Politics & Government

Waverly Public Housing Tenants Face Uncertain Future

With private ownership looming, residents are left to choose between staying in dilapidated homes that won't be repaired, or moving out.

The residents of two city-owned townhouses on Waverly Avenue are stuck in a bitter bureaucratic catch-22: move out so that the city can put the buildings on the market, or stay in their homes, which the city openly admits it cannot afford to repair.

The buildings at 71 and 75 Waverly Ave. between Park and Myrtle Avenues are half of the four townhouses on the block owned by the city Housing Authority that are designated affordable housing. For as much as 10 years, the homes have been derided as underutilized and neglected, according to neighbors.

"They want to sell it, but we’re still here," said Edna Stewart, who has lived in 71 Waverly Ave. since 1981. "They should fix it while we’re living here…this building is run down."

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But that does not appear likely, given the city’s stance that it can’t afford to repair the buildings, nor can it sell them until all the tenants — 71 is fully occupied, 75 has only one family living on the second floor — move out.

Last week, the city revealed that the two vacant properties it owns on the block by the end of the year. But the other pair of occupied townhouses — which have chipped facades,  poor lighting and leaky ceilings — will likely remain in a sorry state until the tenants leave.

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"Multi-family homes cannot be offered for sale while they remain fully or partially occupied," said Sheila Stainback, a spokeswoman for NYCHA.

That rationale struck Rob Perris, the district manager of Community Board 2, as odd.

"Private owners sell occupied buildings all the time," Perris said. "There must be something within the [NYCHA] program that prohibits it in this case."

William Zarzuela, whose 56-year-old mother, Ramona is the lone tenant in 75 Waverly Ave., has applied for an apartment in her building.

"I’m trying to get an apartment there, but [NYCHA] says they’re not accepting applications for that type of housing," said William Zarzuela. "Once my mom is out of there it will probably be shut down like the other buildings."

And until Zarzuela’s mother does leave the run-down townhouse, he’ll keep doing repairs to her apartment himself, he said.

"NYCHA said they could fix a leak in the roof in two years," he said. "Luckily, I figured it out myself."


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