Boro tenants lament hikes

A DECISION by the Rent Guidelines Board Monday to raise rent at regulated apartments across the city melted dreams of a potential rent freeze for distressed Bronx residents.

The board voted to raise rents among the city’s estimated 1 million regulated apartments by 1% for oneyear leases and 2.75% for two-year leases. But while the increase was among the smallest in the board’s six-decade history, residents in the Bronx said the continuous raises will still sting.

“We were disgusted,” said Fordham resident Shanequa Charles, 34. “Watching the folks suffer is devastating and so many worked to change that. The hope was sucked out of us. It’s a bitter taste, like eating rotten chocolate.”

For Mt. Eden resident Fitzroy Christian, the 5-4 vote came as a shock because of Mayor de Blasio’s endorsement of a rent freeze — during his campaign and earlier this month.

“I was tremendously disappointed,” said Christian, 67, who attended Monday’s meeting. “There was widespread city support from the mayor and all walks of life.”

Other Bronx residents worried about how the rent hike would affect quality of life in the borough, where last month the unemployment rate shot to 10.6%, the highest in the city.

“People are hurting,” said Grand Concourse native Melinda Martin, 67. “We are getting poorer every day. It’s going to affect malnutrition, homelessness. It’s going to be bad.”