NYC commits $500M in plan to build thousands of affordable apartments for seniors on unused land

As part of the new city budget, New York City has committed $500 million toward a plan to construct thousands of new apartments for low-income senior citizens on vacant public housing land, the Wall Street Journal reports. The new units would also free up existing NYCHA units currently occupied by seniors for people currently on wait lists for housing.

There are currently 207,000 families on the wait list for public housing according to Rev. David Brawley, a pastor at St. Paul Community Baptist Church in Brooklyn’s East New York neighborhood. According to recent data, there are 58,700 people living in shelters.

Housing activists want a total of $2 billion from the city to build 15,000 apartments for seniors. The promised $500 million will go toward creating a few thousand new residences. At a rally outside city hall Tuesday, Mayor Bill de Blasio said: “Fairness means people who worked so hard their whole lives can actually make ends meet.”

The $89.15 billion city budget will head to the City Council for a vote this week after an agreement was reached Monday. The city also agreed to commit over $2 billion over the next decade to shore up a crumbling New York City public housing system after a multi-year federal probe found major safety and health issues.

[Via WSJ]

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