A number of Poughkeepsie residents walked through areas of the city Saturday and cleaned up vacant, foreclosed properties and buildings to point up a need for more affordable housing. The effort, spearheaded by the group Community Voices Heard, called on banks to clean up the properties and make them available for homeless residents. Poughkeepsie resident Sheila Blanding was among those marching through the city. “These banks got away with crashing the economy and the housing market, and yet they still own homes in Poughkeepsie that used to belong to people,” she said. “Now these homes are sitting empty, and at the same time we have families who are homeless. Who needs these homes more – the banks or people?”
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Community, community voices, CVH, effort, foreclosed properties, homeless residents, housing, mid hudson, need, Poughkeepsie, social ills
CVH is working to open up the election system in New York State. Campaigns are funded by the mega-rich and corporations, voting rules present serious obstacles, and the way legislative maps are drawn protect the elected officials not the New Yorkers that live there. We need fair elections that limit the overwhelming influence of big money and huge corporate contributions and instead provide opportunities for New Yorkers of all backgrounds to run for elected office.
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Campaigns, community voices, CVH, gannet newspapers, influence, legislative maps, limit, office, Poughkeepsie, rochester democrat, state campaigns