First Members of Resident Roundtable Announced

Thirty-two NYCHA residents were recently chosen as the first members of the Resident Roundtable, a new committee that ensures residents continue to play an important role in NYCHA’s Transformation Plan, where they will provide valuable feedback and recommendations to implement the plan. 

The Citywide Council of Presidents (CCOP), the official citywide NYCHA resident organization, appointed five residents to the Roundtable and the remaining positions were filled by NYCHA residents and voucher holders in PACT/RAD developments through an open application process. The Roundtable members reflect NYCHA’s diverse population and represent each of the Authority’s new “Neighborhood” portfolios. The Neighborhood Model will improve operations and provide increased attention to NYCHA developments through the creation of smaller property management portfolios. (Read more about the Neighborhood Model here.)  

Wald Houses resident Monalisa Ortiz is thankful for the opportunity to be a member of the Resident Roundtable, representing the MN2 Neighborhood, which includes Baruch, Gompers, and Wald Houses: “As a lifetime resident of NYCHA, I have seen so many changes throughout decades, and it is rewarding to know that with this new Transformation Plan many residents will slowly start to see the changes of dream complexes and apartments. As the famous quote says, ‘Good things come to those who wait’; well, many of us have waited long enough and our voices have been heard. Now it is up to us, the communities all over the five boroughs, to take charge and collaborate, become one, and take back our complexes. Let us all be part of the Transformation Plan and make NYCHA beautiful again!” 

Resident Roundtable member Daniel Wool of Grant Houses said, “I am extremely honored to have been selected to represent residents in our NYCHA developments, helping to steer the NYCHA transformation, stabilization and implementation plans. My late mother, Ingrid, was very concerned with the state of NYCHA and I hope to advance her memory, as well as of other residents who have come before us — the pioneers of  the positive changes seen over the years. I look forward to serving and working with NYCHA employees to make a better experience for all the stakeholders.” Mr. Wool represents the MN8 neighborhood, which includes Grant, King Towers, Manhattanville, and Saint Nicholas Houses. 

Each Roundtable member will serve for two years and will be required to attend Roundtable and committee meetings; gain input from fellow residents and identify and prioritize new topics; make recommendations on NYCHA policies and programs; advise and actively participate in the implementation of approved recommendations; and participate in other aspects of NYCHA’s work as needed.  

“We welcome the 32 members of the Resident Roundtable and are looking forward to working with them on the Transformation Plan and its implementation,” said Eva Trimble, NYCHA’s Executive Vice President for Strategy & Innovation. “We recognize that meaningful change cannot happen at NYCHA without residents at the table, working alongside our staff. We are grateful that these dedicated individuals, who represent each of our 30 Neighborhood portfolios and the RAD/PACT developments, have stepped up to collaborate with us and improve the lives of their NYCHA neighbors.”  

Resident Roundtable Members and the Neighborhoods They Represent: 

Queens/Staten Island 
Bernice Swinton, Ravenswood 
Representing QS1: Queensbridge North, Queensbridge South, and Ravenswood 

Jean C. Chappell, Woodside 
Representing QS 2: Astoria, Latimer Gardens, Pomonok, and Woodside 

Loinsworth Sankarsingh, Redfern 
Representing QS 3: Baisley Park, Beach 41st Street-Beach Channel Drive, Hammel, Redfern, and South Jamaica I  

Brenda Harris, Cassidy-Lafayette
Representing QS 4: Berry, Mariner’s Harbor, Richmond Terrace, South Beach, Stapleton, Todt Hill, and West Brighton I 

The Bronx 
Muriel Logan, Edenwald 
Representing BX 1: Boston Secor, Eastchester Gardens, Edenwald, and Pelham Parkway 

Laila Stracker, Parkside 
Representing BX 2: Monroe, Parkside, Soundview, and Throggs Neck 

Susana Ortiz, Bronx River 
Representing BX 3: 1010 East 178th St, Bronx River, Sack Wern, and Sotomayor Houses 

Dominique Arrington, Morrisania Air Rights 
Representing BX 4: Fort Independence, Marble Hill, Morrisania Air Rights, and Sedgwick 

Yolyevett Arriola-Alvarez, Patterson 
Representing BX 5: Mill Brook, Mitchel, Mott Haven, and Patterson 

Cai Wiggins, Castle Hill 
Representing BX 6: Adams, Castle Hill, Melrose, and Saint Mary’s Park 

Sojourner Smith, Forest 
Representing BX 7: Forest, Morris, and Union Avenue Consolidated 

Dominica McCoy, Highbridge Gardens 
Representing BX 8: Butler, Claremont Consolidated, Gun Hill, Highbridge Gardens, and Webster 

Manhattan 
Celia Rivera, La Guardia 
Representing MN 1: La Guardia, Rutgers, Smith, and Vladeck 

Monalisa Ortiz, Wald 
Representing MN 2: Baruch, Gompers, and Wald 

Yvonne Jenkins, Riis II 
Representing MN 3: Chelsea, Fulton, Lower East Side Consolidated, and Riis 

Carlita Blanco, 154 West 84th Street 
Representing MN 4: Amsterdam, Douglass, Straus, and Wise Towers 

Aissata Diaby, East River 
Representing MN 5: East River, Jefferson, Wagner, and Wilson 

Sandra Perez, Holmes Towers 
Representing MN 6: Carver, Clinton, Isaacs, Lehman Village, and Washington 

Beverly MacFarlane, Taft 
Representing MN 7: Johnson, Lincoln, Robinson, Samuel, and Taft 

Daniel Wool, Grant 
Representing MN 8: Grant, King Towers, Manhattanville, and Saint Nicholas 

Wayne Breamfield, Drew-Hamilton 
Representing MN 9: Drew-Hamilton, Dyckman, Harlem River, Polo Grounds Towers, and Rangel 

Brooklyn 
Daouda Diomande, Marlboro 
Representing BK 1: Carey Gardens, Marlboro, O’Dwyer Gardens, and Surfside Gardens 

Kimberly Richardson, Breukelen 
Representing BK 2: Bay View, Breukelen, Glenwood, and Sheepshead Bay 

Tekima Letman, Cypress Hills 
Representing BK 3: Boulevard, Cypress Hills, Linden, Pennsylvania-Wortman, and Pink 

Reginald Bowman, Low Houses 
Representing BK 4: Brownsville, Hughes Apartments, Low Houses, Tilden, Van Dyke I, and Woodson 

Sybil Allen, Kingsborough 
Representing BK 5: Brevoort, Garvey, Kingsborough, Ocean Hill Apartments, Park Rock Consolidated, and Reid Apartments 

Mia Berrios, Roosevelt I 
Representing BK 6: Marcy, Roosevelt, Stuyvesant Gardens I, Sumner, and Tompkins 

Audrey West, Bushwick 
Representing BK 7: Borinquen Plaza I, Bushwick, Cooper Park, Taylor Street-Wythe Avenue, Unity Plaza, and Williamsburg 

Theresa Bell, Lafayette 
Representing BK 8: Farragut, Howard, Ingersoll, Lafayette, and Whitman 

Nancy Johnson, Albany 
Representing BK 9: Albany, Gowanus, Red Hook East, Red Hook West, and Wyckoff Gardens 

RAD/PACT 
Taurean Lewis, Berry Street 
RAD/PACT 

Kathy James, Fredrick Samuel Apartments 
RAD/PACT