Migrant families being placed in hotels, kids in schools in NYC
NEW YORK - New York Gov. Kathy Hochul is calling on President Joe Biden to do more to help New York City as buses carrying asylum seekers keep arriving here from Texas and other border states.
"We really are looking for a federal response to this to take ownership of a crisis, and we will be there to help but this belongs to the federal government," Hochul said. "These are human beings. They don't need to be shipped all over — they need to have the dignity of a place over their heads while they are going through the asylum process."
Mayor Eric Adams announced that 200 families with children would be placed at the Row NYC Hotel. The luxury four-star hotel is on 8th Avenue just off Times Square. The families will be offered an array of legal, medical, and social services. The children will be enrolled in public school.
Migrant influx will cost NYC $1B this year, mayor says
The mayor has been scrambling to find housing for the nearly 20,000 people. He opened more than 40 emergency shelters using hotels.
Some Staten Island residents objected at a community meeting because some migrants will be put up at a Comfort Inn. The mayor is insisting every borough must do its part to help.
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Fight for housing for migrants in NYC
Advocates for fair housing and immigration rights sounded off Thursday from City Hall over the city's plan to shelter arriving asylum seekers. The Adams administration's plan for a tent city set-up on Randall's Island is under fire for a variety of reasons that include environmental and safety concerns.
The New York Immigration Coalition's Executive Director Murad Awawdeh has been pushing to house people in buildings and not tents. The city is still planning to put about 500 single adults in tents on Randall's Island after the original Orchard Beach location flooded.
Migrant tent shelter will be on Randall's Island, not at Orchard Beach
"Using the Row Hotel is a great idea," Awawdeh said. "It's something we've been advocating for and to use other facilities like the Row Hotel until they're able to get on their feet."
He also wants the mayor to look to the future to figure out how to move these families from hotels into permanent homes.
"We are in a moment right now seeing many folks coming to New York City who need support," Awawdeh said. "And New York is not going to turn its back on those who need a helping hand in this moment."
The Row Hotel will be home to 200 families; however, the hotel has the capacity to house even more people if needed. Adams has not said when the families will arrive.