Under scrutiny from the City Council Thursday, officials described the issuance of roughly 1,500 60-day notices, starting on July 24 at Humanitarian Emergency Response and Relief Centers (HERRCs) run by the Health + Hospitals Corporation.
“As we go into an election year, it is vital that New York prioritize passing legislation that will protect immigrants across our state, like the Dignity not Detention Act, and stop using our resources to detain immigrants.”
“A better approach to tackling homelessness in New York City would be to just give unhoused New Yorkers housing.”
Following a closed-door conference Friday, the Legal Aid Society urged the state to step up its efforts to protect the right to shelter in New York City, where tens of thousands of migrants have arrived since last year.
“The Hope Center for College Community and Justice’s 2019 CUNY #RealCollege Survey found that 55 percent of students worry about where they will live, and 14 percent, or about 34,000 students, are unhoused.”
After dropping the year before, affordable housing production was up again during the 12-month span that ended June 30, officials said Thursday—what advocates say is a welcomed boost but still a far cry from what’s needed as the city struggles to address record-high levels of homelessness.
“We think this bill will bring much-needed transparency to how the administration is conducting these sweeps, and what is involved in them,” said Councilmember Sandy Nurse. “And if you think about it, especially when it comes to the cost, every dollar spent on sweeps and removals is one less dollar spent on housing.”
The administration said this week that its shelter system is at capacity. In addition to those sleeping under the Brooklyn-Queens Expressway, dozens are also camping out on sidewalks outside the Manhattan hotel serving as the main intake center for migrants, as the city prioritizes shelter beds for families with children.
“New York City is preparing for its first official heatwave of this summer. And while many of us are able to stay inside, limit outside activities, and safely work from home, many of our city’s most vulnerable residents are not as fortunate.”
An inaugural city report groups together shelter headcounts from five municipal systems, revealing a truer—and larger—picture of the homelessness crisis than the often-cited Department of Homeless Services count.
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