Shadow City: Homelessness in New York | Fault Lines

Summary

The script discusses the escalating homelessness crisis in New York City, exacerbated by soaring housing costs and a lack of affordable housing. It highlights personal stories of families struggling to find shelter amid bureaucratic barriers and the city's struggle to accommodate the growing number of homeless people. The role of cluster site shelters, private landlords, and the city's efforts to address the issue are explored, revealing a complex situation where the city's response to homelessness is both costly and controversial.

Takeaways

• 🏙️ New York City is facing a homelessness crisis, with more people homeless than at any point since the 1930s due to a combination of high living costs and low incomes.
• ❄️ The harsh winter conditions have exacerbated the situation, making it even more difficult for homeless individuals to find shelter and basic necessities.
• 📈 The number of people living in New York's homeless shelters has nearly doubled in a decade, reaching 60,000, highlighting the scale of the crisis.
• 👨‍👧‍👦 Homelessness is not just an issue for single individuals; more than 70% of those in city shelters are families with children.
• 🚫 Despite New York City's obligation to provide shelter to all homeless individuals, bureaucratic barriers often wrongfully deny shelter to needy families.
• 💼 The cost of shelter is immense, with the city spending over a billion dollars annually on shelter and emergency services for homeless people.
• 📉 Median incomes in New York have dropped while median rents have risen, pushing more people into homelessness as they can't afford to live in the city.
• 🏢 The loss of affordable housing and the elimination of permanent housing programs under the Bloomberg administration have contributed to the rise in homelessness.
• 🏘️ Gentrification and the conversion of rent-stabilized apartments to market rate have led to evictions, which is the number one cause of family homelessness in New York.
• 🤝 Mayor de Blasio has promised to create and preserve 200,000 affordable housing units, aiming to address the housing crisis through tax incentives for developers.
• 💰 The city's use of cluster site shelters, privately owned buildings housing homeless families, has raised concerns about high costs and poor living conditions.

Q & A

What is the current situation of homelessness in New York City as described in the script?

The script describes a homelessness crisis in New York City, with more people homeless today than at any point since the 1930s. It mentions that the number of people living in homeless shelters has nearly doubled in a decade, reaching 60,000, and that the city is facing the coldest winter in 81 years, exacerbating the situation.

What factors contribute to the homelessness crisis in New York City according to the script?

The script suggests several factors contributing to the crisis, including skyrocketing rents, the exodus of families from the city, and a lack of affordable housing. It also points to bureaucratic barriers that deny shelter to needy families and the elimination of permanent housing programs under the Bloomberg administration.

How does the script describe the experience of families seeking shelter in New York City?

The script describes the experience as complicated and bureaucratic, with families having to navigate a system that often denies them shelter. It mentions that more than 70% of people in city shelters are families with children and that many working parents are struggling to find shelter and meet basic needs.

What is a 'cluster site' as mentioned in the script?

A 'cluster site' is a type of shelter system in New York City where homeless families are housed in privately owned buildings. The city pays private landlords to provide these shelters, which has led to concerns about the high costs and the condition of these buildings.

How does the script characterize the role of real estate developers in the homelessness crisis?

The script implies that real estate developers have contributed to the crisis by focusing on market-rate housing that excludes low-income families. It suggests that their goal is to maximize profits rather than provide affordable housing, leading to a saturation of the market with expensive housing options.

What is the role of rent regulation in New York City's housing market, as depicted in the script?

The script highlights rent regulation as a crucial aspect of New York City's housing market, providing some level of affordability for tenants. However, it also points out that nearly 20% of rent-regulated apartments have been converted to market rate since the early 1980s, contributing to the affordability crisis.

How does the script address the issue of eviction as a cause of homelessness?

The script identifies eviction as the number one cause of family homelessness in New York City, with over 33,000 evictions occurring in the last two years. It suggests that landlords sometimes use legal means to push out tenants, especially in rent-stabilized buildings, to increase rents.

What is the city's response to the homelessness crisis, as described in the script?

