The constructed and preserved affordable housing units by borough. Image credit: The Office of Mayor Bill de Blasio
The Mayor’s Administration is ahead of schedule in achieving its goal to build 200,000 affordable homes in 10 years. On July 26, 2016, Mayor Bill de Blasio announced an update on the progress that has been made to achieve the goals set forth in his Housing New York plan, which seeks to build 200,000 affordable homes in 10 years. The Housing New York plan met the conclusion of its second fiscal year on June 30, 2016. For CityLand’s previous coverage on the Housing New York plan, click here and here.
According to the announcement, the Mayoral Administration created 23,284 affordable homes in Fiscal Year 2016—achieving the second highest production of affordable homes within one year in the history of New York City. In total, 52,936 affordable homes have been financed to date under the Housing New York plan, which is enough to house 130,000 New Yorkers. Included in this total are the 3,500 new apartments created to house the poorest New Yorkers, who earn less than $24,000 annually. Further, the City is in the process currently of creating 4,000 affordable senior housing units for low-income seniors.
In addition to its efforts in creating affordable housing units, the City has also been working to protect neighborhoods affordability from the sting of gentrification by increasing its investment in NYCHA to improve conditions for its 600,000 tenants and effectuating a 24 percent decline in evictions in the past two years.
New Yorkers interested in applying for affordable housing can do so online here or by calling 311.
“The biggest and most progressive affordable housing plan in the nation is on-budget and ahead of schedule,” said Mayor Bill de Blasio. “Financing enough affordable homes for 130,000 people in just two and a half years is an extraordinary accomplishment. Just like getting 70,000 kids into Pre-K for All or putting an IDNYC in the hands of more than 800,000 New Yorkers, this is a significant milestone in our effort to make this city fairer and more affordable for everyone.”
“We ramped up from day one to meet the goals of Housing New York, and are now seeing the results of those efforts. This is borne out not just in the numbers, but in the people we are reaching through the affordable housing we build and preserve,” said Department of Housing Preservation and Development Commissioner Vicki Been. “This administration is committed to reaching far deeper levels of affordability, and we didn’t just meet our targets – we exceeded the targets we set through programmatic and policy changes that will shape the future of our City for generations to come.”
“The Department of City Planning is working with communities, our sister agencies and elected officials to identify opportunities for affordable housing in applications both public and private. This year’s numbers prove that this focus on affordable housing is bearing fruit. As we move forward, tools such as MIH and ZQA will help foster economically diverse neighborhoods and house a wider range of New Yorkers. Neighborhood planning initiatives, like the East New York Community Plan, will increase capacity to ensure future housing opportunities and create thriving neighborhoods with investments to support growth. Working together, we are creating a more equitable New York with affordable housing for residents at all income levels,” said Director of the Department of City Planning and Chair of the City Planning Commission Carl Weisbrod.
“The gains we have made to date represent tangible progress for New Yorkers struggling to find and stay in affordable housing,” said Historic Districts Council President Gary Rodney. “Our robust toolbox of financing programs have allowed us to spur ground-breaking new developments and preserve the quality and affordability of existing housing for people at all income levels that is so essential to thriving, diverse neighborhoods.”
“The affordable housing crisis is the defining challenge New York faces today, and this administration’s commitment to meeting that challenge with bold action is laudable,” said Manhattan Borough President Gale Brewer. “We must keep working together to produce and preserve more affordable units in every neighborhood while protecting the things that make those neighborhoods special, so we can continue the centuries-old traditions of economic and cultural diversity that have made Manhattan and New York City a beacon to the world.”
“New York City cannot turn its back on our poor, so I commend Mayor de Blasio for delivering on his promise to building affordable housing, particularly for our city’s most vulnerable citizens. As Chair of the Council’s Housing and Buildings Committee, I will continue to work with our administration to encourage affordable development throughout the city, and I look forward to working with the Mayor to ensure our city reaches his ambitious 10-year goal for our neediest New Yorkers,” said Council Member Jumaane Williams, Deputy Leader and Chair of the Committee on Housing.
By: Jessica Soultanian-Braunstein (Jessica is the CityLaw Fellow and a New York Law School Graduate, Class of 2015)