Working with Residents to Dramatically Improve Their Homes

Dear Colleagues, 

I am pleased to announce that we recently achieved a major milestone in our efforts to bring our developments the investment they desperately need, so residents can have the quality of life they deserve. 

Nostrand Houses will be the first NYCHA development whose residents will vote on whether to have their development renovated through the Public Housing Preservation Trust or the separate Permanent Affordability Commitment (PACT) initiative, or whether they want to remain in the current Section 9 program. 

The Trust is a public agency that was created last year and signed into law by Governor Kathy Hochul. It will invest billions of dollars in comprehensive renovations for 25,000 NYCHA apartments, dramatically improving residents’ quality of life.  

Both the Trust and PACT bring developments the more stable Section 8 federal funding, which is worth nearly double what Section 9 apartments receive. These initiatives also ensure that NYCHA developments remain public and that residents maintain their rights and protections, including permanently affordable rents. PACT has already improved thousands of residents’ homes, and it will ultimately renovate 62,000 apartments. For more information, please visit on.nyc.gov/nychavotes.  

Our developments have more than $78 billion in major repair needs. This massive figure is the result of decades of federal government disinvestment, as well as years of inaction. A challenge this immense requires multiple creative solutions, now. We are pleased that NYCHA residents will have this historic opportunity to decide the future of their homes. 

I am excited to continue this journey with you and the residents we serve. Together we are making history, creating new and better paths that will strengthen public housing in New York City – for today’s residents and the generations to come. And we will keep you informed as we announce additional developments whose residents will get the unique chance to vote on the specific direction that they would like to take for their homes. 

In partnership, 

Lisa Bova-Hiatt, Chief Executive Officer