Homeless Intake Center Plan Provokes Broad Opposition
[nggallery id=”23562″ template=galleryview] Community outrage at the city’s plan to relocate the the homeless intake center for all five boroughs to the Bedford-Atlantic Armory in Crown Heights reached fever pitch last night at a special Community Board 8 meeting attended by Deputy Commissioner of the City’s Department of Homeless Services George Nashak and three of…
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Community outrage at the city’s plan to relocate the the homeless intake center for all five boroughs to the Bedford-Atlantic Armory in Crown Heights reached fever pitch last night at a special Community Board 8 meeting attended by Deputy Commissioner of the City’s Department of Homeless Services George Nashak and three of his staff members. In his introductory remarks, Nashak emphasized that as part of the plan to bring the intake center to the armory, Crown Heights would be benefiting from a net reduction in beds from 350 to 230. This didn’t fly with the crowd, one of whom pointed out that this reduction would really only result in Crown Heights having four times the number of beds of the average neighborhood from five. Several members of the audience tried to paint a picture for Nashak of what a negative impact the homeless shelter has on the surrounding area—and were met with pat, bureaucratic answers. One man who had recently spent three months in the armory shelter because of mental illness described crack being smoked openly and sex being solicited, which contrasted sharply with Nashak’s efforts to talk up DHS’s track record and reliability going forward. The combined effect: Nashak came off looking out of touch with the reality of the situation in and around the shelter. Anger mounted, and several local residents, including a Roman Catholic priest who had grown up and works in the neighborhood, boiled the issue down to one of respect and race. “This neighborhood has always been treated like a dumping ground…This process would not have happened this way in Bay Ridge. All we’re asking is that you treat us with respect.” Several residents pointed out that the community had spent decades lifting itself up by its bootstraps and now that it was finally reaping the fruits of its labors, the city was trying to push it back down again. “[This plan] shows the highest level of disrespect to the community,” said State Senator Eric Adams, vowing to challenge DHS in court. (In addition to Adams, reps of Mayor Bloomberg, Councilmember Avella, and Senator Montgomery were also in the audience.) Letitia James closed out the meeting calling for the closure of the Peter Young shelter, which is around the corner from the armory and houses a significant number of sex offenders and encouraging residents to attend a State Assembly hearing on the shelter relocation that will take place on September 19 at 10 a.m. in room 1923 at 250 Broadway in Manhattan. Perhaps the most moving moment of the evening was when one elderly woman described the sense of hope and optimism the community had had when Roger Green had first put forth the plan for turning the armory into a community center, and it was in turn approved by the Parks Department and Community Board 8, only to watch Park Slope have its armory spiffed up into a beautiful athletic facility while the residents of Crown Heights were left with a shelter and all the problems that come with it. “This is an insult to the community,” she said. Indeed it is.
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The intake center move to Crown Heights is a totally cynical move by the mayor and DHS. As many posters have pointed out, less people needing shelter will show up in CH for a variety of reasons, and DHS and the mayor will then claim victory in reducing the shelter population. It’s nasty business.
The only alternative solution that makes sense – and which was part of Bloomberg’s 2004 original plan – is to have de-centralized intake centers (one in each borough) for people seeking emergency shelter. Easy access, localized services.
The plan for de-centralization was already in motion, and groups had already bid (or were even chosen?) to operate these intake centers, but the DHS pulled the plug at the last minute.
Some cynics say it’s because the DHS wants direct control over the intake center(s) so they can keep down numbers and costs lower, maybe by making it harder get in (total cost of providing a single shelter bed including facilities and services is $24,000 per year)…something stinks at the DHS. Definitely more for a reporter to investigate here.
Start with News 12 Brooklyn and NY1. They are easier to get time.
I am incredibly proud of the Crown Heights community for the advocacy and activism reported here; don’t give up the fight! Money quote: “This process would not have happened this way in Bay Ridge.” Oh, no, indeed it would not. But speaking of quotes: Are you guys getting any media on this fight? You will live and die by the coverage you get, not by the Rightness of your Cause. If you haven’t already, then: Somebody with Media Whore Expertise, start cultivating a couple of reporters and grooming a few of your best spokespeople (Fr. Buchanan sounds like a likely candidate.) Put together an electronic press kit, no matter how simple, and start firing it at an updated press list. Then follow up with personal phone calls to news desks. Boil your story down to something a bimbo can recite into a microphone on a live shot (“Crown Heights, just emerging from years of crime and neglect into a middle-class neighborhood, fights the city’s efforts to flood its streets with troubled homeless men”…)Rehearse your messages and stick to them. Think up a demo to stage, preferably one with cute kids involved. holding signs that say “I want to play in a safe neighborhood.” It’s SLOW SEASON in the news biz…you shouldn’t have trouble getting more heat and light than you’re getting now.
