Westchester IDA Approves Incentives For Affordable Housing

The Westchester County Industrial Development Agency (IDA) recently voted preliminary approval of $912,062 in financial incentives for the renovation of two affordable housing developments in Mount Vernon and Tarrytown. The two projects comprise a total of 250 units of affordable housing.

The IDA Board gave preliminary approval of $653,672 of financial incentives and $27.5 million in tax-exempt bond financing for renovating Ebony Gardens, a multi-family complex in Mount Vernon comprised of seven garden-style apartment buildings with a total of 144 units of affordable housing targeting tenants earning 60 percent of area median income.

Renovations will include upgraded kitchens and baths, new windows, new roofs, upgrading of facades and upgrading of mechanical systems. In addition, there will be a new amenities building with a fitness room, business center and community room. The complex will be wired for wifi that will be provided free of charges to the residents.

Renovations will include new kitchens and baths, new roofing and windows and improvement to mechanical systems for greater energy efficiency.

Located at 138 South Sixth Avenue, Ebony Gardens was built in the early 1980s and was in continuous operation as housing for low-income families. The $7.9 million renovation project is expected to create 41 construction jobs and create and retain 40 full-time jobs. The developer of the project is an affiliate of Related Companies, one of the largest developers and preservationists of affordable and workforce housing in the nation.

The Board has also voted preliminary approval of $258,392 in financial incentives for renovation of Asbury Terrace Apartments, a nine-story, 106-unit apartment building located at1 River Road in Tarrytown. The building features 36 one-bedroom apartments, 45 two-bedroom apartments, 25 three-bedroom apartments, plus an apartment for the building superintendent. The building is being acquired by Mountco Construction and Development Corp. of Scarsdale which has successfully renovated 17 former HUD properties like Asbury Terrace.

https://patch.com/new-york/tarrytown/westchester-ida-approves-incentives-affordable-housing

THE YOUTH SHELTER PROGRAM -WESTCHESTER PRESENTS-AN EVENING WITH BAKARI SELLERS

The Youth Shelter Program of Westchester is proud to announce An Evening with Bakari Sellers. Bakari T. Sellers is an American attorney, political commentator, former member of the South Carolina House of Representatives and author. Mr. Sellers is a CNN Contributor and has appeared on shows such as the HBO series, Real Time with Bill Maher. He is sought after for his passionate political and social commentary and analysis informed by first-hand experience.

The Youth Shelter Program of Westchester invites the public to attend this virtual fundraiser on Thursday, October 29 at 6:00 pm. 

Click here for full details.

Affordable Housing Complex Approved in New Rochelle- 77 Units for DV Survivors

The New Rochelle Industrial Development Agency recently approved plans to construct a 100 percent affordable residential tower in the downtown center of New Rochelle. The 20-story property will take shape at 11 Garden Street and is designed by architect Stephen B. Jacobs Group.

The property will yield 219 rental units ranging from studios to three-bedroom homes. Additional components include a parking garage for 172 vehicles, a private playground for residents, and a new public plaza at the corner of Garden Street and North Avenue. A total of 77 units will be reserved for victims of domestic violence.

Read the full article here

SUPPORT RIGHT TO COUNSEL FOR LOW INCOME TENANTS IN WESTCHESTER COUNTY

Even before the pandemic struck, over 10,000 Westchester households faced eviction each year and nearly 5,000 people annually entered Westchester's shelter system. 

Eviction cases in Westchester housing courts are lopsided: 93% of landlords have attorneys but only 7% of tenants do. Tenants without legal representation typically lose their cases - and their homes - in just 3-4 minutes in a blur of rapid-fire judicial action.

Now the rental housing market in Westchester is in crisis. The pandemic recession has interrupted or destroyed thousands of Westchester families' jobs. The August 2020 unemployment rate in Westchester is still 11.1%. Thousands of Westchester households have been unable to pay their rent. There are state and federal moratoria that postpone evictions, but the unpaid rents continue to accumulate. As a result, Westchester is facing a "tsunami of evictions" when the current moratoria on evictions are lifted.

A Westchester Right 2 Counsel Coalition has been created to create a right to counsel for low-income tenants facing eviction. Similar programs have already been established in cities across the country including NYC, Cleveland and Minneapolis. These programs have effectively reduced the number of people annually evicted.