The script describes Mayor Bill de Blasio's promise to create and preserve 200,000 affordable housing units through tax incentives for developers. However, it also criticizes the reliance on cluster sites and the high costs associated with providing shelter, suggesting that the city's efforts are not adequately addressing the root causes of homelessness.

How does the script portray the experiences of individuals and families living in cluster site shelters?

The script portrays the experiences as challenging, with families living in substandard conditions, facing numerous code violations, and waiting for necessary repairs. It also highlights the discrepancy between the high amounts the city pays landlords for these units and the much lower rents paid by other tenants in the same buildings.

What is the script's perspective on the effectiveness of the current approach to addressing homelessness in New York City?

The script suggests that the current approach is not effectively addressing the homelessness crisis. It criticizes the high costs of shelter, the reliance on cluster sites, and the lack of focus on providing affordable housing. It implies that more needs to be done to understand and address the underlying causes of homelessness.

What are some of the personal stories highlighted in the script to illustrate the homelessness crisis?

The script features personal stories such as Melissa Rivera, who has been homeless for three years and lives with her children in her grandmother's living room, and Tawana Little, who has been forced to live in a shelter after being evicted due to rent increases. These stories highlight the struggles of finding shelter, maintaining employment, and the impact of eviction on families.

Outlines

00:00

🏙️ New York's Homelessness Crisis

This paragraph highlights the severe homelessness crisis in New York City, exacerbated by harsh winter conditions. It discusses the record-breaking snowfall coinciding with the highest number of homeless people since the 1930s. The narrative focuses on the struggles of homeless individuals and families, including the difficulty of finding shelter and the rising number of people living in shelters. The paragraph also touches on the bureaucratic barriers that deny shelter to many needy families and the city's obligation to provide shelter, despite the rejection of many applications.

05:02

📈 The Impact of Economic Disparity and Housing Costs

This section delves into the economic factors contributing to homelessness in New York City. It presents the reality of one in five New Yorkers living below the federal poverty line while housing costs continue to rise. The narrative follows individuals like Tawana, who lost her housing due to rent increases, and the challenges she faces in finding affordable housing. The paragraph also discusses the city's history of housing policy and its effects on the affordability of housing, leading to the displacement of long-time residents.

10:04

🏡 The Failure of Housing Policies and the Rise of Homelessness

The paragraph examines the consequences of past housing policies, particularly under Mayor Bloomberg, which led to a significant loss of affordable housing and an increase in homelessness. It critiques Mayor de Blasio's promise to reverse economic inequality and create affordable housing units, suggesting that his plan may not be significantly different from his predecessor's. The narrative includes perspectives from housing advocates and the experiences of individuals like Shaniqua Charles, who faced eviction despite rent stabilization laws.

15:06

👪 The Plight of Families in Cluster Site Shelters

This section focuses on the issue of cluster site shelters, privately owned buildings that house homeless families. It discusses the financial incentives for landlords and the substandard living conditions in these shelters, including numerous code violations. The narrative includes the experiences of tenants like Shaquanda, who receives a budget letter detailing the city's payments to her landlord, and the disparity between what the city pays and the actual market rent for similar apartments.

20:08

🏛️ The Systematic Approach to Gentrification and Its Effects

The final paragraph addresses the systematic nature of gentrification and its impact on the city's most vulnerable residents. It describes how the city's approach to housing and shelter has led to a situation where affordable housing is being converted into shelters, and the high cost of these arrangements. The narrative includes the voices of tenants and housing advocates who argue that the city's policies are not addressing the root causes of homelessness and are instead creating a profitable system for landlords at the expense of the homeless.

Keywords

💡Homelessness

Homelessness refers to the condition of individuals or families without a permanent residence. In the video's context, it is a critical issue in New York City, where the number of homeless people has reached a crisis level, surpassing any point since the 1930s. The script discusses the struggles of homeless individuals to find shelter, clothing, and food, highlighting the harsh reality of living on the streets during a particularly cold winter.

💡Shelters

Shelters are temporary housing facilities for homeless individuals or families. The script mentions that the number of people living in New York's homeless shelters has nearly doubled in a decade, reaching 60,000. Shelters are a part of the city's response to the homelessness crisis, but the video also points out issues such as bureaucratic barriers that deny shelter to needy families.

