Announcements

Bulletin Board

During the first week of April, all PostDocs were invited to attend one of a series of departmentally based meetings to discuss the current housing situation. Dean Morrison led each of the meetings and he was joined by Phyllis Schnepf, Theresa Scarabino, Lakshmi Devi, Tom Ahn, Sharon Gomez, and Bonnie Duke.

In each of the sessions, Dean Morrison and Ms. Schnepf provided background information and then the meetings were opened up for discussion. Background information included:

• An acknowledgement of housing "myths" that had been circulating
• A summary of key Housing Committee recommendations and plans for implementation
  • Residents and PostDocs share the highest priority after students with the goal of providing a housing offer to ALL Residents and PostDocs. Clinical Fellows and others will be accommodated upon availability.
  • Strict term limits will be enforced for all categories
  • New priorities will be phased in over the next year. Speed of implementation will depend on how quickly incremental housing can be identified.
• The formation of a new Postdoc Housing Committee that meets regularly with Real Estate was pointed out.
• A description of the inaccuracies of Wikipedia references regarding housing in the Bronx (Parkchester) was provided.
• The rationale behind, and description of, the Parkchester Incentive Plan was explained

Discussion varied from meeting to meeting, but the following three points came up repeatedly and require further attention:

• The upfront cost of New York City housing is exorbitant and creates an enormous barrier to foreign PostDocs when Mount Sinai housing is not available. It was felt that Mount Sinai should assist by facilitating immediate access to checking accounts and/or interest free loans. In addition, Real Estate must minimize upfront costs in future block lease arrangements.
• There is a preference for housing in Queens if incremental housing in Manhattan can not be identified. There also appears to be a changing view of desirability for Harlem. It is clear that among PostDocs there are differing preferences on geographic location and that there is a need for multiple options that would appeal to PostDocs who have widely different needs and desires.
• The current Postdoc stipend/salary combined with the high cost of housing in NYC, makes it almost impossible to reside here. The need to consider a NYC salary adjustment, similar to what exists in London, was brought up at almost every meeting.