Today,
members
of the New York City Council sent a letter to the de Blasio
administration to increase the number of public housing apartments
allocated to homeless families to at least 2,500 units each year.
The
letter comes after NYCHA proposed an allocation of only 750 public
housing apartments each year to homeless families. This is far less
than the City allocated under previous mayors,
and despite the fact that the number of homeless families and children
is far higher now than under previous administrations. Close to 53,000
New Yorkers are in the shelter system, including 23,000 children,
numbers that are up for previous years.
Council Member Stephen Levin,
Chair
of the General Welfare Committee, said, “The seriousness of the
homelessness crisis needs to be matched with a serious commitment to
providing housing for vulnerable families. Homelessness
is at an all-time high in New York City, yet NYCHA has proposed
allocating far fewer units for homeless families than were set aside in
previous administrations. It is crucial that the number of NYCHA
apartments allocated to homeless families is increased
this year and in the coming years.”
“The
City can and should do more to leverage its expansive stock of public
housing as a long-term solution to homelessness,” said
Council Member Ritchie Torres, Chair of the Committee on Public
Housing. “Expanding the homeless priority for vacant NYCHA apartments
will better ensure that our most vulnerable families have access to the
safety and stability of a decent home. “
“Mayor
de Blasio’s administration inherited a City which is facing an
affordable housing crisis that has pushed a record number of families
into a homeless shelter system that is increasingly
bursting at the seams,” Council Member Vanessa L. Gibson said.
“New York’s burgeoning number of homeless families need, want and
deserve access to affordable housing and it’s critical for NYCHA to
commit more of its existing housing resources to this
critical need.”
“Housing
in New York City is a challenge for several populations, more
specifically families, young adults aging out of foster care and
veterans,” said
Council Member Laurie A. Cumbo. “We must allocate more resources to aid these individuals in their transition from temporary to permanent housing.”
“We
cannot allow the amount of NYCHA apartments allocated to homeless
families to decrease while homelessness continues to increase,” said
Council Member Daniel Dromm. “We call on the de Blasio
administration to dedicate 2,500 NYCHA units each year for homeless
families. Families need a stable home outside of the sometimes volatile
shelter system where they can build their lives.”
“Finding
permanent housing for homeless New Yorkers is already a scarcity, and
if NYCHA only allocates 750 public housing apartments per year to
homeless families, then the number of families
sleeping each our city’s shelters will significantly rise. I am proud
to stand with my colleagues, Council Member Stephen Levin and Ritchie
Torres, to urge the administration to increase the number of public
housing apartments allocated to homeless families.
With a collaborative effort between the Mayor, City Council Members,
and NYCHA, we will soon be able to ensure that the neediest families in
New York have a permanent roof over their head,” said
Council Member Jumaane D. Williams.
Dear Mayor de Blasio,
While
we are encouraged by your administration’s significant and early
efforts to address New York’s historic homelessness crisis, we write to
express our concerns
that the City’s plan does not allocate nearly the sufficient number of
public housing apartments to help homeless families and children obtain
permanent housing.
As
you know, previous New York City mayors successfully used federal
housing programs to address the problem of family homelessness. Mayors
Koch, Dinkins, Giuliani
– and even Bloomberg in his first term – made priority referrals of
tens of thousands of homeless families to New York City Housing
Authority (NYCHA) public housing apartments, along with federal Section 8
housing vouchers.
This
successful approach was the cornerstone of New York City’s efforts to
ensure needy homeless children and families could secure stable,
permanent housing and
saved taxpayers millions of dollars each year that would otherwise have
been spent on the costly shelter system.
Unfortunately,
nearly a decade ago Mayor Bloomberg eliminated priority referrals of
homeless families to NYCHA public housing and housing vouchers –
effectively
denying the neediest NYC access to federal housing aid – and your
administration inherited the resulting unprecedented crisis.
This
much is clear: A problem this big requires big solutions. Reducing the
record number of homeless families with children in New York City will
require a significant
commitment of permanent housing resources, and in particular public
housing apartments.
For
that reason we are extremely disappointed by NYCHA’s current proposal
to allocate only 750 public housing apartments each year to homeless
families. This is
far less than the City allocated under previous mayors, despite the
fact that the number of homeless families and children is far higher now
than under previous administrations. The current proposal represents
less than 15% of NYCHA vacancies. And it comes
at a time when the housing authority, continuing a Giuliani-era policy,
actually prioritizes thousands of public housing apartments for
households with no demonstrated housing needs – including hundreds of
families whose annual incomes exceed $40,000.
We
believe the City of New York can and must do more to help the neediest
families and children with our federal housing resources. We urge you
and your administration
to increase the number of public housing apartments allocated to
homeless families to at least 2,500 units each year. In addition, in
light of the fact that approximately 30% of homeless families are
working, we urge you to prioritize this population in NYCHA’s
working family priority list. Only with such a commitment can we begin
to stem the rise of family homelessness, and finally begin to reduce the
number of families sleeping each night in our shelter system.
In
addition, we understand the financial constraints faced by NYCHA. We
are committed to working with NYCHA and the City to ensure the cost of
needed support services
for families leaving the shelter system and entering NYCHA are not
borne by NYCHA alone.
We look forward to working with you and your administration towards our shared goal of ending homelessness in New York City.
Sincerely,
Stephen Levin, Ritchie Torres, Corey Johnson, Helen Rosenthal, Mark Levine, Ydanis Rodriguez, Vanessa Gibson, Annabel Palma, Costa Constantinides, Daniel Dromm, Donovan Richards, Antonio Reynoso, Laurie Cumbo, Carlos Menchaca, Brad Lander, Inez Barron, and Jumaane D. Williams
