Federal Housing and Urban Development (HUD) Secretary Ben Carson threatened to declare the New York City Housing Authority (NYCHA) in “Substantial Default” and warned he would Exercise more Control over the Agency if City Officials don’t come up with a suitable Plan by the End of January. That includes the Possibility of a Federal Takeover of the Nation’s Largest Public Housing Authority, which is home to some 400,000 Residents.
Carson issued the Warning in a brief Letter sent Friday to Mayor Bill de Blasio and Housing Authority Chairman Stanley Brezenoff. A Copy was also sent to Gov. Andrew Cuomo, who ran the Department of Housing and Urban Development during Bill Clinton’s Presidency.
“Please be advised that if an arrangement acceptable to the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development regarding the future of the New York City Housing Authority (NYCHA) is not reached on or before January 31, 2019, I intend to declare a substantial default with respect to NYCHA,” Carson wrote. He said he would also “exercise appropriate remedies from the wide range available under the United States Housing Act of 1937, as amended, and other legal authorities.”
He released the Letter Friday Evening, as de Blasio and Federal Prosecutors were Finalizing their Joint Plan to Submit to Judge William Pauley. Last Month the Judge Rejected the Parties’ Consent Decree that would have Installed an Outside Monitor and Required the City to spend at least $1.2 Billion in Additional Funds on Public Housing.
Carson didn’t Specifically Threaten a Takeover, which HUD has done in other Distressed Housing Authorities throughout the Country. But the prospect of what is known as Receivership has been looming since Pauley Rejected the Original Plan, which resulted from a Federal Complaint declaring the Housing Authority Unsafe for its Residents. “Declaring substantial default is never our first choice but unless and until New York City can produce an acceptable roadmap forward, I will not hesitate to exercise my legal authority to impose serious sanctions,” Carson said in a Release.
“The families who are enduring unimaginably poor housing conditions deserve better from their housing authority,” he added. “We need bold new solutions for an old problem and I earnestly hope the city is serious about turning a new page for NYCHA.” He said any New Agreement must “establish tangible goals and milestones to address serious health and safety hazards in the housing authority’s properties, including lead-based paint hazards and mold.”
The Deal must address Broken Elevators, Vermin, and Antiquated Boilers that caused 80% of Residents to Lose Heat or Hot Water during a Cold Snap last Winter.
He also called for “reduction of unwarranted costs,” less Bureaucracy, and better Management of the Agency. The Federal Complaint found Housing Authority Officials Broke Local Law by Failing to Conduct Annual Lead Paint Inspections and Lied about it to HUD Officials. The Malfeasance predated the de Blasio Administration but continued on his Watch.
Carson also called on the City and State to give more Money to the Housing Authority, which needs $32 Billion for Five Years of Capital Repairs to its 2,418 Buildings that House more than 400,000 People.
De Blasio has Increased the City’s Allocations to NYCHA Substantially, but his Budget comes nowhere near addressing the Agency’s Needs. He announced Plans this week to tackle $24 Billion in Repairs over 10 years through a Series of Initiatives, including Leasing Unused Sites for Market-Rate Apartments and Selling untapped Development Rights belonging to the Agency.
Cuomo is still Withholding most of the $550 Million he Allocated to the Housing Authority in recent years, saying he is Waiting for the Outcome of the Federal Case.
"These receiverships at minimum are a mixed bag — some of them turned out very poorly, some of them involved privatization, some of them involved tearing down public housing in different cities," de Blasio said during a Radio appearance on WNYC's The Brian Lehrer Show Friday. "A lot of them involved displacing their residents who never got to come back."
NYC Wins When Everyone Can Vote! Michael H. Drucker
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