By Julien Torres

In New York on Tuesday, February 6th, seventy NYCHA employees were arrested and charged with bribery and extortion. An FBI investigation revealed that many NYCHA employees received bribes in exchange for non-bid contracts being awarded to contractors. These contracts were given to contractors who provided low-quality maintenance on buildings across the city; depriving many buildings of necessities such as heating, working elevators, or even lights. The seventy workers arrested became the DOJ’s single-day record for federal bribery charges.

Though the news of these arrests may come as a surprise to some, for those who reside in NYCHA buildings across the five boroughs, it is not. According to NYC. gov, NYCHA houses approximately 370,000 residents in over 177,000 apartments across New York City. However, for those residing in these buildings, they can hardly be described as “residential.”

Diana Rice, a senior at Lehman College, describes her mother’s Harlem apartment in the Frederick Douglas houses over a phone interview.   “My mother lives on the 15th floor, the apartment mainly consists of concrete walls and cheap plywood doors. The apartment also has an infestation of roaches.” This aligns with the public image that many New Yorkers have about NYCHA buildings and their residents.  

For Diana, the NYCHA had it coming. “I am not surprised that event took place. NYCHA is a corrupt organization. The money that should have been used for regular maintenance and repairs was never allocated making it not surprising the arrests happened.”

NYCHA’s selfish pursuit of greed has led to the neglect of the elderly, it is anything but “public service.” As a tenant on the 15th floor, I have witnessed that The NYCHA was unresponsive to repairs [of] elevators. And with many of the elderly living in the upper levels, access to a working elevator is vital.

However, these arrests are not the first time NYCHA’s incompetence and resident neglect has reared its ugly head. In 2014, Kishawn Scarboro, a NYCHA employee, was arrested for embezzling around $90,000 in rent payments from residents that were owed to NYCHA. This was reported by a press release from the US Attorney's Office in 2014. The irony of these events being a decade apart is harrowing and speaks to the long-term neglect and corruption NYCHA residents have faced. NYCHA simply does not learn its lesson.

A federal bill is being proposed in Congress, in response to this scandal. This bill aims to require that public housing authorities, like NYCHA, disclose any contracts they enter regardless of the dollar amount. Congressman Ritchie Torres, representing New York’s 15th congressional district, authored this bill to protect the residents of public housing across the country. This will ensure that the public knows about any contracts the NYCHA enters. It will also help to ensure any promises made by NYCHA to improve living conditions are kept. Additionally, New York Mayor Adams has put in place ways to further improve NYCHA’s public image. 

Bribery, Neglect, and Mayor Adam’s Support

NYCHA’s public image has been tainted yet again by corrupt employees.  However, Mayor Adams has been pushing for more funding for NYCHA to repair buildings across the city. In August 2023, residents will get the opportunity to vote for what repairs should be done. According to a press release from the mayor’s office, “With NYCHA buildings needing nearly $80 billion, this process will offer residents an opportunity to vote and determine the future of their development.”  Although this promises a better future for NYCHA residents like Diana and her mother, this is only the first step of a lengthy process.

As the fallout of these bribery charges continued, the CEO of NYCHA, Lisa Bova-Hiatt, was put on the hot seat by neighborhood residents.  The committee focused on how NYCHA will respond to the charges. Bova-Hiatt stated that she has spoken to the U.S. Attorney’s office and will seek compensation from vendors who overcharged NYCHA for services. The New York Department of Investigation recommended about 14 different strategies to address these charges, including mandatory training for superintendents.

The reputation and public image of public housing in this country has never been a good one, and at the heart of it all NYCHA has been the most notorious when it comes to poor living conditions. While NYCHA’s public image has been tainted by a decade of scandals, it should be important to remember that those who are affected the most are the residents of these complexes. These residents are simply looking to have a stable roof over their heads. As politicians and those in NYCHA make promises of a brighter future, many residents only take their words with grains of salt as past promises have yet to become a reality.