Initial Vote Tally Begins for Tie-breaking Vote at Hylan Houses
On April 4, NYCHA announced that the runoff voting period has concluded for residents of Hylan Houses, and an independent, third-party election administrator has started tallying the votes. In January, a full recount of votes from the original voting period confirmed a tie between residents’ top two selections of the Public Housing Preservation Trust and the Permanent Affordability Commitment Together (PACT) program, leading to a runoff between these two ballot options. Residents were able to cast their votes online, in person, or by mail. Following Nostrand Houses, Bronx River Addition, Coney Island Houses and Coney Island I (Site 1B), Hylan Houses is the fifth development to hold a vote of this kind, in which residents have had the opportunity to cast their ballots regarding the future of their homes.
The election administrator’s count of resident votes has begun, and it is confirmed that it achieved the minimum threshold of 20 percent of all heads of household required for the vote to be considered valid. Votes from 62 percent of all Hylan Houses heads of household have been received and counted thus far.
“Whatever selection residents from Hylan Houses have chosen, they will have voted in favor of comprehensive renovations to their homes,” said NYCHA Chief Executive Officer Lisa Bova-Hiatt. “In just a week’s time, the tie will be broken, and we’ll be able to begin taking the next steps alongside Hylan residents toward unlocking the amazing improvements to their building and to their lives.”
Hylan Houses, home to 301 eligible voters, cast 176 ballots, which included 129 from heads of household. By the election administrator’s count, there are currently 150 votes to join the Public Housing Preservation Trust and 25 votes to enter the PACT program. One ballot could not be counted due to unclear voter intent. If additional mail-in ballots postmarked no later than April 4 are received, they will be counted on Thursday, April 10.
It is estimated that Hylan Houses, home to 410 residents in 209 apartments, has a 20-year capital need of nearly $90 million. Portfolio-wide, a Physical Needs Assessment (PNA) released by NYCHA in 2023 estimates the Authority’s total capital needs to be nearly $80 billion following decades of federal disinvestment.
The New York City Public Housing Preservation Trust, a fully public entity signed into law by New York Governor Kathy Hochul in 2022, is expected to unlock billions of dollars in federal funding for comprehensive renovations at NYCHA developments to improve living conditions for residents. Under the Trust, a development is kept 100 percent public and converted to the more stable, federally funded Project-Based Section 8 program, while residents maintain their rights, including permanently affordable rent.
The PACT program transitions developments from traditional Section 9 assistance to Project-Based Section 8 and unlocks funding for resident-selected PACT partners to complete comprehensive repairs and to oversee daily property management of the campus. Overall, 146 NYCHA developments (representing over 39,000 apartments) are in pre-development, are under construction, or have completed construction through the program. This represents over $13 billion in capital repairs for the Authority. The Authority is working to include 62,000 apartments in the PACT program in order to bring the benefits of comprehensive apartment repairs and building upgrades, as well as enhanced property management and social services, to more than 142,000 residents.
According to the official voting procedures, residents are eligible to vote if they are 18 years or older and part of the household composition. Participation from a minimum threshold of 20 percent of all heads of household is required for a vote to be considered valid.
NYCHA’s Voter Engagement Team conducted 30 additional days of engagement at Hylan Houses following confirmation of the tied vote, which included door-knocking, phone-banking, and distribution of physical materials to residents. A combined total of 8 public information sessions were held to explain the vote and ballot options to residents during the public engagement periods at Hylan Houses. These and other engagement efforts amounted to over 607 total touchpoints with a total of 220 eligible voters.
The run-off vote was carried out in accordance with the protocol for breaking a tie outlined in the official voting procedures. Once all votes have been tallied, the definitive selection made by the residents of Hylan Houses will be announced.