NYC to shutter violent immigrant shelter — and house immigrants with tourists in hotels instead

New York City Mayor Eric Adams (D) announced Wednesday that the city plans to shut down the sprawling Humanitarian Emergency Response and Relief Center located on Randall's Island, which, at its peak, was able to house 3,000 immigrants.

The tent shelter, which is slated to close down at the end of February, and the surrounding area have become a hotbed for violence since it opened last August.

'Large scale commercial hotels and hotel management services to help address the current emergency.'

Adams noted that the city has already reduced its capacity by dismantling the largest residential tent structure, which was used to hold 750 cots. One of the athletic fields, a site previously utilized as shelter space, will be returned to community use after it undergoes restorations.

“Over the coming months, the city will continue to gradually reduce the population on-site. Following the site’s closure in February, the city will invest in restoring the remaining impacted athletic fields and parkland,” the city reported.

Adams noted that New York City, which has seen a massive increase in illegal alien arrivals under the Biden-Harris administration, is “not out of the woods yet.”

He credits his office’s “smart management strategies and successful advocacy” for helping the city “turn[] the corner on the crisis.” Specifically, Adams noted that his 30-day shelter limits for individuals and 60-day limits for families have helped reduce capacity.

“We’re not scrambling every day to open new shelters — we’re talking about closing them. We’re not talking about how much we’re spending — we’re talking about how much we’ve saved,” Adams stated. “And thanks to today’s announcement, in a few months, we’ll be talking about how much we’re investing in restoring Randall’s Island’s incredible fields and parks for community use. I want to thank the Randall’s Island Park Alliance and every New Yorker who has partnered with us to manage this unprecedented influx of asylum seekers and make sure that our newest arrivals have the same opportunity that we all have to pursue the American dream.”

According to Deputy Mayor for Health and Human Services Anne Williams-Isom, nearly a quarter-million immigrants were funneled through the city’s shelter system since spring 2022.

“Roughly seven in 10 of those seeking asylum have moved on to the next part of their journey, and today’s announcement is another step on our path through our humanitarian response. With 14 straight weeks of lower numbers of new arrivals seeking asylum, we are now able to transition from this large humanitarian relief center, which is a step in the right direction,” Williams-Isom said.

However, a New York Post report also released on Wednesday revealed that the city’s Department of Homeless Services is seeking a massive 14,000-room hotel contract with properties around the city.

The news outlet noted that roughly 150 New York City hotels are already providing rooms to immigrants. The cost of those accommodations combined with spending on immigrant services over a three-year period is estimated to reach $5.76 billion for local taxpayers.

The city’s current three contracts with the New York City Hotel Association cost taxpayers $352 per night per room.

The Department of Homeless Services wrote in its solicitation for proposals that it “is seeking to continue the City Sanctuary Facility program by procuring a vendor who can assist in acquiring the use of large scale commercial hotels and hotel management services to help address the current emergency.”

Hotel Association President Vijay Dandapani told the Post, “We will be filling in the RFP [request for proposal].”

He stated that the association’s foundation receives roughly $100,000 monthly to fulfill the existing three contracts with the city.

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