120 Homeless Vets Relocated to Proposed Carroll Gardens Shelter Site

After being displaced from the Borden Avenue shelter in Long Island City due to Hurricane Sandy, 120 homeless male veterans will be relocated to an unfinished building in Carroll Gardens, according to Community Board 6.

The Department of Homeless Services is working to have the veterans moved into the space—the rundown building located at —by 6 p.m. on Tuesday, November 6. 

"We have been told that the veterans will be there 'less than a month,'" wrote District Manager Craig Hammerman in an e-mail.

Community Board 6 did not yet know who would be operating the temporary shelter space, but acknowledged it could be Housing Solutions USA, which currently holds the lease on the space and has been the subject of some controversy in recent community meetings.

"We appreciate your understanding during this difficult time for our city and are available for any questions you may have," wrote Lisa Black, DHS Director of Government Relations in her letter to Community Board 6.

Early response from neighbors was mixed.

"The City's Dept of Homeless Services moved in the dead of night to relocate 120 men to W. 9 St, risking them in unfit bldg," tweeted neighbor Yigal Rechtman in reaction to the announcement.

And it appeared that residents were not the only ones who wished to have advance notification of such processes, despite the storm aftermath.

"We have reiterated our request to be included in the discussion regarding future tenancy at the West 9th Street property," said Hammerman in his letter to the community.

"As someone who wants a Win-Win situation, bringing throngs of single men to the neighborhood is not acceptable," said Rechtman in a later e-mail to Patch. "It's unsafe for the men—huddled 17 to an apartment—and it's not safe for the community.

As an alternative, Rechtman suggested that 10 families be moved to the shelter for longterm planning and integrated into the community.

He also noted that, "more light needs to be shined on the unusual manner in which the building was cleared by the Department of Buildings, after being without a Certificate of Occupancy for 10 years."

Stay with Patch for updates.