Gov. Anderw Cuomo (D) came to the Queensbridge Houses in Long Island City Saturday and received the endorsement for re-election from NYCHA tenant leaders across Queens.
But before receiving their endorsement, Cuomo noted how “NYCHA is that other city within NYC which is one the richest and greatest cities on the globe and for too long NYCHA has been ignored.”
Cuomo also noted how the city government has lied to NYCHA residents for years and that those days are ending with state involvement and the appointment of a federal monitor.
They [the city] literally lied about how many repair orders they were handling. The list got too long, so they just started checking them off and saying the tenants weren’t at home. They lied about the lead paint exposure and lead paint is something that this nation dealt with 40 years ago, you have to wonder how many children went to school and were diagnosed with a learning disorder but really hard lead paint poisoning. It does terrible damage to young people but it went on for years and the cover up still goes on,” said Cuomo.
In their endorsement of Cuomo, the NYCHA tenant leaders touted the Governor’s declaration of a state of emergency to expedite repairs, $550 million sweeping investment, delivering design/build authority and new oversight measures to restore accountability and bring immediate relief to NYCHA residents.
“As a tenant leader in our community, I’ve seen the governor’s leadership for NYCHA families first hand. It was the Governor who came to NYCHA and said enough is enough and worked to tackle this public health crisis to protect tenants,” said Queensbridge Tenant Association President April L. Simpson. “For too long, our pleas went unanswered by the city and our children were forced to live with mold, rats and lead paint. He brought us the attention and funding we deserve. He gave us his word and he got into action. For that I thank him and I’m proud to give him my endorsement.”
Glenn Collins, president of the Redfern Houses Tenant Association, said by delivering state emergency funding, Cuomo is ensuring that essential repairs will be completed in a timely manner, oversight and accountability will be restored and families won’t have to suffer in vain.
When so many have written our community off Governor Cuomo said we were not forgotten and has given us a new hope. Thank you Governor for all your support and I’m honored to give you my endorsement,” Collins said.
Neva Harper, president of the Shelton Houses Tenant Association, said, “When others failed to ensure we had a decent place to live and give us the basic necessity every American deserves, Governor Cuomo showed up, rolled up his sleeves and got to work. He’s making a real impact on the future of NYCHA families and he’s given us the resources we needed, and we asked for. Governor Cuomo is a friend of all NYCHA residents – he hears us, he listens to us and he’s helping us. For all these reasons, he has my endorsement for re-election.”
Among others Queens NYCHA tenant association presidents endorsing Cuomo included those from the Conlon-Lifhe Towers and the International Towers.
