housing advocacy as the president and CEO of New York State Association for Affordable Housing.

“Organizing around Essex Crossing, the Seward Park Urban Renewal Area, being on the community board, these are all things that I enjoy doing,” Rivera said in an interview with City & State, recalling her background in city organizing. “And now to be able to do so in a space that’s exclusively focused on housing, which has always been my passion, and to build and preserve affordable housing, it’s really, to me, a really sweet space.”

The city has

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