News

NEW YORK, NY May 27, 2005 —The City has agreed to pay almost $5 million to the AIDS service group Housing Works to settle an eight year old lawsuit.

The suit was filed in 1997 against then-mayor Rudolph Giuliani and various city officials after contracts with Housing Works were terminated.

The non-profit claimed it was being punished for staging vocal protests over a plan to shut down the Division of AIDS services. Housing Works lost contracts to provide apartments and supportive housing and says it was nearly put out of business. But the city claimed the contracts were terminated because of the non profit's fiscal irregularities.

Housing Works called the settlement a victory over Giuliani's quote, vicious and illegal attacks on those who disagreed with him. The city's law department says it settled because of the unpredictability of litigation.