U.S. Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez visited Neighborhood Housing Services of Queens (NHS Queens) in Elmhurst Monday afternoon to celebrate $2.4 million in federal funding that helped the non-profit build a permanent office space and headquarters in Elmhurst known as “La Casita.”
Ocasio-Cortez secured $2.4 million in community project funding in FY 2023 Appropriations, which helped NHS Queens move into its new home at 94-33 Corona Ave. on Sept. 2.
NHS Queens has been providing housing and advisory services to residents in Jackson Heights, Corona, Astoria, Sunnyside, Woodside, East Elmhurst and Long Island City for three decades and will now be able to offer more services from its new home in Elmhurst.
The “Casita” will house NHS’s first-time homebuyer education programs alongside the organization’s foreclosure prevention counseling, financial literacy and credit repair workshops. The Casita will also house NHS’s workforce training initiatives and other programs, Ocasio-Cortez said.
Ocasio-Cortez praised NHS Queens for helping local families stay in their homes in Queens for decades and said the organization has helped unlock the doors to homeownership while also keeping seniors and other vulnerable residents in their homes.
“It was an honor to be able to secure $2.4 million in federal funds to help give this organization a permanent home in Queens,” Ocasio-Cortez said in a statement. “NHS Queens is a bedrock in our community, helping thousands of our constituents keep their homes and find work. ‘La Casita’ will allow them to expand their reach even further.”
NHS Queens Executive Director Yoselin Genao Estrella said Ocasio-Cortez’s funding will help ensure that families can access affordable homeownership opportunities, housing counseling and foreclosure prevention services at the organization’s new headquarters.
“This new headquarters will serve not only as a home for that mission, but also as a beacon of hope, proudly serving residents in Queens and across New York City,” Genao Estrella said in a statement. “Housing is a human need that is the foundation of one’s life experiences, and our new home enables us to expand our services to new heights and families.
“As we mark our 30th anniversary, this investment makes it possible for us to continue building stability and opportunity for generations to come.”
