The backlog for building new income-restricted housing in New York City grew longer after the city lost key staffing during the pandemic — exacerbating an already dire shortage of homes — according to a report released by city Comptroller Brad Lander on Thursday.
The report found the city’s Department of Housing Preservation and Development lost 263 employees during the pandemic, leading to a 14-month delay in financing new affordable housing projects and a 10-month delay for preservation projects. Lander’s office determined that there were 12,000 fewer affordable apartments built in 2022 as compared to the average number built with HPD’s pre-pandemic staffing.
“HPD is a critical choke point,” he said in an interview. “For the vast majority of affordable housing that’s financed, HPD is involved.”
Lander listed other obstacles to building more affordable housing in the city, including higher interest rates, the lack of a housing deal by state lawmakers that could spur more production, and neighborhoods resisting new development.
“All those things are necessary, but for affordable housing especially, one critical thing is a housing department that can move expeditiously — and that is going to take some real management reform and streamlining,” he said.
Mayor Eric Adams’ administration has previously said that in 2023 it financed more new affordable housing in a single year than ever before, or more than 14,000 homes. For the city’s purposes, affordable housing is generally considered housing with income restrictions for residents that are tied to the area median income as defined by federal housing officials.
William Fowler, a spokesperson for the city housing office, noted that statistic again and said the comptroller’s report recommends many actions HPD has already taken.
“Like every workplace, HPD lost staff as a result of the pandemic but our ability to stay laser focused on providing homes for New Yorkers while rebuilding the agency is a…
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