After New York City Mayor Eric Adams announced plans to open a massive 2,000-bed migrant shelter in the South Bronx, Democratic Congressman Richie Torres denounced the decision, calling the borough a “dumping ground” for migrants. He accused Mr. Adams of treating him like a.
In response to Torres' accusations, the mayor's office has closed 46 immigrant detention centers in the city, reducing the total number of shelter beds by 10,000 by June, even though new shelters have opened. He pointed out that he plans to do so. She noted that the Hall Street shelter in Brooklyn, one of the largest shelters to be closed, housed 3,500 immigrants.
The office announced the new shelter last week while also claiming that New York City's ongoing immigration crisis is fading.
This comes as New York state plans to close the vast tent shelter on Randalls Island and dozens of other shelters in the coming months. New York is an immigrant sanctuary city, with a “right to shelter” law that requires the city to accept people seeking shelter who have no other options. But in recent months, Mr. Adams has changed his stance on immigrants in the city, announcing the closure of a series of migrant shelters. Adams said in a statement last week that the closures are part of the city's efforts to find “more opportunities to save taxpayer money and turn the page on this unprecedented humanitarian crisis.” .
“Thanks to the administration's successful asylum seeker management strategy and changes to federal border policy advocated by the city, the number of people in the city's care has continued to decline for 27 consecutive weeks, costing nearly $2.8 billion in three fiscal years.” The reduction was achieved,'' the mayor's office said.
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New York City Mayor Eric Adams sat down for an interview with FOX News anchor Martha McCollum. (Fox News/The Story)
on the other hand, new york post The city will spend between $250,000 and $340,000 to renovate a 275,000-square-foot former office building in the Bronx and prepare it to house the thousands of men expected to live in the new immigrant shelter. Reported to cost $.
The shelter's location – 825 E. 141st St. – was renovated in 2017 and is located in a notorious neighborhood in the Bronx known as the “Hub” for its high levels of public drug use and activity, including heroin use. It's near. And fentanyl. The building is owned by the nonprofit SoBro Local Development Corp., whose mission is to “strengthen business and create and implement innovative economic, housing, education, and career development programs for youth and adults. , to improve the quality of life in the South Bronx. . ”
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Adams' announcement did not sit well with many Bronx residents. Many of the city's migrant shelters have a reputation as centers of violence, crime, and gang activity, including from the international criminal organization Torren de Aragua. The New York Post reported that a 21-year-old Bronx resident, Selene Bilal, said, “Wrong move!…We need to work with the people who are already here. The problem persists. Why the Bronx? Why? “Will you choose the Bronx?” he said.
“It's going to be dangerous,” Bilal told the outlet. “We don't know who these people are. We're not talking about 10 people. We're talking about thousands of people. That's a lot.”
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Congressman Richie Torres speaks during a news conference in the Bronx on January 17, 2022. (Lev Radin/Pacific Press/LightRocket via Getty Images)
Torres, who is rumored to be considering a run for New York governor, also criticized the decision to open a new shelter in the Bronx.
“Instead of decisively dismantling the Hub City's outdoor drug market, the city is treating the South Bronx as a dumping ground for an endless influx of shelters,” Torres told Fox News Digital.
“The Bronx is treated differently than other parts of the city,” he continued. “We are treated as a second-class borough of New York City.”
Adams spokeswoman Liz Garcia responded to Torres' criticism by stressing that the total number of shelters across the city and the tax burden on residents has been significantly reduced.
“I know there are certain people in elected officials who speak to everyone, but we really look at it from a holistic lens,” Garcia said. “The bigger picture here is to close 46 immigrant reception facilities, reduce the number of beds by 10,000 not just in the Bronx but across the city. And especially close shelters in oversaturated areas. Masu.”
She noted that the city's immigrant shelter system is never permanent, and that the Bronx's new shelters are also temporary measures.
Immigrants are seen sleeping outside the Roosevelt Hotel in midtown Manhattan on July 31, 2023. (Luis C. Ribeiro/New York Daily News/Tribune News Service via Getty Images)
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Asked when the Bronx shelter would close, Garcia said, “We don't have a specific timetable for when it will close. It's a lease, so it's not going to be closed forever.”
She said it will depend on the next immigration census the city conducts.
“Over the past six months, our [migrant] Census figures. So if this situation continues, obviously there will be no need for that,” she said. But while we have to help them take the next step, we still need places to house people. ”
Michael Dorgan contributed to this report.
