Cuomo launches new effort to fight homelessness, overhaul shelter system in New York City

As part of a $10.4 billion, five-year plan, the Cuomo administration yesterday announced an overhaul of state shelter inspections, new emergency shelter beds in New York City and a new homelessness task force that includes Mayor Bill de Blasio’s former deputy mayor for health and human services, Lilliam Barrios-Paoli.

Kicking off Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s “Homelessness Action Plan,” the state Office of Mental Health released requests for proposals to create 1,200 permanent supportive units and said it would immediately make available 513 shelter beds in underused state and state-licensed facilities. All told, the state has pledged $7.8 billion to pay for existing units, shelter beds and other services, and $2.6 billion to build 6,000 supportive units, a policy that was welcomed by some nonprofits.

Bobby Watts, executive director of Care for the Homeless, said the federal government’s interagency council proved that such initiatives helped to marshal resources. “It is one of the best investments we can make to address homelessness,” he said in a statement.

State Homes and Community Renewal Commissioner James S. Rubin called the measures a “broad, wide-reaching approach to addressing one of our most intransigent problems.”

“Through his actions and his words, the governor has made clear his belief that we have a moral obligation to house the homeless, and to provide them with the essential services they need to remain stably housed,” he said in remarks at the Supportive Housing Network of New York’s annual conference.

The city’s homelessness crisis helped to exacerbate a feud between Cuomo and de Blasio, with a state official telling reporters in November that “the mayor can’t manage the homeless crisis.” In his January State of the State speech, Cuomo said he would finance 20,000 supportive units two months after de Blasio announced a plan to create 15,000 of them. And earlier this year, Human Resources Administration Commissioner Steven Banks accused the state Office of Temporary and Disability Assistance of engaging in a “political hit” to stoke fears of violence in city shelters.

After clashing with de Blasio over his handling of the homelessness crisis, Barrios-Paoli announced her departure in August 2015 and Homeless Services Commissioner Gilbert Taylor stepped down in December. Barrios-Paoli has since been the senior advisor to the president of Hunter College and chaired the NYC Health + Hospitals board of directors.

“Governor Cuomo’s commitment to investing in affordable housing and tackling the homelessness crisis is bringing New York into a brighter tomorrow,” she said in a statement. “From establishing an interagency council on homelessness to kicking off the development of 1,200 units of desperately needed supportive housing, New York is tackling the homeless crisis head on.”

Yesterday’s announcement also coincided with a report written by the Office of Temporary and Disability Assistance (OTDA) detailing poor conditions at 916 shelters across the state following a 35-day inspection. The vast majority of the 25,815 recorded violations were in emergency facilities that aren’t subject to state regulations and reporting requirements. The 4,344 most severe incidents included fire-safety violations, a lack of state-certified security guards and other security measures, and health hazards such as rodent infestations and mold.

There are 765 shelters across the state that aren’t subject to state inspections or regulations including hotels, cluster sites, shelters with fewer than 20 adults and family shelters that lack the recreational or day-care facilities that certified shelters must have. Generally the city is responsible for ensuring those centers follow building codes, as well as safety and health standards, but the state will now require every publicly funded shelter to be subject to inspections.

Centers with the most severe violations could be placed under a temporary operator if problems aren’t fixed within three months; they could be closed if violations aren’t fixed within six months. Other shelters not complying with corrective action plans could lose reimbursements or be denied more residents. Each shelter operator will be required to submit a security plan and report all serious incidents to the state; the city will be responsible for ensuring all residents are rehoused before a shelter is closed. The state will also now play a greater role in setting the city’s per diem reimbursement rates, which can now fluctuate between $55 and $155, regardless of the quality of services offered at shelters.

“We welcome the additional Safe Haven resources to operate our program, and believe there is even more to do to combat homelessness in New York City,” said Aja Worthy-Davis, a spokeswoman for the mayor. “The city continues to make significant improvements in shelter conditions through our shelter repair program and legal action against the building owners who delay vital repairs, and we hope to partner with the state this legislative session on critical proposals such as adding much-needed supportive housing units and more rental assistance to those in need.”

She added that the city is seeking to perform joint inspections with the state and looking to collaborate with Albany to get more rental assistance funds, supportive housing units and to reach an MOU between the governor and the state legislature on how to invest $2 billion for affordable housing. The de Blasio administration is phasing out cluster sites over the next three years and has reduced the number of open building code violations by more than half since January.

“We could do so much more though as an actual partnership with the state, so that’s what I hope will come out of this is a real working partnership to address these issues,” de Blasio said during an unrelated press conference on Thursday.

The Campaign 4 NY/NY Housing, a group of nonprofits and other housing advocates, said state legislators should reach an agreement on funding the first 6,000 units of supportive housing. “If the Governor wants to help New York’s homeless, he should keep his promise and sign the MOU before the end of this legislative session,” it said.

The governor’s announcement included the formation of a new state “Interagency Council on Homelessness,” co-chaired by Rubin and Fran Barrett, the Governor’s Interagency Coordinator for Not-for-Profit Services. It will meet over the next two years and issue its first report in December. That group – which will be tasked with working with nonprofits and local governments to find fixes and shape policy – includes Barrios-Paoli, as well as former City Council Speaker Christine Quinn, who ran against de Blasio in the 2013 mayoral race and now leads WIN, a nonprofit that serves homeless families; Tony Hannigan, the founder and executive director of the Center for Urban Services; Bobby Watts, executive director of Care for the Homeless; and Rosa Gil, president and CEO of Comunilife. 

The governor’s announcement was accompanied by supportive statements from Brenda Rosen, head of Breaking Ground, and Muzzy Rosenblatt, the executive director of the Bowery Residents’ Committee. "I'm grateful for and inspired by Governor Cuomo's dogged determination to maintain a focus on the needs of homeless New Yorkers, our most vulnerable neighbors, and his continued commitment to create the opportunities and provide the resources that can and will make a positive and meaningful impact on people's lives,” Rosenblatt said.

This article was first published on New York Nonprofit Media on June 3.