The R2C Coalition is asking Westchester residents to contact their county legislators and urge them to pass Right 2 Counsel legislation in Westchester. We can't afford to wait and let hundreds or even thousands more Westchester households flood our already over-burdened homeless shelter system. Please call or email your county legislator today!

-Karl Bertrand, LMSW
Co-Chair, Westchester County Continuum of Care Partnership for the Homeless
President/C.E.O., Program Design and Development, LLC

Legal Aide Society Secures Permission to Intervene on Litigation

To the dismay of landlords, tenants now have a seat at the table in the legal challenges to New York’s rent law.

In two of the five cases that challenge last year’s law — one brought by the Building and Realty Institute of Westchester, and the other brought by G-Max management — U.S. District Judge Kenneth Karas granted a motion to intervene from attorneys representing tenant groups Community Voices Heard and Tenants & Neighbors.

The latest decision means tenant attorneys will now be a party to each of the five separate legal challenges, giving them the power to file motions and make arguments on the tenants’ behalf.

Click Here to Read Full Details.

Attorney General Letitia James Announces Grantees for COVID-19 Tenant Legal Assistance Initiative

New York Attorney General Letitia James today announced the recipients of the COVID-19 Tenant Legal Assistance Initiative grants, a program that was launched earlier this year to support housing during COVID-19. The six grantees will develop and manage regional volunteer attorney programs across the state to provide support for tenants facing eviction due to the COVID-19 pandemic. In addition to providing legal support, as part of the program, these organizations will work together to identify systemic housing issues that New Yorkers outside of New York City face.

Click here to read the full press release.

The Community Build Back Program

Westchester County Executive George Latimer Announces The Community Build Back Program To Assist Westchester Residents Facing Homelessness Due To The Covid-19 Pandemic 

  (White Plains, NY) – In an effort to stabilize communities and families in the County impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic, Westchester County Executive George Latimer is announcing the Community Build Back Program.  The four pronged umbrella Program has four programs under it.  Two utilize HUD money, the RED STOP Eviction Project and the RED Rent HELP Project, and two separate ones utilize $10 million dollars in CARES ACT money the Blue Priority Homeowners Initiative and the Blue Small Business Landlord Initiative.

Latimer said: “As a result of COVID-19 and the impact on the economy, both the federal government and New York State issued moratoriums on tenant evictions.  Those moratoriums are coming to an end and unemployment benefits have been greatly diminished.  The Community Build Back Program will enable families to stay in their homes as we head into the fall/winter season.”  

The RED STOP Eviction Project utilizes federal HUD funds and will provide up to 4 months of rental or utility arrears for tenants facing eviction or shut off as long as they can demonstrate that their financial hardship is due to COVID.  Tenants must be within 21 days of eviction, must demonstrate ability to pay their rent going forward, and must live in a Westchester Urban County Consortium municipality.  Assistance is available through select non-profits including: Westchester Residential Opportunities, Community Housing Innovations, Washingtonville Housing Alliance and Choice of New Rochelle. 

RED Rent HELP Project – “moving forward” also utilizes federal HUD funds and will provide up to 12 months of rental assistance for families impacted by COVID but focus on households where the tenants worked in industries closed until Phase 4, or who worked for a business that no longer exists. RED Rent HELP Project will be run by the County’s Planning Department.

The Blue Priority Homeowners Initiative, uses $2.5 million dollars and focuses on homeowners facing foreclosure.  That part of the Program, which is estimated to help 325 households in the County, and assist them with up to 4 months of mortgage / cooperative arrears.  Homeowners must show that COVID has negatively impacted their ability to pay their mortgage.  The homeowner will also have to show that they were up to date on payments as of March 2020.  This part of the Program also runs until the end of the year and will be administered through select nonprofits including: Westchester Residential Opportunities, Community Housing Innovations, Washingtonville Housing Alliance, HDSW (Human Development Services of Westchester) and the Bridge Fund.

Westchester Residential Opportunities, Inc. Executive Director Marlene Zarfes said: “This eviction prevention program will be a lifesaver for so many County residents at risk of becoming homeless.  Westchester Residential Opportunities is proud to partner with the County to help keep people safely in their homes and keep families together.”

