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PACC is partnering with New York City Housing Authority (NYCHA) in a new comprehensive program that will provide financial counseling to NYCHA residents and give them access to variety of services including workforce development and adult education. Known as Resident Economic Empowerment & Sustainability or "REES" for short, the program will help families to stabilize their finances, rebuild the credit, and better plan for the future.

As a NYCHA Zone Partner, PACC will provide financial counseling and asset building to NYCHA residents in Downtown Brooklyn and Red Hook. "Many people have unresolved financial issues such as outstanding debts, bad credit, or judgments," says Charrisse Smith, PACC's financial counselor. "We will work with NYCHA residents to better manage their personal finances, repair their credit, reduce their debt, and save money for the future."

Priscilla Etheridge was one recent client of PACC that received financial counseling, while praising the guidance of Ms. Smith: "I learned how to understand my credit report and how to get out of debt," said Ms. Etheridge. "Charrisse was very supportive. I could give her a call anytime if I had any questions, and she kept me focused on my long-term goals."

The REES program is vital because up until now, many NYCHA residents had few opportunities for receiving financial advice. Through PACC's workshops and one-on-one counseling, we will help NYCHA residents develop emergency savings and improve their credit scores; access affordable mainstream financial products; and achieve financial stability.

PACC receives support for its counseling and workshops from two main funders-HSBC and JPMorgan Chase.

PACC's new supportive housing development near the Brooklyn Navy Yard is now complete! We hope that the red-corrugated structure is a welcome addition to the neighborhood's diverse architecture. We wanted to follow up with our architect on a few ideas, and he admirably agreed to wax philosophical:
"In every aspect of the project, every point along the way, we really tried to push what was the standard supportive housing program to its limit, so that for each resident the notion of home and community was most exploited," says Matthew Bremer, Principal Architect at In Formation Architecture and designer of 40 Vanderbilt, the supportive housing building at the Navy Green development. "We didn't just take this as 'we're designing a supportive housing building,'" says Bremer. "We wanted to interrogate what that model was, in order to do the best supportive development that we could."

Even at first glance, it's obvious that 40 Vanderbilt is unlike other affordable housing projects, with its bright red-corrugated metal façade, funky window arrangement and double height lobby. "Our building looks totally different than most supportive housing buildings-most are orange brick and very tasteful and try to look like other buildings in the neighborhood," says Bremer. He also notes how the site played a role in shaping the building's unique look, as Navy Green incorporates elements of the surrounding neighborhood's "funky industrial character."

Bremer says that the choice to make 40 Vanderbilt stand out was not only informed by aesthetics and the specifics of the site, but also by a desire to create a strong sense of community among the building's residents. He and his team wanted to create a space and a living experience that was unique and special, giving residents something to bond and connect over. They also built in plenty of common space to facilitate these connections, and made an effort to make these spaces beautiful and comfortable for residents. The first-floor amphitheater, the wide, naturally-lit hallways, the large and vibrantly-colored stairwells, and the double-height lobby were all designed specifically to facilitate a sense of community among residents.

Now that residents are moving into their new apartments, Bremer hopes that they find their new home not only comfortable, safe and beautiful, but also interesting and stimulating. "Having met some of the residents that have moved in," he says, "I was really heartened to hear that they are really intrigued by where they're living. I feel very strongly that supportive housing can and should be just as interesting as new condos in Manhattan." view more pics