Regarding earlier comments on finances, the DHS has cited long-term cost savings as one of several justifications for moving the intake center to Brooklyn.
However, the NYC Comptroller William C. Thompson has publicly contested their “alleged” cost-benefit analysis and he is opposed to moving the intake center. He criticizes the DHS for its “failure to use an open and transparent process” and notes that “DHS operations remain opaque and plagued by accounting irregularities.” This is all from his in a public letter to Mayor Bloomberg – http://www.comptroller.nyc.gov/press/2008_releases/pr08-06-095.shtm,
As a city agency, DHS should be held accountable for its dismal record and be more inclusive and transparent in its decision-making process.
This is not just a Brooklyn issue – the DHS has been negligent in representing the best interests of the people of the city as a whole, financially and socially…and they refuse to release any records, which is an abuse of public trust.
The Manhattan Community Board where the current intake center at Bellevue is located also opposes the move, as does the Manhattan Borough President because they know it is bad policy and will lead to more homeless on the streets.
NYC Public Advocate Betsy Gotbaum is opposed to the plan as are the vast majority of homeless advocacy groups. Gotbaum cited the “deplorable” conditions at the Bedford armory and adds that selling the Manhattan center for the construction of a luxury hotel is “just outrageous.”
Deputy Mayor Linda Gibbs (who used to be head of DHS) is determined to push this through, but when will she and DHS learn that they can’t sneak things through behind closed doors? The DHS has been running things like this for so long and it’s time for the NY press and involved communities to expose them for these abysmal practices.
The community in Brooklyn Heights will scream and yell. They already have been about the prison which has never caused problems in the area (I used to live less than 2 blocks away). but putting a homeless shelter there will certainly require expensive renovations and I don’t see the city wanting to spend the money.
In general the city pushes and then waits to see who pushes back the hardest. Wealthier neighborhoods have more resources and access to lawyers, etc. to fight the city. So of course their nimbyism becomes the problem for other, less wealthy neighborhoods. Like Crown Heights. Which is not to say that Crown Heights can’t fight this- I think the City made a serious mistake in thinking we would not pull together and stick up for our neighborhood. they also made a mistake in thinking there is no political, financial or professional power in this neighborhood.
Hi all – longtime lurker, first time poster.
Last night’s turnout at the meeting was testament to a lot of hard work by a LOT of people in the community. The days of 20 person rallies on this issue are over. Expect hundreds at the next.
A couple of observations on the DHS presentation last night:
The City is currently saying they will cut the number of “beds†at the shelter from 350 to 230. Yet they maintain that an assessment shelter as well as an intake facility will now occupy that space. Already in 2008 we have seen nights of 250+ people seeking shelter through the existing facility in Manhattan. It is hard to do math on this that does not come out with the City housing 300, 400, 500 people at this location.
An offer from the City to create a rec center at the Armory would be greatly appreciated. Their offer last night, however, to provide half of the money up to $7 million (I’m told that the renovation of the Washington Heights Armory cost $30 million) is not helpful. As we enter a period of time when funding for these kinds of changes is likely to dry up, their offer to cover “half†struck me as pretty cynical.
DHS maintains that they will have an intake facility in Manhattan in addition to the Armory. The dep commissioner admitted, however, that the existing facility in Manhattan is slated to be closed in June of 2009, and that they have not identified another facility to replace it. He essentially said “trust usâ€.
One wants to trust their elected officials and their appointees. But their performance on this issue has been really intellectually dishonest. They obviously game the numbers when they talk to us, they make us offers they know are worthless, they play dumb when confronted with incontrovertible facts. They clearly just don’t care – which is discouraging. But at least we know where we stand with them.
I guess the City has not bothered to check or doesn’t care that the Armory is a bit of a walk to a subway. And this area is not Manhattan- At night there won’t be the activity you see on Manhattan streets and for a lot of homeless men who are older, or ill, they are also more vulnerable. I think they simply won’t come to the Armory and sleep on the streets. Wasn’t that also a problem in Manhattan? People preferred to sleep on the street because the shelters were so much more dangerous?
And sending them to other shelters from the Armory? It’s difficult from this location. Do they even give them money for the train?
MM – What was formerly Interfaith Medical Center’s nurse training facility, and treatment facility with untold number of deaths was recently converted into very expensive rentals and condo’s. I’m not suggesting the homeless are criminals, I’m just looking for a real and pragmatic solution. If the former prision I am referring to is viable, I am sure someone will take care of the PR and spin-control around perception.