The city opened a deeply affordable apartment building in Cypress Hills on Thursday, where New Yorkers exiting the shelter system can find a new home using the CityFHEPS voucher.
Department of Social Services Commissioner Molly Wasow Park and Institute of Community Living President Jody Rudin celebrated the opening of 182 deeply affordable homes at 2886 Atlantic Ave., which marks the first Affordable Housing Services site in Brooklyn.
The AHS initiative leverages CityFHEPS vouchers to create high-quality homes for New Yorkers in shelter who’ve faced significant, long-term barriers to finding stable housing. ICL will operate and manage this building, leveraging 40 years of experience in helping tens of thousands of New Yorkers achieve stable, fulfilling lives through housing, behavioral health care and recovery services.
“With New York City facing an historically low housing vacancy rate, we cannot rely on the status quo to meet the moment," said Wasow Park. "We must leverage our resources in new and innovative ways to create desperately needed affordable housing, and with the Affordable Housing Service initiative, we are thrilled to do just that."
There are more than 13,000 households with CityFHEPS vouchers in the city's shelter system that are unable to find housing due to the city's severe housing shortage today.
Through the AHS program, the city helps nonprofit organizations purchase or enter long-term, building-wide leases to create deeply affordable housing with 30-year or 9-year contracts.
There are now 835 AHS units open, and the city will add another 150 next year.
"The Atlantic is a model for what's possible when the city, nonprofit organizations and private partners come together with urgency and vision," Rudin said. “Just minutes from our East New York Health Hub, this development reflects ICL’s ‘whole health’ approach, recognizing that housing, health, and recovery are all deeply connected. For the New Yorkers moving in today, these beautiful new homes are more than apartments; they are the foundation for stability, wellness and opportunity."
