Chair Hudson outlines shelter safety concerns and system growth
Hudson says shelter must be safe and dignified, citing deteriorating facilities, overcrowding, violence, theft, and understaffing. She notes over 83,000 people slept in shelters and over 500 sites, mostly nonprofit-run.
When people feel that entering a shelter puts their safety, security,
or dignity at risk, they may choose not to enter shelter at all.
Some of the major safety issues we will look at today include not just security incidents such as arrests, thefts, or violence, but also how the shelter
systems design can impact physical and mental health and well-being, exacerbate trauma, and deter New Yorkers from engaging with our shelter system and making use of the robust social safety net DSS can provide.
The New York City shelter system is sprawling.
In the 1980s, a series of lawsuits resulted in the establishment of a right to shelter in New York City.
This was an incredibly important step towards serving unhoused New Yorkers and resulted in the city needing to increase shelter capacity.
Over the last 40 years, the number of shelters and the shelter population has grown.
Just this past Sunday, over 83,000 individuals slept in our shelters.
Today, there are over 500 shelters throughout the city that serve single adults, adult families, and families with children.
The majority of shelters are operated by contracted nonprofit organizations.
And while most of these organizations are dedicated to serving New Yorkers, third-party contracting can result in oversight and compliance challenges, including sometimes funding unscrupulous actors, subsidizing exorbitant executive salaries,
or inadvertently developing contracts that force providers to focus more on volume than long-term success.
sustainable outcomes, and client well-being.
Further, the additional layer of administration can make it difficult for providers to make essential repairs or changes to premises that improve safety and security.
Last week at our joint hearing with the Committee on Veterans, for example, we heard about the difficult and lengthy process for making essential repairs to the Borden Avenue Veterans residents.
Resulting in a multi-year process to repair a leaking roof.
Today's hearing is an opportunity to hear from DSS about how they address shelter safety concerns, conduct oversight of challenges to shelter safety, and to hear from the public about what the city can do better.