Open Hearts Initiative Members and Allies Speak Out In Support of 231 Grand Street Site, Calling on Community Board 2 to Support Low-Barrier Housing and Services for Homeless Neighbors
Tonight, members and allies of the Open Hearts Initiative will speak at the Manhattan Community Board 2 meeting in support of the stabilization bed site and drop-in center planned for 231 Grand Street. The board will be considering a resolution to oppose the site, citing concerns from some members of the community.
“People who are unhoused are members of our community, and they deserve our support,” said Chris Goode, a long-time resident and building owner on Grand Street. “Many of my neighbors and I are eager to welcome this site, which will offer single rooms and services on site, a vast improvement over the traditional shelters that many of our neighbors on the streets often avoid. I urge the board to reject this resolution and take this opportunity to support the housing and services our homeless neighbors desperately need.”
“This is an opportunity to really address the issue of homelessness in our community,” said Sonni Mun, a Lower Manhattan resident. “We need culturally competent, language-accessible housing and services for homeless New Yorkers in Chinatown, which this site will provide. I once tried to get help for a Fujianese-speaking young man who became homeless during the pandemic. Because of the language barrier and his desire to stay in Chinatown, he ended up not accepting help to get off the streets. This site will help meet the needs of the people in our community like this young man, and it deserves our support.”
“I have worked with unhoused New Yorkers for over a decade and I believe if we want to mitigate the ongoing homelessness crisis in New York City, we have to get creative and increase the supply of low barrier beds and services so that our homeless neighbors can have a chance to get off the street and into housing,” said Josiah Haken, Chief Executive Officer of City Relief, a volunteer organization serving homeless New Yorkers that operates in Lower Manhattan. “There are already hundreds of street homeless people in Chinatown who are currently unable to access the support they need to stabilize their mental health, receive case management, and connect with social services. It is my opinion that offering housing support and treatment options is a more productive and humane approach to so-called ‘quality of life’ issues than policing and pushing those who are suffering into the outer boroughs and city hospitals that do not have the resources or the bandwidth to make a substantive impact.”
“When homeless New Yorkers came to my neighborhood on the Upper West Side two years ago, they were placed in a setting similar to 231 Grand Street, and I saw how important the privacy and on-site services were to improving their well-being,” said Corinne Low, co-founder and Executive Director of the Open Hearts Initiative. “We saw people stabilize and pursue new opportunities like online school and work, and many transitioned to permanent housing. This site will provide crucial opportunities for our unhoused neighbors in Chinatown, and I urge Community Board 2 to support it.”