For the Blue Small Business Landlord Initiative, $7.5 million dollars has been earmarked to assist approximately 2,400 households in the County by working directly with their landlords and bringing their rent up to date. The Program runs from now until the end of 2020, and can cover up to 75% of back rent for up to 4 months of rent for landlords who can show that their tenants were up to date in March, but have since not been able to pay their rent due to COVID.  This program, to be done by lottery, will assist landlords who own between 4 and 20 units.  Blue Small Business Landlord Initiative will be run by the County’s Planning Department.

Building & Realty Institute (BRI) of Westchester and the Mid-Hudson Region Executive Director Tim Foley said: "We're thankful for the creative leadership shown by Westchester County's Community Build Back Program, and the focus on supplying urgently-needed aid to struggling tenants, landlords, and property owners alike. The landlords and property owners of the Building & Realty Institute have been checking in on our at-risk tenants, offering flexibility and payment plans on their rent, and trying to be as accommodating as possible to good tenants who lost their jobs or lost income due to the COVID pandemic. But as the public health and economic emergency stretches on with no end-date in sight, we need government to step up to stabilize our housing situation. With this four-prong approach, Westchester County is clearly doing so."

Latimer said: “Landlords, many times, are small business owners who depend on the rent from their properties to support their own families.  We realize the chaos that nonpayment can put into their lives and their communities.  The last thing we want to see is a landlord lose their property over nonpayment.  That benefits no one.”

Board of Directors of the Apartment Owners Advisory Council Member Carol Danziger said: "I am thankful to Westchester County for setting up these programs aimed at helping tenants and landlords during this crisis. I'm a second-generation owner of a family-run small apartment building, like so many small business owners, COVID-19 took any financial problems we had and made them that much worse. After the financial hardships and unimaginable personal losses we've experienced, we are still here for our tenants if the needs arise, especially if anyone is struggling. But since we do basically everything ourselves and have no staff, there was no relief for us under the CARES Act previously, and we were quickly running out of options and flexibility. These subsidies and stabilization funds will help us remain steady while the public health emergency continues this fall."

Fact Sheets and Applications (English and Spanish) for the programs are available on the County’s website at:  www.westchestergov.com/HousingHelp.

 

COVID-19 Homeless System Response: Strategies for Renter Protection

Rental households, especially those with extremely low income and disabilities, are particularly vulnerable to homelessness if they are evicted. When households are evicted, they not only lose their housing stability, but they may also forfeit security deposits and incur recorded debt and a negative rental history. This affects not only the individual responsible for violating lease conditions, but also other household members. Communities can balance rental requirements and responsible property management with efforts to prevent homelessness by partnering with tenants, landlords, and service providers. These partnerships can ensure vulnerable households are provided with the support they need to successfully maintain housing.

Nationally landlords either have been or are still under a wide variety of federal, state, and local moratoriums on evictions, late fees, and penalties related to nonpayment of rent. As those moratoriums are lifted or expire, communities should anticipate a rising demand for eviction prevention assistance as the COVID-19 outbreak continues and unemployment remains high. There is also a wide variety of federal, state, and local legal protections for renters regarding applications, deposits, habitability standards, security, privacy, evictions, and retaliation. While communities develop and implement strategies for eviction prevention, they should also invest in renter protections for Continuum of Care (CoC) and Emergency Solutions Grants (ESG) program participants, as well as the general public. This document addresses strategies to reduce evictions and exits from housing programs and includes a community profiles of Chicago’s Re-ntervention program.

To read the full document click here - Strategies for Renter Protection

Mount Vernon's Patterson-Howard joins Mayors for Guaranteed Income to help working poor

Mayor Patterson-Howard joined the newly formed Mayors for A Guaranteed Income (MGI), a growing coalition of twenty-five mayors from across the country, to advocate for unconditional direct cash payments and guaranteed income at the local, state, and federal level.

MGI launched on June 29, 2020 in an effort to address the growing economic disparities in communities across the nation. With 44% of American workers earning just about $18,000 a year, income and wealth inequality has reached historic highs. Many Americans work multiple jobs and still struggle to afford even the most basic of necessities, nearly 40% of all Americans cannot afford a $400 emergency. The emergence of COVID-19 has only exacerbated the deeply rooted issue of income inequality and has demonstrated the disproportionate impact it has had on minority communities. Now more than ever Americans across the nation need Guaranteed Income.

