A nonprofit has submitted a proposal to the city to turn an abandoned factory in Glendale into a homeless shelter for about 125 families. Anna Gustafson/The Forum Newsgroup
A proposal to operate a homeless shelter for about 125 families in a former airplane factory in Glendale has incited outrage among civic leaders and elected officials who say an influx of youngsters would overwhelm the area’s already crowded schools and that such a facility would be out of character in an area with smaller businesses. The city Department of Homeless Services, however, stressed that those who would live at the site would likely be single women who may be domestic violence victims with young children – individuals, they said, that need a lending hand to get back on their feet.
“This isn’t going to happen, because I am going to fight this every step of the way,” Councilwoman Elizabeth Crowley (D-Middle Village) said of the plan this week. “I have a tech business that wants to go there. This site should provide jobs and be an economic engine.”
Samaritan Village, a nonprofit, sent a letter last week to Community Board 5 Chairman Vincent Arcuri to notify members that it had submitted a proposal to DHS to operate “transitional housing” at an abandoned factory, located at 78-16 Cooper Ave., that once manufactured airplane parts.
“As you know, recent years have seen an increase in the number of families requiring transitional housing, despite the significant strides that have been made to increase the availability of affordable housing for New Yorkers,” Samaritan Village’s letter said.
The document went on to say that Queens has about 25.6 percent of its rental units priced at less than $1,000 a month, whereas the citywide average is 37 percent. Additionally, home foreclosure starts increased by 24 percent in 2012 compared to 2011, and the poverty rate in Queens was 15.8 percent in 2011, compared to 12.2 percent in 2006.
Under the proposal, which is now being reviewed by the DHS and must receive the stamp of approval from the department and Mayor Bloomberg, Samaritan Village would “provide an array of on-site services and off-site service linkages to provide 125 families with the needed assistance to return to, and maintain, independent living.”
Graffiti now covers the sign for a factory that once operated at 78-16 Cooper Ave.
According to the plan, the nonprofit would provide on-site security around the clock, every day of the week, and there would be access control, visitation and curfew policies.
But residents, civic leaders and elected officials have long been opposed to the homeless shelter, and Crowley and Glendale Civic Association President Kathy Masi collected more than 4,000 petition signatures against the facility last year.
Community leaders have said addition of families to the site would be especially detrimental to area schools, which are already jam-packed.
“The city’s homeless shelters serve a critical purpose, but our neighborhood is not an appropriate place for one,” said Craig Caruana, a Republican candidate running against Crowley for her Council seat representing the 30th District. “The proposed location is right near residents’ homes, schools and the Atlas Mall, where families shop and local middle school and high school kids have a safe environment to hang out. The shelter would contradict the character of the neighborhood.”
But, a DHS spokeswoman cautioned that the individuals who typically reside in a place such as the one proposed for Glendale, are single women who have often been battered and tend to keep to themselves. Additionally, she said the women could have children too young to attend area schools. The spokeswoman also noted that CB 5 has no shelters but does have families in the shelter system.
Crowley also noted that the city Schools Construction Authority once looked at the site to see if would be suitable for a new school but determined it was “too dirty” because of its previous operations as a factory.
“They had reason to believe the land is contaminated, Crowley said.
“I’ve been in touch with the mayor’s office, and they realize this is a property better suited for development,” Crowley continued. “It’s a pie-in-the-sky idea that this property owner wants to bring this into an area that’s thriving – there’s Atlas Park, restaurants, other businesses.”
The owner, Michael Wilner, did not respond to a request for comment.
By Anna Gustafson
