Two Harlem public housing developments operated by the New York City Housing Authority will be transitioned to private management in an effort to secure needed repairs at the buildings, city officials announced this week.
The Harlem River Houses and Harlem River Houses II developments — located along Macombs Place and Adam Clayton Powell Jr. Boulevard between West 151st and 153rd streets — are set to join NYCHA’s controversial PACT program, city officials said. Apartments at the buildings will be moved to the federal Section 8 program, which means tenants will pay no more than 30 percent of their income in rent.
The Harlem River complexes are two of eight developments that will soon transition to private management through the PACT program. Other developments are located in Brooklyn and Washington Heights. In total, 5,908 apartments will be affected, city officials said to our source.
Officials did not reveal when developments will be phased into the project and are currently accepting bids from private companies for management contracts. The bidding deadline is in October, city officials said.
Renovations at apartments joining the PACT program include new kitchens, bathrooms, windows, and flooring, city officials said. The chosen private management groups will also conduct work to address building-wide heating problems, elevator maintenance and upgrades to safety systems and common spaces.
Apartments at PACT developments will be kept affordable to tenants through federal programs such as the Department of Housing and Urban Development’s Rental Assistance Demonstration, or RAD. All tenants at buildings joining the PACT program will qualify for RAD assistance, city officials said.
“By investing needed capital into our properties, we and our partners are focused on making sure that more residents can experience an improved quality of life in safe, healthy homes for generations to come,” NYCHA Chair Greg Russ said in a statement.
Mayor Bill de Blasio’s administration announced in 2018 that 62,000 NYCHA apartments are in the works to be placed under the RAD program and be converted into Section 8 units. The Mayor has previously stated that the move does not amount to the privatization of public housing. NYCHA will keep control of the land and housing authority employees will keep their jobs.
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