First-Class U.S. Postage Paid New York, NY Permit No. 4119 Vol. 38, No. 3 www.nyc.gov/nycha MARCH 2008 NYCHA ADOPTS PRELIMINARY BUDGET FOR 2008 By Eileen Elliott THE NEW YORK CITY HOUSING of New York City and while we contribute to the deficit include: AUTHORITY (NYCHA) BOARD do have to make tough choices, the cost of operating 21 State and ADOPTED A $2.8 BILLION we have nearly 70 years of being City-built developments, which FISCAL YEAR 2008 PRELIMI- the first, the biggest and the best. amounts to $93 million annually; NARY OPERATING BUDGET We’ll get through this. We’ve an increase in non-discretionary ON JANUARY 23rd. The budget been through hard times before.” employee benefit expenses of $40 includes a $195 million structural million; $68 million for policing deficit, resulting in large part Chronic Federal services; and another $68 million from chronic Federal under- Underfunding for NYCHA-provided community funding. Before adopting the “NYCHA has lost over $611 and social services. budget, NYCHA Chairman Tino million in Federal aid since Hernandez vowed that the 2001,” said NYCHA Deputy Victories Housing Authority will continue General Manager for Finance “In many ways, NYCHA is to take aggressive action in the Felix Lam in his budget presenta- a victim of its own success,” coming year to preserve public tion at the meeting. He added that said Chairman Tino Hernandez, housing in New York City. the last time public housing was referring to the fact that NYCHA fully funded was in 2002. has managed to maintain its level Commitment to For 2008, the Federal subsidy of service despite nearly seven DISINVESTMENT The graph above shows the decline in Public Housing NYCHA receives will again be years of underfunding. federal allocations for public housing nationwide. “The NYCHA Board will pro-rated, meaning that NYCHA The Housing Authority has make the tough decisions neces- will receive an estimated 83 cents already reduced its budget from the State of New York, needed funding stream for these sary to achieve structural balance on the dollar, which will account by over a half-billion dollars and obtaining approval for the 21 developments. (See “HUD and ensure the continued stability for approximately $160 million of ($527 million) since 2003, and cut Section 8 Transition initiative Approves Section 8 Transition and preservation of public its deficit. more than 2,000 positions. from the U.S. Department of Starting at Bay View Houses,” housing in New York City,” said Though chronic underfunding In addition, the Authority has Housing and Urban Development page 3.) This victory was Chairman Hernandez, just before by the Federal government is also achieved victories in (HUD). The Section 8 initiative announced publicly by the Chair- the Board adopted the FY2008 the primary cause of NYCHA’s securing new revenue sources, will allow NYCHA to transition man for the first time at Preliminary Operating Budget structural budget deficit, other including passage of legislation 8,400 units in its 21 State and the meeting. and Four-Year Financial Plan. major components of NYCHA that will increase the Shelter Rent City-built developments into the “Public housing is part and parcel operations that are not funded and Allowance NYCHA receives Section 8 Program, providing a (Continued on page 4) BROOKLYN ARTISTS ‘PICTURE THE DREAM’ AT ACADEMY OF MUSIC PICTURING THE DREAM Collages made by 20 young resident-artists from the Whitman Community Center commemorating Dr. King in an exhibit at the BAMcafé. THE WORK OF 20 YOUNG ARTISTS, The exhibit was part of BAM's "The young people were Among the dignitaries The day included songs and AGED 12 AND UNDER, FROM 22nd Annual Brooklyn Tribute to really excited," said Community present to celebrate the life stories by soul and gospel THE NEW YORK CITY HOUSING Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., held on Operations’ Eric Cumberbatch, of Dr. King were Senator legend Mavis Staples of the AUTHORITY'S (NYCHA'S) W HITMAN January 21st. The day started with who has been reaching out to Charles E. Schumer, Mayor Staple Singers. There was also COMMUNITY CENTER IN BROOKLYN, a breakfast reception for the cultural institutions in Brooklyn Michael R. Bloomberg, City a special screening of the WAS ON DISPLAY FROM JANUARY NYCHA youth at BAMcafé, led by to create similar opportunities. Council Speaker Christine acclaimed film “At the River I 17TH THROUGH THE 22ND BAM President Karen Brooks "They were able to learn a great Quinn, Brooklyn Borough Stand,” about the Memphis IN A SPECIAL EXHIBIT, "P ICTURE Hopkins. Ms. Hopkins praised the deal about civil rights and human President Marty Markowitz sanitation worker strike in THE DREAM," AT THE resident artists for their impressive rights in a different era, during and Kings County District 1968, which brought Dr. King BROOKLYN ACADEMY OF MUSIC collages, which were exhibited in a the five weeks they worked with Attorney Charles J. Hynes. to