UPDATED, 1:09p.m., Dec. 10: The New York City Housing Authority wants to evict a 100-year-old resident of the Lower East Side housing project Rutgers Houses, alleging that her son unlawfully moved into her unit.
Concetta Passione, who pays $219 per month for the unit, said she has lived in the one-bedroom since 1964. The agency argued that she does not actually live there, but instead has secretly been a resident of Italy. She was served an eviction notice November 1, around the time of her 100th birthday. Her 73-year-old son Sebastian told the New York Daily News he requested that the housing authority add his name to the lease, so he could take care of his mother. He said he never received a response.
The Department of Investigation said Concetta and her other son Paul have lived in Italy from 2000 to 2009 and visited New York City once a year. Concetta denied the report, saying her dominant residence was always Rutgers Houses, at 61 Pike Street, during that time.
However, a spokesperson for NYCHA disputed the Daily News article, saying there was no pending action to terminate the tenant’s stay.
“The Daily News published a letter from NYCHA advising the resident to visit the management office and resolve some breach of lease issues,” the spokesperson said in a statement. “This is routine, it’s not an eviction notice.” [NYDN] — Mark Maurer