NYCHA

New NYCHA head Gregory Russ will be the city’s highest paid official

Image via Wiki Commons

June 19, 2019

New NYCHA head Gregory Russ will be the city’s highest paid official

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After missing two deadlines to fill the position, Mayor Bill de Blasio on Tuesday announced that Gregory Russ will be taking over as Chair of NYCHA. Russ, who is currently the head of Minneapolis’ public housing authority and previously led the Cambridge Housing Authority in Massachusetts, will receive an unprecedented salary of $402,628—more than even President Donald Trump makes. That figure comes out to roughly $1 a year for every NYCHA tenant he will represent, as THE CITY reports.
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City withdraws plan for mixed-income tower proposed for Upper East Side playground

Previous rendering of the original project; Via NYCHA

June 17, 2019

City withdraws plan for mixed-income tower proposed for Upper East Side playground

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The New York City Housing Authority has ditched plans to build a private 47-story apartment building on top of a playground on the Upper East Side, agency officials said Friday. The original plan called for a 300-unit tower to replace the playground at the Holmes Tower public housing complex with half of the units affordable and the other half at market-rate, the latter meant to raise funds for repairs at the tower. The new plan for the site will increase the number of market-rate apartments in order to collect more money, NYCHA officials told THE CITY.
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Early reports of market-rate towers coming to NYCHA sites on the Lower East Side and Chelsea

Image via Wiki Commons

April 25, 2019

Early reports of market-rate towers coming to NYCHA sites on the Lower East Side and Chelsea

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During a meeting on Monday, NYCHA officials presented tenants of the LaGuardia Houses with a plan to bring more market-rate apartments to the Lower East Side complex. The revised proposal would see a 35- to 45-story tower rise, with up to 75 percent market-rate apartments, THE CITY reported. Felicia Cruickshank, president of LaGuardia’s Tenant Association, said that in addition to Extell’s One Manhattan Square and the three waterfront skyscrapers in Two Bridges, this tower is “just going to gentrify the whole community and change what the Lower East Side has always been.” Reports have also shown that officials are in the early planning stages of a similar mixed-income project at the Fulton Houses complex in Chelsea, leaving residents to fear displacement and being forgotten in the development process.
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Mayor de Blasio begins first-ever lead paint testing program in 135,000 NYCHA apartments

Image via Wikipedia

April 16, 2019

Mayor de Blasio begins first-ever lead paint testing program in 135,000 NYCHA apartments

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Mayor Bill de Blasio kicked off a new lead-based paint testing program today, to be implemented in NYCHA apartments. 135,000 apartments will be tested with portable X-ray fluorescence (XRF) analyzers as part of the mayor's LeadFreeNYC plan to eliminate childhood lead exposure. The effort will determine whether lead paint is present and abate any hazards found in the tested units, which were built before the federal ban on lead paint in 1978.
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City’s plans to allocate $500M to affordable senior housing not progressing as anticipated

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April 11, 2019

City’s plans to allocate $500M to affordable senior housing not progressing as anticipated

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Last June, the city committed $500 million toward a plan to construct 1,000 new apartments for low-income senior citizens, but now almost a year later those plans are moving forward much slower than expected, Politico reports. The plan had identified six potential sites—two at New York City Housing Authority properties Kingsborough Houses in Brooklyn and Morris Houses in the Bronx, and four on other city-owned lots—but so far the city has only requested developer proposals for one of those sites.
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Federal government increases oversight of NYCHA

Via Wikimedia

January 31, 2019

Federal government increases oversight of NYCHA

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President Donald Trump's administration announced on Thursday it will seize some control over the New York City Housing Authority (NYCHA), calling for an independent federal monitor to oversee the troubled agency. According to the New York Times, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), NYCHA, and the city reached a deal that includes an investment of $2.2 billion over 10 years by the city in NYCHA, but does not place the agency under receivership. The monitor will be responsible for oversight of the agency's 176,000 apartments, part of the largest public housing authority in the country.
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Thousands of NYCHA residents had no heat or hot water on dangerously cold day

Over 2,800 residents at the Bushwick Houses in Brooklyn lost heat and/or hot water on Monday; via Flickr

