NYCHA's $38M upgrade brings heat pumps and solar to Queens apartments

Residents in Queens will soon enjoy reliable heating and cleaner energy. Can these upgrades finally fix NYCHA's long-standing maintenance failures?

, and Administrator

2026 April 23 . 2:16 AM

2 min read

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Thousands of NYCHA Apartments to Get Upgraded Utilities

NYCHA's $38M upgrade brings heat pumps and solar to Queens apartments

Thousands of New York City Housing Authority apartments will get upgraded utilities, Mayor Zohran Mamdani said Wednesday.

NYCHA residents across the city will see new heat pumps, electric stoves, solar panels and electric vehicle charging stations, Mamdani said.

They are expected to improve living conditions for hundreds of tenants by providing reliable heat in the winter and air conditioning in the summer. The upgrades are part of a NYCHA sustainability agenda that will be rolled out over five years, the mayor said.

"For too long, the sun has risen and set on New Yorkers living in apartments without reliable heat or warmed by inefficient, fossil fuel-guzzling boilers," Mamdani said.

The mayor made the announcement at Woodside Houses in Queens, where electric heat pumps were installed as part of a pilot program in 2023.

Queens Borough President Donovan Richards Jr. emphasized how the new fixtures will make "a world of difference."

"You should never see your breath in your living room or have to wipe sweat off your face when you wake up during the summer months," he said.

Millions to be spent on heat pumps for Far Rockaway apartments

In February, Mamdani announced the city would spend $38 million to install heat pumps at the Beach 41st Street complex in Queens.

Tenants told our News New York's Allen Devlin they had no heat and had to wrap themselves in blankets during the winter months.

"It's no rest. You can't sleep. You can't sleep if you're cold," resident Joe For said. "Hopefully, [the mayor] can make something happen."

NYCHA deemed worst landlord

More than 500,000 New Yorkers live in housing provided by NYCHA. It's the largest public housing authority in the nation and consistently deemed one of the worst landlords by Public Advocate Jumaane Williams

In his January report, he said the housing authority has more than 600,000 open work orders as of November 2025.

"Perpetual mismanagement of NYCHA has made the city itself the worst overall landlord for hundreds of thousands of New Yorkers," according to Williams.