New York resumes transfer of homeless hotel residents to shelters

The city once again began moving homeless people from hotels to shelters on Monday — despite an effort by activists to stop the relocations.

Videos and photos posted by advocates showed school buses rolling up to several hotels where thousands of homeless people had been living since about a year ago during the first year of the coronavirus pandemic.

The residents had started going back into shelters in June, but the evictions were temporarily halted by a federal judge earlier this month. The Legal Aid Society filed a motion accusing the city of violating the rights of people with medical and mental health problems.

Officials said they had since made “necessary adjustments” to comply with the judge’s ruling, including giving residents seven-day notice of their transfer, allowing them to request accommodations that would meet their health needs.

“We again thank the Court for taking a thoughtful look at our comprehensive plans to return to shelter and for allowing that process to move forward with minor modifications,” said Isaac McGinn, spokesperson for the Department of Social Services.

About 5,000 people were still being housed in 37 emergency hotel shelters prior to Monday’s evictions, according to advocates. Some 3,000 people that were staying in 23 hotels had already been moved.

Advocates vowed to continue fighting to stop the transfers.

“The City believes it can now comply with the judge’s order and move people to sites that are appropriate for them. But what we are seeing is that because they continue to rush the process they are sending people to places that are not appropriate,” Josh Goldfein, an attorney with Legal Aid, told The Post.

“We’re raising those cases with the city and if they don’t comply, we’ll be back in court.”

Jacquelyn Simone, a spokeswoman for the Coalition for the Homeless, said it was “premature and dangerous” to shift people back into the city’s congregate shelter system, “Particularly with (COVID-19) case rates rising due to the Delta variant.”

Public Advocate Jumaane Williams echoed those concerns Monday, when he joined residents and activists outside the Lucerne, the Upper West Side hotel that was a lightning rod for locals’ complaints.

“Moving people into congregate shelters right now when there is clear evidence that COVID is escalating with the new strain of the virus and there are even breakthrough infections among those who are fully vaccinated demonstrates the clear, reckless disregard for the lives of these folks,” Williams said.

“We have to remind (city leaders) that they actually are people, and they are residents of New York City,” he continued. “They are our neighbors.”