Department of Homeless Revises Proposal

Photo/NYC Rescue Mission

The Department of Homeless Services has revised its open-ended request proposals to require community board notification prior to any shelter agreement with a homeless services provider. But plaintiffs in the Westchester Square suit against DHS are less than satisfied.

The revised request for proposals orders homeless services providers to issue notification prior to DHS review. DHS made the change in response to confusion about whether or not notification provided to Community Board 10 on a St. Peter’s Avenue homeless shelter opened in August was adequate.

Sandi Lusk of the Westchester Square Zerega Improvement Organization termed the revision a “so-called” change, a phony attempt to “quell controversy” about how DHS selects homeless services providers and opens shelters.

Notification is hardly enough, Lusk said. Homeless services providers need to engage in dialogue with community leaders and elected officials, she explained.

DHS wants to be a good neighbor, spokeswoman Heather Janik countered.

“The Department of Homeless Services has further clarified our voluntary notification process in an effort to ensure that community boards are informed when a proposal is submitted to DHS,” Janik said. “The agency makes every effort to weigh both the needs of the homeless families and individuals we serve and the communities in which they reside.”

Robert Swetnick, an attorney for Westchester Square business owners and residents in the suit against DHS, knocked the revision. Swetnick described the change as “lip service.”

“I think DHS could have done a lot more if it had really cared,” he said.

DHS requirements pale in comparison to those imposed by the New York State Liquor Authority, Swetnick argued. The revision includes no time component, he added. Last-minute notification does no good; a 30-day rule would be more appropriate, Swetnick argued.

“It is a nice first step,” he admitted. “But not really thought-out.”