Jason Morin, the authority s information technology consultant, told the board on Monday that he is looking at a few different options to install internet at all properties. There are different ways to do this and each one has its own challenge, Morin said. We are looking at a lot of different angles. Executive Director Jennifer Hohn said the Housing Authority looked in the past to provide limited internet access but now that the internet is essentially a utility, she felt the Housing Authority should find a way to offer it to tenants. People are trying to find jobs and go to school, stuff like that, Hohn said. An internet connection is necessary and unfortunately a lot of our tenants can t afford that so we would like to offer that in the future.
Anne Arundel health officials say the federal government is contributing to the county’s opioid crisis by restricting low-income residents with public housing assistance to “areas where drugs are readily available.”
Last October, NYCHA released its new plan, the Blueprint for Change, calling for state legislation to create a public benefit corporation the Preservation Trust (PT) to take over 110,000 units under a long-term lease and carry out capital repairs to restore decent living conditions. However, public reaction during December Assembly hearings and NYCHA Annual Plan hearings suggest the authority should consider a pause in forward movement on the Blueprint for now.