January 22, 2019

Thousands of NYCHA residents had no heat or hot water on dangerously cold day

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In what has become an all-too-familiar story, thousands of public housing residents in New York City were without heat and hot water on Monday, when temperatures dropped to single digits. On the coldest day of the year, the New York City Housing Authority (NYCHA) reported nearly 12,000 residents were experiencing heat and hot-water outages. A similar service disruption occurred roughly one year ago; during two weeks of brutal cold and a major snowstorm, the city had received 22,000 heat and hot water complaints, with a majority of those from NYCHA developments.
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SNL comic Michael Che plans benefit comedy show to raise funds for NYCHA residents

Photo via Pexels

January 8, 2019

SNL comic Michael Che plans benefit comedy show to raise funds for NYCHA residents

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Stand-up comic and SNL’s Weekend Update co-anchor Michael Che is organizing a benefit show for New York City public housing residents this week. There are still a few tickets left for "A Night for NYCHA" on January 11, as amNY reported earlier today. Che is the headliner, “Roastmaster General” Jeff Ross will be hosting, and Michelle Wolf will feature in a “top secret lineup” of comics. “It's gonna be a fun show and a GREAT cause," Che posted on his Instagram stories earlier this month. "A lot of residents don't have heat this winter. This money could really help. I grew up in a building like that, and it's really tough."
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NYC plans to sell $1B in NYCHA air rights to developers

Via Creative Commons

December 13, 2018

NYC plans to sell $1B in NYCHA air rights to developers

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The New York City Housing Authority will sell its unused air rights to developers for the first time ever, Mayor Bill de Blasio announced on Wednesday. The authority said it will transfer a portion of its 80 million square feet of air rights to generate $1 billion in capital repairs for nearby developments. The air rights announcement is one part of a 10-year plan the mayor unveiled, called NYCHA 2.0, which aims to resolve $24 billion in necessary repairs at public housing. In total, the agency needs nearly $32 billion over five years for necessary repairs.
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NYCHA will turn over 62,000 apartments to private developers for repair work

Via Wikimedia

November 20, 2018

NYCHA will turn over 62,000 apartments to private developers for repair work

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The New York City Housing Authority will turn over 62,000 apartments to private developers as a way to provide necessary repairs to the units, Mayor Bill de Blasio announced on Monday. Through a public-private partnership, via the Rental Assistance Demonstration program (RAD), all units will be converted into Section 8 and remain permanently affordable. Renovations, which will cost nearly $13 billion, include new kitchens and bathrooms, improved common spaces, and replacing windows, boilers, roofs, and elevators. About 142,000 New Yorkers across the developments will benefit from the repair work.
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In just three weeks, over 35,000 NYCHA residents have already experienced heat outages

Image via Wikimedia 

October 26, 2018

In just three weeks, over 35,000 NYCHA residents have already experienced heat outages

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Only three weeks into to the "heat season" when temperatures dip low enough for the heat to kick in, Gothamist reports that more than 35,000 people living in NYCHA housing have been left without heat and hot water. The Legal Aid Society has tracked unplanned outages on four separate occasions since the beginning of October and found that 35,475 residents have been affected by outages.
'A terrible start to heat season'
Three NYCHA developments on the Upper East Side ranked among the worst in the U.S.

Google Street View of the Holmes Towers

September 11, 2018

Three NYCHA developments on the Upper East Side ranked among the worst in the U.S.

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The federal government ranked three Upper East Side public housing buildings as some of the worst in the United States, the New York Post reported Monday. The Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) gave the Holmes Towers, the Isaacs Houses and Robbins Plaza just 25 points out of a maximum of 100 as a measure of quality following recent inspections. Out of the more than 3,800 scores counted by HUD last year, the three complexes tied for 13th worst in the country.
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NYC commits $500M in plan to build thousands of affordable apartments for seniors on unused land

Photo via Wiki Commons

June 13, 2018

NYC commits $500M in plan to build thousands of affordable apartments for seniors on unused land

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As part of the new city budget, New York City has committed $500 million toward a plan to construct thousands of new apartments for low-income senior citizens on vacant public housing land, the Wall Street Journal reports. The new units would also free up existing NYCHA units currently occupied by seniors for people currently on wait lists for housing.
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City reaches settlement, agrees to spend $2B on NYCHA improvements after federal probe

Photo via Wikimedia

June 11, 2018

City reaches settlement, agrees to spend $2B on NYCHA improvements after federal probe