💡Affordability

Affordability in the context of the video relates to the ability of individuals to pay for housing within their means. The script discusses how median rents have risen while median incomes have dropped, leading to a situation where one in five New Yorkers lives below the federal poverty line. This affordability crisis is a significant factor contributing to the homelessness issue.

💡Eviction

Eviction is the legal process by which a landlord removes a tenant from a property. The script identifies eviction as the number one cause of family homelessness in New York. It provides examples of tenants receiving eviction orders, sometimes due to building violations or disputes with landlords, leading to displacement and the need for shelter.

💡Gentrification

Gentrification is the process of renovating and improving a house or district so that it conforms to middle-class taste. In the video, gentrification is portrayed as a force displacing lower-income residents, as property values and rents increase, making neighborhoods unaffordable for long-time residents, contributing to homelessness.

💡Cluster Sites

Cluster sites are privately owned buildings that house homeless families. The script discusses how the city pays private landlords to provide shelter in these buildings, which has led to controversy over the amount of money being paid versus the conditions of the housing and the original affordability of these units for working families.

💡Rent Stabilization

Rent stabilization is a policy that limits the amount by which a landlord can increase the rent on an annual basis. The video mentions how rent stabilization can protect tenants from sudden, large rent increases, but also how some landlords may seek to remove these protections to charge market-rate rents, leading to tenant displacement.

💡Housing Policy

Housing policy refers to the strategies and regulations that governments implement to address housing issues. The script critiques past housing policies under Mayor Bloomberg for contributing to the loss of affordable housing and the rise in homelessness. It also discusses Mayor de Blasio's promise to create and preserve affordable housing units as a response to the crisis.

💡Poverty Line

The poverty line is the minimum level of income deemed adequate in a particular country. The script notes that one in five New Yorkers lives below the federal poverty line, indicating a significant portion of the population struggles to afford basic necessities, including housing.

💡Tax Incentives

Tax incentives are financial benefits offered by the government to encourage certain behaviors, such as developing affordable housing. The script mentions Mayor de Blasio's plan to offer tax breaks to developers who set aside a portion of units for low-income residents, aiming to increase the availability of affordable housing.

💡Economic Inequality

Economic inequality refers to the uneven distribution of wealth or income within a population. The video discusses how New York City has experienced growing economic inequality, with developers profiting from high market-rate rents while low-income residents struggle to find affordable housing, contributing to the homelessness crisis.

Highlights

New York City faces its coldest winter in 81 years, coinciding with a homelessness crisis.

Homelessness in NYC is at its highest since the 1930s, with over 60,000 people in shelters.

The city's only intake center for homeless families in the South Bronx reveals the complexity of homelessness beyond stereotypes.

New York City spends over a billion dollars annually on shelter and emergency services for homeless people.

Despite the large shelter system, about half of the families applying for shelter are rejected due to bureaucratic barriers.

The story of Melissa Rivera illustrates the struggle of a working mother who has been homeless for three years.

One in five New Yorkers lives below the federal poverty line amid soaring housing costs and stagnant incomes.

The elimination of permanent housing programs under the Bloomberg administration contributed to the rise in homelessness.

Mayor de Blasio's plan to create and preserve 200,000 affordable housing units faces criticism for not addressing the root causes.

Rent regulation in New York is under threat, with nearly 20% of rent-stabilized apartments converted to market rate since the 1980s.

Eviction is the number one cause of family homelessness in New York, with over 33,000 evictions in the last two years.

The city's use of 'cluster sites' for sheltering homeless families raises questions about the efficiency and morality of privatized housing solutions.

Despite promises to phase out cluster sites, the de Blasio administration has increased their number.

The privatization of shelter services has led to a lack of accountability and a disconnect from the needs of homeless families.

The cost of housing the homeless in New York City is astronomical, yet solutions to address the root causes remain elusive.

The transcript highlights the urgent need for comprehensive and effective policy to tackle the homelessness crisis in NYC.

