Citywide

At the HUD of the Class

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Rick Lazio missed two chances of a lifetime to mold federal housing policy, first losing his Senate seat and then, the possibility of serving as President George W. Bush’s secretary of Housing and Urban Development.

Citywide

In Tenants We Trust

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The twisted tale of two Hamilton Heights apartment buildings–complete with broken boilers and out-of-service elevators, revolving-door landlords and bitter court battles–may finally end happily.

Manhattan

Death of a Radical Boss

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Ernesto Jofre made the journey from Allende’s Chile to New York labor leader, and everyone from greengrocer workers to progressive politicos have him to thank for their livelihoods. Will the Lower East Side ever be the same?

Lower East Side

Smoke-Filled Rooms

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Advocates for affordable housing thought they had a deal to reform the city’s Byzantine building code. Then fearful firemen refused to budge-all because of a stairwell.

Stop Payment Order

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Where pickets, court claims and horror stories have failed, neighborhood activists are hoping a proposed law will finally put a stop to predatory lending. Banks, however, have no interest in legislation.

Citywide

Houses of Ineqity

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The city’s housing agency promised upwardly mobile buyers Harlem dream homes and a subsidy to make them happen. But in the hands of private builders, plans for chef’s kitchens and marble bathrooms are translating into endless, often hopeless, construction.