‘mayor’s plan falls short’
that ultimately communities that have never had a shelter will eventually have them and those that host many shelters will have fewer.
But I. Daneek Miller, a Queens councilman with a large number of shelters in his predominantly black district, called that approach “problematic.”
“The majority of these folks that are in the (Community Board 12 and 13 shelters) now do not reside in 12 and 13,” he said. “Are we then going to remove those from the geographic areas and send them to where they come from? I doubt that’s going to happen. We have to figure this out in another way because obviously we’re starting from behind the eight ball.”
Miller and others say it’s more important for the homeless to be placed in communities with strong support, including good schools, transportation, job opportunities and low crime rates.
“I like the ideas of keeping people in their communities,” said Richards. “But at the end of the day, you can find places where there are adequate schools, where there are opportunities and housing that’s affordable.”
When de Blasio tried to turn a hotel into a 110-unit men’s shelter in predominantly white, middle income Maspeth, Queens, last fall, the neighborhood erupted. Protestors ultimately forced the provider who was going to run the shelter to pull out.
Last week, furious residents of Crown Heights, Brooklyn, cited the Maspeth reversal as they contested a new men’s shelter set to open soon in their neighborhood during a public hearing. Residents of Brooklyn’s Community Board 8, which is 67% black with a poverty rate of 26%, railed against what they called an oversaturation of shelters in their neighborhood. They have 679 beds.
Some have demanded that new shelters be placed in more affluent neighborhoods with few shelters, such as the mayor’s neighborhood, Park Slope. The mayor’s Community District 6 is 75% white and host to a relatively modest 267 beds.
“Go into communities that have zero that have not had their fair share. Have them address this,” said Richards.
One council member representing Maspeth said there’s a compromise that could balance the scales.
Councilwoman Elizabeth Crowley’s district includes Community Board 5, which is 82.7% white with a poverty rate of 14.7%. It has just 30 beds. Crowley said it was unfair to single out Maspeth because two adjacent community boards in her district have more than their fair share of homeless shelters. She suggested de Blasio should just expand the target areas when placing shelters.
“It’s too narrow,” she said. “If you’re going homeless in the community, we will take care of you. But it’s not as narrow as the mayor is saying it is.”