Newsfeed Category: New York City

NPR Reports on New York State’s Ground-Breaking Use of Medicaid Dollars to Create Supportive Housing

Aug.04.2014

NPR aired an inspiring and informative story on July 28, 2014 profiling Lissette Encarnacion’s path from chronic homelessness into supportive housing in Common Ground’s residence, The Brook, financed in part with State Medicaid funds.

Reported by Amanda Aronczyk of WNYC, the piece features interview segments with New York State Medicaid Director Jason Helgerson, and Brenda Rosen, Executive Director of Common Ground (and a Network Board Member).

Aronczyk also focused attention on supportive housing in her WNYC stories from June 4, 2014 “Take This Apartment and Call Me in the Morning” and “Supportive Housing as Healthcare.”

Read the transcript of the July 28, 2014 NPR story here.

John Tynan to Retire After Four Decades at Catholic Charities

Jun.19.2014

After more than 40 years of service in the name of New York City’s most vulnerable, John Tynan has announced he will retire from Catholic Charities Brooklyn and Queens, his home since 1973.

Mr. Tynan has led the development of 44 affordable, senior and supportive housing residences during his celebrated career. As Executive Director of the Catholic Charities Progress of Peoples Development Corporation (CCPOP), the affordable housing developer of Catholic Charities, Mr. Tynan is responsible for roughly 10% of all senior housing in New York City.

His last day in the office will be July 3. He leaves behind a sterling legacy as a forefather in the fight to expand access to affordable housing for vulnerable populations in New York City.

“Housing really takes an army of people to develop; it was nice to be part of that ‘army’ for so many years,” Mr. Tynan said. “I am very proud of all my former CCPOP staff that have gone on to serve this city on the larger scale, such as Roseanne Haggerty, founder of Common Ground and President and CEO of Community Solutions; Connie Tempel, the Chief Operating Officer of CSH; Cindy Holler, the President of Mercy Housing Lakefront; Bill Traylor, President of Richman Housing Resources; Paul Freitag, Managing Director of Rose Development; Jerry Mascuch, Vice President of FEGS Housing and Property Development; Susan Albrecht, Executive Director of Association of New York Catholic Homes; Cathy Herman, Director of Housing at Goddard Riverside Community Center; Ariel Krasnow of West Side Federation for Senior and Supportive Housing; Michelle Beaman, Project Manager of AHC Inc. and Shai Gross of Cypress Hills Local Development Corporation. I am very happy to have served the boroughs of Brooklyn and Queens, and I look forward to seeing what great things are to come from Catholic Charities in the future.”

Youth Supportive Housing Residence Opens in Manhattan

Jun.18.2014

The fight to end homelessness in New York got a boost yesterday with the grand opening of a new supportive housing residence in lower Manhattan.

A gut-renovated, five-story residence developed by Phipps Houses, this building provides housing and support services to 44 very needy households. Once rent-up is complete, the residence will house formerly homeless young adults, formerly homeless young families and low-income members of the community.

Tenants  have access to an array of on-site services provided by Network member The Door. Services will include job training, High School Equivalency (formerly “GED”) classes, health care, counseling, legal support and childcare support. The building will also include a 10,000 square-foot community center operated by Loisaida, Inc.

Yesterday’s opening included brief remarks from NYC Council Member Rosie Mendez and NYC Department of Housing Preservation Development (HPD) Commissioner Vicki Been as well as Michael Zisser, CEO of project partner University Settlement, and Raul Russi, CEO of Acacia Network, Loisaida's parent company.

Campaign 4 NY/NY Housing Launches at NYC Hall

Jun.09.2014

The crowd at the launch of Campaign 4 NY/NY Housing on May 28. Photo by Coalition for the Homeless.

The Network joined a crowd of more than 150 advocates on May 28 for the launch of Campaign 4 NY/NY Housing, a grassroots initiative to call on lawmakers to create a new New York/New York Supportive Housing Agreement.

