Note: The following text was transcribed from a public speech given by New York City Housing Authority (NYCHA) tenant Celines Miranda, who was one of the featured speakers at September 15’s Coming Together: A Social Justice & Music Festival (presented by the Midtown South Community Council). Miranda’s topic is summarized by Manhattan Community Board 4 (MCB4), who wrote, “NYCHA, Related Companies, and Essence Development’s proposed plan to demolish and rebuild the existing buildings on both Chelsea NYCHA campuses.”

BY CELINES MIRANDA (member, Fulton & Elliott-Chelsea [FEC Tenants] Against Demolition) | I’m Celines Miranda—a tenant of one of the NYCHA buildings in Chelsea. I live in the Elliott Houses—the first NYCHA development to be built in Chelsea. They were completed in 1947: Well-structured, solid, and built to last.

However, due to the High Value of the land that we sit, walk, and sleep on—our homes, we are being made to believe the false narrative of dilapidated buildings, too costly to rehab, and that the residents chose to demolish.

The private Developer, Related Companies, owners of Hudson Yards and billionaires; they want us out of our buildings, our Homes.

When the land had no value, we were fine there and bothered no one. But now, due to its rising popularity as an effect of tourism, art galleries, the High Line and more, we now have a new class of people in our existing mixed income neighborhood, a higher income crowd—the well-to-do. They have been making their way into our Chelsea neighborhood for many years and we were all fine with it. We accepted them into our community and had no qualms.

But we should have. There should have been concerns because now, somehow, we are in the way of these real estate businesses who have exploited the hidden treasure we once were, Chelsea.

We were already unique back then when no one knew who we were.

We knew the value of our homes and held dear to our hearts. It’s the reason why today the Fulton & Elliott-Chelsea (FEC) Tenants Against Demolition are fighting relentlessly to save our NYCHA homes. The Chocolate Brown Bricked buildings of the Elliott Houses and the off-White bricked Buildings of the Chelsea Houses and the Fulton Houses—Related Companies will destroy these buildings that are one-of-a-kind with its high ceilings, unique architecture, and spacious layouts.

You should walk by my Elliott-Chelsea Home, visit now while the leaves are still in full bloom. Go to West 26th Street and walk up and down 9th and 10th Avenue.  It’s enchanting, breathtaking, and feels as if you’re walking through a forestry.

Our abundance of trees adds to the character that is the Elliott-Houses.

In the Fulton & Elliott-Chelsea campuses are over 370 Mature trees and that’s not counting the younger ones. Many of the mature trees have been in existence for as long as the buildings, for decades and are well-rooted into the ground. We are known to be the lungs of Chelsea. But with our demolition proposal, if they follow through with this plan, these trees will be rooted out and destroyed. We will have none to filter out the city toxins, including the very toxins that a mass demolition of Fulton & Elliott-Chelsea Houses will cause all due to the greed that is Related. They already have 13 mixed and high-luxury buildings in Chelsea, and they now want to use Chelsea’s public land by destroying our NYCHA community.

It’s a complete take-over and it will not end there.

They also want to build over the Western Rail Yards, also a proposal from Related Companies, which consists of casinos, retail, hotels, and residency for high market rate buyers. You can arrive at your own conclusions about this one, but I will assure you, the global real estate company that is Related will not solve the housing crisis.

Getting rid of our Public Housing at Fulton and Elliott-Chelsea Houses will add to an already existing problem.

The most affordable housing that exists is Public Housing, and NYCHA wants to do away with it by selling us over to private companies. Homelessness has always been a problem, and private developers will do absolutely nothing to solve the homeless crisis. Their one and only goal is to deepen their pockets with bills, coins, and heavy bars of gold.

Every night we sleep on the very gold mine that Related, and many other private developers, have their eye on.

Our goal, FEC Tenants Against Demolition, is to stop the demolition proposal and to keep public housing PUBLIC.

We have started a list of resources; funds that we know are available specifically to the Fulton & Elliott-Chelsea Houses. Public Housing has finances which NYCHA is concealing from us.  We have requested from NYCHA to see the ground lease agreement that’s presently being used on our Fulton Houses & Elliott-Chelsea infill land. We’ve also requested to see other documents which NYCHA refuses to produce. We know that public housing can be saved.

Our landlord, NYCHA, is legally required to live up to their expectations of care and maintenance and we must hold them accountable.

No more Rezoning in Chelsea. We’ve had enough!!

No Privatization of Public Housing!!

And No Demolition!!

Note: For more information on the FEC, click here to visit their website. To reach them via email, send your message to stopfecdemolition@gmail.com.

NOTE: The views expressed by our Guest Opinion writers are not necessarily those of Chelsea Community News.

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