Recognizing James Secreto, NYPD Housing Bureau Chief

At the December NYCHA Board meeting, General Manager Vito Mustaciuolo announced the retirement of James Secreto, Chief of the NYPD’s Housing Bureau, whose 2,100 officers patrol NYCHA developments. Following the announcement, Chair Greg Russ presented Chief Secreto with a plaque recognizing his work in maintaining safety at our developments. Chief Secreto began his NYPD career… MORE

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Opportunity, Transformation, and Excellence

On December 16, about 230 NYCHA staff came together at the NYPD headquarters’ cavernous auditorium to discuss “opportunity, transformation, and excellence,” the theme of the Quarterly Leadership Meeting. Director of Community Development Leroy Williams kicked off the daylong event: “We’re bringing back this NYCHA tradition because it’s a great way to discuss where we are… MORE

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NYCHA Employee Receives Public Service Award

Denise Guess, Administrative Community Relations Specialist in the Resident Engagement Department, was honored on December 11 with the prestigious 2019 Isaac Liberman Public Service Award. Sponsored by The Hundred Year Association of New York, comprising companies, religious institutions, and non-profit organizations that are over 100 years old, the award has been presented to outstanding New… MORE

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Practicing Preparedness

Every September during National Preparedness Month, Americans are encouraged to get prepared for disasters or emergencies in their homes, businesses, and communities. Since 2013, NYCHA’s Emergency Services Department (ESD) has actively promoted that effort by ensuring its staff is well trained and properly equipped to address challenges that arise from gas leaks, floods, power failures,… MORE

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NYCHA’s New Departments

To improve service to residents and their quality of life, NYCHA is implementing significant health and safety-related improvements Authority-wide while continuing its focus on accountability and integrity. As part of this work, NYCHA created three new departments: The Compliance Department, which ensures that the Authority meets its legal, regulatory, and ethical responsibilities; The Environmental Health… MORE

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Announcing the 2019 NYCHA-CUNY Scholars

They are the next generation of social workers, advocates, journalists, IT professionals, doctors, teachers, and public servants – NYCHA residents pursuing their degrees at City University of New York colleges, and this year’s recipients of NYCHA-CUNY Resident Scholarships. On September 17, NYCHA and CUNY celebrated 25 residents for their academic excellence, leadership, and contributions to… MORE

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Employees Honored by City Hall for Rat Reduction Efforts

NYCHA staff members were recognized recently by Deputy Mayor for Operations Laura Anglin for their hard work helping to reduce the rat population at developments where they were most problematic. On July 29, NYCHA staff, along with employees from the city’s Departments of Education, Mental Health and Hygiene, Sanitation, and Parks & Recreation, were singled… MORE

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Rapid Response

NYCHA activated its Situation Room at 90 Church Street from Thursday, July 18 through Sunday, July 21 to centralize its efforts to handle issues arising from the heat wave that struck the city during that time. It included representatives from departments such as the Office of Emergency Management; Emergency Services; Operations; Capital Projects; Maintenance, Repairs,… MORE

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NYCHA Employee Graduates from the NYC Leadership Institute

For nearly four months this past year, Ajene Eustace, Director of the Capital Projects Division’s (CPD) Construction Safety & Quality Department, spent one day a week discussing and learning with his colleagues across City government about how to lead organizational change at their agencies as part of the NYC Leadership Institute. Mr. Eustace joins other… MORE

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NYCHA’s Situation Room: Handling Any Emergency

This past winter season, NYCHA’s Situation Room was activated on 10 separate occasions for extreme cold and snowstorms. NYCHANow spoke with Rudy Murillo, NYCHA’s Director of the Office of Emergency Management (OEM), to learn more about how the Situation Room operates in its mission to help safeguard the Authority’s residents, staff, and property during emergency… MORE

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Fostering a Discrimination-Free Workplace

NYCHA’s Employee Engagement Committee (ECC) monthly meetings provide us with the knowledge needed to help create a more productive and collaborative work environment. So it wasn’t a surprise that an area of concentration that is sometimes overlooked was highlighted for EEC members by Celeste Segure, NYCHA’s Director of Equal Opportunity, at the EEC’s February meeting. Ms.… MORE

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NYCHA Begins Lead-Based Paint Testing at 135,000 Apartments

On April 15, Mayor Bill de Blasio joined Interim Chair and CEO Kathryn Garcia and General Manager Vito Mustaciuolo at the Williamsburg Community Center in Brooklyn to kick off NYCHA’s new lead-based paint testing program. For the first time ever, 135,000 apartments will be tested with portable X-ray fluorescence (XRF) analyzers. Surpassing local and federal… MORE