Memphis. CAFÉ, BAM CAFÉ. semi-circle around the room. BAM's teaching artists." PAGE 2 PAGE 3 PAGE 7 NEW PROGRAM MAKES HUD APPROVES SECTION 8 FILE FOR THE EARNED STREETS SAFER FOR SENIORS TRANSITION PROGRAM INCOME TAX CREDIT THE HOUSING AUTHORITY JOURNAL 2 MARCH 2008 MAYOR’S MESSAGE Approximately 300 Units of Affordable ‘Safe Streets for Seniors’ to Reduce Housing for Sites in East Harlem Traffic Fatalities in 25 Neighborhoods APPROXIMATELY 300 UNITS OF OVER THE NEXT 25 YEARS, THE AFFORDABLE HOUSING WILL BE NUMBER OF NEW YORKERS OVER BUILT ON NEW YORK CITY 65 IS GOING TO NEARLY DOUBLE. HOUSING AUTHORITY (NYCHA)- By 2030, 20 percent of the City’s OWNED SITES IN EAST HARLEM AS residents will be seniors — and PART OF THE ONGOING COLLABO- New York City needs to prepare. RATION BETWEEN THE CITY’S You may already be aware that DEPARTMENT OF HOUSING seniors are the New York City PRESERVATION AND DEVELOPMENT Housing Authority’s (NYCHA’s) (HPD) AND NYCHA, TO BRING fastest growing population, and MORE AFFORDABLE HOUSING TO already make up over one-third NEW YORKERS. The collabora- of NYCHA residents. tion plays a key role in Mayor Early this year I launched Michael R. Bloomberg’s New “Safe Streets for Seniors,” a major new pedestrian safety initiative Housing Marketplace Plan to for older New Yorkers, which will work in conjunction with the new provide affordable housing for All Ages Project that’s re-envisioning what it means to grow older in 500,000 New Yorkers over a New York City. In collaboration with the City Council and the New ten-year period. York Academy of Medicine, the All Ages Project NYCHA will “The cooperative effort determine how best to ready the City for its growing population of between NYCHA and HPD in METRO-NORTH seniors, examining everything from housing to meal delivery to making affordable housing The above rendering shows some of the af- transportation to traffic engineering improvements. continues to grow across the fordable housing planned for East 102nd Street. City,” said NYCHA Chairman Safe Streets for Seniors Tino Hernandez. “While we are Since 1990, pedestrian fatalities in New York City have creating the opportunity for decreased by 62 percent, but senior citizens remain a particularly more affordable housing to be vulnerable group. A study of pedestrian fatalities from 2002 to 2006 built in New York, we are showed that senior citizens—those 65 and over—made up about simultaneously helping to 12 percent of the City’s population but were involved in nearly 39 preserve public housing percent of the City’s fatal pedestrian accidents. through the money raised in Department of Transportation (DOT) engineers have already the long-term leasing of these examined accident histories across the City and identified 25 neigh- underutilized spaces.” borhoods that have both a high density of senior citizens and a high The properties, known as number of pedestrian accidents or injuries, looking at variables like Metro-North, comprise 17 visibility, lighting, drivers’ compliance with traffic and pedestrian six-story walk-up tenement signals and the width of the roadway. buildings on 100th, 102nd and As part of the Safe Streets for Seniors program, engineers will 103rd Streets, all bounded evaluate pedestrian conditions in these neighborhoods from a by First and Second Avenues senior’s perspective and make engineering changes such as extend- in Manhattan. ing pedestrian crossing times at crosswalks and shortening crossing Phipps Houses — one of distances, altering curbs and sidewalks, restricting vehicle turns, and the nation’s largest and oldest narrowing roadways. not-for-profit developers, The first five pilot locations include some neighborhoods with owners and managers of public housing developments. They are: Brooklyn’s Brighton affordable housing — is the Beach, the Lower East Side of Manhattan where many NYCHA lead developer for the creation developments are located, the Fordham/University Heights neigh- of a total of 339 units, approxi- borhoods in the Bronx, Flushing/Murray Hill in Queens, and New mately 300 of which will be The Housing Authority Dorp/Hylan Boulevard in Staten Island. permanently affordable to a 74years of Public Housing range of households earning Journal in New York Cityy Traffic Fatalities Already Lowest On Record up to $42,540 for a family of The final 2007 traffic fatality data shows that traffic fatalities in four and up to $29,760 for a New York City have already dropped to the lowest level since single person. The remaining ESTABLISHED 1970 • CIRCULATION 200,000 records started being kept in 1910: 271 traffic fatalities Citywide units will be affordable to a mix last year, down more than 30 percent since 2001. Pedestrian deaths Published monthly by the New York City Housing Authority of incomes: between $56,700 Department of Communications in 2007 were also at an all-time low, at 13, which is 13 percent and $70,900 for a family of 250 Broadway, New York, N.Y.