Residents of Queensbridge Houses and Ravenswood Houses in New York City have been living without cooking gas for an extended period, sparking frustration and concern across the community. In response, 36th Assembly District candidate Mary Jobaida held a press conference on Saturday at Queensbridge Houses to highlight what she described as serious
mismanagement by the New York City Housing Authority.
Jobaida stated that residents “deserve equal dignity as tenants, proper communication, and basic services.” She also called for the New York City Housing Authority to be held to the same standards as other housing systems in the city, adding that structural reform of the agency may be necessary.
Her campaign team reported that many residents across Queensbridge and Ravenswood have been without cooking gas for weeks, and in some cases, months, without clear information on when service would be restored. The timing has further worsened the situation, as the day after the press conference was Mother’s Day, leaving many families uncertain about their ability to host traditional gatherings.
Jobaida also raised concerns about elderly and disabled tenants being required to physically visit local offices to apply for emergency food assistance. She criticised the system for failing to provide accessible alternatives. She further highlighted issues with broken mailboxes across buildings, forcing residents to travel long distances to retrieve
mail.
Following the press conference, several residents invited the media into their apartments to demonstrate their conditions. They showed how they are forced to rely on a single electric hot plate for cooking due to the gas shutdown. One long-time Queensbridge resident, Antonette Williams, also displayed water-damaged ceilings and walls in her bathroom,
describing repeated unresolved repair requests.
“I keep submitting tickets, but it feels like a cat-and-mouse game,” Williams said, referring to what residents describe as a recurring practice of work orders being closed without proper resolution.
She added, “In 13 years, I have never experienced anything like this. We’ve had heating or hot water issues before, but never a gas outage lasting this long.”
Jobaida argued that NYCHA residents are being treated as “second-class citizens,” saying that if such disruptions occurred in higher-income neighborhoods, they would receive immediate attention and public outrage.
She also noted that the gas disruption at buildings 41-01 and 41-02 on 10th Street is linked to a long-overdue repair related to a fire code violation under the FDNY. According to officials, repair work has now begun and is expected to take approximately two weeks.
In her closing remarks, Jobaida pledged that if elected, she would push to redirect state funding away from luxury developments and toward truly affordable housing and improved public housing management. She emphasized the need to end what she called “a tale of two cities” between Astoria, Long Island City, and the rest of New York’s public housing communities.