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Kudos to NYCHA’s Financial Planning & Analysis Team

For the fourth consecutive year and for the fifth time, NYCHA received the Distinguished Budget Presentation Award from the Government Finance Officers Association (GFOA) last August. GFOA created the award program in 1984 to recognize state and local governments that prepare budget documents of the highest quality, as established by the National Advisory Council on… MORE

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Women’s History Month: A Spotlight on Women at NYCHA in Non-Traditional Careers

For the past 85 years, tens of thousands of women have worked at NYCHA, helping the Authority provide affordable housing to low- and moderate-income New Yorkers. Currently, women make up nearly half of NYCHA’s employees. This year, we closed Women’s History Month by featuring interviews with NYCHA employees working in non-traditional careers for women. The… MORE

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A NYCHA Black History Month Celebration

NYCHA residents ended Black History Month with a musical celebration that highlighted legends and the achievements of African Americans throughout the country’s history. On February 28, more than 300 residents from developments across the city filled the Johnson Community Center in Harlem for the event hosted by NYCHA’s Family Partnerships Department. Audience members were treated… MORE

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Lead-Based Paint Testing of 135,000 NYCHA Apartments

This spring, NYCHA will begin lead-based paint testing of approximately 135,000 NYCHA apartments citywide. NYCHA recently selected seven contractors to provide lead-based paint inspection services: Airtek Environmental, Arc Environmental, ATC Group, JLC Environmental, Lew Corporation, The ALC Group, and TRC Environmental. The $88 million contract starts April 1 and continues through September 30, 2020. Contractors… MORE

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Happy Lunar New Year

General Manager Vito Mustaciuolo ushered in the Lunar New Year with NYCHA’s Chinese-American Association on February 14 at the Jing Fong restaurant in Manhattan’s Chinatown. About 200 employees and guests enjoyed a nine-course banquet, Chinese dance performances, a tai chi demonstration, and a visit from ancient China’s “King of Fortune.” General Manager Mustaciuolo delivered greetings… MORE

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NextGen 2019: Communication & Collaboration

As part of the NextGen Office initiative, NYCHA’s IT Department continues to improve the technology available at development offices to help staff work more efficiently. Below are some programs that will launch this year; each involves virtual training, help desk support, and, in some cases, on-site training. NextGen Smart Screens: A 55-inch, interactive touch screen… MORE

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Launching Alternative Work Schedule (AWS)

Dear Colleagues, We are pleased to announce the launch of Alternative Work Schedule (AWS), a new way of scheduling certain front-line staff that ensures greater coverage at our developments. For the first time in about 50 years, we will have caretakers, their supervisors, assistant resident building superintendents, and resident building superintendents working at our developments… MORE

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Safety and Security Upgrades at 7 Manhattan Developments

Seven NYCHA developments across Manhattan will receive $13 million in safety and security upgrades thanks to a new grant from the Lower Manhattan Development Corporation (LMDC). More than 6,000 public housing residents will benefit from upgrades that include new facades, exterior LED lighting, and CCTV cameras at seven developments. As part of the new upgrades… MORE

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All in a Day’s Work: Mentoring and Inspiring

This past summer, Joseph Luciano, Senior Digital Producer in the Department of Communications, hosted two high school interns at NYCHA, providing them valuable guidance and hands-on experience as part of Futures and Options’ internship program. Due to the students’ successful engagement, the non-profit organization invited Mr. Luciano to be part of its “Careers in Technology”… MORE

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NYCHA 2.0: New Comprehensive Plan to Fix & Preserve Public Housing

Today, Mayor Bill de Blasio and Interim Chair and CEO Stanley Brezenoff unveiled NYCHA 2.0, a comprehensive plan to preserve public housing. This plan will address $24 billion in vital repairs to New York City’s aging public housing and ensure residents have the safe, decent, and affordable homes they deserve. The 10-year plan will deliver… MORE

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Saturday Work Order Blitz

NYCHA closed more than 800 maintenance work order requests in one day at five developments as part of the Authority’s proactive initiative to eliminate repair backlogs. While developments have limited staffing during most weekends, Patterson Houses in the Bronx, Kingsborough Houses in Brooklyn, Baruch Houses in Manhattan, Ravenswood Houses in Queens, and West Brighton Houses… MORE

