Politics
Rats and Rot: NYC Report Rips Family Homeless Shelters
Beonca Williams takes her son Joshua Felix, 1, for a walk outside the Regent Family Residence, Thursday, March 12, 2015 in New York. A report issued Thursday by the city’s Department of Investigation found decrepit and dangerous conditions and lacking enforcement were rife in the city-paid, largely privately-run shelters that house nearly 12,000 homeless families with children. (AP Photo/Mark Lennihan)
JENNIFER PELTZ, Associated Press
NEW YORK (AP) — One family of six was living in a homeless-shelter apartment where a dead rat festered on the floor for days. Another family had no living-room furniture and had been without electricity for days.
At another family homeless shelter, a puddle of urine soiled the only working elevator. And at yet another, a stairway was so treacherously rusted that inspectors ordered guards to block access to it.
All those buildings were part of a system that costs the city Department of Homeless Services about $360 million a year, with the agency sometimes paying well above neighborhood market rates for apartments, the city Department of Investigation said in a report released Thursday. It found that decrepit, dangerous surroundings and lagging enforcement were rife in city-paid, largely privately run shelters that house nearly 12,000 homeless families with children.
“At its worst, DHS is turning a blind eye to violations that threaten the lives of shelter residents,” the report said. Department of Investigation Commissioner Mark G. Peters called the findings “bluntly Dickensian,” though he credited the homeless services agency with making some progress.
Officials say they have closed two problematic shelters, stopped housing children in two others and shuttered an average of 39 apartments a month for repairs.
More than half the 600-plus building and fire code violations the report identified have been fixed, inspections are tougher and more frequent, and other steps are coming, Homeless Services Commissioner Gilbert Taylor said.
“We are committed to fixing everything that needs to be fixed,” Deputy Mayor Lilliam Barrios-Paoli said by phone.
New York City is legally obligated to provide shelter to all homeless people who seek it — a number that has grown from an average of about 39,000 a night in the start of 2010 to over 60,000 this past November, according to the most recent data available from the nonprofit Coalition for the Homeless. The coalition called Thursday’s report “deeply disturbing” but credited the city with providing a plan to do better.
Family homeless shelters were bleakly spotlighted in December 2013, when The New York Times profiled an 11-year-old girl who lived amid mice and rotting walls in a Brooklyn shelter that no longer houses children. Mayor Bill de Blasio took office the next month and requested an investigation.
Investigators inspected 25 of the over 140 family shelters last spring and summer. They include converted hospitals with on-site social services, single-room occupancy hotels and “cluster sites,” or apartments within buildings that also house private tenants.
At cluster sites, inspectors reported roaches crawling on the walls, holes in the corners and inadequate security in buildings with histories of shootings and other crimes. Garbage was piled in halls and urine pooled in the elevator at a facility called the Brooklyn Acacia Cluster. A reeking, dead rat lingered for two days in a facility called the Bronx Neighborhood Cluster Annex, the report said.
The city pays an average of $2,450 a month for cluster site apartments, while the average rent in some of their neighborhoods is $1,200 a month and lower, the report said.
Private groups managing the Brooklyn Acacia, Bronx Neighborhood and some other cluster sites either declined to comment or didn’t immediately respond to requests for comment.
De Blasio’s administration has been emphasizing free-standing shelters, rather than cluster sites: The city opened 22 shelters last year with space for 5,500 people in all, compared to 225 cluster units.
But even some better-equipped shelters had fire code violations and other problems, including the rusted-out stairwell, the report said. It was one of two stairways in the 140-family, city-owned Regent Family Residence in Upper Manhattan.
The homeless services agency had known the stairway was deteriorating since 2012 and tried to get repair money. Ultimately, the city spent $637,000 for the guards who were ordered after the DOI inspection, plus over $750,000 to fix the stairs. They reopened in September.
Beonca Williams moved in two months ago with her 1-year-old son, and she’s been impressed.
“I can’t complain at all,” she said Thursday.
___
AP Photographer Mark Lennihan contributed to this report. Reach Jennifer Peltz on Twitter @ jennpeltz.
