In a letter to the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, Congressman Brian Higgins is calling on the agency to investigate how "disgusting and unsafe conditions have been allowed to persist by Buffalo Municipal Housing Authority (BMHA) despite substantial investment by the federal government and by the tenants themselves."
"Nobody should have to live like this," Higgins said. "Failing or barely passing grades on the living conditions seem to be the norm in several affordable housing complexes. This must be addressed. People deserve better."
Media reports this year have detailed problems with heat, hot water, mold and what Higgins called "a general lack of acceptable responsiveness" to tenants by BHMA management.
After learning about the failing grades attributed to Buffalo's affordable housing units in a weekend report by
The Buffalo News, Higgins visited the neighborhoods and witnessed what he deemed "horrible conditions" in communities served by the BMHA.
Higgins personally took photos, like the one shown, in the Perry neighborhood, documenting the "unacceptable" state of the neighborhood.