Transcripts

New York New York

8.4 million people call the city home 24

degrees selling art of Central Park

going down to 20 of Midtown snowfall one

to two feet so they're now saying we

could have snow falling as rapidly as

five inches an hour this has been the

coldest winter here in 81 years and it

coincides with a grim reality more

people in New York City are homeless

today than at any point since the 1930s

you see why cold blue got three floors

all today it's it's really difficult

especially when to find ways to just get

through today dough from you know

finding clothing to finding shelter to

find where we want to eat tonight it's

pretty hectic because of the snow

outside and not a lot of places for us

to sleep now so everybody's kind of

coming in in just a decade the number of

people living in New York's homeless

shelters is nearly doubled reaching

60,000 and night last year

it's a homelessness crisis unprecedented

in any American city what we see today

the homeless that we see the exodus from

the city families doubling tripling up

the rent skyrocketing this has been a

crisis that's been cooking for 20 years

why are so many in New York homeless

this week fault lines looks at the

forces that are displacing thousands

from their homes

we're on our way to the South Bronx to

New York's only intake center for

homeless families more than 70 percent

of people in the city shelters are

families with children

homelessness is so complicated it's not

just this guy on the street with that

shopping cart and it isn't just this one

person who made the wrong choice or had

bad luck to apply for shelter a family

must first come to this building known

as path journalists are not allowed

inside we've been here just a few hours

and there's been dozens of families

coming in it's been really shocking it's

a lot of young children and a lot of

working parents trying to make it what's

it like in there um it's not what people

think beeps we're near you know every

day

I don't judge people because you never

know the situation you'll be it you know

I have four kids my salary I get paid

nine dollars an hour so you do Neph how

did you know about the Pat Center I'll

go with it

I'll go who are family Saul says young

find me I'll go vote it is this your

first time in the shelter sister yeah

what's this little guy's name

it's Josiah Grove say hard you saw you

hide you say how old are you just say so

where are you sleeping where are you

staying these days man wherever they

play you come in they'll put you in

attend a placement and then they'll be

like okay you neither denied or approve

if you know you have to go tonight

if you denies you have to come back and

do the process all over again that's

what you're doing now for the third time

New York City has an obligation to

provide shelter to all individuals who

are homeless because of that tradition

New York City has the largest public

shelter system in the United States

Patrick Marquis is one of New York's

leading advocates for the homeless the

cost of shelter is exorbitant the city

now spends more than a billion dollars a

year just in shelter and emergency

services for homeless people today New

York operates over 250 homeless shelters

but still about half of the families who

apply for shelter are rejected the city

has put in place these kind of

bureaucratic barriers that wrongfully

and unlawfully deny shelter to many

needy families community help me with

your brother we met Melissa Rivera Pat

she's 25 and has three kids I go the

lose every single day when I come home

come here then comes my mommy stop

crying she's my little mini-me she looks

just like me yeah these kids mean

everything to you huh yes they're my

life I love them dearly melissa has been

homeless for three years she and her

kids now sleep in the living room of her

grandmother's public housing unit this

is it right here

I put this couch I bring it over uh-huh

put it together with that one but the

blankets on there and you know you all

sleep right here dead living in my two

daughters and then my son right in here

yep this playpen hello New York's Child

Services Agency has told Melissa that

she's endangering her kids by keeping

them here how does your grandmother feel

about you living right here in her

living room she hates it her grandmother

is also at risk of losing her housing

subsidy but still she says the city has

denied her shelter applications seven

times Melissa works as a door-to-door

sales woman but she only makes about

$400 a month have you ever had to sleep

on the streets um not with my kids thank

God I have gone through it on my own

when I was 16 and I don't want that life

for them so sorry

just thinking about that they could be

in the situation that I was in before um

knowing that I'm by myself there's a lot

of things that I would love to have but

it's so expensive I don't make enough to

get any of those things it isn't you're

just a lot of rich people here they want

to make the city for people that can

afford things you know forget about the

people that can't afford and they're

just gonna have to leave the city that's

how I see it one in five New Yorkers

lives below the federal poverty line

meanwhile housing costs continue to soar

median rents have risen by eight point