Mayor Patterson-Howard becomes the first mayor in the lower Hudson Valley region to join the coalition. As the coronavirus pandemic continues to plague residents and create economic instability, Mayor Patterson-Howard has pledged to invest in changing the narrative. As a strong advocate of cash-based policies, Mayor Patterson-Howard is pushing forward to create a pilot program that will supplement, rather than replace, existing financial support to residents. Earlier this year, Mayor Patterson-Howard announced the Financial Navigators program which will provide individuals with the tools to raise their financial capacity.

Mayor Patterson-Howard said, “Cash is the currency of urgency. In Mount Vernon, economic security is a quintessential building block for local families. With rising unemployment, food insecurity and a federal government that has failed to protect taxpayers, we have decided to act. As a long time, advocate for cash-based policies that improve the economic outcomes for residents I am excited to join my fellow mayors in this coalition. Guaranteed income for Mount Vernon residents will be a game changer and by generating innovative ideas to solve big problems, we can empower our community. In the next few months we will be unveiling our pilot program that will direct cash payments to families most in need.”

The pilot program for Mount Vernon is still in the early stages of implementation. The Patterson-Howard administration will be focusing on families who are on the cliff of financial distress, that includes those facing: homelessness, eviction, utility disconnection, unemployment, debt and other issues. Community input and involvement will be critical as the program is developing innovative and creative ways to implement a “New Deal” for Mount Vernon. By identifying public & private monies in addition to funds from the CARES act as starting capital, the goal of providing families with $500 cash payments directly over a 12–18-month period should be attainable.

https://medium.com/@MayorSPH/mayor-patterson-howard-joins-mayors-for-guaranteed-income-coalition-6692cfcf6199

GOVERNOR CUOMO ANNOUNCES THE AVAILABILITY OF UP TO $158 MILLION TO ADVANCE ACTION PLAN COMBATING HOMELESSNESS

Homeless Housing and Assistance Program to Provide $128 Million in Capital Funding for Permanent Supportive Housing Projects; Emergency Shelter Repairs

 

Up to $30 Million in Operating and Service Funding Also Available Through the Governor's Empire State Supportive Housing Initiative

Governor Andrew M. Cuomo today announced the release of two requests for proposals for programs that build and support homeless housing across the state. Combined, the Homeless Housing and Assistance Program and the Empire State Supportive Housing Initiative make available $158 million for projects that will house New Yorkers experiencing homelessness and provide supportive services aimed at addressing the root causes of housing instability. This funding continues the work of the Governor's unprecedented $20 billion, five-year housing plan, which is creating or preserving 100,000 units of affordable housing and has spurred the development of more than 6,600 of supportive housing units across the state.

"For many who experience homelessness, housing insecurity is only a symptom of an even greater underlying problem," Governor Cuomo said. "Projects that address both the shelter and support needs of those experiencing homelessness are at the vanguard of our efforts to ensure all New Yorkers have a safe, stable place to live. These programs represent a crucial investment in our communities and to ensuring the most vulnerable among us aren't left to languish on the streets."

New York State's Homeless Housing and Assistance Program (HHAP) is providing up to $128 million in capital funding for projects that propose to build supportive housing units or to repair emergency shelters -an amount that is double the prior year's allocation. In addition, the Empire State Supportive Housing Initiative (ESSHI) is accepting proposals for up to $30 million for the ongoing services and operation of supportive housing for individuals experiencing homelessness and with special needs, conditions, or other life challenges.

Building on his commitment to the five-year, $20 billion housing plan, Governor Cuomo's enacted 2021 state budget increased the available funding for the Homeless Housing and Assistance Program from $64 million to $128 million. This funding includes $5 million earmarked for supportive housing for homeless veterans; $5 million for supportive housing for individuals with AIDS who are experiencing homelessness; and $1 million for necessary repairs to emergency shelters.

The Homeless Housing Assistance Program provides capital grants and loans to not-for-profit corporations, charitable and religious organizations, and municipalities to acquire, construct, or rehabilitate housing for persons who are unable to secure adequate housing without special assistance. The grants are awarded through a competitive process by the New York State Homeless Housing and Assistance Corporation, a public benefit corporation staffed by the state Office of Temporary and Disability Assistance (OTDA).

 

Through this program, New York State has appropriated more than $1.2 billion toward the development of supportive housing. In total, the program has created more than 22,000 units of housing to support individuals and families experiencing homelessness.

