Central Mail Room Opens at New Migrant Shelter in the South Bronx

As of March 4, there were approximately 1,500 individuals staying at the 2,200-bed facility on Bruckner Boulevard, which the city opened in February as it closes down other migrant shelter sites.

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The centralized mail center for migrants residing in the city’s shelter system, announced by Mayor Eric Adams late last year, opened last week at the newly-inaugurated shelter on Bruckner Boulevard in the Bronx, City Limits has learned.

While immigrants and asylum seekers can receive mail at the city’s shelters, many have complained about missing correspondence—especially in the wake of city-issued deadlines that required migrants to reapply for placement every 30 or 60 days, as City Limits reported in July. In November, Mayor Eric Adams announced the launch of a centralized mail center.

In the last few months, the city has shuttered many of its shelter facilities for migrants, citing declining numbers of new arrivals. However, a new shelter for men opened on Bruckner Boulevard in late February, as first reported by The Bronx Times, to house those who have been displaced from other closed sites.

Last week, about 50 people were lined up with their belongings at the entrance to the new facility. Those who spoke to City Limits said they were coming from other closing shelters. While waiting in line, some sat on the buildings’ steps, but security guards occasionally asked them not to.

Some, like Carlos, had to go to the Reticketing Center in the East Village before being referred to the Bruckner shelter, in the South Bronx. The 48-year-old Colombian, like all the migrants City Limits spoke to, did not want his last name used for fear of being targeted for deportation under the Trump administration. 

Carlos, who dragged a purple medium-sized suitcase, had previously been staying in a migrant shelter operating at the Creedmoor Psychiatric Facility in Queens, which the city is expected to close this month. Others said they were moved directly to the new site from the previous shelter they had been living in. 

“They gave us the [Bruckner shelter] address on a piece of paper,” said Siddig, a 27-year-old from Sudan, as he and friends unloaded several suitcases, black bags, and backpacks from a car. All four of them had come from the Hall Street shelter in Clinton Hill, Brooklyn, which is expected to close in June.

“There are several floors to accommodate people,” said another man named César, 30, who had arrived at the Bruckner shelter three days ago, “with rows and rows of cots, side by side.”

When City Limits visited last week, people waited in line outside the building while the staff of Garner Environmental Services checked their information. The for-profit disaster response company took over services at migrant shelters after the city ended its contract with an earlier controversial vendor called DocGo.

Reliable mail service has been an ongoing challenge for migrants and asylum seekers in shelter, many of whom have active immigration cases and rely on mail for updates or important documents. Lost correspondence can derail or delay an asylum or work authorization application, immigration attorneys told City Limits. 

The mayor’s office did not provide specifics on how the new mail center will operate at Bruckner.  However, a letter given to a migrant and viewed by City Limits stated that as of March 4, those staying in certain temporary shelters can go there with their identification documents to pick up mail.

Mail will be held for up to three months. “Any mail that is not picked up after 90 days will be returned to the sender,” according to the letter, which was written in Spanish.

The New York headquarters of the American Red Cross, where the city operates its Asylum Application Help Center, previously served as the mailroom for migrant shelters run by New York City Emergency Management. It’s now closed, City Hall said, but did not provide additional details.

The city said it will reach out to recipients about important mail before it is returned to sender, and that shelter residents will be notified if they have mail when they check in with their badges at their assigned shelters.

The letter also asks people to change their mailing address to the Bruckner location and includes a QR code for them to change their address with U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services.

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