This new coalition is urging Gov. Cuomo and Mayor de Blasio to negotiate a City-State agreement to create 30,000 units of supportive housing over the next 10 years. To date, more than 150 organizations have signed on to the campaign’s platform. You can endorse the campaign by following this link. The Network is proud to have helped launch this campaign with such organizations as Coalition for the Homeless, CSH, Enterprise Community Partners and many, many others.

You can learn more about the Campaign 4 NY/NY Housing by reading these press highlights in Capital New York, New York Observer and The Real Deal.

Scott Stringer, Letitia James to Join Network Conference

Jun.03.2014

NYC Comptroller Scott Stringer and NYC Public Advocate Letitia James will deliver remarks at the closing cocktail reception of the 14th Annual New York State Supportive Housing Conference on Thursday, June 5.

We’re thrilled to announce two just-added special guests for the 14th Annual New York State Supportive Housing Conference this Thursday. Joining us to celebrate the day will be NYC Comptroller Scott Stringer and NYC Public Advocate Letitia James. Both elected officials will appear at our conference cocktail reception, which kicks off at 5:00pm after a full day of workshops, on the 9th floor of the New York Marriott Marquis.

Online registration for the conference is now closed, but those interested in attending can still register by fax or email until Wednesday, June 4 at noon. If you haven’t registered yet, we urge you to do so before Wednesday!

NYC Comptroller Scott Stringer is no stranger to our supportive housing conference. During his previous post as Manhattan Borough President and as a member of the NYS Assembly, Mr. Stringer made multiple appearances at our signature annual event. He will deliver brief remarks at the reception this Thursday to cap off the largest supportive housing conference in the nation.

Ms. James, New York City’s Public Advocate, will also speak and mingle at the conference cocktail reception. Ms. James was elected Public Advocate last year after fighting for affordable housing and economic justice in the City Council for 10 years. She will be making her conference debut with us this Thursday.

Advocacy Alert: Join NYC Supportive Housing Rally this Thursday

May.27.2014

The Network will join a diverse group of advocates this Thursday for a rally in support of a new supportive housing agreement between New York City and State.

Our staff will stand alongside others for the formal launch of Campaign 4 NY/NY Housing, a new initiative to advocate for a successor to the New York/New York III Supportive Housing Agreement. We urge you to join this event. The rally will take place on Thursday, May 29 at 11:00am on the steps outside New York City Hall.

Campaign 4 NY/NY Housing is calling on Gov. Cuomo and Mayor de Blasio to negotiate a new City-State agreement to create 30,000 units of supportive housing for individuals and families with special needs over the next 10 years. To date, more than 130 organizations have signed on to the campaign’s platform. You can endorse the campaign by following this link.

A new agreement would follow up three successful agreements before it: NY/NY I in 1990, NY/NY II in 1999 and NY/NY III in 2005. With NY/NY III on track to complete all 9,000 units of supportive housing in just over 10 years, it’s imperative that the City and State create a new agreement to fund supportive housing. A new agreement would also serve as an essential tool in ending New York City’s current record levels of homelessness. Supportive housing has continually proven to be the most humane and cost-effective solution to ending homelessness for the most vulnerable New Yorkers.

NYC Budget Includes Significant Supportive Housing Increase

May.12.2014

NYC Mayor Bill de Blasio released his first executive budget on Thursday. The total budget for the 2014-2015 fiscal year is $73.9 billion dollars, providing significant funding to support many of the progressive plans the administration has laid out in its first few months. Notably, the budget includes $2.5 billion in capital funds over four years for the mayor’s new “Housing New York” plan to create and preserve 200,000 units of affordable housing over ten years. In his budget address, Mayor de Blasio specifically cited supportive housing as one of the tools that the City will use to reduce homelessness. Other highlights from the budget include: rental assistance for homeless families, capping HASA clients’ rent costs to no more than 30% of income and an increase in shelter beds for runaway and homeless youth.

