THE HOUSING PROBLEM

Like with everything in life, perceptions matter, and community perceptions of affordable housing are no different. In this final episode of the mini-series, Rafael and Kirk get into how developers, advocates, elected officials, and communities talk about, think about, and plan for the building of new housing with up-and-coming affordable housing leader Councilmember Pierina Sanchez. Is it really the last episode? Find out!

Rafael and Kirk look at the growing number of homeless New Yorkers and try to square our homeless crisis with the reality that New York does more than any other city to help those living on the street. Muzzy Rosenblatt of BRC talks about his dedicated team of social service professionals who walk into the subway cars that most of us walk out of.

Rafael and Kirk sit down with Restoration Plaza's Colvin Grannum to talk about how Black and brown communities have been the most vulnerable to the consequences of The Housing Problem. Building generational wealth, race-conscious public policy, and bringing holistic thinking to how and where we build housing are just some of the topics this thought-provoking conversation covers.

Despite 1 in 15 New Yorkers calling public housing home, the nation's largest affordable housing infrastructure has faced decades of deferred maintenance and disinvestment. Congressman Torres dishes with Rafael and Kirk about ways to recoup funding for the city's beleaguered housing authority and the obstacles standing in the way.

The term gentrification is thrown around a lot, but do we really even know what it means? Rafael and Kirk break it down with Yvonne Stennett, a longtime community development advocate in Washington Heights, who has seen firsthand the upside and downside of gentrification.

Rafael and Kirk look at how we got here, where the city's made improvements, and the seemingly never-ending challenges that New York City's housing sector is up against. With former New York City Housing Development Corporation President Marc Jahr, Rafael and Kirk break down the paradoxes that define The Housing Problem.

A new podcast mini-series about New York City's housing industry, the challenges we're up against, how they came to be, and what's needed to build a stronger and more equitable city moving forward. COMING SOON!