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New York City has agreed to fork over $2 billion in the next 10 years to settle a federal prosecutors’ investigation into safety and health issues at buildings run by the by the New York City Housing Authority (NYCHA), the Wall Street Journal reports. The city has been ordered to repair buildings run by the country's largest city housing authority after an investigation by the U.S. Attorney’s District Office, which began in 2015, checked reports of crumbling conditions across the authority's 325 developments.
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NYCHA improvements mandated by federal government could cost NYC $1B

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May 31, 2018

NYCHA improvements mandated by federal government could cost NYC $1B

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New York City will likely have to cough up $1 billion over the next four years to pay for improvements to its public housing stock as part of an agreement with the federal government, Politico New York reported Wednesday. The settlement from federal prosecutors ordering repairs to buildings run by the New York City Housing Authority (NYCHA) will likely be reached in the next few days. The order comes after an investigation by the U.S. Attorney's District Office, which began in 2015, to check crumbling conditions across the 325 developments it operates. If the city does not follow the orders, the federal government could then take over the authority.
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A salary of $58,450 or less annually is now considered low income in the New York Metro Area

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May 17, 2018

A salary of $58,450 or less annually is now considered low income in the New York Metro Area

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If you are a single New Yorker earning $58,450 or less per year, you fall under the low income category, according to 2018 estimates released last month by the U.S. Department of Housing (HUD). These income limits are established by the government to help figure out if residents are eligible for subsidized and affordable housing. Even though the median family income in NYC and its surrounding area slightly increased this year to $70,300 from $66,200 in 2017, the high cost of living continues to place a significant burden on New Yorkers (h/t Curbed NY).
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The city will issue new Section 8 vouchers for the first time in two years

Photo via Creative Commons

May 10, 2018

The city will issue new Section 8 vouchers for the first time in two years

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For the first time in two years, New York City this week began issuing new Section 8 vouchers, which serve as a rental subsidy for lower-income families. The new vouchers come after the city's Housing Authority got a boost in funding from the federal government, allowing the authority to dole out 6,200 additional vouchers, according to amNY. Now, NYCHA has started calling possible tenants on its over 100,000-person waitlist and has already distributed 35 vouchers. The city oversees the largest Section 8 program in the country, with roughly 90,000 vouchers currently issued.
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Cuomo declares state of emergency for NYCHA, creates independent monitor to oversee authority

Photo of Queensbridge Houses via Wikimedia

April 3, 2018

Cuomo declares state of emergency for NYCHA, creates independent monitor to oversee authority

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Citing hazardous conditions like lead paint and mold, Gov. Andrew Cuomo on Monday declared a state of emergency for the New York City Housing Authority (NYCHA). He also ordered an independent monitor be appointed within 60 days to expedite repairs and upgrades. An investigation by the state's Health Department revealed this week that in the last month alone, at least one severe condition that poses a health risk has been found inside 83 percent of 255 apartments checked, including peeling paint, mold, evidence of rodent and insect infestation and missing smoke and carbon monoxide detectors. The monitor will also oversee how NYCHA spends the $250 million the state allocated in its budget signed this weekend, according to the New York Times.
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Amid HUD delays, city launches ‘Where We Live NYC’ process to fight segregation and unequal access

Image: NYC HPD

March 9, 2018

Amid HUD delays, city launches ‘Where We Live NYC’ process to fight segregation and unequal access

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While the federal Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) continues to sidle away from its job of preventing housing discrimination, the New York City Department of Housing Preservation and Development (HPD) in partnership with the New York City Housing Authority (NYCHA) have stepped up with a comprehensive fair housing planning process to head off segregation in New York City. The city announced today the launch of Where We Live NYC, a fair housing plan to fight segregation and unequal access. The plan outlines a process to study, understand, and address patterns of residential segregation and how these patterns impact access to opportunity, including jobs, education, safety, public transit and health. The plan will include extensive community participation and provide data and policy analysis that will culminate in the release of a public report that outlines measurable goals and strategies for fostering inclusive communities, promoting fair housing and increasing access to opportunity.
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City selects de Blasio donors to build pair of towers on NYCHA property in Boerum Hill