 OTDA Commissioner Mike Hein said, "New York State's unrivaled commitment to expanding the amount of supportive housing statewide is a commonsense approach toward ensuring all New Yorkers have access to a safe, affordable place to live. With this unprecedented increase more than doubling our available funding, we can further support Governor Cuomo's visionary plan to reduce homelessness throughout the state and effect meaningful change in communities grappling with housing instability."

Established in 2016 and administered by the state Office of Mental Health, the Empire State Supportive Housing Initiative is a five-year program designed to fund the service and operating costs of at least 6,000 units of permanent supportive housing for at-risk populations. The initiative is aimed at better coordinating resources from multiple-state agencies, thereby allowing more dynamic programming and quicker implementation.

To date, this initiative has provided service and operating funding for more than 4,600 units of supportive housing. The funding allocated in this year will help create an additional 1,200 units statewide.

 OMH Commissioner Dr. Ann Sullivan said, "Stable housing provides people living with mental illness who are at-risk of homelessness the support they need as they address their challenges. Governor Cuomo's Empire State Supportive Housing Initiative has brought new hope of recovery to thousands of vulnerable New Yorkers who were facing instability and uncertainty in their lives."

 HCR Commissioner RuthAnne Visnauskas said, "This $158 million investment will expand critical services for New Yorkers at the highest risk of homelessness and further Governor Cuomo's aggressive $20 billion, 5-year housing plan to create 6,000 units of supportive housing for New Yorkers. During a global pandemic, there is no greater need than the protection that only a safe, secure and affordable home can provide. Our commitment to tackling this current crisis and continuing our fight against homelessness means we must ensure resources are available to help people find quality housing and stay there."

 Office of Alcoholism and Substance Abuse Services Commissioner Arlene González-Sánchez Gonzalez-Sanchez said, "The Governor's Empire State Supportive Housing Initiative has been a true blessing for the population we serve. This new round of requests for proposals will allow for our providers to apply for support to create safe, permanent supportive housing for homeless individuals who are dealing with a substance use disorder."

 OCFS Commissioner Sheila J. Poole said, "Stable housing is critical for every New Yorker, but most especially for individuals fleeing domestic violence situations with their children or young people without a safe haven. Supportive housing projects such as this provide housing stability - a foundation on which vulnerable New Yorkers can rebuild their lives as independent, working and contributing citizens."

 Office for People With Developmental Disabilities Commissioner Dr. Theodore Kastner said, "Programs like these enable our efforts, under Governor Cuomo's leadership, to empower New Yorkers with developmental disabilities to be participating members of their communities. Affordable, supportive housing is the foundation for integrated, community living and helps to ensure the people we support live happy, fulfilled lives."

 

The Homeless Housing and Assistance Program request for proposals can be found here.

The Empire State Supportive Housing Initiative request for proposals can be found here.

The Rent Eats First, Even During a Pandemic

For the original article, please visit -https://www.nytimes.com/2020/08/29/opinion/sunday/coronavirus-evictions-superspreader.html?smid=em-share

Threatening to turn families out of their homes during the coronavirus fight isn’t just morally suspect; it’s dangerous.

A year and a half ago, Jhon Loaiza and his wife, Sugey Bedoya, moved with their three daughters — now 12, 5 and 3 — from a two-bedroom apartment in New York City to a compact brick ranch house in San Antonio. They loved that house — its fenced-in backyard and four whole bedrooms, each with soft tan carpet — and their new city. They would walk by the river with ice cream or ride bikes after Sunday church. At night, Mr. Loaiza would put on salsa or reggaeton, twirling his girls around the living room and laughing. His broad smile forced his dimples to crease in.That was in the before time — before Mr. Loaiza lost his income because of business closures, before he and his family left their home because they were threatened with eviction and before he contracted Covid-19 likely as a result of that move.Forty-five, with a trim athlete’s body, Mr. Loaiza worked as a physical trainer for the San Antonio Athenians, a semipro women’s soccer team. During the off-season, he joined construction crews, cutting tile and stone, and waited tables. In November, having found better work opportunities in New York, Mr. Loaiza temporarily moved back, sending money to his family, who had remained in Texas.In March, as New York City became an epicenter of the coronavirus outbreak, Mr. Loaiza returned to San Antonio and quarantined at home. But the virus was not far behind him, and when it arrived in full force in Texas, the jobs dried up. Mr. Loaiza and Ms. Bedoya had enough savings to cover April’s rent, $1,595, but they had to skimp on other bills. They began relying on food boxes from their church. As I’ve noted before, the rent eats first.

