Media Highlights

There’s Nothing Unsafe About the New Safe Haven Coming to the Upper West Side

“If we want to prevent crime, this is exactly the kind of community investment we need, alongside investments in permanent affordable housing. Contrary to the idea that a Safe Haven is dangerous for the surrounding neighborhood, research shows that investing in housing and mental health services decreases crime.”
April 3, 2023

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100s Of UWSers Sign Letter Of Support For New 83rd Street Safe Haven

"We ask: why not here? The Upper West Side is a high-opportunity, amenity-rich neighborhood, with lots of parks, jobs, and excellent public transit access," the letter adds. "It’s an ideal place for people to get back on their feet, for the same reasons that many of us chose to live here.”
March 15, 2023

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Op-Ed | Say yes to supportive housing in Hell’s Kitchen

“The Lirio will offer supportive housing for homeless New Yorkers living with HIV/AIDS and affordable housing for low-income households. The housing this building provides will be life-changing for its tenants.”
July 31, 2022

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Born Out of Neighborly Love, West Side ‘Open Hearts’ Spread Shelter Support Citywide

“We were having people reach out to us and say, like, ‘Oh, we really need Open Hearts in Midtown, or ‘We really need Open Hearts in the Upper East Side,’” said Corinne Low, a co-founder of the group now serving as its executive director. “There was a niche that we were filling.”
May 25, 2022

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Getting past fear to fight homelessness

“This model works: While individuals living on the streets and subways frequently cite the lack of privacy in congregate shelters as a reason they hesitate to enter the shelter system, they are significantly more likely to accept placement in Safe Havens and stabilization beds like those being planned for Chinatown — low-barrier models with more privacy and fewer dehumanizing restrictions.”
April 1, 2022

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Advocates look to amplify voices supporting homeless neighbors

“We really see our role as really being about amplifying the needs of the shelter residents,” Newman said. “So, if there are cases where the shelter provider isn’t meeting the needs of shelter residents, then we’ll be that voice to help make sure that those needs get met.”
December 11, 2021

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How an Upper West Side Hotel Came to Embody the City’s Failure on Homelessness

“After DaBaron’s conversation with Fialk, he and Open Hearts, a core group of around 60 people, began coordinating with the Lucerne’s provider, Project Renewal, and residents of the hotel to design programming. Over the fall, Open Hearts offered the AA meetings Fialk had spoken to DaBaron about; they ran creative writing workshops, art therapy sessions, and life skill seminars. Local faith leaders went on walks with residents three times a week. The Goddard Riverside Community Center, a social services organization primarily located on the Upper West Side, provided $150,000 for a workforce development project that supplied residents with training and wages for jobs.”
March 31, 2021

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What Happened When Homeless Men Moved Into a Liberal Neighborhood

When New York City moved shelter residents into tourist hotels on the Upper West Side of Manhattan, the neighborhood’s values were tested.
November 13, 2020

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Opinion: Housing for Our Formerly Incarcerated Neighbors Serves Us All

“Study after study has shown that stable housing is the linchpin for successful reentry and for creating strong social bonds. These outcomes, in turn, lead to a substantially reduced likelihood of facing a new criminal charge, which—contrary to the scare tactics of this bill’s opponents—will make our city at large safer, too.“
December 9, 2022

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W42 ST NYC

West Siders Open their Hearts to Asylum Seeking Families in Hell’s Kitchen Hotels

The Open Hearts Initiative welcomed Skyline Hotel residents with a sidewalk chalk meet and greet. Photos: Phil O’Brien

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Over on 10th Avenue at The Skyline Hotel, where many newly arriving families have been housed in a temporary shelter, community organizers from the Open Hearts Initiative welcomed residents with a sidewalk chalk meet and greet. “We’ve found that casual community events like chalking are a great way to welcome folks and start to build connections between housed and unhoused neighbors, and this event was successful on both counts. We were really glad to have Midtown neighbors coming together to send messages of care and compassion, and it was awesome to see kids having so much fun making art. We’re excited to continue building connections with our neighbors at the Skyline Hotel and finding ways to provide community support,” organizing leader Sara Newman told W42ST, as the group posted opportunities for further volunteer events on Twitter.

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