NEW YORK CITY — The New York City Housing Authority (NYCHA) has received $423 million in stimulus funding for renovations and improvements to 70 public housing projects located throughout the five boroughs. The funds were secured as a result of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009.
“This money will allow us to immediately begin working on more significant upgrade, rehabilitation and energy conservation projects in housing developments throughout the five boroughs,” said Mayor Michael Bloomberg in a prepared statement.
He added, “The stimulus funds will create more than 3,200 jobs, while also improving the apartment buildings of thousands of New Yorkers and affirming our commitment to preserving public housing.”
The single largest project to be funded as a result of the stimulus is the $87 million renovation of Whitman-Ingersoll Houses, located in Brooklyn. The two housing communities contain a total of 35 buildings and 3,475 units. The project will include the renovation and reconfiguration of 1,610 apartments in 19 buildings. Kitchens, bathrooms, plumbing and electrical systems will be upgraded; new paint and plaster will be put on the walls; closet and interior doors, as well as floor tiles, will be replaced; and new smoke and carbon monoxide detectors will be installed. The project will begin in November and is expected to be complete by February 2012.
Of the $423 million in funding, $149 million will be used for roof repairs, $50 million will go toward repairing brickwork and $70 million will be used for elevator modernization. Other blocks of funding will be used to make the buildings more energy efficient. Approximately $21 million will be used for new, energy-efficient refrigerators that are expected to save $1.4 million per year in energy costs.
Brooklyn projects are expected to get the largest portion of stimulus funding with $181.4 million. This is followed by the Bronx with $89.66 million, Queens with $47.9 million and Manhattan with $14.85 million. Other citywide projects, including those on Staten Island, will receive the remainder of the $89.4 million.
The first projects will break ground starting next month, with the rest beginning over the next 2 years.
— Coleman Wood