In 2018, residents now at the helm of NHN first came together with Community Voices Heard and the Regional Plan Association to undertake an extensive inquiry into housing conditions and health outcomes in public housing in Far Rockaway. Keep reading to learn more about this initiative and what we learned.
What we did:
In 2018, Community Voices Heard (CVH) conducted one of the most comprehensive efforts to document how NYCHA’s living conditions impact the physical and mental well-being of residents. CVH members – all of whom were living in public housing – engaged in an extensive door-to-door survey, reaching more than 700 people across 35 buildings in five developments in the Rockaways.
As part of this process of resident engagement, CVH gathered several meaningful insights into how NYCHA’s living conditions impact the physical and mental well-being of residents.
What we learned:
Conditions in public housing consistently lead to impacts which spiral far beyond just apartment conditions. Health impacts from lead and mold exposure can stay with people for years, if not lifetimes. Jobs can be lost because of the need to continually be home during working hours for repairs.
As part of this process of resident engagement, CVH gathered several meaningful insights into how NYCHA’s living conditions impact the physical and mental well-being of residents. These insights have directly informed both CVH’s ongoing efforts as well as RPA’s recommendations for changes in property management, services, and engagement. A necessary starting point of any effort to repair NYCHA needs to be engagement with residents and an acceptance of their experiences as authentic – far too often this is not the case.
This report was produced in partnership with:
- Vernell Robinson, CVH Rockaway Hub project coordinator — Carleton Manor
- Kimberly Comes — Redfern Houses
- Lorraine Evans — Beach 41st Street Houses
- Benard Gabriel — Beach 41st Street Houses
- Danielette Horton — Hammel Houses
- Marcia Jones — Oceanside Houses
- Sheba Lee — Hammel Houses
- Margareth Massac — Oceanside Houses
- Denise McBride — Oceanside Houses
- Anna Velazquez — Beach 41st Street Houses
and
- Regional Plan Association
- Community Voices Heard
0 Comments