City’s homeless relocation plan sparks outrage among parents and activists
LONG ISLAND CITY, Queens (PIX11) — Some families are living in homeless camps rather than moving to facilities that the city says are better but are far from the schools and neighborhoods where they have been for months, according to some activists and at least one elected official. On Friday, they met with some local residents to call on the city to reconsider efforts to relocate homeless families before the end of the school year.
At a rally at Dutch Kills Park on Friday morning, local families like sophomore Liam Fernandez were loud in their calls for the Mamdani Administration to stop what rally participants called “displacement.”
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“I would be really sad and I would really miss them,” Liam said of his sophomores facing relocation.
Local City Councilwoman Julie Won said the real issue is the timing of efforts to transfer families from local shelters.
“Don’t take them away from their schools!” he announced at the rally.
Particularly on Friday, a city plan to turn the family shelter at the Royal Stay Hotel on Crescent Avenue between 38th and 39th Streets into a men’s shelter is on the agenda. It’s a block and a half away from PS 112, where students in the shelter go to school.
Jackie Garcia, the mother of Liam Fernandez and a parent at PS 112, said losing children at the shelter would devastate the entire community. He also said alternatives for homeless families may not be optimal.
“I don’t want them living under a bridge or having to worry about where to find a house on the street,” he said.
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Garcia was referring to information circulating in the community about a similar situation in recent months.
In February, families staying at another Long Island City shelter, the City View Inn, were relocated to convert that facility into a men’s shelter.
The City View Inn was six blocks from a well-respected school at PS 199. According to some local activists, some of the families designated for relocation chose to camp under an overpass under the Long Island Expressway rather than move through the city’s largest borough and settle in a new school.
PIX11 News visited the camp Friday afternoon and found no signs of children. Still, various neighbors say the children are spending time at the camp and that the city needs to find a better way anyway.
“They are children, they are family, they are people first,” said Alexis Kolyonanides, a parent who attended the Friday morning rally. “Treating them like objects,” he continued, “is wrong on every level.”
The city’s Department of Social Services manages the housing system. A spokesman for the agency said there was no evidence that the children were living in the LIE camp or anywhere else with the intention of staying at the same school.
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“Many families with children are moving into temporary housing that is better equipped to meet their needs, including in-unit kitchens not available in commercial hotels. [the Royal Stay Hotel]DSS said in its statement:
The statement continued as follows:
“Our case managers work closely with each household to adapt to their unique circumstances and prioritize locations that are best for them; all families are connected to appropriate placements, with the majority placed in the borough of their choice. As part of the City’s legal and moral obligation to provide shelter to all New Yorkers experiencing homelessness, we need to ensure appropriate capacity is available based on changes in need. As we make these assessments, we are always considering how we can achieve better outcomes for the households we serve, as in this case. Throughout the process, we strive to maintain Academic stability and our care “We are focused on prioritizing the well-being of children under child care.”
That means families at Royal Stay will move out as this school year continues, unless the city changes course, the spokesperson said.
Meanwhile, the families’ neighbors said they wanted the best for themselves and that moving before the end of the school year would do more harm than good.
Jennifer Patton is a parent at PS 112, the school attended by families at the Royal Stay Hotel.
“Taking away these kids who are a part of our community and make the school day what it is is going to have a really negative ripple effect,” he said.
She said both of her children, one in second and sixth grade, would be emotionally affected if their classmates and friends moved away.
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