Copyright 2015 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
Business
Longtime BWOPA Member Brendalyn Goodall Appointed to California Workforce Development Board
Gov. Gavin Newsom has appointed longtime Black Women Organized for Political Action (BWOPA) member Brendalynn Goodall to the California Workforce Development Board. Goodall, an Oakland resident with decades of experience in public service, has held leadership positions focused on
Gov. Gavin Newsom has appointed longtime Black Women Organized for Political Action (BWOPA) member Brendalynn Goodall to the California Workforce Development Board.
Goodall, an Oakland resident with decades of experience in public service, has held leadership positions focused on employment, aging services and assistance for underserved communities.
“Brendalynn will be a great addition to this Board,” said Gay Plair Cobb, who served as former state Assemblyman Sandre Swanson’s alternate to the California Workforce Development Board (CWDB).
“She understands that California’s non-profit organizations serve persons who have the most significant barriers to their labor market success and that the Board should help these groups navigate the complicated requirements of state funding.
“In other words, she will be a strong advocate for our most marginalized populations. Her voice is needed now, more than ever.”
CWDB works with the governor to shape workforce policies, programs and investments designed to strengthen the state’s economy. It collaborates with employers, workers, labor organizations, educational institutions, community groups and California’s 45 local workforce development boards to expand access to quality jobs and respond to regional employment needs.
According to the board, its work includes coordinating state programs and guiding investments in workforce training and development.
BWOPA California celebrated the appointment, describing Goodall as a dedicated advocate for workers, families and older adults.
“Her appointment reflects a lifetime of leadership, service, and unwavering commitment to strengthening California’s workforce and expanding opportunity for all,” the organization stated in a press release.
Goodall served as summer jobs program coordinator in the Oakland Mayor’s Office from 2012 to 2014. In that position, she helped connect young people with employment opportunities and job experience.
Before joining the Mayor’s Office, Goodall was division manager for Aging and Adult Services in the City of Oakland Human Services Department from 2002 to 2011. She previously served as senior services supervisor and program director for the city’s Department of Aging, Health and Human Services from 1990 to 2002.
Goodall is also a member of the California Commission on Aging, which advises the governor and state officials on policies and programs affecting older Californians.
Featured
‘Passing a Law Isn’t The Finish Line’: California Assembly Evaluates Implementation, Results
A separate review found that the California Public Utilities Commission’s implementation of AB 2316 had not fulfilled the law’s intent or produced new community solar projects. In response, Assemblymember Chris Ward (D-San Diego) introduced AB 1813, legislation to overhaul the state’s renewable energy program and increase access to solar technology.
California lawmakers are finding that laws passed in Sacramento do not always work as intended once implemented. A new Assembly oversight program has identified gaps in laws addressing wildfire recovery, insurance, foster care and clean energy.
Assembly Speaker Robert Rivas (D-Hollister) announced Aug. 17 that the Assembly had completed the first year of its Outcomes Review program. Billed as the first initiative of its kind in the nation, the program enlisted 15 Assembly members to evaluate 14 laws they authored or championed. Through public hearings and community meetings, lawmakers assessed whether the measures were producing their intended results.
“Passing a law isn’t the finish line,” said Rivas. “The Outcomes Review project makes sure we’re checking our work.”
The reviews identified both successes and shortcomings. The expansion of telehealth largely improved access to care and provided patients with greater flexibility. Affordable housing financing reforms also strengthened coordination among state agencies and could reduce duplicative paperwork, development costs and delays.
Other reviews uncovered more significant implementation problems.
One focused on Assembly Bill (AB) 238, which was enacted after the Eaton and Palisades fires to provide eligible borrowers with up to 12 months of emergency mortgage forbearance. The review found lender noncompliance, insufficient consumer complaint data and a need for stronger coordination between state and federal agencies.
Those findings helped shape AB 1842 and AB 1847, both victim-protection bills that are currently pending in the Senate.
After discovering that California’s FAIR Plan clearinghouse was failing to transition affected homeowners back into the private insurance market, Assemblymember Lisa Calderon (D-Whittier) introduced AB 69 to fix the issue.
