Inside the article from the Wall Street Journal – “New York City Officials Say Affordable Housing Push is Working.”

Deputy Mayor Alicia Glen and other housing officials stated, construction has begun on 20,800 new low & moderate income housing units in NY and 4,145 new units have been completed since 2014, the start of the initiative.  Though an estimated 7,500 rent stabilized units were lost last year, 52,000 units will have rent protections extended.

Families earning $42,951 and $68,720 are eligible for about half of these units. One third are slated for families who earn under $42,950.

City officials stated the plan will cost $41 billion dollars. The city’s using “…tax incentives, public funds, private investment and city capital dollars to build and preserve housing.” Providing housing units for extremely low income persons was stated by officials to have been more difficult since it relies heavily on rent subsidies.  As per city data and stated in the article, median rents rose by 20% between 2000 and 2014 in real dollars and “The trend has made it increasingly difficult for people with low & moderate incomes to afford to live in NYC.” It led “…the city’s shelter population to grow to about 60,000 last year.”

City officials report, the plan is moving. Over the 10 year period it “…would help a half a million people continue to live in New York City.”  With three years in, Mayor De Blasio’s plan was designed to minimize the effect of rising income inequality, stating at a news conference in mid July; “This is how you keep the greatest city in the world what it is and what it was always meant to be, a place for everyone.”

Originally sourced from Crain’s, “City Officials Tout Latest Affordable Housing Numbers.”