five percent but median incomes have

dropped by seven percent your star dated

on the sunniest Tawana little has lived

in New York for her whole life but for

over a year she and her kids have been

forced to live in shelter when they came

down to the ending of my lease that was

a prime opportunity for landlord to say

okay we don't want this program in here

anymore

Tawana depended on a state program that

helped her pay the rent when her

landlord raised the price she was

evicted

he just wanted higher rents he wanted

higher risk so your rent for that place

has now gone up to 2,200 2,200 yes could

you afford that oh absolutely not

Tawana is looking for an apartment she

can afford it's a search that's taken

her far outside the city an hour and a

half bus ride to Middletown New York we

met her in Middletown but the broker

hood agreed to show her around canceled

so I'm just really in a really bad

emotional place right now I'm not

feeling the greatest I feel like it was

just a pure waste of time to salvage the

trip she decided to look anyway what's

it like doing the search while you're in

a shelter is it hard when you in a

shelter is doubly hard you're not really

comfortable but I tell you if I would

rather come out here and take a look and

doing what I need to do to get my family

a part of that circumstance opposed to

sitting there not doing it

do you see yourself living here no no I

don't know I don't know yet

do you know a lot of people here no not

at all do you have a lot of friends and

family in New York in the city yeah

absolutely

it's where I grew up at so I know I know

my areas do you feel like you've been

forced to leave the city with the rinse

with the rinse that as high as they are

yes yes middle class people in the city

are not being really cater to their

busting they're behind working every day

constantly you like to the point where

you know they're not even sleeping you

know and if they miss a paycheck then

that's a possibility they can be where I

am and that's the realism of it city I

see in the middle of a rally with

hundreds of New Yorkers from East New

York a working-class neighborhood in

Brooklyn

people here are demanding that at least

half of the new houses built here are

affordable to them they want to push

these people out because the apartments

are gonna be so high they're not going

to be able to afford it under its last

Mayor Michael Bloomberg New York City

lost more than a third of apartments

considered affordable to poor families

and what we're seeing now is the effects

of 20 years of housing policy 20 years

of people little by little being pushed

out

no attempt to house these human beings

and homelessness is the numbers rising

every day this right here right here

right here people are getting priced off

push to out-of-state New York City under

the Bloomberg administration eliminated

entirely the permanent housing programs

which were designed to help homeless

families and children leave the shelter

system under Bloomberg the number of

people in homeless shelters each night

went from 31,000 to 54,000 essentially

what we had and was a massive social

experiment to test the proposition that

if you take away permanent housing

assistance from the neediest children

and families in our city what will

happen no good job every day in this

city people are losing their homes if we

do not act New York risks taking on the

qualities of a gated community Mayor

Bill de Blasio was elected in 2013 on a

promise to reverse New York's growing

economic inequality the city has for

decades let developers write their own

rules when it came to building housing

this administration is taking a

fundamentally different approach de

Blasio has vowed to create and preserve

200-thousand affordable units his plan

relies on tax incentives to developers

if you're a developer if you set aside

twenty percent of those units for

low-income folks the city will give you

tax breaks on that property Robert

Robinson is a housing advocate who's

formerly homeless I would challenge

mayor de Blasio and say your plan is no

different than Bloomberg's plan 80%

market rate 20% low-income the more you

create housing like that you're

saturating the market would market rate

housing developers in this city they

want to profit as much as they can so

their heart is not into building houses

for poor people that's not their goal

there

goal is to get market rate rents New

York's largest existing stock of

affordable housing is the 1 million

apartments that are rent regulated under

state law but the trend is clear since

the early 80s nearly 20% of these have

been converted to market rate hi

Finney cool Shaniqua Charles has lived

in a rent stabilized apartment in the

Bronx since 1988 by law her landlord can

only raise her rent a small percentage

each year but if she moves out he can

raise the rent by 20% this area is going

through gentrification right so that's

no secret I mean the writing is on the

wall if you can get these buildings from

being rent stabilized then you can

charge twenty five hundred dollars a

month three thousand dollars a month

eventually Shaniqua says she's never

missed her rent payment but six months

ago she received an eviction order from

her landlord I was the most helpless

feeling I've I've ever I've ever

