In housing projects hit by Hurricane Sandy, it’s like the recovery never came.
A survey being released Wednesday shows that nearly 17 months after the storm struck, public housing residents are furious at the glacial pace of NYCHA repairs.
Residents revealed that after the storm hit, they were told they’d have to wait at least six months for apartment repairs at badly damaged NYCHA developments.
And after the storm, mold infestation — already a problem across the authority’s 340 developments — actually got worse in Sandy-affected NYCHA apartments in Brooklyn, Queens and lower Manhattan, the survey found.
A coalition of nonprofit advocacy groups, including Community Voices Heard and the Urban Justice Center, surveyed 597 NYCHA tenants in developments that were hit hardest by the October 2012 superstorm.
Sandy wreaked havoc for 80,000 public housing residents in low-lying areas in Red Hook and Coney Island, Brooklyn; Far Rockaway, Queens; and lower Manhattan.
Tenants waited weeks for heat, hot water and power to be restored — with little communication from the New York City Housing Authority. They relied instead on volunteer groups that showed up to lend a hand.
NYCHA continues to use 24 temporary boilers at 16 developments. Residents recently learned the devices — which have a tendency to break down in frigid weather — will remain in place well into 2016.
Of those surveyed, 62% said they were told after the storm there would be a six-month — or longer — wait for repairs. About half, 55%, said they were already awaiting repairs when Sandy hit, and 40% said Sandy caused new repair requests.
Before Sandy, 34% said they had visible mold in their apartments, while after the storm it jumped to 45%, the survey found. About one-third said NYCHA cleaned it up properly, while 38% said the agency did nothing about it. One Gravesend Houses resident in Coney Island told the surveyors NYCHA workers “came out to fix the mold but all they did was paint over it.”
The groups were “encouraged” by NYCHA’s new leadership and oversight, saying they’re “hopeful that these new leaders will learn from the past administration’s mistakes.”
Some residents likewise were optimistic that NYCHA, under new Chairwoman Shola Olatoye, will act on lessons learned.
“They have a way to actively prevent the loss of power, heat and hot water if they act on what they have learned from Sandy,” wrote one Red Hook resident.
Officials in NYCHA and Mayor de Blasio’s administration, City Council Speaker Melissa Mark-Viverito and Public Housing Committee Chairman Ritchie Torres have all been briefed on the report.
Key recommendations included much improved communication with residents and installing energy-efficient generators in low-lying developments.
