NYC lawmakers join nonprofits in push for more housing for homeless
Tweets showing an Oct. 31 rally in front of New York City Hall to push for more housing for homeless. Twitter
There were plenty of #NonprofitHorrorStories to haunt many an executive director on Halloween. Strong Nonprofits for a Better New York, a statewide campaign seeking better government support of human services, was behind a social media campaign that invited nonprofits to share how their ability to deliver services has been affected by crumbling infrastructure. Browse all the spooky anecdotes here.
Unfunded structural repairs and outdated information technology hinder the delivery of essential human services across NYS. Thanks @BarrierFreeL for sharing your #NonprofitHorrorStories this #Halloween season! #strongnonprofits pic.twitter.com/vzH8F620Wm
— Strong Nonprofits for a Better New York (@NonprofitsNY) October 31, 2018
The Center for Urban Community Services has won a $4.39 million contract from the New York City Department of Social Services. The five-year contract will fund the provision of non-emergency HASA housing, according to the City Record. CAMBA has received a $36 million contract from the Department of Homeless Services to operate the Park Avenue Residence, a transitional residence for homeless families with children located at 4607 Park Avenue in the Bronx.
Jennifer March, executive director of Citizens’ Committee for Children of New York, has something to say about an announcement from New York City Schools Chancellor Richard Carranza. He stated that the city would hire 100 more community coordinators to help homeless students, following a report by Advocates for Children of New York that showed one out of every 10 students in New York City lacks permanent housing.
“CCC applauds the Department of Education for recognizing the record number of homeless students in its system as the crisis it is,” March said in an Oct. 30 email. “And we look forward to learning more about how new coordinators will help to better address the well-being and educational success of homeless students. We strongly urge the Administration to invest in additional Bridging the Gap social workers, as Bridging the Gap social workers offer critical counseling, social emotional support, and cross-system advocacy that homeless students and families so desperately need, and to ensure that the new coordinators have adequate supervision and support.”
Homeless advocates from nonprofits such as Housing Works, Coalition for the Homeless, The Legal Aid Society, and VOCAL-NY rallied around the issue as well on Oct. 31 outside City Hall in Manhattan:
“The two main drivers into shelter are domestic violence and eviction.”
— (((Stephen Levin))) (@StephenLevin33) October 31, 2018
Thank you @chriscquinn @WINNYC_ORG for your leadership fighting for homeless New Yorkers and domestic violence survivors. We need to make a real commitment to affordable housing to solve the homeless crisis. pic.twitter.com/ZMX1bLlp9p
City Council members vowed to push on with legislation that would require the city to reserve more housing for homeless families as part of an effort to expand the city’s overall housing stock – despite some resistance from Mayor Bill de Blasio.
We can’t stand by and accept the status quo. We have the power to do what’s right and commit to housing all New Yorkers.
— (((Stephen Levin))) (@StephenLevin33) October 31, 2018
I’m proud to co-sponsor @Salamancajr80’s bill to require NYC set aside 15% of development for homeless New Yorkers.@VOCALNewYork @houseourfuture @NYHomeless pic.twitter.com/MZHS3Zvlhc
Catholic Big Sisters and Big Brothers is changing its name. The New York City-based organization will now go by Bigs & Littles NYC Mentoring, according to an Oct. 31 press release. Changes will include the nonprofit’s logo, tagline, and domain name. “After 12 months of market research, constituent focus groups and careful consideration, it was determined that it was the right time to evolve our brand,” reads the press release.