Politicians Can't Back Sell-The-Projects Idea
Unsurprisingly, a group of legislators has a serious bone to pick with HUD regional director Sean Moss over his recent comments that selling some public housing developments might help solve New York’s affordable housing crisis. A letter addressed to HUD secretary Alphonso Jackson that was signed by 14 assemblymembers (including Joan Millman and Hakeem Jeffries)…
Unsurprisingly, a group of legislators has a serious bone to pick with HUD regional director Sean Moss over his recent comments that selling some public housing developments might help solve New York’s affordable housing crisis. A letter addressed to HUD secretary Alphonso Jackson that was signed by 14 assemblymembers (including Joan Millman and Hakeem Jeffries) makes the case that selling public housing is in no way a long-term solution for the city’s housing crisis:
At issue is the assertion that mass displacement of residents in one neighborhood, would benefit residents of another. At the very least, this assertion is misguided. The existing NYCHA developments are of much more value, to both the number of individuals which they provide shelter to as well as the diverse communities they help foster, than a short term budget windfall. Likewise, any purchase and/or development of affordable housing, short of new construction of full scale NYCHA developments, would be comparatively wasteful of the suggested sales proceeds and could by no means accommodate the same numbers of residents currently served by existing developments. In short, a sale of NYCHA properties would be a ‘one-shot’ deal, and would offer very few benefits for those in need of public housing extending past the year of the sale.
Full text of the letter on the jump.
HUD Official Speaks the Unspeakable: Selling The Projects [Brownstoner]
11:51 here
still no one answered my question
public housing : ok, but why so close to the CBD???
guest 12:40:
Let’s put aside the small luxuries like the iPods, designer clothing, etc. and try to offer the explanation as to:
– Why are NYCHA parking lots full of late model luxury vehicles? And I’m not exaggerating.
– Why do they even offer free parking? This is NYC, probably the best public transportation system in the world.
On a simplistic level, I can understand subsidizing their shelter, but cars and parking? Poverty, gotta love it.
12:48 Cops are overpaid – simple as that – they just chose to funnel all of their budget to pay the salaries of the top brass. I feel safe in the city -clearly we’re paying cops enough to ensure safety. Why should we overpay them – if they want better pay tell them to become a stagehand.
I don’t suppose anyone thinks its susidizing when we give huge tax breaks and subsudies to FCR or big corporations? Where do any of you think that money is coming from? Hello- your taxes. Don’t hear any of you “compassionate conservatives” types carrying on about that.
I don’t suppose it occurs to you that working people should be able to spend it on hair and nails too? At least they aren’t spending $6000 on shower curtains.
12:28- until the day you are willing to put your 100% cashmere coated, desk- sitting, restaurant-stuffing, pretentious, ignorant, ungrateful ass on the line for another human being I strongly suggest you not parade your ignorance any further than you already have. When you can begin to comprehend one iota of what a cop’s life is like, then you can say something. One thing I do know for sure- the day comes you want one, you’ll be very ready to kiss their underpaid butts. Until then please stick to subjects you know something about- like wine.
If they don’t have disposable income then how can so many nail and hair stores survive?
“These impoverished people seem to have a lot of disposable income.”
Now that’s bullshit.
I would like to point out that housing projects are not failed social experiments. there were built as middle class and sometimes high end housing and as those groups vacated, the working poor moved in. I also grew up in the Bronx and in housing projects. I saw them change as the middle class moved to the suburbs, or Florida. Huge apartment complexes were the “thing to do”, not a speculative neo-communist incursion into a capitalist society. Their fortunes rose and fell with the city’s. As those of us who were born and raised here know.
As far as Benson’s “There are many things a city must do with its tax base: build roads, sewer systems, schools,etc. These should not be in the business of providing subsidized housing on a lottery basis. ” well excuse me? Why should I, who do not own a car pay for your roads? Why should I who did not have children pay for public schools? Why should my taxes subsidize every corporate tax break and subsidy that I do not benefit from and yet I can’t expect anything in return when I need help? And believe me, I have been in the position of needing help desperately and not being able to get it because of people like you who think a capitalist society means only the rich deserve to have a life. You need to go back and reread the documents that founded this country- where do they say money buys you rights?
I’m with Montrose Morris- I’m sick of people who think money entitles them to everything good and lets shove aside those who can’t. Unless we need them to wait our tables or rake our leaves, or man our cash registers.