Letter to Mayor Bloomberg & Deputy Mayor Gibbs on Homeless Policy in New York City

Mayor Michael Bloomberg
City Hall
New York, NY 10007

Deputy Mayor Linda Gibbs
City Hall
New York, NY 10007

Dear Mayor Bloomberg and Deputy Mayor Gibbs:

I write to express concerns about several aspects of the City’s approach to homelessness and my interest in working with your Administration to develop a new, comprehensive plan for addressing homelessness and preserving vital homeless services as the City develops its priorities for the FY 2011 budget.

As Chair of the City Council’s General Welfare Committee over the past eight years, I have consistently supported programs and policies that would advance the long-term interests of vulnerable New Yorkers and questioned those that would not. This approach will continue to guide my evaluation of homeless policies and programs as Public Advocate.

With the backdrop of rising unemployment and record increases in the number of New Yorkers living in homeless shelters, I believe that a series of recent programmatic decisions call for immediate action and highlight the need to develop a more comprehensive strategy for addressing homelessness as the City begins its Fiscal Year 2011 budget discussions. Specifically, I am concerned about:

• The insufficiency of resources for increasing numbers of homeless New Yorkers;
• The recent revocation of benefits committed to New Yorkers in need; and
• The continued referral of homeless New Yorkers to housing that is in poor condition and endangers their safety.

Maintain Current Level of Resources to Address Basic Needs of Homeless New Yorkers

At a time of increasing need among New Yorkers, the City cannot afford to reduce resources that help meet the most basic needs of vulnerable residents. Recent reductions in resources committed to drop-in centers and the unsettled question of the future of the Bellevue Hospital intake facility raise particular concerns.

The City should not close drop-in facilities, such as the Open Door drop-in facility, without securing a replacement. Over the last year and a half, the City has substantially reduced its drop-in center capacity by closing five of the eleven drop-in centers citywide, leaving only six remaining. Only three of the six are open 24 hours and the rest operate during “business hours” – 7:30 a.m. – 8:30 p.m. These drop-in centers provide muchneeded resources and case management for the persistent street homeless population, and work with the non-profit community to ensure that they have a place to stay.

Further, the City should devise a permanent plan to ensure that Manhattan has an adequate intake facility given the size of the borough’s street homeless population. The City has long considered closing the Bellevue Hospital men’s intake facility and shelter and transferring the intake facility and shelter beds to the Bedford-Atlantic Armory in Crown Heights, Brooklyn. Manhattan has the largest street homeless population of any borough in the City; it is essential that any change maintains sufficient resources to meet these needs.

Fulfill our Commitment to New Yorkers in Need

The City must fulfill its commitment to the 2,500 – 3,000 Section 8 voucher holders whose benefits were revoked on December 17, 2009 and the New York City Housing Authority (NYCHA) must make a full public accounting of what caused the revocation of these vouchers. A full month after NYCHA announced the revocation we should have a full public accounting of what necessitated the about face and what happened to the people affected by the decision. Although the City has fewer resources, government cannot renege on its promises to vulnerable New Yorkers.

Prohibit Placing New Yorkers in Unsafe Housing

Either through a local law or by regulation, the City must stop referrals of homeless persons to dwellings that fail to meet occupancy standards. Over the last several years, the number of homeless New Yorkers who have moved in to so-called “three quarter housing” from the shelter system has increased. The poor conditions in three quarter housing, which consist of small residential buildings operated as illegal and overcrowded boarding houses, endanger inhabitants’ health and safety.

I have long praised your Administration’s efforts to develop new strategies to prevent homelessness. I believe that prevention is a crucial component of any successful strategy to reduce homelessness in the long term. I would like to work with the Administration to study the impact of prevention programs funded by the City over the past eight years and how to build upon the foundation these programs have created.

Thank you in advance for your consideration. I look forward to working with you and your Administration to address these issues in 2010 and beyond.

Sincerely,

Bill de Blasio
Public Advocate for the City of New York

Cc:
Robert V. Hess, Commissioner – New York City Department of Homeless Services
John B. Rhea, Chair – New York City Housing Authority