Tenant: Bronx NYCHA senior housing building has had no heat for 4 years

A tenant at a NYCHA senior housing facility in the Bronx says the building as had no heat for four years.

News 12 Staff

Jan 30, 2022, 6:13 PM

Updated 989 days ago

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A tenant at a NYCHA senior housing facility in the Bronx says the building as had no heat for four years.
Rosa Vargas, 71, says she spent the weekend nor’easter locked in her Eastchester apartment with two space heaters, but she was still cold. She says this issue has been going on for four of the five years she's lived in the building.
Vargas says it can get as cold as below 60 degrees in her apartment in the winter.
Between October and May in New York City, landlords are required to keep the heat at a minimum of 68 degrees during the day when it is 55 degrees or colder outside. They are also required to keep the temperature at least 62 degrees overnight, regardless of the outside temperature.
Vargas says she’s tried contacting her building manager and NYCHA, but maintenance has never fixed the problem.
NYCHA told News 12 the heat was working on Sunday, but Vargas says the building will likely be too cold again by Monday.
Vargas has used multiple space heaters to stay warm but is reluctant after the fatal Twin Parks fire in the Bronx, which was sparked by a space heater. However, she says she doesn’t know what other option she has.
“I feel like a prisoner in my own home,” she says.
Vargas says she was approved for a transfer to another apartment in August, but no one followed up with her to move.