Celebrating 90 Years of NYCHA

On December 3, 1935, the first families were welcomed into First Houses, signaling the start of public housing in both New York City and the United States. The arrival of 120 families marked the beginning of the New York City Housing Authority, which would grow to become the nation’s largest public housing authority. 

Established in 1934, NYCHA was created to provide safe, decent, and affordable homes for New Yorkers. NYCHA broke ground on its first development soon after its founding, and First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt cut the ribbon at the First Houses opening ceremony. 

Ninety years later, on December 3, 2025, NYCHA returned to the Lower East Side to honor the legacy of the development that started it all. First Houses residents, community leaders, partners, and invited guests gathered with NYCHA staff at the nearby Manny Cantor Center to commemorate the milestone. Among those in attendance were First Houses Resident Association President Ivette Garcia and Vice President Carmen Flores, NYCHA Board Vice Chair Victor Gonzalez and Board Member Paula Gavin, and Council Member Harvey Epstein. 

“First Houses represents the very beginning of public housing in America, and a reminder of what is possible when government takes bold, compassionate action,” said Arvind Sohoni, NYCHA’s Executive Vice President for Strategy and Innovation. 

Speakers included NYCHA Chair Jamie Rubin, Chief Executive Officer Lisa Bova-Hiatt, Chief Operating Officer Eva Trimble, First Houses Resident Council Vice President Carmen Flores as well as State Senator Brian Kavanagh and Hunter College Professor Nicholas D. Bloom. 

“First Houses set a new standard in the 1930s: quality homes, safe conditions, and rents that working families could truly afford,” NYCHA CEO Bova-Hiatt said. “Ninety years later, that mission remains just as critical. NYCHA is home to 1 in 16 New Yorkers. Each one of those residents deserves quality housing and stable communities. The legacy of First Houses is not just in the bricks — it’s in the generations of families who built their lives here, and in the community that has sustained this place through nine decades of change.”