A separate review found that the California Public Utilities Commission’s implementation of AB 2316 had not fulfilled the law’s intent or produced new community solar projects. In response, Assemblymember Chris Ward (D-San Diego) introduced AB 1813, legislation to overhaul the state’s renewable energy program and increase access to solar technology.
Lawmakers also found that the FAIR Plan clearinghouse was not effectively helping homeowners move into the traditional insurance market, prompting the introduction of AB 69, legislation adding new reporting, notification, and access requirements.
The program identified additional implementation problems related to foster care placement protections, oversight of charitable fundraising and wage theft enforcement.
Rivas said the findings demonstrate the need for lawmakers to continue evaluating legislation after it takes effect.
“This isn’t oversight for its own sake — it’s what accountability looks like, and we’re just getting started,” he said.
The Assembly plans to expand the Outcomes Review program in 2027 by involving more lawmakers and holding additional public hearings and community meetings. The next phase, according to Rivas, will build on the pilot year as lawmakers seek to identify implementation problems earlier and improve how state laws work in practice.
Commentary
OPINION: Angie Nixon Will Turn You Into a Democratic Socialist If Donald Trump Hasn’t Already
The survey defined “comfortable” as spending 50% of income on necessities, 30% on “like-to-haves,” and putting 20% in savings. Are your percentages way out of whack? Like 100% on necessities?
The midterm elections are more important than ever as we fight back.
And we all know “affordability” is the No. 1 issue in the U.S.
So, how are you doing? A new survey says that, for a single person, being comfortable in California requires an income of $126,797. Or $302,682 for a family of four.
Did those numbers make you uncomfortable?
A single person making just $102,794 could be comfortable in Utah. But wouldn’t you rather just look at the Mormon Temple in Oakland from 580?
The survey defined “comfortable” as spending 50% of income on necessities, 30% on “like-to-haves,” and putting 20% in savings.
Are your percentages way out of whack? Like 100% on necessities?
What if the car breaks down? What if the kids need x, y, or z? What if overtime gets cut back? What if Social Security goes bankrupt?
Are you a democratic socialist yet?
That’s not where Blues go Red and turn communist. It’s about a government that puts people before profits. And cares for all of us. Not just the billionaires.
Angie Nixon
In last week’s Florida primary, people around the country saw Florida legislator Angie Nixon win the Democratic U.S. Senate primary with a stunning upset over Alex Vindman.
Vindman was well-funded ($16.3 million to Nixon’s $975,000), and well-connected nationally. But Nixon—an African American with state house cred, union organizing experience, and a fighter who was arrested protesting Gov. Ron DeSantis’ redistricting efforts— proved to be unbeatable. She’s officially aligned with the Democratic Socialists of America (DSA).
That means Nixon, 42, believes in universal health care, a/k/a “Medicare for all,” taxing the wealthy, and a minimum wage of $25 an hour.
Think back to that comfort level survey. At 40 hours a week, $25 an hour is just $1,000 a week or $52,000 a year. It’s not even half what that survey said was needed for a single person to be “comfortable” in California.
We’re forced to get 3-4 low-wage jobs.
Nixon and the DSA want to set the floor, so no one sinks into oblivion.
Republicans would simply let us all sink.
Nixon now goes up against Republican Sen. Ashley Moody in November. Florida’s Republicans outnumber Dems by 1.5 million voters. And Nixon’s DSA tag makes her a clear underdog, maybe even unelectable.
But the Dems are sticking with her. Voters seem to be turning out for someone who will directly and boldly address affordability.
Meanwhile, Trump is turning the Iran War, which has caused the oil price run-up and high inflation, into an economic war on the world. At the same time, he’s declared a tariff war on our good ally, Canada, guaranteed to raise prices on imports to America.
That could make Nixon the one in Florida 2026. And it would move Dems closer to flipping both houses of Congress, a vote for super normalcy.
Trump is so far down in the polls, he’s resorted to election disruption and voter suppression.
But the antidote in Florida at least is Angie Nixon, a woman worth watching, who’ll turn you into a Democratic Socialist if Donald Trump hasn’t done so already.
About the Author
Emil Amok Guillermo is a veteran journalist, commentator, and comic monologist. He does a micro-talk show on YouTube.com/@emilamok1
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