New York City Housing Authority officials say the city’s public housing system cannot meet its day-to-day obligations and the situation has become dire.
Rent and federal funding are no longer covering costs in NYCHA buildings, leaving the authority with a $77 million budget deficit and $18 billion in unfunded capital needs, the New York Times reported. Federal funding for capital projects, which contributes two thirds of NYCHA’s income, has fallen from $419 million in 2001 to $294 million this year, according to the newspaper.
As a result, 2,600 buildings at 334 developments are putting off necessary repairs and renovations. In one building, the top floors are vacant due to chronic leaks, exacerbating the shortage of housing in NYCHA buildings. In another, bricks are falling from a crumbling façade, the Times reported.
“I wish it were triage,” Shola Olatoye, NYCHA’s chairwoman, told the newspaper. “It’s beyond triage.” [NYT] — Tom DiChristopher