“This executive budget proves that Mayor de Blasio is serious about solving New York City’s housing affordability crisis,” said Network Executive Director Ted Houghton. “The Mayor’s ambitious housing plan now has dollars attached to it. Placing $2.5 billion into the capital housing budget over the next four years will put us in a strong position to reach the mayor’s ten-year, 200,000-unit goal. I am particularly pleased by the budget’s plan to increase City capital funds for supportive housing development to over $100 million a year. This will fund the construction of thousands of units of permanent supportive housing for the most vulnerable New Yorkers, including homeless individuals, families and seniors.”

More specifically, Mayor de Blasio’s budget includes the following:

Grand Opening Held for Hour Children Apartment House III

May.08.2014

It was a celebratory day in Queens yesterday as Hour Children commemorated the grand opening of its third supportive housing residence.

Hour Children Apartment House III provides housing and services for 18 highly vulnerable families in the neighborhood of Long Island City. This pristine new residence houses 16 formerly homeless families through the New York/New York III Supportive Housing Agreement and two low-income families from the community. As in all of its supportive housing residences, Hour Children placed an emphasis on housing formerly incarcerated mothers and their children with its new project. The residence first opened its doors late last year and has already begun to flourish as a home for some of our neediest families.

Yesterday’s ribbon-cutting was a festive, colorful affair marked by guest speeches, prayer, song and dance. The event began with introductory remarks from Sister Tesa Fitzgerald, the CNN Hero and Executive Director of Hour Children. Her remarks gave way to the National Anthem, as sung by students from VOICE Charter School. A pastor from the Church of St. Vincent Ferrer then led the many partners and friends of the residence in a brief prayer.

NYC Mayor’s 10-Year Housing Plan Urges Investment in Supportive Housing

May.05.2014

New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio today issued “Housing New York,” a plan to build or preserve 200,000 units of affordable housing over the next 10 years. The plan offers innovative strategies to increase affordability and broad unit production goals, including a plan to work with New York State to expand supportive housing development. Mayor de Blasio unveiled his housing plan at 262 Ashland Place, the site of a mixed-income housing project currently in development by Gotham Development Corporation and Network members Common Ground and The Actor’s Fund.

“Housing New York” outlines over 50 proposals to develop or preserve these new units of affordable housing. The plan states that supportive housing should serve an integral role in the fight to end homelessness and create new housing opportunities for vulnerable New Yorkers. It specifically advocates for the creation of a new supportive housing agreement between New York City and New York State as a follow up to the successful, 10-year New York/New York III Supportive Housing Agreement that is ending next year.

The Network fully supports this critical proposal to expand access to supportive housing across New York City.
 
“Mayor de Blasio’s housing plan provides the exact solutions we need to end our city’s record levels of homelessness,” said Ted Houghton, Executive Director of the Supportive Housing Network of New York. “This crisis calls for a robust investment in supportive housing and other housing options for homeless, disabled and very low-income individuals and families. The housing plan released today will work toward those goals. We’re especially pleased that the plan calls for a new City-State initiative to expand upon the successes of the previous New York/New York Agreements.”

Odyssey House Opens Tinton Avenue Residence

Apr.25.2014

Odyssey House has opened its second supportive housing residence in just one month. Yesterday marked the ribbon-cutting for Odyssey House Tinton Avenue, a brand-new supportive housing project in the Bronx. The residence houses 65 formerly homeless individuals through the New York/New York III Supportive Housing Agreement.

Odyssey House opened Soundview Avenue, home to 56 formerly homeless people in the Bronx, on April 10. The nonprofit now operates three supportive housing for the vulnerable men and women of New York.

Yesterday’s festivities featured remarks from several partners and friends. Among those to take the microphone were senior staff at Odyssey House, Moira Tashjian of the NYS Office of Mental Health (OMH) and Adrienne, a tenant at Tinton Avenue. Adrienne spoke of her experiences on the street and her life now in a newly-constructed supportive housing residence.

“When you’re in a shelter, you’re not living; you’re merely existing. Now I have a chance at being more independent and reaching my goals,” Adrienne told the crowd of attendees. “I can also think more clearly and take better care of myself. It’s a joy to have some stability back in my life.”