Bill Clinton
A Room of One's Own
Matt Pacenza |
The massive Harlem HUD scandal left hundreds of abandoned brownstones in its wake. But now there’s good news, too: it is also giving birth to a vibrant new tenant movement.
Welfare
HOW WELFARE MAY FAIR
Matt Pacenza |
With Congress slated to take up the welfare reform debate by March, insiders expect most of the law’s details will be nailed down as part of the budget process–with very little discussion.
City Hall
FED BILL TAKES ON BANKS, BUT PREYS ON STRICT NEW YORK LAW
Matt Pacenza |
A new bill tossing around Washington aims to put the reins on companies that make high-cost loans to homeowners–but it could mean the demise of the stronger laws passed in New York City and Albany late last year.
Housing and Homelessness
HOMES, FOR A CHANGE: MAYOR SAYS, 'WE'LL MAKE MORE'
Matt Pacenza |
Mayor Bloomberg’s new housing plan calls for investing more than $1 billion in new homes, but his proposal is about more than just cash.
Bronx
PREDATOR BECOMES PREY AS MAJOR BANK BUYS SHADY LENDER
Matt Pacenza |
HSBC bank’s recent purchase of a notorious predatory mortgage lender has some people seeing dollar signs — a big bank on the scene means more money for the wronged consumers, they say — and others fearing things could only get worse.
Community Service Society of New York
DESPITE REFORM, LITTLE DAY CARE FOR NEW WORKING MOMS
Matt Pacenza |
Many parents who’ve recently left welfare for a new job are not getting the subsidized day care they’re eligible for, and the city recently made it even harder for some to get it.
The Disabled
Home Remedies
Matt Pacenza |
The mentally ill can’t live in nursing homes. The fragile elderly can’t live in their own filth. There’s a city agency that’s supposed to help them all stay healthy and housed–and it may be New York’s most neglected bureaucratic backwater.
Homelessness
I AM VERNA, HEAR ME ROAR: CITY TO REVAMP AIDS AGENCY
Matt Pacenza |
After calling some of her agency’s services for people with AIDS “crap” last week, the city’s social services commissioner, Verna Eggleston, vowed to totally reorganize the HIV/AIDS Services Administration within the next few months.
Homelessness
TRICK OR TREAT?
Matt Pacenza |
The Department of Health and Human Services was kind enough to hold a conference to teach the city’s nonprofit service providers how to access federal funds last week. There was just one catch: There aren’t many funds to be had.
Economy
PAINFUL CONTRACTIONS
Matt Pacenza |
As part of a shift in the city’s workforce development policy, the Human Resource Administration will soon require that the job trainers it contracts with take on a lot more clients on public assistance. Since their city contracts are based on how long their clients keep a job, these companies fear that with so many hard-to-employ clients, their businesses may be in trouble.
