Charter Schools Use City Funds to House Schools at NYCHA Locations

Space for schools in New York City is limited, so some charter schools are turning to to the New York City Housing Authority for help.  While some schools have run into challenges as they try to share space with traditional public schools, others like the Harlem Children's Zone have paid seven figure sums to the NYCHA to develop unused space for new schools.

One of the biggest beneficiaries of this setup is the NYCHA itself.  Struggling for funds, it is now able to convert some of its holdings into cash and benefit residents.  Still, some have argued that the charters that are setting up new schools do not need additional space, and are funding their building projects with city-supported funds that are not available to traditional public schools.  Critics accuse the Bloomberg administration of playing politics with school funds, and ignoring the many public schools where overcrowding is a problem.