Newsfeed Category: New York City

Livonia Commons Breaks Ground

Apr.21.2014

New York City broke ground earlier this month on Livonia Commons, a 278-unit project devoted to affordable and supportive housing in the Brooklyn neighborhood of East New York.

This $90 million development will consist of four individual buildings on a formerly vacant lot. Fifty-one of the units offered will be set aside for supportive housing. Of those, 43 of the units will house individuals with mental illness through the NY/NY III Supportive Housing Agreement and eight will house individuals with developmental disabilities through the NYS Office for Persons with Developmental Disabilities (OPWDD).

Network member Dunn Development Corp. is developing the project. The formerly homeless tenants will receive on-site support services from CAMBA, another Network member.

“Livonia Commons will help revitalize the Livonia Avenue corridor with a dynamic mix of new affordable housing, retail stores and community spaces,” said Martin Dunn, Dunn Development Corp. President and a member of the Network’s Board of Directors. “Working with our community partners, we'll build the kind of innovative and holistic development that the East New York community deserves.”

“CAMBA is proud to be part of Livonia Gardens, where our staff will provide comprehensive on-site case management services to residents who are formerly homeless or have disabilities,” said Joanne M. Oplustil, CAMBA’s President and CEO. “Our clients know they always have someone nearby to help them if a crisis arises. And over many years of experience, we’ve proven that supportive housing is a cost-effective and successful approach to ending homelessness and helping tenants flourish.”

Gene Estess, Wall Street Broker Turned Homeless Advocate, Passes Away

Apr.18.2014

The Network would like to pay its respects to Gene Estess, a former leader of the supportive housing community who passed away last week. Mr. Estess served for 18 years as the Executive Director of Jericho Project, one of our longtime members, from 1987 to 2005. He also acted as Chair of the Network’s Steering Committee from 2001-2002. He was 78 years old.

“Gene had a tremendous impact on Jericho Project and on the supportive housing community, and he truly believed in the transformative change that supportive housing has on the lives of homeless individuals,” says Tori Lyon, Jericho’s Executive Director and a Network Board Member. “He cared deeply about Jericho's tenants and staff, and he will truly be missed.”

Mr. Estess’ story is a unique and inspiring one. For years, Mr. Estess worked on Wall Street as a broker for L.F. Rothschild, Unterberg, Towbin, an investment banking firm. A 1984 encounter with a homeless woman would change his life forever. Mr. Estess met Patricia, a woman living with mental illness in Grand Central Terminal. He spoke with her daily at the station and offered her money for the day. He eventually helped her receive services at Jericho Project, which at that time was still in its infancy.

A short time later, Mr. Estess quit his job on Wall Street and become the nonprofit’s Executive Director. He was 52-years-old when he made this career U-turn.

"For 20-some-odd years I really didn’t have a good day," he said in a 2003 New York Times article. "I didn’t come home with any stories to tell or satisfaction or a feeling I’d done anything to help anybody except myself and my family."

New Supportive Housing Residence Opens in the Bronx

Apr.16.2014

Roughly 100 friends and partners gathered last week for the grand opening of Odyssey House Soundview Avenue, the new home of 56 formerly homeless New Yorkers. Located in the Bronx, this supportive housing residence provides studio apartments and access to services for some of the most vulnerable men and women in New York City.

A number of guest speakers were on hand at the April 10 ribbon cutting. Among those to deliver remarks at the event were NYS Rep. Marcos Crespo, James Lupoli of the NYS Office of Mental Health (OMH), a tenant at the residence and several senior staffers at Odyssey House, the nonprofit developer of the project. Soundview Avenue is one of two supportive housing residences by Odyssey House to open in April.

“Helping people faced with the challenges of mental illness and/or substance abuse disorders is our mission,” said Dr. Peter Provet, President and CEO of Odyssey House. “With the opening this spring of these two new buildings, Odyssey House currently manages the housing and supportive services needs of 171 formerly homeless New Yorkers who, despite serious mental health challenges, are now living in their own homes.”

All 56 apartments at Odyssey House Soundview Avenue were built with funding through the New York/New York III Supportive Housing Agreement. OMH provided funding for both the construction of the residence and its operations and services. The NYS Housing Finance Agency contributed capital funding as well.

RFP Released for Second Phase of Livonia Project in Brooklyn

Apr.15.2014

Last week, HPD released a Request for Proposals for Phase II of the Livonia Avenue Initiative in East New York, Brooklyn. The RFP is for a mixed-use development on four sites in East New York. The document does not specifically mention supportive housing, but Phase I did include 51 units (out of 278 total) for supportive housing through the New York/New York III Agreement.

