Hopes for the city’s beleaguered public housing agency brightened after Real Estate Weekly reported that Related Cos. and NYCHA struck a deal to manage 2,054 apartments in Manhattan, complete $366 million in renovations and construct a new 100-unit building on unused land.
Instead of demolishing the Fulton and Chelsea-Elliott Houses, the agreement calls for a gut rehab of the 18 buildings, also creating new community spaces, health centers and garden areas. Plus: Half the 700 units of future new construction would be income-restricted affordable housing.
To make the deal work, tenants agreed to place the projects into NYCHA’s Permanent Affordability Commitment Together program. City financing and funds from the federal Rental Assistance Demonstration will cover the $366 million cost.
NYCHA Chairman Greg Russ is an enthusiast for RAD, a major departure from the city’s traditional public-housing model that shifts buildings to private management while doing major repairs.
The deal is a definite “win” for the tenants at Fulton-Chelsea Houses and another success for Russ as he strives to save NYCHA, which faces at least $40 billion in needed modernization work, with no money to pay for it.
Let’s hope the next mayor can help Russ get the stalled NYCHA 2.0 plan back in motion to generate $2 billion by leasing underused land (e.g., parking lots, lawns, etc.) to private developers to finance new affordable-housing units.
More privatization is the only practical option for saving and maintaining affordable public housing for low-income individuals and families — and for ending NYCHA’s vast backlog of maintenance and ordinary repairs. The faster, the better for all concerned.