Fighting Homelessness: A Different Approach Posted on March 24, 2017 by Jacquelyn Simone in NY1 As Mayor de Blasio pushes his plan for 90 new homeless shelters, Errol Louis spoke with Queens Assemblyman Andrew Hevesi about a different plan to fight the crisis. ..Read More
New York Has Record Numbers of Homeless People Posted on March 23, 2017 by Jacquelyn Simone in The Economist Since 1979, when a homeless veteran of the Korean war successfully sued the city for failing to provide him with shelter, the city has had a legal duty to house those unable to afford a home. (New York’s state constitution says that “the aid, care and supp ..Read More
95 Faith Leaders Join Push for Passage of State Rent Subsidy Proposal Posted on March 24, 2017 by Jacquelyn Simone in Gotham Gazette As New York City battles a homelessness crisis, with 60,000 people in shelters, a statewide proposal to drastically reduce and prevent homelessness is gaining groundswell support. On Monday, dozens of faith leaders from across the state signed a letter to Gove ..Read More
Will Trump Make NYC Homelessness Worse? Posted on March 23, 2017 by Jacquelyn Simone in Queens Chronicle President Trump’s 2018 federal budget recommendations, released last Thursday, include deep cuts to programs geared toward aiding low-income, urban, elderly and storm-ravaged citizens, sparking fear and fury across the city about what they would mean for the ..Read More
Why It’s So Hard to Stop Being Homeless in New York Posted on March 22, 2017 by Jacquelyn Simone in New York Magazine At 7 a.m., Donice Ford-Benson is working in the rain on the unfinished 17th floor of 550 Vanderbilt. She’s checking a drain system but pauses for a moment because, even in the downpour, she can’t resist taking in the panorama of Downtown Brooklyn. The spot ..Read More
Harder for Homeless to Enter N.Y.C. Shelters, Report Finds Posted on March 21, 2017 by Nicole Edine in The New York Times More homeless families are being denied permanent shelter in New York City, and many are being forced to reapply multiple times before the city finds them eligible to enter the system — two trends that burden already fragile families, according to a new repo ..Read More
Four NYC Borough Presidents Urge Cuomo to Back Rent Subsidy Plan to Battle Homelessness Posted on March 22, 2017 by Jacquelyn Simone in New York Daily News Four of the city’s five borough presidents are calling on Gov. Cuomo to back a rent subsidy plan designed to crack down on homelessness. Eric Adams of Brooklyn, Ruben Diaz Jr. of the Bronx, Melinda Katz of Queens and Gale Brewer of Manhattan weighed in with ..Read More
Cuomo, Keep Your Word on Housing for the Homeless Posted on March 21, 2017 by Jacquelyn Simone in The Journal News Mother Nature has uncanny timing and a powerful way of getting her message across. The blizzard dubbed Stella intervened as our leaders in Albany attempted to discuss critical funding that would help thousands of New Yorkers escape chronic homelessness. It was ..Read More
A Statewide Solution to New York’s Housing Crisis Posted on March 21, 2017 by Jacquelyn Simone in Crain's In a lawsuit brought by The Legal Aid Society 30 years ago, Jiggetts v. Grinker, the state’s highest court ruled that poor families with minor children were entitled to a basic rent subsidy from the state to help keep them from becoming homeless. Eventually ..Read More
