Part of Governor’s Unprecedented $20 Billion Plan to Combat Homelessness and Create Affordable Housing For All New Yorkers
Construction Complete or Underway on 56,000 Affordable Homes and Funding Approved for 6,000 Supportive Units
Governor Andrew M. Cuomo today announced a major milestone in creating and preserving more than 62,000 units of affordable and supportive housing as part of his historic $20 billion, five-year plan to combat homelessness and create affordable housing for all New Yorkers. As of December 31, 2019, construction and preservation is completed or underway on more than 56,000 affordable housing units across the State, which is on schedule for the five-year plan. Additionally, 6,000 supportive units have been funded, over 4,000 of which are part of the Governor’s Empire State Supportive Housing Initiative.
The Housing and Homelessness Plan will ultimately create 100,000 units of affordable housing, which are financed and supported by New York State Homes and Community Renewal, and 6,000 units of supportive housing through multiple State agencies.
«Our unprecedented $20 billion commitment is tackling the affordable housing and homelessness issue at its core, expanding housing and ensuring resources are available to provide our most vulnerable New Yorkers with the opportunity to get in a home and stay there,» Governor Cuomo said. «We are on track to achieve the goals outlined in our plan, and it’s leading to a stronger, more prosperous New York for all.»
Housing and Homelessness Plan
The historic $20 billion, multi-year affordable housing and homelessness plan offers a transformational blueprint to address the diverse housing needs in New York and create new opportunities for working families. The Plan is achieving these goals through building and preserving affordable units and individual homes, investing in communities and promoting employment and housing choice opportunities.
The Plan also includes a groundbreaking commitment to create 6,000 new supportive housing units. ESSHI plays a critical role in meeting the goal to create permanent supportive homes for families, individuals and young adults to live independently, gain stability and remain securely housed.
ESSHI works by harnessing the power and expertise of a number of State agencies and enabling them to fund local nonprofit organizations and service agencies to provide a continuum of onsite care to the tenants, most of whom have a history of homelessness and include persons with serious mental illness victims of domestic violence, runaway and homeless youth, veterans, people with developmental disabilities, people with HIV/AIDS and formerly incarcerated individuals.
New York State Homes and Community Renewal Commissioner RuthAnne Visnauskas said, «Governor Cuomo has long understood the need to create and protect high-quality affordable housing so that everyone, regardless of income, can benefit from the state’s economic resurgence. The Governor’s Housing Plan is addressing the diverse housing needs of New York State by building new homes, preserving existing housing and providing supportive housing that will make an enormous difference in people’s lives. This ambitious and holistic strategy has enabled HCR to work every day to create more vibrant communities where New Yorkers want to live, work and raise families.»
Office of Temporary and Disability Assistance Commissioner Michael Hein said, «There is an undeniable connection between creating permanent supportive housing and achieving positive outcomes for individuals who have experienced homelessness. Governor Cuomo’s Housing and Homelessness Plan has led to an unprecedented investment into projects that are greatly expanding the stock of affordable and supportive housing throughout New York State. These efforts are having a transformative effect throughout the state and are helping to ensure all New Yorkers -including the most vulnerable among us -have access to a safe, affordable home.»
Dr. Ann Sullivan, Commissioner of the New York State Office of Mental Health said, «Governor Cuomo has spent his entire tenure supporting the needs of New York’s most vulnerable, and he isn’t stopping in 2020. The Governor’s plan to continue serving individuals with mental illness and ensure they have stable housing is why New York has set itself apart as the nation’s leader in addressing mental health.»