Public housing residents rally for government funding

Public housing residents demanded adequate funding for the New York City Housing Authority at a City Hall rally yesterday, building on momentum from a Nov. 5 community forum at the Grand Street Settlement. The rally, organized by the Save Our Underfunded NYCHA Developments, or SOUND, campaign, sought to catch the attention of Governor Paterson, whose budget for the state is slated for release next month. NYCHA houses 175,000 people and is currently facing a $200 million deficit that has led to overcrowding, months-long maintenance delays, mold, leaks and piles of trash that are never retrieved. So far, 75 elected officials have pledged their support of the effort, according to Assembly member Brian Kavanagh, who is spearheading the SOUND campaign along with state Senator Daniel Squadron and activist group Good Old Lower East Side. They are asking the state and city for $94 million in developments, $100 million in federal stimulus funding for weatherization of existing developments, and an end to NYCHA’s financial responsibility for police and sanitation services in its buildings. [The Villager]