City on the Edge: City Limits' Reporting on Climate Change, Health & Environment
More NYCHA Apartments to Get Climate-Friendly Heat Pumps
More than 700 homes at the Beach 41st Street Houses in Rockaway will switch to electric heating and cooling systems in the next two years—the third public housing development in the city slated to make the change, which officials say will reduce pollution and offer more reliable service than NYCHA’s aging, fossil fuel-powered boilers.
Mayor Zohran Mamdani announced the $38.4 million project at the Queens housing complex on Wednesday—where, ironically, all five buildings were without heat and hot water because of a leak in the existing steam heating system during an unusually cold stretch of weather.
“Residents here at Beach 41st Houses know the pain of a heat outage all too well,” Mamdani said.
Amid NYC Cold Snap, Tenants Report Most ‘No Heat’ Complaints on Record
The city received nearly 80,000 calls about lack of residential heat and hot water in January, more than any other month on record. Some tenants say their buildings are falling through the cracks.
Got a Climate-Friendly Idea for NYCHA? This Grant Could Help Fund It
Applications are now open for 2026 NYCHA Resident Climate Action Grants, which fund sustainability projects in the city’s public housing developments. Past winners scored money for community gardens, composting programs and environmentally-focused art workshops.
