Respuesta del destinatario
Respuesta de Mayor Bill de Blasio
Mayor Bill de Blasio
Mayor of New York City5 jun 2015
Response from Department of Homeless Services Commissioner Gilbert Taylor:
We have heard the concerns of Kips Bay residents, and we want you to know that we are listening and acting.
Despite the misreporting in the New York Post, in light of the horrific Rodney Stover incident, all 17 sex offenders previously at the 30th St. men’s shelter have been moved from this facility, and we are no longer housing residents with sex offenders status at this location – this happened within days of the incident.
New York City’s Department of Homeless Services has a legal mandate and moral obligation to shelter all those who need it, and we don’t take this responsibility lightly. We are committed to both reducing homelessness and improving the lives of those throughout our shelter system, and we work to ensure that families and individuals with nowhere else to turn have somewhere to go as they rebuild their lives.
The 30th Street shelter has been part of the Kips Bay community for over the past 30 years without any major incidents. Over the years, this 850-bed shelter has served tens of thousands of New Yorkers in need, and it plays a critical in the Manhattan homeless shelter system.
Since the Stover incident, however, we have heard a number of concerns from the Kips Bay community, and we take them very seriously. Over the past few weeks, the City’s Department of Homeless Services (DHS) has had a number of meetings with the Community Board, area residents, and elected officials in recent weeks about the possibility of enhancing security in the area surrounding the shelter.
As a result of those conversations, DHS is performing joint assessments with the NYPD and has increased joint patrolling with the 13th Precinct in that area, and we are currently in discussions with the NYPD, the City’s Department of Probation, the City’s Department of Corrections, and the Mayor's Office of Criminal Justice about security and service needs at the 30th St. Shelter. Simultaneously, DHS has created a Community Advisory Board for the Mainchance Drop-in Center, and is targeting homeless hotspots around East 32nd St. with our street outreach team, to engage homeless New Yorkers found on the streets, and offer them appropriate services.
With respect to the sheltering of individuals with sex offender history, the City is going above and beyond existing State requirements by placing all homeless individuals in the sex offender State registry in facilities over 1000 feet away from schools and facilities primarily devoted to child care, regardless of their residency requirement. This means no sex offenders will be placed at the 30th St Shelter. We continue to coordinate with the New York State Department of Corrections and Community Supervision (DOCCS) as they release sex offenders to ensure that there are alternate shelter options for them until the City has space for them at one of our compliant sites.
We are committed to continuing to address the community's concerns while supporting our clients as they rebuild their lives.
If you would like to comment or reach out to DHS, we encourage you to reach out at 212-361-8000.
We have heard the concerns of Kips Bay residents, and we want you to know that we are listening and acting.
Despite the misreporting in the New York Post, in light of the horrific Rodney Stover incident, all 17 sex offenders previously at the 30th St. men’s shelter have been moved from this facility, and we are no longer housing residents with sex offenders status at this location – this happened within days of the incident.
New York City’s Department of Homeless Services has a legal mandate and moral obligation to shelter all those who need it, and we don’t take this responsibility lightly. We are committed to both reducing homelessness and improving the lives of those throughout our shelter system, and we work to ensure that families and individuals with nowhere else to turn have somewhere to go as they rebuild their lives.
The 30th Street shelter has been part of the Kips Bay community for over the past 30 years without any major incidents. Over the years, this 850-bed shelter has served tens of thousands of New Yorkers in need, and it plays a critical in the Manhattan homeless shelter system.
Since the Stover incident, however, we have heard a number of concerns from the Kips Bay community, and we take them very seriously. Over the past few weeks, the City’s Department of Homeless Services (DHS) has had a number of meetings with the Community Board, area residents, and elected officials in recent weeks about the possibility of enhancing security in the area surrounding the shelter.
As a result of those conversations, DHS is performing joint assessments with the NYPD and has increased joint patrolling with the 13th Precinct in that area, and we are currently in discussions with the NYPD, the City’s Department of Probation, the City’s Department of Corrections, and the Mayor's Office of Criminal Justice about security and service needs at the 30th St. Shelter. Simultaneously, DHS has created a Community Advisory Board for the Mainchance Drop-in Center, and is targeting homeless hotspots around East 32nd St. with our street outreach team, to engage homeless New Yorkers found on the streets, and offer them appropriate services.
With respect to the sheltering of individuals with sex offender history, the City is going above and beyond existing State requirements by placing all homeless individuals in the sex offender State registry in facilities over 1000 feet away from schools and facilities primarily devoted to child care, regardless of their residency requirement. This means no sex offenders will be placed at the 30th St Shelter. We continue to coordinate with the New York State Department of Corrections and Community Supervision (DOCCS) as they release sex offenders to ensure that there are alternate shelter options for them until the City has space for them at one of our compliant sites.
We are committed to continuing to address the community's concerns while supporting our clients as they rebuild their lives.
If you would like to comment or reach out to DHS, we encourage you to reach out at 212-361-8000.
Facebook
WhatsApp
X
Email