Mayor Adams announced in a press release Thursday that the city plans to house asylum seekers in temporary, refugee-style camps — a move that further illustrates the huge strain a recent influx of migrants has put on the city’s shelter system.
Through an email put out by his press office, Adams’ team described the camps as “humanitarian emergency response and relief centers” and pointed to past examples of such centers through pictures depicting tents filled with rows and rows of cots.
The first relief center will open at Orchard Beach — presumably in the huge parking lot there — in the coming weeks. The location of a second center has not yet been determined.
“While other leaders have abdicated their moral duty to support arriving asylum seekers, New York City refuses to do so,” Adams said in a written statement. “This emergency response represents what we know must be done during this humanitarian crisis, as we continue to seek assistance from our federal and state partners to continue this work.”
The new centers will offer shelter, food, medical care and other services.
For months now, Adams and his administration have been struggling to house and care for a steady stream of migrants from Latin America seeking asylum in the United States. The vast majority of them are coming on buses directed by Texas Gov. Greg Abbott, a Republican, who has seized on that practice as a way of criticizing President Biden’s border policy.
Adams has slammed Abbott’s behavior and that of Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, who sent planeloads of migrants to Martha’s Vineyard, as a “political stunt,” but the rhetoric on both sides has done little to address the actual needs of the asylum seekers — one of whom recently committed suicide.
The fact that Adams announced his new policy of relief centers through a press release is notable. The creation of the centers is the first time a government has set up free-standing temporary emergency housing in the city in years — probably since Quonset huts were used to house veterans and their families after World War II.
“This is completely unprecedented,” said Catherine Trapani, executive director at Homeless Services United. “We don’t do refugee camps in New York City.”
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Rep. Ritchie Torres (D-N.Y.) voiced support for Adams, though, noting that “the response is unprecedented because the situation is unprecedented.”
“There’s no playbook for what’s happening,” he said. “The federal government is nowhere to be found. New York urgently needs the help of FEMA.”
According to a spokesperson for Adams, the mayor didn’t announce the move at a press conference — where he’d be subject to questions from reporters — due to plans to meet with President Biden later in the day.
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The need for the camps not only lays bare the recent strain felt by the city’s Department of Homeless Services, but also highlights the city’s struggle to create more affordable housing as rents continue to spike.
“New York City continues to do a pretty bad job of moving people to shelters into housing,” said Sam Stein, a housing policy analyst with the Community Service Society. “We need to improve that in order to have more room in the shelter system for when something like this happens.”
The Legal Aid Society and the Coalition for the Homeless also raised concerns about Adams’ announcement.
“We are deeply concerned with any scenario in which families with children would be relegated to congregate settings,” the groups said in a joint statement. “This practice, which has been widely condemned for its adverse and dangerous impact on this uniquely vulnerable population, is already subject to legal prohibitions.”
Both groups have slammed Adams in recent weeks for his administration’s failure to adhere to the state’s right to shelter laws, which require that shelter be provided to anyone seeking it within a timely manner. Adams and his team have pushed back that while they have not met the time requirements in some cases, they have eventually provided shelter to those seeking it.
It is still unclear how long the city will house asylum seekers in the relief camps it plans to erect. City officials said that asylum seekers “who do not or cannot find immediate housing will stay at humanitarian relief centers for approximately 24 to 96 hours,” but also noted that timeframe is “subject to change depending on the situation.”
Another descriptor provided by the administration on Thursday was “temporary.”
“These centers will provide services such as wellness checks and temporary shelter when individuals and families first come to the city,” Zach Iscol, Adams’ emergency management commissioner, said in a written statement.
©2022 New York Daily News. Visit nydailynews.com. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.
It’s very sad watching your former city being destroyed for the sake of Leftist Virtue Signaling. Orchard Beach was a beautiful destination back in the day. Yes, I said was….
The only type of asylum buildings needed to house lawbreakers are prisons and insane asylums. Apparently it is the government offices in New York that house Liberal Democrat party of criminal lawbreakers, that are the modern version of true insane asylums, where they can all just work from home once the office doors slam shut and they all get locked in,,,just like they locked up THE PEOPLE while under COVID.
