Mayor Zohran Mamdani is facing criticism from a tenants' advocate for prioritizing a Halloween-themed event about landlords over the deteriorating conditions in New York City Housing Authority (NYCHA) complexes.
The Crisis Action Center, led by the Rev. Kevin McCall, has launched a five-figure video ad campaign titled "American Horror Story: NYCHA." The ad, a parody of the popular television series, features images of collapsed ceilings and mold within NYCHA apartments. It also cites statistics indicating that NYCHA has 67,782 pending mold-related work orders and requires an estimated $78 billion for necessary repairs.
The video claims that repairs in public housing units take an average of 470 days to complete. "For thousands of New Yorkers the horror is home. This is NYCHA," the ad declares.
McCall specifically called out Mamdani for not mentioning NYCHA during a "Talk with the People" streaming event on October 29, which focused on tenant-landlord issues. The event reportedly highlighted stories of a tenant with significant rent arrears and a landlord who failed to provide heat. McCall stated that Mamdani's silence on NYCHA during the event "speaks volumes about how little attention public housing residents receive in the city’s conversation about housing conditions."
This is not the first time Mamdani has faced accusations of overlooking public housing. Earlier this year, critics pointed to "rental ripoff" hearings that focused on privately-owned buildings rather than NYCHA tenants.
Mamdani, in his capacity as mayor, oversees NYCHA, which houses approximately 450,000 tenants across 335 developments. This makes him the largest landlord in North America.
In response to the criticism, the mayor's press office asserted that the administration is actively working to improve NYCHA conditions. They cited recent commitments to invest $5.6 billion in NYCHA apartment upgrades and a plan to hold tenant forums to address complaints. The mayor's office also pointed to Mamdani's recent appearance at Edenwald Houses, the largest public housing complex in the Bronx, where he discussed these investments and emphasized empowering residents.