Views from the Northwest Bronx

"This is What We Do" is a series of events that illustrate the unique ways that UNHP works towards its affordable housing and Bronx community service mission as well as an effort to raise funds for that work through sponsorships and donations. Click on this post to learn about the events we have planned and how you can take part.

There is still apparently no agreement to restore the network relationship between United Healthcare (UHC) and Montefiore Health System. There is no indication that negotiations are occurring at this point and thousands of Bronx residents have effectively lost their access to healthcare. UNHP has learned a lot as we were faced with the loss of coverage for our staff about these issues and we remain committed to seeing that changes are made - this updated blog shares what we have learned and how we plan to move forward.

For the third event in our virtual series and fundraiser, This is What We Do, UNHP brought together 31 Bronx housing operators from 12 organizations to discuss the issues that affect the housing they oversee to understand trends and emerging issues that jeopardize affordability. It is also What We Do to escalate these issues and seek to address the policies behind the issues. Read the full summary to learn more.

In this, the second post of the Housing Connect series, we look at how our program users at the Northwest Bronx Resource Center experience the Housing Connect process.

As an HPD Housing Ambassador since 2017, UNHP assists Bronx residents to apply for the NYC Affordable Housing Lottery, known as Housing Connect. In this first post of a 3 part series about Housing New York, UNHP provides an overview of what is being built, and how that matches with the needs of Bronx residents.

This is What We Do is a series of events that illustrate how UNHP works towards its affordable housing and community service mission. UNHP provides valuable community services like assistance with the NYC affordable housing lottery, known as Housing Connect, to Bronx apartment seekers. UNHP also shares our experience and the experience of community members. UNHP has written a three-part blog post about those experiences and our suggestions on ways to make new affordable housing better meet the needs of community residents.

It has been a year since the pandemic hit the Bronx hard and early with consequences for families and individuals in all the parts of their lives. Third, in our A Year Into Covid series, this blog post takes stock of where Bronx residents stand now in terms of health, jobs, and housing.

On Thursday, May 27th UNHP hosted a Water and Sewer Seminar looking at the ongoing rise of rates and their impact on affordable housing. UNHP, a longtime advocate for water and sewer rate reform shared a brief history of the changes that brought about the never-ending increases and a call for involvement about proposed rate increases, a new metered billing rate, and a study of the rate structure.

UNHP has worked for over 30 years to highlight rising water and sewer rates as a threat to housing affordability. The DEP Multifamily Water Assistance Program with its credit for affordable housing has ameliorated some, but not all of that threat. Now we are calling attention to rising insurance premiums and calling for action.

COVID has been with us for more than a year, and so has the search for signs of distress in multifamily rental housing in New York City. Despite that, there are still more questions than answers about how rent arrears & future rent relief, the pandemic-induced economic recession, and other shifts will affect multifamily housing, especially in neighborhoods that are home to low-income families and individuals of color.