experienced actually yeah what was your

biggest fear that moment being homeless

and you don't think rationally when you

know you don't think rationally when

you think you're gonna lose your home

the number one cause of family

homelessness in New York is eviction in

2012 more than one-third of families who

applied for shelter had recently been

evicted

we've got 33,000 people who've been

evicted across New York City in the last

two years 33,000 families

Shaniqua 'he's building has 50 code

violations the apartment was full of

lead

there were like holes in the walls the

bathroom ceiling almost collapse this

will probably fall down at any last

spring she asked for repairs one day a

crew arrived and demolished her bathroom

my daughter came in I recorded her she

was like what is this I don't know I

meant you angry sir why does it make you

angry because right ruling it's ruined

really ruling hopefully the lander will

fix it right we didn't have a bathroom

for over a month we were like packing

our bags every night to find somewhere

to bathe it's it's frustrating because

my rent is paid owners are not viewed

favorably by anybody I think we are

probably somewhere on the bottom next to

real estate agents or bankers Joseph

Strasburg is the president of the rent

stabilization Association a lobbying

group for landlords every economist will

tell you that any artificial controls do

not work explain the stories you're

called the rent stabilization

Association but you're opposed to rent

stable that's correct that's correct

government requires so many rules and

regulations that they impose on owners

many of them are small property owners

not very sophisticated you know even

with all these regulations there's still

this constant flow of people who are

getting evicted and I'm just wondering

what you would say to a homeless family

that was evicted out of a friend

stabilized building oh well if they've

been paying the rent how did they get

evicted

and I was dealin numb just in the past

month we've met so many families but if

they've been paying their rent there is

no way they could be evicted if they

were evicted it was done illegally but

owners they're not in the business of

providing social services that's

government's responsibility every day we

read stories about repairs not being

done

people being harassed they don't get

heat they don't get hot water

gentrification doesn't just happen it is

a system and it is done systematically

there are ways to legally push people

out it's only illegal when you get

caught

Crown Heights Brooklyn more families

from this neighborhood have entered the

shelter system than from any other in

New York I've been here a long time and

I hide the island I'm a senior now

listen to somebody what's that these

people put a pain I can't afford that

I've heard stories at the tenant Union

about them we're at a tenants meeting

called by Keisha Jacobs who lives in

this building

I could be homeless too you know any one

of us can have a situation where

something happens and we lose money on

your apartment any one of us to find

ourselves without our home come on the

building is rent stabilized but Keisha

was the last paying tenant to move in

people told us when they were leaving

they were like this building is about to

change drastically she started to notice

bunk beds and mattresses being moved

into the building so she asked the

building supervisor what was happening

he was like all those are for the people

as there were people and so he was like

Oh for the shelter people the city was

turning keesha's building into a type of

homeless shelter known as a cluster site

a privately owned building that shelters

homeless families they are housing

families in need of emergency shelter in

in my building the city created cluster

sites over a decade ago as homelessness

grew Mayor Bloomberg increasingly

favored paying private landlords for

shelter the folks who own this building

are really making lots of money um from

these people and so you know heshes

landlord is a prominent real estate

family called it Podolski's they owned

about 40 cluster shelters since 2010 the

city has paid them over 90 million

dollars to house homeless families four

of their shelters are in Keisha's

neighborhood so this is pretty typical

door wide open broken into and broken

mailboxes

my building is owned by the same people

who owned this building and we're trying

to improve the conditions in the

buildings that he owns you know this guy

thinks that because the families are

homeless they have no power and just

because a family is in crisis doesn't

mean you should be making me as $1 off

for me the cost of living has

skyrocketed you know I mean and then I

gotta pay utilities okay then I have two

kids and I have to get to work and I

have to buy food do you know how much

the city pays for this visa curtains um

like our budget letter shows that which

is basically like what they pay for our

rank pretty much like the breakdown with

the money that's that plane is paying

for us to stay here that can be given to

us on vouchers and for finding better

places to live I'm sure you know how

much the city is paying to house

families in crisis yeah this is shaquan

Oh Ryan ten months ago she and her