Proposals must have both mixed-income and affordable housing units. According to the RFP, “Proposals must include a primary financing scenario that does not include competitive financing sources,” like 9% Low Income Housing Tax Credits. The competitive criteria include financial feasibility (defined as providing a range of affordability with the least subsidy), development experience, management and capacity, quality of building and urban design and a retail plan.

The pre-submission conference will be held next week on Wednesday, April 23 at 10:00am at HPD’s offices at 100 Gold Street, Room 1R. The proposal submission deadline is no later than 4:00pm on July 11, 2014.

Diane Sonde, Homeless Outreach Pioneer, Set to Retire

Apr.03.2014

May 1 will mark the retirement of a long time friend and veteran in the fight to end homelessness in NYC. Diane Sonde has been working in the field of social services and mental health, addressing issues of housing and homelessness, for over four decades. Her career started in the 1960s as a caseworker for the NYC Department of Social Services. She will soon be retiring from her position as an Assistant Deputy Commissioner at the NYC Human Resources Administration (HRA)’s Customized Assistance Services.

Perhaps most notably, Ms. Sonde is credited as being one of the first New Yorkers to engage in street outreach for homeless people. On the eve of her retirement, we had the opportunity to talk with Ms. Sonde about her pioneering days doing street outreach and the many lessons she's learned from her decades of service.

Network: You began your career as a caseworker in the 1960s and ’70s. Can you tell us a little about this experience?

Diane Sonde: Working as a Protective Service worker at the Bureau of Child Welfare was an eye-opener. As a child of the sixties, I was idealistic. I wanted to work with families and prevent children from being separated from their parents. I didn't believe placing children in group homes and other types of foster care was a solution. Unfortunately, by observing the unforgettable dysfunction of a few families and the abuse they imposed on children, the likes of which I’d never seen before, it became clear this wasn’t always possible.

Network: What drew you to this line of work in the first place?

DS: There was an ad in the New York City subway system I'd see each day on my way to CCNY [City College of New York] of an elderly lady sitting on a park bench, and it asked if you wanted to help her. Frankly, it was that poster that first drew me to work at the Department of Welfare, my first job in city service.

Network Testifies Before NYC Council

Apr.02.2014

On March 24, Network staff provided testimony to the New York City Council’s Housing and Buildings Committee on the 2015 preliminary budget. We used our time before the committee to stress the importance of the NYC Department of Housing Preservation and Development (HPD)’s ongoing commitment to supportive housing. We specifically stressed for a successor agreement to New York/New York III in Mayor de Blasio’s forthcoming 200,000-unit housing plan.

The hearing was led by new Committee Chair and Council Member Jumaane Williams, who was joined by several of his fellow Council members. HPD Commissioner Vicki Been began the hearing with a report on the department’s budget. The Network was pleased to hear Commissioner Been tell the committee that supportive housing would indeed be part of the soon-to-be released housing plan.

You can read our testimony here.

The Network also testified on March 26 on the topic of a new rental subsidy program for homeless people in New York City. The Council’s Committee on General Welfare held the hearing to elicit feedback on their Resolution 123-A, which called on the Gov. Cuomo and the NYS Legislature to remove longstanding language in the budget that bars New York City from using State reimbursements for rental subsidy programs for homeless people. The Resolution also called on New York City and State to work together to create that rental subsidy program.

RIP Steven Warren, Homeless Advocate

Apr.01.2014

The Network was deeply saddened last month by the death of Steven B. Warren, a longtime member of the New York supportive housing community. Mr. Warren was the former Executive Director of Services for the UnderServed (SUS) and Chairman of the Board of Directors at Praxis Housing Initiatives. He passed away on March 21.

“Steve’s story is one of courage, conviction and accomplishment,” said Svein Jorgensen, Chief Executive Officer of Praxis Housing Initiatives. “He was a visionary and a giant in the nonprofit field. His work impacted the lives of thousands of homeless and disabled New Yorkers.”

Mr. Warren began his time in the New York human services sector in the 1980s as a program planner for Project Return (now Palladia). He then moved on to serve as Executive Director of SUS, a prominent Network member, in 1987. It was during his tenure that SUS opened The Knickerbocker, one of the first supportive housing residences in the nation for veterans. SUS has since become one of the premier housing and services providers for veterans in New York City.

Mr. Warren himself was a veteran of the Vietnam War, and it was this experience that moved him to open the Knickerbocker.

