WASHINGTON HEIGHTS, Manhattan (PIX11) — Some residents of a Manhattan apartment building have been very cold in their homes for weeks, including a 95-year-old great-grandmother.
Betty Simmons, 81, said she has to wear gloves and a winter hat when she sits in her living room on her couch. It’s that cold.
Simmons is fighting for heat for herself and her neighbors at Thurgood Marshall Plaza in Washington Heights. Just across the hallway, 95-year-old Carmen Perez was bundled up.
Every winter is a battle to feel the heat, according to Simmons. As the tenant president, she is angry and tired of complaining. Back in December, Simmons took a picture on Christmas Eve after a pipe burst, flooding several apartments. With a cold snap in the forecast, she says the lack of heat could be a health hazard.
What was once a NYCHA building is now under private management.
A NYCHA spokesperson said, “As a development with historical heating issues, the conditions at Marshall Plaza illustrate the consequences of long-term disinvestment in public housing and demonstrate why it is an ideal site for PACT. This location converted to PACT last month, and the development team is now working to deliver transformative repairs through the program. NYCHA and the management team will continue to work together to address heating concerns for Marshall residents.”
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