Affordable Housing Coalition Proposes $4B NY State Budget to Address Housing Crisis

According to a press release put out today, an affordable housing coalition of ten groups has proposed a five-year, $4 billion capital plan to address the housing crisis in New York. As Governor Cuomo and the state legislature begin the 2016 legislative session, the group hopes that the plan, proposed for 2017-2021, can combat the fact that “more than half of statewide renters pay over 30 percent of income on housing costs, and more than 80,000 people are homeless across the state.” Specific to the city, the plan wants to close the NYCHA funding gap and increase senior housing.

The groups that make up the coalition are: AARP New York, the Center for NYC Neighborhoods, the Community Preservation Corporation, the Corporation for Supportive Housing, Enterprise Community Partners, LeadingAge NY, LISC New York City, the New York State Association for Affordable Housing (NYSAFAH), the New York Housing Conference, and the Supportive Housing Network of New York.

Some of the specific budget measures they’re proposing include:

• Allocate at least $1 billion in new funding for housing programs using funds gained from legal settlements with banks.
• Enact and fund a statewide supportive housing agreement for 35,000 units over the next 10 years, including a total of 30,000 in New York City and 5,000 outside the city.
• Provide annual financing of $175 million for capital repairs in public housing.
• Appropriate $50 million annually to a new Senior Housing Plus Services program to support aging in place of New York’s rapidly growing low-income elder population.
• Increase the annual State Low-Income Housing Tax Credit (SLIHC) allocation to at least $25 million in order to create housing for seniors, encourage more mixed income housing, and help meet fair housing goals.
• Appropriate $50 million annually to support affordable homeownership and preserve naturally occurring affordable housing.

To reach these goals, the coalition seeks to establish a public directory of state-owned land that could be used for affordable housing development; create a state-wide strategy for reducing homelessness; and continue programs such as Mitchell-Lama that provide middle-income housing.

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• Americans Are Spending More on Rent and There’s No Relief in Sight
• 2,000 NYCHA Apartments Are Vacant Despite 270,000-Name Waiting List
• City Council Announces New Task Force on Tracking and Preserving Affordable Housing