Public Housing Television

Public Housing is one of New York’s greatest resources, housing over 700,000 individuals, that's one out of every twelve New Yorkers. It’s also widely misunderstood and frequently maligned. The public housing tenant group Public Housing Residents of the Lower East Side (PHROLES) approached CUP about making a series of videos and guides to help public housing residents get involved with the governance of their homes. The videos are screened on public access, distributed at block parties and, most frequently, used in conjunction with direct legal trainings. The videos use a seventies cop show aesthetic with skits, animation, and direct address to illuminate and motivate public housing —highlighting problems while steering clear of the dark cliches that permeate most representations of this housing stock in the United States.

Written, produced, and acted by PHROLES membership and CUP staff and volunteers featuring guest spots by Legal Aid Society and the Community Service Society.

Winner of an American Planning Association NY Chapter Best Practices citation.