News Media Highlights Sister Tesa, Hour Children

Mar.14.2014

Just in time for St. Patrick’s Day, two stories were published this week on Sister Tesa Fitzgerald, the celebrated Irish American and executive director of a Queens-based supportive housing provider.

The pieces, which ran in the Wall Street Journal and Irish Central, highlight the recent opening of Hour Apartment House II, a supportive housing residence that opened late last year. The residence offers housing and services to formerly incarcerated women and their children.

The Wall Street Journal piece highlights the warm, inviting atmosphere created by Hour Children, the nonprofit that developed the residence. “I never thought I would live somewhere so beautiful,” says one of the tenants. “When you out there on the street, you don't think someone like Sister Tesa could love a total stranger. I'm glad she loves me,” says another. It’s a moving account of how supportive housing can transform the lives of some of New York’s most underserved individuals and families (please note that this article may be behind a pay wall).

Guest Blog: A Tenant Advocate Discusses His Day in Albany

Mar.10.2014

When Robert Hart awoke on February 11, he had no idea he’d be visiting Albany that day to tell his story to New York’s senators and representatives.

Robert is a tenant at The Castle, a transitional housing residence operated by the Fortune Society. Last month, Robert joined the Network, Homeless Services United and others for a trip to Albany to advocate for supportive housing programs. Other tenants and staffers from Fortune Society were scheduled to attend our advocacy day, and on a whim Robert asked if he could join. Everyone said of course.

Robert made quite the impression on those around him – everyone from our staff to the elected officials he met in meetings. He spoke of his experiences in housing and the services offered by Fortune to help him improve his reading and writing. He also read several poems he’d written, moving all those around him. As the Network gears up for its next big Albany advocacy day on Tuesday, March 18, we present a few words from Robert on his experiences in Albany. We encourage all of our members to reach out to their tenants to see if they’d like to attend our advocacy day on March 18. We’d love to have them join us. Robert, for his part, plans to attend again.

"My Trip to Albany," by Robert Hart:

It was a sudden and unexpected trip, but it was an experience of a lifetime.

What started as a joke question – “Can I go?” – quickly became a reality. There I was on a three-hour trip to Albany, not knowing what to expect. I had an immediate flashback to my trip to Washington when I was in junior high school. After the trip, I and my class had to write an essay about our experience in Washington. Because of my poor reading and writing at the time, my essay was never completed. That’s why this is a joy, to be asked to write a few lines about my trip to Albany. I finally have a sense of completion of my junior high essay.

As I walked into the building, I was in awe of how huge the building was. The first thing that got my attention was the beautiful statues and paintings in the building. It seemed as time quickly passed, I felt as if I became a part of the staff. At 6’5”, I felt that day so much bigger. Not like Robert Hart, the client at Fortune, but more like Mr. Robert Hart, team member and staff. I wanted so much to be a part of what was taking place that day in Albany.

I knew there was something I could say, about how Fortune has been a great asset to my life and others and how Fortune is a great organization to keep up and running, so I got up and took the floor.

Because of my inability to read and write through high school and my young adult years, I take special pride in the poems I put together. I learned creative writing from Fortune. They enhanced my writing skills.

Thanks to everyone who enjoyed my poems, there will be more to follow.

To read two of Robert’s poems, see here and here. For a rundown of our chief advocacy goals this month, see this story.

Free Program Helps Supportive Housing Residences Go Smoke-Free

Mar.04.2014

The NYC Department of Health and Mental Hygiene (DOHMH) has partnered with the Network and the NYC Coalition for a Smoke-Free City to offer a free program to help supportive housing residences go smoke-free.

Supportive Housing Goes Smoke-Free will offer technical assistance for supportive housing providers interested in going smoke-free at one or more of their residences. The Network joined DOHMH and other partners last year to award residences that went through a similar program.

In this latest round, training and technical assistance topics will include two major subjects: 1) Effective smoke-free policies, gaining staff buy-in, resident education, compliance and adherence and 2) One-on-one technical assistance and on-site meetings with staff and/or residents.

The program is free of charge for up to 12 selected organizations that agree to explore smoke-free policies.

To apply for this opportunity, you must complete and submit this short application no later than 5:00pm on Monday, March 31st. You must also select at least one building, either owned or managed by your organization, in which to explore going smoke-free. DOHMH will select buildings based on readiness, demonstrated by organizational buy-in and capacity for resident engagement. Priority will be given to programs with a demonstrated capacity to provide support for tenants who wish to quit smoking.