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Coney
Island Elected Officials Announce $21 Million in Funding for Luna Park
Mitchell-Lama

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: Monday,
November 02, 2009

CONTACT: 

Ilan Kayatsky (Nadler),
212-367-7350

          
Mark Zustovich (Markowitz), 718-802-3830

Ana Tinsly (Savino), 718-727-9406

Kate Cucco (Brook-Krasny), 718-266-0267

Karen Becker (Recchia), 212-788-7045

NEW YORK, NY
– Today, Congressman Jerrold Nadler, Brooklyn Borough President Marty Markowitz,
State Senator Diane Savino, Assemblyman Alec Brook-Krasny, and Councilman
Domenic Recchia announced a $21 million funding commitment for critical
structural repairs at the Luna Park Housing Corporation, a 48-year-old
City-administered Mitchell-Lama development in Coney Island. 
As a condition for receiving these much-needed funds, Luna Park’s
co-op board has agreed to maintain the development’s affordability and
remain in the Mitchell-Lama program for at least 20 years.  This will
ensure the preservation of 1,600 affordable housing units – with over
5,000 residents – in Brooklyn for years
to come.

The funding, which includes $15 million from the New York City
Department of Housing Preservation and Development, the largest City grant ever
given to a Mitchell-Lama, will finance major external repairs for Luna
Park’s aging buildings.

“I am extremely
pleased that Luna
Park will remain in the
Mitchell-Lama program for 20 years and continue to be an important bastion of
affordable housing for residents in my district,” said Nadler. 
“Luna Park has been an affordable place to live in Brooklyn for an
impressive 50 years, and it is critical that we protect and support such
resources for working and middle-class people, particularly now, as the cost of
living becomes less and less reasonable for New Yorkers.  I am committed
to working with co-op members, the City, and other elected officials to ensure
that Luna Park can complete its critical
structural repairs and improvements.”

“I am thrilled to
have supported this major commitment to Luna Park, and stand with the co-op
owners, tenants and our public officials to ensure it remains part of the
Mitchell-Lama program and receives the critical improvements its residents deserve,”
said Markowitz.  “Brooklyn is ‘proud home to everyone from
everywhere’ and we must use every tool there is to ensure it stays that
way—and it’s why we must continue to beat the drum and keep up the
mantra of ‘affordable forever.’”

“Preserving Mitchell-Lama housing is crucial to providing
affordable housing opportunities for New
York,” said Savino.  “I am happy to
have secured funding for much needed repairs to the Luna Park
housing complex, in order to ensure that residents are living in safe
conditions.”

“I am so happy to be a part of this great effort to help keep
affordable housing’s presence in our community,” said
Brook-Krasny.  “Luna Park has made the right choice on all counts, and
this continued partnership with New
York City is going to beneficial to all of us. 
We can all hope that more developments will go the way of Luna Park
and continue to stay in the Mitchell-Lama program.”

“Luna
Park is a diverse,
vibrant community that enriches my district,” said Recchia. 
“The residents of Luna Park made an important decision when they voted to
remain in the Mitchell-Lama program, because it’s imperative that we
maintain affordable housing for the people who call Brooklyn
home.  With the cost of living going up, we need to make commitments to
affordable housing, which is why we allocated money for important upgrades at
the Luna Park buildings.  People who have
lived in Brooklyn their whole lives deserve to stay here, and it’s
housing like Luna
Park that allows that to
happen.”

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