A new Haitian Family Resource Center is now located at the Bedford Armory, 1579 Bedford Avenue in the Crown Heights section of Brooklyn. call Councilmember James' office for more info: |
Sorry to disappoint those of you who have heard the rumor that we had won and stopped the intake center.Unfortunately this is not true.
The City’s Department of Homeless Services still intends to add an intake center to the shelter at the Bedford Atlantic Armory.
Where things stand now:
1. The Department of Homeless Services is only postponing moving an intake center into our armory for about a year.
3. As before, DHS says putting up half the money for a Track and Field at the Bedford Atlantic Armory is contingenton our communities’ accepting an intake center there.
The fact is we must stay united and continue to stay active in our fight to stop the city’s Department of Homeless Services from placing an intake center at the Bed-Atlantic Armory. We have pushed them back. Now we must stop them.
Please stay alert and report anything related to the Bed-Atlantic Armory shelter, keep the petitions coming and be prepared to participate in calls to action, forums, rallies and town hall meetings.
| Representative from CB8, CHNA and CHRM attended two meetings at Borough Hall regarding the proposed intake center. In July, Burough President, Marty Markowitz, and his Chief of Staff, Carlo Scissura, Esq., and three other staff members met with the community reps. A second meeting held in August was attended by the same community reps and the three staff members. The BP and Chief of Staff did not attend the second meeting. At these meetings the community reps made it very clear that the communities at the epicenter of the potential Bed-Atlantic intake center will not accept an intake center under any circumstances. We continue to state: that the city maintain an intake center in Manhattan; that a well-run Manhattan intake center is sufficient; and, that the city should stop considering the Bedford Atlanic armory shelter/assessment center as a potential intake center site. We were invited to attend a third meeting at the BP's office but the BP's office cancelled that meeting. Instead they plan to meet with a number of our elected officials and possibly Department of Homeless Services Commissioner Hess to discuss the armories in Brooklyn. We can feel assured that the elected officials (Eric Adams, Karim Camara, Letitia James and Hakeem Jeffries) who have been working with us to oppose the intake center will continue their opposition to the addition of an intake center at the Bed-Atlantic Armoroy shelter/assessment center. A number of other elected officials also stand with us on this issue. We are planning a big community event to show our strength. It will take place in the next few weeks. You will receive information about this as soon as details are known. |
| The updates regarding the Bed-Atlantic Intake Center plan follow: 1. There have been rumors that we have stopped the plan to place an intake center for homeless men at the Bedford Atlantic Armory shelter/assessment center. These rumors are not true. We have slowed the city down but we have not yet stopped this plan. We must keep up our opposition with petition signatures, phone calls and attendance at rallies and press conferences. 2. The Task Force's Executive Committee met with our lawyers this week. The lawsuit is prepared and ready to go, when and if we need to deploy that strategy. In the meantime, Councilmember James is planning a press conference for right after Labor Day to highlight the spate of shootings on Franklin Avenue near Bedford-Atlantic and the overall increase in gang activity in the area, in order to drive home the point that this is already an overstressed neighborhood, . We also plan to have another rally in opposition to a Bedford-Atlantic intake center at the end of September. It is urgent that we to keep the pressure on. Everything we're doing is having an effect. So be prepared for a phone call or email asking for your help to bring people out to both the press conference and the rally. In the meantime, keep those signed petitions coming in.. |
IMPORTANT COMMUNITY INFORMATION
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CB8 full board meeting
Thursday Feb. 12 7:00 pm at the Brooklyn Children's Museum
145 Brooklyn Ave. near St. Marks
On Monday evening CB 8's housing committee voted 9 to 1 to recommend the approval by the full board of the change of use of the Peter Young facility on Pacific St. (across from the Bed/Atlantic Armory.) The Peter Young facility is the homeless men's shelter that DHS is closing in conjunction with their plan to add an intake center to the assessment center at the Bed/Atlantic armory. The proposal the housing committee voted for is to now make the Peter Young facility a 28 day residential drug rehab. CB8 has a moratorium on new residential facilities. However, they approved this when the Peter Young group said that 90% of the people they will serve will be residents of this community. The full board will be voting on this on 2/12/09
PLEASE NOTE THE FOLLOWING CHANGES AND ADDITIONS The hearing for the committee on General Welfare has been postponed until TUESDAY, Sept 23, 2008 at 10AM City Hall in the committee room.
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Presentation by Mr. George Nashak, Deputy Commissioner of Adult Services with the NYC Dept. of Homeless Services
Tuesday August 12, 6:30 - 8 PM
Center for Nursing & Rehabilitation
727 Classon Avenue (between Park & Prospect)
Paricipate in our letter writing campaign 
(Visit CHRM's web site for more information)
