UES NYCHA Residents Get Free Broadband Internet Through New Program

UPPER EAST SIDE, NY — Thousands of tenants in the Upper East Side's largest public housing complex have new access to fast, free internet thanks to a new partnership.

Free broadband internet is coming to the Isaacs Houses and the Holmes Towers — the New York City Housing Authority campus that spans around three blocks along the East River between East 92nd and 95th streets, and is home to more than 2,100 people.

Broadband, a common amenity in wealthier parts of the city, remains inaccessible to thousands of New York's households, especially in low-income areas. (The average family income for NYCHA residents is $24,503, far below the citywide figure.)

The new initiative at Isaacs and Holmes comes via a partnership between City Councilmember Julie Menin, the service provider Stanley Isaacs Center, and the broadband nonprofit EducationSuperHighway, which will offer low-income Verizon and Spectrum internet plans to pre-qualified residents, according to Menin's office.

The initiative will also help tenants sign up for the Federal Affordable Connectivity Program, which provides $30-per-month subsidies for broadband. Combined with the cheap Verizon and Spectrum plans, residents will have to pay nothing for broadband, Menin's office said. (Any NYCHA resident can sign up online for the Affordable Connectivity Program.)

Discrepancies in broadband access has come under extra scrutiny during the pandemic, with the rise of remote work posing a serious hindrance for people without reliable internet. Menin's predecessor in the Council, Ben Kallos, introduced a bill last fall that would have required all newly constructed apartments in New York City to be outfitted with broadband.

"This is a great step to help alleviate the digital divide that impacts low to moderate income earners within public housing," said Saundrea Coleman, an Isaacs Houses resident, Community Board 8 member and co-founder of the Holmes-Isaacs Coalition. "Tenants without internet can now have the service and those that struggle retaining their service plan will actually gain a bit of financial relief."

Menin says the mayor's Office of Innovation and Technology supports the Holmes-Isaacs initiative and will monitor the results to see if it can be replicated around the city's 335 developments.

"The pandemic has shown us that internet and broadband services are essential and critical for economic prosperity," Menin said in a statement. "I am thrilled that this initiative will help thousands of NYCHA residents get connected for free and I look forward to seeing this model used to bridge the digital divide in our City."