Fulton & Elliott-Chelsea NYCHA Houses Progress

By Brian J Pape, AIA

It has been years since the city first proposed major rebuilding at the Fulton & Elliott-Chelsea Houses (FEC) by New York City Housing Authority (NYCHA). In 2019, the city dropped an effort to build two new buildings there due to tenant opposition to demolition.

The idea that demolition is viable now reflects the severity of the conditions in the developments ─ where residents regularly encounter leaks, mold, broken elevators and heating problems. NYCHA estimates it needs over $40 billion for repairs across the system and those repairs, even if actually done, would not provide the quality of life amenities that new construction can provide. Funding provided by the federal government does not adequately support the cost of maintenance and repairs and has long abandoned building public housing (an early Trump budget zeroed out all capital for public housing while working to increase tax breaks and subsidies for rich investors).

Change can be very hard, so NYCHA teamed with Essence Development and the giant Related Companies under a program called PACT (Permanent Affordable Commitment Together) to offer the first-ever combination of NYCHA buildings with new mixed-income buildings on NYCHA land. Under this PACT program, NYCHA is allowed to unlock funding to complete comprehensive repairs and provide enhanced property management, public safety, and social services. Through PACT, developments transition to a more stable, federally-funded program called Project-Based Section 8 with a 20-year contract.

From 2021, when a new master plan for FEC was unveiled, public backlash has cried “foul” and insisted that the process for implementation was invalid, asking, “Will Manhattan be an island for the rich only, or will it be a place that maintains New York City’s working-class roots, ethnic, racial and economic diversity?” Jonathan Gouveia, NYCHA executive vice president for real estate development, immediately answered the critics’ questions and notified all residents that they will retain all their rights as public housing residents and continue to pay rent limited to 30% of their income. No resident will lose their rights or neighborhood in the move. Ninety four percent will remain in their buildings until new apartments are complete, while 6% will be temporarily relocated to refurbished apartments on the campus.

When Village View interviewed Jamar Adams, the managing principal at Essence, he said he spent part of his childhood in public housing and he believes in the importance of this type of project. Almost immediately, there has been a “Meanwhile Plan” a.k.a. “Bridge Plan.” Adams noted, “Even while the plans are being developed, Essence is already adding to the residents’ quality of life by providing private security guards on campus, hiring pest control firms, making entry door fixes, and completing numerous in-unit repairs.” 

After the 18-month long required environmental review process, a Final Environmental Impact Statement (FEIS) was published by NYCHA on June 27, 2025. The FEIS analyzes many important topics, like water and sewer infrastructure, traffic, greenhouse gas emissions, potential construction impacts and necessary controls. In July 2025, with the conclusion of that process, residents of 436 West 27th Street and the Fulton buildings at 401 and 419 West 19th Street received 90-day notices to complete their temporary moves to other FEC apartments. Some households had already begun their voluntary move. Moving supplies and assistance is provided by the PACT team, through the Housing Opportunities Unlimited office at 420 West 19th Street. While Related Affordable Management (RAM) is now the managing agent moving forward, there will be continued oversight from NYCHA as the landowner and partner in PACT.

According to the official website, fultonelliottchelsea.com/nycha-pact, this proposed $1.5 billion project is designed to meet the needs of future generations of residents and works to dispel the false narratives being spread by opponents, including:

• 100% replacement of 2,056 NYCHA apartments within brand-new modern buildings (the “Replacement Buildings”).
• New apartments for all existing authorized NYCHA residents, with a right to return for any temporarily relocated households, permanent affordability, and the preservation of all tenant rights as required by the PACT program.
• Brand new community facilities and state-of-the-art amenities.
• A phased construction plan to minimize disruption to current residents.
• A comprehensive “Bridge Plan” for immediate repairs, improving safety, and enhancing living conditions starting in 2024.
• Upon completion of the new NYCHA buildings, additional residential buildings will be constructed, creating thousands of new affordable and market-rate apartments.

As an additional resource for FEC tenants, PACT has hired Convergent Law, a women and minority-owned law firm, to provide a free hotline that residents can call for questions about rights and protections, lease agreements, relocation processes, and right-to-return.

Many of the existing housing projects were built in the 1940s-1960s as experiments with the “tower in the park” urban plan ─ buildings disconnected from the surrounding city ─ meaning they stand out as class and racial segregation. We know mixed-use buildings and mixed-income neighborhoods produce better health, education, and economic outcomes for residents. That is the goal of this Chelsea redevelopment.

Nevertheless, it will take a successful completion to convince many that our government is capable of providing caring communities of social housing.