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An Outstanding Collaborator

As part of a lively celebration at City Hall on December 5, Kim Truong, Community Coordinator for NYCHA’s Health Initiatives unit, received the “Outstanding Agency Collaboration” award from the City’s Department of Health and Mental Hygiene (DOHMH) for her work on Thrive NYC’s Mental Health First Aid program. ThriveNYC is a multi-agency initiative spearheaded by First Lady… MORE

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NYCHA Staff Get Educated about Intimate Partner Violence

On October 30, Kevin Morris, a community liaison from the Mayor’s Office to End Domestic and Gender-Based Violence (ENDGBV) presented a workshop, Intimate Partner Violence 101, for property management and community center staff at Van Dyke Houses in Brooklyn. Since many NYCHA residents regularly meet with and confide in property management staff, NYCHA partnered with… MORE

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Connecting Communities at NYCHA

NYCHA is working to update its urban design with residents and their neighbors in mind. Through the Connected Communities initiative, the Authority is comprehensively addressing the community connectivity of over 300 public housing developments across New York City. NYCHA’s new Connected Communities initiative seeks to make big changes to better connect NYCHA residents physically to… MORE

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Comprehensive Repairs for 62,000 Apartments

Innovative public-private partnerships, including the Rental Assistance Demonstration (RAD) program, are bringing extensive repairs to 62,000 NYCHA apartments, home to about 140,000 residents. This will address nearly $13 billion of much-needed repairs. These apartments will be converted to Section 8 funding and will remain permanently affordable. Residents will keep all their rights as public housing… MORE

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Announcing the 2018 NYCHA-CUNY Scholars

They are the next generation of community advocates, social workers, medical staff, teachers, accountants, and public servants. But first, they’re NYCHA residents in pursuit of their educational dreams at City of University of New York colleges — and the 2018 recipients of NYCHA-CUNY Resident Scholarships. The scholarships are given to residents who are full-time CUNY students displaying… MORE

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On-the-Job Experience for Young NYCHA Residents

Whitman Houses resident Skye Carson, 14, wants to be a writer or a lawyer in the future, two careers that require good communication skills. This summer, she greatly improved those skills while working at NYCHA through the Summer Youth Employment Program (SYEP). SYEP, which is is operated by the NYC Department of Youth and Community Development, provides… MORE

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Safety Symposium Puts Spotlight on Safety

About 300 NYCHA employees attended the Authority’s fifth annual Safety Symposium on June 28 at the Johnson Community Center in East Harlem. Interim Chair and CEO Stanley Brezenoff and Teamsters Local 237 President Gregory Floyd and Vice President Ruben Torres welcomed attendees – property managers, supervisors, and safety associates from across the city as well… MORE

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Housing Court 101

NYCHA employees are getting some valuable information about housing court proceedings. This spring, Deputy General Counsel Sam Mordi, along with Landlord and Tenant Division Chief Tracy Forrest, brought some clarity to a complicated process. In nine sessions covering all five boroughs, more than 500 property managers, assistant property managers, and housing assistants got tips on… MORE

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REES Zone Coordinator Honored for Service to the Community

Evelyn Melendez was born and raised in Williamsburg, Brooklyn, one of the neighborhoods she serves as a REES Zone Coordinator (the others are Bed-Stuy and Bushwick). She connects residents of 30 developments to partner organizations in their communities, enabling residents to pursue careers and empower themselves and their families economically.   Her dedicated service has not… MORE

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Erenisse Tavarez: NYCHA’s First Women’s History Month Awardee

Erenisse Tavarez, Acting Senior Vice President for Operations, was honored as the first-ever recipient of NYCHA’s Women’s History Month award. Chair Shola Olatoye presented the award to Ms. Tavarez along with a proclamation of gratitude from Council Member Alicka Ampry-Samuel, Chair of the Council’s Committee on Public Housing. “We are so honored to thank you… MORE

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NYCHA Celebrates International Women’s Day

Dear Colleagues, Today is International Women’s Day, an annual commemoration to celebrate women’s accomplishments and bring worldwide attention to discrimination against women. NYCHA’s creation is in large part due to the work of larger-than-life women like Eleanor Roosevelt, First Lady of New York and then the United States, and Mary K. Simkhovitch, president of the… MORE

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Spotlight on IT Department Employee Nina Winer

As a member of NYCHA’s IT Project Management Office, Nina Winer knows that information security is the responsibility of every single NYCHA employee. She strives to show employees how, through careful and intelligent use of technology, we can help safeguard NYCHA’s systems and data while fulfilling our mission of providing safe, clean, and connected housing… MORE

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