Rendering of 120 3rd Avenue via Aufgang Architects

January 26, 2018

City selects de Blasio donors to build pair of towers on NYCHA property in Boerum Hill

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The city announced on Thursday their selection of two developers, Arker Companies and Two Trees Management, to build two 16-story apartment towers on parking lots at Wyckoff Gardens, a New York City Housing Authority property in Brooklyn. However, according to the Daily News, the owners of both companies have raised a total of $124,600 for Mayor Bill de Blasio, bringing into question the influence of donations on the city's choice of the two developers.
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De Blasio administration falls short of pledge to open 20 homeless shelters in 2017

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January 23, 2018

De Blasio administration falls short of pledge to open 20 homeless shelters in 2017

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In 2017, Mayor Bill de Blasio's administration opened just 10 out of the 20 shelters planned for New York City under an initiative aimed at curbing the city's growing homelessness crisis. Last February, the city unveiled its "Turning the Tide on Homelessness" plan that included opening 90 shelters over five years, with about 20 shelters each in 2017 and 2018. But, according to the New York Times, the city fell short of its target last year, opening just half the number of shelters planned due to delays in the permit process, time-consuming negotiations with nonprofits that run the shelters and backlash from the community and public officials. Under de Blasio, the homeless population has grown. When the mayor took office in 2014, about 68,000 New Yorkers were without homes. Today, roughly 77,000 people are considered homeless in NYC, with 3,900 on the street, the largest homeless population in the U.S.
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During two weeks of brutal cold, city received over 21,000 heat and hot water complaints

Photo courtesy of Roman Kruglov’s Flickr

January 8, 2018

During two weeks of brutal cold, city received over 21,000 heat and hot water complaints

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During a two week period of super cold weather, including a considerable snowstorm, New York City received nearly 22,000 heat and hot water complaints from renters. According to the Daily News, many of those calls came from residents living in New York City Housing Apartments. On Sunday, Mayor Bill de Blasio said a lack of federal funding and upkeep is to blame for the defective boilers found at NYCHA apartments. “A lot of the buildings are 50 years old, 60 years old, 70 years old — they have not gotten the kind of upkeep they needed for decades,” the mayor told John Catsimatidis on his radio show.
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Trump hires family party planner Lynne Patton to run NY housing programs
June 16, 2017

Trump hires family party planner Lynne Patton to run NY housing programs

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President Trump appointed family friend Lynne Patton on Wednesday to oversee New York’s federal housing programs, despite her clear lack of housing experience. Patton, who formerly arranged tournaments at Trump’s golf courses and planned Eric Trump’s wedding, will head up the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s Region II, which includes New York and New Jersey, and will oversee the distribution of billions of taxpayer dollars. As reported by the Daily News, Patton’s relationship with the Trump family dates back to 2009 when she first began as their event planner.
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Renderings revealed for controversial mixed-income tower on top of UES playground

Rendering via NYCHA

May 19, 2017

Renderings revealed for controversial mixed-income tower on top of UES playground

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After over a year-long debate, the city has finally unveiled renderings of a mixed-income tower set to rise on an existing playground at the Holmes Towers public housing complex in Yorkville. The New York City Housing Authority’s plan, which falls under the city’s NextGen program, will construct a 47-story building among the complex on East 93rd Street, as well as a new 18,000-square-foot recreation and community center run by Asphalt Green (h/t DNA Info). The new building will feature 300 total units, with half of them at market-rate prices and half of them affordable. However, an alleged plan to separate the floors by income level, as well as the fact that high-end housing is coming to a low-income site where the community wasn't consulted, has sparked a good deal of controversy.
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Habitat for Humanity will build 48 affordable homes for New Yorkers
April 5, 2017

Habitat for Humanity will build 48 affordable homes for New Yorkers

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In New York City, and the rest of the country, it's becoming increasingly difficult to find affordable housing. To combat this, the Habitat for Humanity NYC announced a plan to build affordable houses for buyers in Brooklyn and Queens. The organization, aimed at constructing quality housing for families in need, will bring 48 units of affordable homes to these boroughs by redeveloping abandoned or foreclosed properties. Since most of these homes have been left vacant for decades, many are run-down and have negatively impacted the surrounding neighborhoods. As Brick Underground learned, the city’s Housing Authority first acquired these properties and then sold them to Habitat for Humanity at $1 each.
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