Renovations bring relocations
Some Albany public housing tenants uneasy about moving during pandemic
Regina Dew opened the front door of her North Albany home on a recent morning to find a thick packet. It was time to renew her lease on her home of 18 years.
But this time, the lease looked different — with many more pages and a lot of different language. This year, 74-year-old Dew may have to temporarily relocate from her home in the middle of the coronavirus pandemic as a massive renovation project takes place in North Albany Homes, a neighborhood of duplexes owned by the Albany Housing Authority, in addition to Ida Yarbrough Homes.
“I’m trying to keep this all in a positive light, that I’ll have a brand new apartment when I come back,” Dew said. “But it has quite a few of us, especially the vulnerable senior citizens … scared.”
Albany Housing Authority first started holding public meetings to discuss planned renovations in 2018, and finalized the design plan for the homes in September of 2020. Ida Yarbrough, which consists of 224 apartment units in two towers located on North Pearl Street, and North Albany Homes, where 80 duplexes built in 2003 are situated between Van Rensselaer Boulevard and North Pearl Street, will be receiving new roofs, remodeled kitchens and bathrooms, and updated plumbing fixtures, among many other planned updates. The over $146 million construction project, which will be moving in phases by tackling a few units at a time, is estimated to take two years, completing in January 2023.
“It’s necessary for us to make these renovations in order to sustain the properties,” said Chiquita D’arbeau, executive director of Albany Housing Authority. “The families deserve to have brand-new homes that they could feel very proud of, they can feel more welcome to bring in guests, and feel very proud that this is their home. And that’s really the ultimate goal.”
The construction has already begun in a select number of units in Ida Yarbrough, and residents of those units have been relocated to other apartments within the building. However, the housing authority has also established a partnership with Loudon Arms apartments nearby for residents to be placed there if there is no availability in Ida Yarbrough.
North Albany Homes’ renovation is set to begin in the spring, D’arbeau said.
In some cases, residents may be able to remain in their homes amid the construction. If not, however, they will also be relocated to other units within the project, or to Loudon Arms apartments. Completing construction in each unit should take no more than two months maximum, D’arbeau said, and the relocation — including movers and storage space — comes at no cost to residents. Residents will also have a relocation specialist to work with them to sort out living arrangements and moving needs.
But some residents are skeptical about the housing authority’s promises.
Deborah Williams, who has resided in North Albany Homes since they were first built in the early 2000s, said there are a number of residents she would not be surprised to see placed in different units at the end of the renovation.
According to public meeting minutes and other documents on the housing authority’s website, residents are not guaranteed to be placed back in their original units after the renovations are over — particularly in the Ida Yarbrough high rises — and in some cases may even be downsized to a smaller apartment if they’re deemed to not have a large enough family to suit their original apartment size.
Williams was also doubtful that the housing authority would indeed cover all costs that may arise during the renovation.
“I think it’s impossible; I think there’s going to be a limit,” she said.
Anxiety also rises high at the prospect of packing up and moving in the middle of the pandemic.
“We’re all upset this is happening, and it’s so stressful,” Dew said. “And in Yarbrough, a lot of them are not young chickens; they’re very vulnerable. My heart is just aching.”
Williams’ biggest concern, however, was the safety of relocation during the renovation process — particularly for disabled residents. She knows of residents who are double amputees, who are immuno-compromised and who have multiple sclerosis. Williams wonders how they can be safely accommodated during the renovations, when the number of accessible units within the housing project and Loudon Arms can be limited.
“While I do not think it’s Albany Housing ’s fault, unfortunately it’s their responsibility,” Williams said. “The people who most likely will not be able to stay here during the renovations, knowing what they’re doing, are the people with disabilities. So you’ll still have the same people falling through the cracks.”
D’arbeau assured that COVID -19 safety protocols will be in place throughout the project. However, she said delaying the construction until after vaccinations are distributed is not an option.
Dew countered, “The people don’t have a lot of say or power in this process. It’s like a done deal. And we just have to go along with, you know, signing this cumbersome lease.”