Sensing that his family wouldn’t be able to make the next month’s rent, Mr. Loaiza applied for emergency assistance and called the city’s Neighborhood and Housing Services Department so frequently that the operators got to know him by name. But it seemed as if all of San Antonio was calling, and Mr. Loaiza learned it could be a full month before help would arrive, if it arrived at all. When Houston approved $15 million in additional rental assistance, it ran out in less than two hours.May arrived, and the family fell behind. Their landlord, Ricardo Acosta, delivered their eviction notice on June 2, handing it to Mr. Loaiza and Ms. Bedoya’s 12-year-old daughter, who had answered the door. The eviction notice read: “Landlord demands that Tenant vacate the Property not later than the date stated in Paragraph B,” which was June 6. Mr. Loaiza had never been through anything like this. He was confused and intimidated by language meant to have that effect. Did he really have just four days? Reading the notice, Mr. Loaiza wept.

Many tenants understandably move at this stage, but Mr. Loaiza reached out to the Center for Legal and Social Justice at the St. Mary’s University School of Law, learning that his eviction notice was just the first step in the process. If he wasn’t out by June 6, a lawyer explained, an official eviction citation would most likely arrive.A week later, however, Mr. Loaiza learned that he had been approved for $3,000 in emergency assistance, 44 days after submitting his application, with payments to be sent directly to the landlord. But the landlord did not cancel the eviction proceedings; the aid hadn’t yet arrived. Two days later, the court issued the eviction citation. The first sentence read: “You have been sued.” A court date was set for July 10. Mr. Loaiza didn’t think there was any way he could earn $3,190 — rent for May and June — by then. He prayed that his landlord would receive the rental assistance in time.Many evictions during the pandemic have been for far less.

According to data just released by the Eviction Lab at Princeton University, which I direct, last month the median family faced eviction for $1,172 in Hamilton County, Ohio (greater Cincinnati) and $1,706 in Maricopa County, Ariz. (the Phoenix metropolitan area). But roughly one in 14 evictions filed in Hamilton County and one in six in Maricopa County were for $500 or less. In an average week in July, Maricopa County processed roughly 43 eviction cases involving a family that owed less than $100.

A week passed, then another, and Mr. Loaiza still did not know if the aid had arrived. On June 23, the landlord texted him. “Jhon, u said u were vacating the home last weekend. Is the home vacant now?”Mr. Loaiza felt emptied out and powerless; “impotent,” he told me. He began to lose sleep, and the stress snaked through his body like poison. Mr. Loaiza thought seriously about killing himself. He had never before entertained that obliterating thought, but the sheer hopelessness of the situation was suffocating. Marshals that carry out evictions are full of suicide stories: the early morning rap on the door followed by a single gunshot from inside the apartment, the blunt sound of giving up. From 2005 to 2010, years when housing costs were soaring across the country, suicides attributed to eviction and foreclosure doubled.

Mr. Loaiza pushed through it, the pull to sleep, to bury himself, and with the rent assistance seemingly stalled, he began calling friends in San Antonio, asking if they would consider taking his family in. No one had room. Finally, friends in Florida offered two rooms in their home and storage space in their garage. Mr. Loaiza and Ms. Bedoya began packing and scrubbing the apartment, hoping to receive their security deposit back. To afford the U-Haul, Mr. Loaiza jumped at the first job opportunity he found, joining a construction crew working inside a large building.“Jhon, Is the home now vacant?” Mr. Acosta again texted on July 1. It was. At dawn, the family had begun their trek east. Mr. Loaiza drove the U-Haul, while Ms. Bedoya and the girls followed in the family car. A few hours in, Mr. Loaiza began to feel sick, feverish. It got so bad that Ms. Bedoya took to keeping her husband on the phone to make sure he was lucid. A legal aid lawyer from St. Mary’s volunteered to represent Mr. Loaiza and Ms. Bedoya’s case in their absence. The day before the eviction court hearing, the lawyer called the Neighborhood and Housing Services Department to inquire about the family’s stalled rental assistance payment. She learned that $3,000 had in fact been issued to the landlord, and that he had cashed the check weeks earlier, on June 19, days before he texted Jhon about vacating the house. (Mr. Acosta did not consent to an interview, despite multiple requests, but he did tell me by text that “the tenant vacated the home in order to find work elsewhere. The court records will show that.” Mr. Loaiza told me that he moved because he felt forced from his home and that he had never told Mr. Acosta that he was moving for job opportunities.)All this pain — the stress so crippling that suicide begins to appear as relief, the severing of church and school ties, friendships; uprooting a family from community and work — it wasn’t for $3,190. If it was for anything, it was for $190. The lawyer tried calling Mr. Loaiza, over and over, but she couldn’t reach him. By that time, he was already in Florida, lying in a hospital bed with Covid-19.