family applied for shelter the city

moved them into this apartment okay

since this is the budget better every

month Shaquanda receives a budget letter

from the city is this how much money

that the city's paying your landlord

yeah for this apartment mm-hmm it's

twenty seven hundred to seven three

seven fifty yep that's a lot of money

you think this apartment is worth that

much note no way chiquan --is building

has a hundred and fifteen open code

violations that's an average of five

violations per unit she says she's asked

for repairs but she's still waiting the

windows ain't fix the first of all they

like don't come on the sock in the

kitchen has not even covered up right

now about a quarter of all homeless

families with children each night are

sleeping in these cluster site shelters

essentially sleeping at apartments and

we the taxpayers are paying a ridiculous

amount of money for that what would you

do with that money the city gave you

that much money

get a better apartment yeah if they

paying twenty seven for me to stay here

and they bothers well paid twenty seven

for me to get my own apartment but you

think other tenants in the building are

paying twenty seven hundred dollars how

much you think they pay less than that I

don't think twenty seven I want folks to

to understand that if it wasn't for this

program that because this apartment is

rent stabilized you could possibly just

afford to be living here wait a minute

so paying tenants in the building the

average rent is nine hundred dollars

right and the city is paying up to three

thousand dollars yes for the same

apartments yes it seems so ridiculous

that you would remove affordable housing

stock from working families to house

people in crisis and then turn a profit

why are people looking for a shelter

elsewhere when they're already in a

dwelling

that's when stabilized it doesn't it

doesn't make any sense to me when mayor

de Blasio was elected he promised to

phase out cluster sites but in the last

year his administration has actually

added two hundred and twenty five

cluster units we are facing high numbers

and we have to ensure that everyone is

safely place Kamil Rivera is the Deputy

Commissioner of New York's Department of

homeless services it's the agency that

oversees the city shelters tell me about

the cluster site program what about the

clusters cluster side shelters it seems

like the city is paying private

landlords quite a bit of money for these

apartments you know actually I would

disagree with that we're working we've

worked over the last year and a half

since the administration first came came

into office to reduce our reliance on

clusters but last year the city actually

increased the number of cluster units by

8%

we still reduced our reliance on it

would I mean that meaning that we are

focusing more on purposeful build

shelters shelters that provide more

robust social services for our families

with children a lot of the families

we've spoken to we've seen their letters

and they're saying that the landlord is

get

paid $2,700 and there's people in the

building paying rents of 500 to a

thousand dollars the letters that people

get include what's called social

services and aftercare components so

it's not something that we're paying the

landlord that amount of rent and I think

that that is a something that's out

there that's not true how much of that

$3,000 or whatever the amount is ends up

going to the landlord is there a formula

there's a formula

we're not gonna discuss that formula let

me tell you about one woman we met she

has two little kids in her building

there are nearly five violations per

unit what is DHS doing about buildings

that have these open code violations we

work with our sister agencies we work

with our providers to make sure they get

fixed I mean the families were

concerning on but this last question

families we're moving on they've created

a situation where they can't sort of

back out of this program they need it

because they need to have housing for

homeless people but they've privatized

it and so once you do that you know

you've made a deal with the devil now we

don't need any more buildings turning

into shelters we need housing so it's

been two months since we met toe on a

little she's still living in shelter and

looking for an apartment she can afford

you have to come up with your own

scenarios yeah as far as how you're

gonna get yourself out of this situation

because you really don't have very much

support I really don't think that

they've put much effort into

understanding what this crisis is

I think that they're throwing money at

it

that's where hunts where all these

shelters are coming up from because

they're kind of disconsolate is throwing

money at things but they're really not

getting into what the problem is in

dealing with the issue you can keep

finding places to warehouse bodies

doesn't end the problem it doesn't work

towards a solution that might end the

problem

in 2014 the overall number of families

and shelter rose by 13% money is being

made it is just like the homeless

population might as well be treated on

the stock market how much of the

homeless worth

what we know about in this city and in

this country if something is really

costing you money you do something about

it