Assemblymember John Zaccaro, Jr. (A.D. 80) has announced he secured $10 million in State funding that will be used to replace the elevators at Tracey Towers with new ones.

 

Zaccaro Jr., who broadly represents some or all of the Bronx neighborhoods of Norwood, Parkside Housing Project, Olinville, Pelham Gardens, Pelham Parkway, Little Yemen, Morris Park, Allerton, Indian Village, Van Nest and Bronx Park East, joined Assembly Speaker Carl E. Heastie (A.D. 83), Council Member Eric Dinowitz (C.D. 11), the president of the Tracey Towers Tenant Organization, Jean Hill, and a packed room of Tracey Towers residents on Tuesday, Nov. 26, to share the news.

 

“Every New Yorker should feel comfortable wherever they call home, and the residents of Tracey Towers are no exception,” said Zaccaro Jr. “I will not stand by as my constituents lack a reliable, working elevator system without exploring every option available to find a solution. This $10 million in state funding is that solution and so much more, it is a critical investment in the safety and quality of life for anyone who calls Tracey Towers home.”

As reported, tenants and elected officials held a rally at the Mitchell-Lama housing complex on June 15 to protest alleged poor living conditions at the housing complex, including what tenants said were perpetually malfunctioning elevators for a number of years.

 

“Mitchell-Lamas were developed as any affordable option for growing families,” said Heastie on Tuesday. “However, rising costs have made maintaining these infrastructures challenging, leading to a surplus of aging equipment, such as elevators. Today’s investment of $10 million will ensure that Tracey Towers has updated and functional lift systems that will assist families to efficiently move around with their daily activities. This achievement was made possible through the hard work and advocacy of Assemblymember Zaccaro.”

Located on the Norwood-Bedford Park border at 40 West Mosholu Parkway South, Tracey Towers opened in 1974 through the Mitchell-Lama program and includes 871 units in its twin, 400-foot residential buildings. As reported, the Towers residents celebrated the 50th Anniversary of the housing complex on Aug. 3, with Zaccaro Jr. introducing an Assembly resolution to honor the milestone.

 

Through their tenant organization, Hill and her fellow residents have regularly advocated on ways their elected officials can improve the quality-of-life at the building. A top safety priority brought to the attention of the assemblyman and his team were the constant elevator service interruptions, forcing many seniors, residents in poor health, and those living on the top floors to walk up around 41 flights of stairs to get to their apartments.

“Living at Tracey Towers for 50 years, I’ve seen first hand how, over time, the building’s condition has deteriorated and the negative impact this has had on our quality of life,” said Hill. “New elevators will make our lives easier and the building safer, and it was Assemblymember John Zaccaro who stepped up to answer our calls for change.”

 

Zaccaro Jr. said he and and his team worked closely with RY Management, which oversees the building, the tenants’ organization and State officials to fix the problem and get Towers’ residents the relief they needed.

On Wednesday, Nov. 20, Bronx Borough President Vanessa L. Gibson was joined by Zaccaro, Jr., Dinowitz; Eat Clean Bro; Bob Lee,  community affairs director for WBLS-107.5 FM, and Pioneers Supermarkets, for HOT 97’s Annual Turkey Drive, broadcast live on “Ebro in the Morning,” from the community room at Tracey Towers. There, over 600 turkeys with fixings were distributed to individuals and families from the complex.

“Thank you to everyone who took part in our collective efforts to bring fall holiday joy to our communities,” Gibson later said of the event, where Hot 97’s vice president of artist & label relations and music director, TT Torrez, and hosts of “Ebro in the Morning,” Peter Rosenberg, Laura Stylz, and JusNik were also in attendance.

“Nothing makes me happier than ensuring my constituents are happy and healthy,” Dinowtz, who represents some or all of the Bronx neighborhoods of Norwood, Bedford Park, Kingsbridge, Van Cortlandt Village, Woodlawn, Wakefield, Riverdale, North Riverdale, Fieldston, and Spuyten Duyvil, said on Nov. 27 regarding the event.