Rent — it’s the greediest of bills. For many families, it grows every year, arbitrarily, almost magically, not because of any home improvements; just because. “Demand,” they say, when they hand you a new lease with a stiff rent hike. Or “costs are rising.” What they mean is: “Because I can.” And unlike defaulting on other bills, missing a rent payment can result in immediate and devastating consequences, casting families into poverty and homelessness. If you can’t afford enough food, you can usually qualify for food stamps. If you miss a mortgage payment, you typically have 120 days before your bank can initiate the foreclosure process. But if you can’t pay your rent, you can lose your home in a matter of weeks. During the first half of July, landlords collected 37 percent of total rent from families living in Class C properties — typically older stock, home to low- and moderate-income workers — compared with 80 percent during the first three months of the year.Media coverage of the housing crisis typically focuses on large coastal cities, where rent for a one-bedroom apartment can run north of $3,000. But this is not just New York’s problem or San Francisco’s; it’s the nation’s problem. Places with some of the highest eviction rates include Tulsa, Okla.; Albuquerque; Indianapolis; Toledo, Ohio; and Baton Rouge, La., not to mention many suburban communities and small towns across the country.Before the Covid-19 pandemic, more than 800,000 people around the nation were threatened with eviction each month. Today, with unemployment levels unseen since the Great Depression and the expiration of federal benefits along with national and several state eviction moratoriums, millions of renters are at risk of losing their homes by the end of the year. This process is already underway. Tucson usually sees 10 to 30 eviction cases a day. In June it handled roughly 50 cases a day. That same month, eviction cases were up 70 percent in Alabama, compared with last June. In the last week of July, eviction filings were 109 percent above average levels in Milwaukee.During a pandemic that forcefully links our health to our homes, eviction will help spread the virus, as displaced families crowd into shelters, double up with relatives and friends, or risk their health in unsafe jobs to make rent or pay for moving expenses. I also spoke with Margie Hernandez, a 63-year-old widow in San Antonio who had moved her family into a Best Western after they were evicted in June. The Hernandez family had followed health guidelines before their eviction — staying home as much as possible, social distancing — but in the hotel lobby, they were “packed in like sardines,” Mrs. Hernandez told me. She and her children wore masks, but many guests didn’t. Several days after checking into the hotel, Mrs. Hernandez and one of her adult sons lost their sense of taste. It was Covid-19. Mrs. Hernandez spent five days in intensive care and is still on oxygen. Her 27-year-old son remains in the hospital, on dialysis.Mr. Loaiza recovered from Covid-19 and found work painting houses in Florida; his family recently moved into its own place. But he hasn’t fully recovered from his eviction trial. “I’m jumpy and have trouble concentrating,” he told me. “I don’t sleep well.” Mr. Loaiza believes he contracted the virus during the construction job he took to afford the U-Haul. A health nut, he had tried to maintain social distance, but it was impossible. If emergency assistance had come sooner or if his landlord had worked with his family, Mr. Loaiza wouldn’t have put himself in harm’s way. “If I had the opportunity to work from home and avoid the virus, I would have,” he told me. “But I had to go.” In all likelihood, Mr. Loaiza, like Mrs. Hernandez and her son, got Covid-19 because of what happened in the aftermath of their eviction cases.Medical professionals have sounded the alarm about how the eviction crisis will exacerbate our public health emergency. At the beginning of August, 26 medical associations signed a letter urging Congress to provide housing resources to renting families, recognizing the housing crisis to be a health crisis.Our efforts to defeat Covid-19 and recover from the economic damage it has wrought will be deeply compromised if we fail to help families keep their homes. Besides pushing up coronavirus infection rates, the eviction crisis will also aggravate our unemployment crisis, as workers get displaced far from their jobs, and it will further complicate school reopenings, as evicted children, themselves at heightened risk of infection, shuffle from one school to the next.