“New York City continues to do a pretty bad job of moving people to shelters into housing,” ,,,,but is doing an excellent job or running sane people and their profitable businesses out of their woke city that will soon be sleeping with the fishes. How to destroy a once great American city,,,let the Democrats count the ways!
“Eat of the tree of the fruit of our knowledge and you shall become as God” Thus fell Adam and the fall of mankind. Similarly, Adams has swallowed the forbidden fruit of Socialism whose rotten legions of worms and social parasites have turned his Big Appel into a pile of sour applesauce. Johnny Appleseed must be spinning in his grave.
DEPORT THEM. THen we wouldn’t need to worry about where to house them here.
Tent cities for “asylum seekers”? Good. I hope they crash the entire system and leave the city in ruins. Maybe then the people of New York will wake up and realize that “virtue signaling” isn’t the same thing as virtue.
This planned refugee camp will be filled up. Then the city will send many outside just as happened with welfare clients over the years. Many hotels will become unsafe or unavailable for travelers.
I certainly wonder, how all this is impacting tourism!
Hey you Democrat voters. Don’t you dare hide your heads in your sand, you did this, you made this bed, by electing these feckless Democrats, now you lay in that bed. Don’t open up tent cities. Open up your homes to these illegals, and enjoy the fruits of your election!
“The federal government is nowhere to be found.”
This puppet Biden cabal can be found in Mexico and South America encouraging and supporting this illegal immigration invasion.
The treasonous Democrat Party’s intent is to do as much damage as possible to the U.S..
This Treasonous, dishonest, destructive, Socialist Democrat Party’s objective is to deliberately lie, cheat and manipulate elections, the U.S. Constitution and the law, in order to take total control of the American people and illegal immigrants by their restricting U.S. citizens their constitutional rights, stopping oil production, increase Taxes and the cost of everything and bring American commerce and economy to its knees and to promote Socialism, enforced by their political DOJ and police gestapo (FBI and IRS).
Then access power and retain it by any means available –
No matter the costs to the people, the government or the nation.
This treasonous, hateful, destructive, immoral, socialist Democrat Party and their corrupt, demented puppet president has become our country’s most destructive and deadliest ENEMY!
Which to me, shows, they have CLEARLY abdicated their responsibility UNDER LAW< to secure our border.
What deluge? Yes, it’s a group of people whose number barely represents a tiny percentage of the current population of NYC. Perhaps they are viewed as the “wrong” group of immigrants? This is just another example of the Democrats turning yet another major city into a cesspool………
ALso, does everyone remember the SHEER OUTRAGE the left had, WHEN ABBOT did just this.. Put up tent cities to HOUSE the masses of illegals last year.. I DO!
NYC Mayor Adams needs to pack his Bags and Move right the Refugee Camp along with All the Illegal Immigrants that Governor’s Abbott and DeSantis have sent them their way. ALL Democratic Governor’s and Mayor’s need to follow suit and Pack their Bags and Enjoy the Company with what Joe China brought here. And they call these Camps by the rightful Name as CAMP JOSEPH R. BIDEN after their pretending president that RIGGED and STOLE the 2020 Presidential Election from a Duly Elected President Donald J. Trump.
Since when is my country a dumping ground for the world’s excess population?
Since Joe Biden and his puppet masters Obama and Soros , Rice and Jarret, and the other Marxist Democrats said so.
Unfortunately, we’ve been one, since even before Reagan.
With it being Fall in New York with Winter just around the corner and that cold wind coming in from the Atlantic ocean those illegals will eventually get tired of this **** and riot. But then who cares if they burn NYC to the ground. I sure don’t.
People in cages, shades of the border when Donald Trump was saddled the Obama solution for concentration amps! Oh! My!
I definitely feel for the illegal refugees. Most (99%) are decent human beings who just want a better perceived life for themselves and their family. As always a small percentage of people can have a very negative impact on people’s impression of other groups. You can look though recent history – the Soviet Union, Nazi Germany, Christians, Muslims, and now illegal immigrants.
I FEEL FOR AMerican citizens MORE though.
Some sanctuary!