Simple, scalable, proactive security keeps communities safe

Phipps Houses

Phipps Houses is the oldest and largest not-for-profit developer, owner, and manager of affordable housing in New York City.

Its social services affiliate, Phipps Neighborhoods, provides children, youth, and families in low-income neighborhoods the opportunities they need to thrive through comprehensive education and career programs and access to community services. Together they are changing lives in New York City.

To provide perspective, since it was founded in 1905, Phipps Houses has developed more than 6,000 affordable apartments, valued at over $1 billion, providing homes to more than 15,000 people in communities across the Bronx, Manhattan, and Queens.

The organization has an active pipeline of new development projects totaling 1,400 units. Including its own property, Phipps manages an affordable housing portfolio of nearly 10,000 apartments throughout New York City.

Phipps Neighborhoods serves over 12,000 children, teens, and adults annually in more than 30 programs. Community-based programs include Pre-K; after-school programs; summer camp; STEAM programming; college prep; career readiness and job training; resident support; and community programs for children and adults.

Affordable housing developments, coupled with community-building human services and high-quality property management, create communities that assist residents and their neighbors realize their dreams and fulfill their potential.

In the city that never sleeps, bustling communities require unique consideration when protecting residents, staff, and volunteers 24x7.

The challenges

While Phipps Houses had a video security system in place, it was complex and only accessible to a few highly-trained security professionals within the organization. This meant if an incident occurred outside of regular working hours, it would either go undetected or have a delayed and reactive response putting residents, staff, and volunteers at risk.

Phipps Houses required a simple solution that:

Easily works with existing systems and video surveillance hardware, enhancing already-installed readers, door sensors, and cameras with smart technology.
Is accessible to non-security professionals on staff. Both security operators and staff receive a more efficient and confident experience protecting Phipps Houses communities. Plus, deploying new or expanded systems is effortless; using the cloud offloads the usual burden from security teams.
Delivers 24x7 proactive security. Ava’s AI capabilities and powerful video analytics make even Phipps Houses’ existing surveillance cameras accessible through the cloud to provide ubiquitous video security coverage, a necessity for truly real-time, proactive security.

Products used

in partnership with

Ava Aware video management system

Ava Cloud Connectors A1000, A2000, A3000

Keep by Feenics Device Collage insert into Phipps Houses Case Study

Keep by Feenics access control platform

Proactive security

Powerful AI-powered video analytics allows events to be visually captured as they happen - simplifying operations.

Connecting the dots with alerts

If a door, for instance, is propped open or authorization fails, a map view shows the location and image in real-time

Finds things fast

Real-time forensic searches across all Phipps Houses locations and neighborhoods reduces the burden on security teams and staff alike.

Modern remote management

Now, operators can monitor access control and physical security events remotely from any web browser or device, providing true 24x7 visibility—critical in the city that never sleeps.

Scalable

Phipps Houses’ new solution addresses all of the non-profit organization’s needs across its many properties. Plus, Phipps Houses didn’t have to replace its current cameras. It was able to integrate Ava’s cutting-edge video management system, Ava Aware, with the existing infrastructure to make its current cameras smart.

Open

Ava Aware integrates seamlessly with Feenics’ access control solution to provide 24x7 monitoring, including proactive alerts in the event of a failure.

The results

With more than 15,000 people living in Phipps housing across the Greater New York area, the number one priority is the safety, security, and overall well-being of the residents. Seconds matter when protecting a community of this size. The new video security solution provided by Ava allowed Phipps Houses to proactively investigate incidents quickly, 24x7. The simplicity of the system meant anyone on Phipps staff can jump in and resolve an issue — not just their trained security personnel.

A non-profit like Phipps Houses doesn’t have extra bandwidth or resources to expend on costly infrastructure changes. We chose an integrated video security and access control solution for Phipps because it provides the level of security needed while also addressing the housing community’s unique requirements. Added bonus, by partnering with Ava and Feenics, we were able to leverage existing cameras allowing us to be good stewards of Phipps Houses resources.

– Gregory Keeling, New York Security Solutions, Inc.

Simple, scalable, proactive security keeps communities safe

Phipps Houses

The challenges