Eviction solves nothing. Landlords don’t need to resort to the threat of eviction to get paid. If they did, we would expect to see higher rent collection rates in states where eviction moratoriums have expired and lower rates where landlords are still barred from evicting families. But that’s not what industry data show. There is no discernible difference in rent collection rates between states with eviction moratoriums still in place and those whose moratoriums have expired. Eviction is not a solution to landlords’ fundamental problem of maintaining rental income. Rent relief is.This is where I’m supposed to offer solutions, the more original the better, perhaps even share an example of a city “doing it right.” But the truth is, there is only one entity able to prevent untold numbers of renting families across America from experiencing in the coming weeks and months what Mr. Loaiza’s and Mrs. Hernandez’s families went through — and that’s Congress. Calling for swift action from the federal government may read like a cop-out, I know, but in this moment anything less is woefully inadequate.Congress must do its job: protecting the security and health of American families. We need a nationwide eviction stoppage and bold assistance to renters. Experts estimate that we need between $7 and $12 billion a month to help workers who rent to remain safe and secure in their homes. But instead of passing a relief bill based on legislation that the House passed two months ago, Mitch McConnell, the Senate majority leader, dithered before recessing the Senate until after Labor Day, allowing the nation to career full-tilt toward an eviction crisis. This wait-and-see approach is not only cruel; it’s penny-wise and pound-foolish. It will be far costlier, in both lives and money, to reactively respond to the looming eviction crisis than to act now and prevent the problem from becoming far worse. Too many Americans have already lost their lives and jobs. There will be no excuse if too many needlessly lose their homes too.It’s a familiar pattern: congressional negligence when it comes to protecting families’ basic housing needs. Over the last several years, as many workers watched their incomes stagnate or fall while their rents and utility costs rose, Congress refused to deepen its investment in affordable housing. Today, most renting families who qualify for housing assistance don’t receive it — there’s simply not enough to go around — and most below the poverty line spend more than half of their income on housing costs. This must change. Any comprehensive plan to promote social mobility, address racial disparities and stabilize communities must be grounded in our fundamental need for safe and affordable housing. “Building back better” begins at home.

2020 Emergency Summer Cooling Credits

If you’re enrolled in the Low Income Discount program, you’ll get a credit on your summer energy bills automatically. The credit is to help with the cost of running your air-conditioning as you stay home because of COVID-19.

Starting in June, you’ll receive emergency summer cooling credits for four months. The first monthly credit is approximately $34. Your monthly credit will vary based on the number of customers enrolled in the program.

You’ll be eligible for the credit through September as long you’re enrolled in the Low Income Discount program as of the 10th of each month. If you have any questions, please email us or call 1-800-75-CONED.

*Credit amounts will vary slightly based on your location.

Customers who are removed from the Low Income Discount program will no longer be eligible to receive the Emergency Summer Cooling Credit.

For more information , please visit https://www.coned.com/en/accounts-billing/payment-plans-assistance/help-paying-your-bill

ConEdison Resources

Get a Free Air Conditioner Through the Home Energy Assistance Program

Apply online, or call 1-212-331-3126 for more information and to get an application.

ConEdison is also giving an emergency summer cooling credit to help clients pay for air conditioning costs. This credit is in addition to the low-income credit the clients should be receiving. 

Call ConEdison at 1212-243-1900 with account and benefit card number to access this special offer.

Con Edison Distributes Ice In Westchester County to Residents Affected by Storm

Con Edison personnel will be at two locations in Westchester County providing ice to customers who lost service due to Storm Isaias. Con Edison will announce locations in Queens and Brooklyn.

The company will also have a mobile information center at each location with workers available to answer questions until 7 p.m.

The ice is already available at two Westchester locations:

  • The Cortlandt Town Center, 3121 East Main St., Mohegan Lake, in the Best Buy parking lot.

  • The Cross County Shopping Center at 8000 Mall Walk in Yonkers.

Current restoration status:

Westchester County 45,000+ customers have been restored, and 83,000 restorations are in progress

For more information, please visit the Con Edison website - https://www.coned.com/en/about-us/media-center/outage-and-restoration-updates