WORLD WORLDWIDE USA New York NY New York City NYC the city THE CITY News Journal Update - End of “right to shelter,” who else was on FDNY priority list, school nonprofits hampered by funding red tape

Dear New Yorkers,

For 42 years, New York City has had a “right to shelter” — the guarantee of a bed to anyone who sought one, and on the same day.

Through a court-ordered consent decree, the city became somewhat of a haven for the homeless.

That era has functionally ended.

Mayor Eric Adams has warned for months this moment was approaching, and even went to court to have the city released from the consent decree. But the end of the right to shelter for adult migrants didn’t come by way of a press release or a court order. Instead, it happened quietly.

As the number of migrants arriving in New York climbed, city workers raced to open more and more shelters in increasingly ad hoc settings to accommodate them — and the Adams administration increasingly has let the chips, and the people, fall where they may.

The new reality is on stark display outside an East Village “reticketing center,” where every morning for the past few weeks, hundreds of people have queued in a line that snakes around the block.

Dozens of migrants told THE CITY they have been waiting more than five days to get a shelter cot. Many spend their nights on the streets or in trains, or they’re directed to an increasingly overcrowded waiting room in The Bronx.

“I’m wearing two pairs of gloves, three pairs of pants and four jackets,” said Yaleiza Goyo, 55, from Venezuela, who said she’d spent four of the past five sleeping on the sidewalk outside the reticketing center. “I have to fight it out, because what else am I going to do?”

Read more about the conditions and bureaucracy migrants must navigate when seeking shelter in NYC here.

Weather scoop by New York Metro Weather Monday's Weather Rating: 3/10. Torrential rain and flooding this morning, with gusty winds continuing throughout the day. The good news is that the rain will gradually clear out, with partly cloudy skies by afternoon and highs in the mid 50s. The vibes are...unstable.

Our Other Top Stories

At a press conference last week, Mayor Eric Adams angrily defended his team’s practice of putting certain millionaire real estate developers and business interests at the top of the FDNY's "priorities" list for fast-track required inspections. (For weeks, his office has denied the existence of the list.) His argument: all sorts of elected officials make the same demands for faster service from the FDNY all the time. There were, indeed, requests from other elected officials on the list. But more often than not, they were seeking help for daycare centers, small building owners and affordable housing. Nonprofits paid by city contracts can provide life-changing supportive educational services to NYC public schools. But, reports Chalkbeat, there is currently a 15-step process from when an organization learns it’s won a contract to when payments can be made. Larger, more established nonprofits tend to be better situated to withstand the delayed payments. But, says Terrance Winston, the executive director of the Coalition for Community Schools Excellence: “For smaller organizations — those that more accurately reflect the population they serve — it’s more of a crisis situation.”

Reporter’s Notebook

Tech Tweaks for CityFHEPS Rent-Help Program

City Hall on Friday announced updates to its rental-voucher program aimed to alleviate a number of problems THE CITY has highlighted in the past.

The “Fighting Homelessness and Eviction Prevention” program, known as CityFHEPS, is the largest city-funded rental assistance initiative in the country. It’s been plagued by technical issues, a huge backlog and landlords illegally refusing to accept them.

Mayor Eric Adams and Department of Social Services Commissioner Molly Wasow Park on Friday announced that CityFHEPS voucher holders should now be able to renew and check statuses easier using DSS’s benefits portal, ACCESS HRA and the mobile application, “ensuring long-term housing stability” for participants.

Earlier this year the administration ended the requirement of a three-month stay in a homeless shelter before being eligible for the vouchers, and expanded the range of CityFHEPS so the assistance could be used anywhere in New York State.

“We’ll continue to use every tool available to move New Yorkers out of shelter and into the homes they need,” Adams said.

— Hasani Gittens

Things To Do

Here’s what’s going on around the city this week.

Monday, Dec. 18: 25Y2K, a series of Y2K-era films like “Fight Club,” “American Beauty,” “Magnolia” and more. Tickets are $17 ($10 for members), with films rotating on various dates, through December 30 at Metrograph in Manhattan. Tuesday, Dec. 19: Storytime at The Met Cloisters, a weekly reading of picture books (in English and Spanish) connected to objects in the museum’s collection or the surrounding community. Recommended for kids aged 18 months to 6 years. Free each Tuesday from 11:30 a.m. to 12 p.m. at The Met Cloisters.  Saturday, Dec. 23: An owl birding event hosted by the city Parks Department, with park rangers teaching about the species who live in parks and the best places to try to spot them. Bring your own binoculars. Free from 1-2 p.m. at Pelham Bay Park in The Bronx.

THE KICKER: Oh, you thought spotted lanternflies were bad? Get ready for Joro spiders — an invasive species whose members can grow to be as big as Post-It notes, and also appear to fly. Many are predicting that Joro spiders will soon expand their range to NYC. A silver lining? They’ll eat the lanternflies.

Thanks, as always, for reading. Make it a great Monday.

Love,

THE CITY

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