Above: Project Renewal, 8 E. 3rd St.
A State Supreme Court judge has temporarily paused the city's plan to open a new homeless intake shelter at 8 E. Third St. after a group of East Village residents filed a lawsuit to block it. (Coverage at the Post ... the Times ... and PIX11.)
The facility — intended to replace intake operations currently based at Bellevue — was scheduled to open May 1. But Justice Sabrina B. Kraus issued a temporary restraining order, with a court hearing now set for May 7.
As previously reported, the lawsuit, filed by a local group, argues the city rushed the plan under an emergency declaration and sidestepped required review and zoning processes.
City officials have said the move is part of a broader plan to close the aging Bellevue shelter and relocate services to other sites.
Advocates for people experiencing homelessness have pushed back on the lawsuit, noting the Third Street building has historically housed shelter services and citing the need for a functioning intake system.
For now, the planned opening is on hold ... with the next round playing out in court in early May.
30 comments:
Well praise Lucifer! Somebody down there was listening.
This is good news. It shows this mayor that he cannot just go ahead and do whatever he wants to do regardless of how negatively it will affect an entire neighborhood. We had enough of that nonsense with the last mayor.
My friend lives on 4th behind this building. She is worried for her safety and welfare if this venture is allowed to continue. She of course wishes for these individuals to find adequate shelter with access to food, but wonders if there is a better alternative which suits everyone. Our hood isn't the right place for this.
The Bellevue shelter is in disrepair and already 100% vacated. Now it's unclear where intake will be in the interim, In sure even more confusing for those that need the services. This is NIMBYism at its worst, either our neighborhood takes them in or another neighborhood will.
The shelter was negatively affecting Kips Bay. A neighborhood has to take the hit.
I'm ok with another neighborhood taking them.
Kips Bay. Sounds like a good plan. Glad you found a solution.
Thank goodness for the pause on the relocation. Don't forget to sign the petition!
https://c.org/RmghSCN78C
As a 30+ year resident of the EV and someone who has spent the same amount of time working for an organization that provides housing and a broad range of services to un housed NYERs I am disgusted by the people who initiated this lawsuit. As well as by all the NIMBY comments and pro lux housing and real estate arguments against this shelter. A significant number of homeless single adults residing in the shelter system are employed but do not earn enough to afford an apartment in a city that has a 1% vacancy rate. To file a lawsuit and litigate it requires money, so clearly this is another case of the wealthy using their money to stop something they don't like. This location has been a shelter for decades. Get the facts straight and have a heart.
It was sensible to have the shelter near Bellevue and NYU hospital corridor as it provided medical resources and also more area security.
There are reasonable and understandable concerns about situating the shelter in the East Village.
And another issue IMO - more homeless on MTA buses.
brian - This is not NIMBYism! This shelter has been there over 50 years and was part of the fabric of our neighborhood, For many of the men there this was their home. They were our neighbors. Unfortunately they have been moved and now this will be like Grand Central Station for every homeless man in the 5 boroughs who will be sent or bussed (as in from Rikers) for "intake". Estimated arrivals could be 150 + every day. There is not enough room in the building to hold them inside so where will they be? Roaming our streets. 60% are mentally ill, many convicted felons, sex offenders, drug addicts/suppliers. The crime rate from the Bellevue precinct was double and triple than the crime rate of our 9th Precinct. Each borough should have an intake center. It''s called FAIR SHARE.
It's ironic that the people here are complaining about a shelter intake intended to help the least of us, are the same ones who lament rich developers and gentrifiers coming in and "ruining" east village from its glory days as, guess what, a place where a lot of homeless, barely-making-it people lived. We can post all about small shops closing up, lack of affordable housing, about wanting more representation for the underserved, but when it comes time to deal with what it comes with, you say as long as it's NOT in our neighborhood. Better in Kips Bay, or somewhere else. At the same time, we also cry no rich NYU kids, finance bros, or whomever else here either. All while you sip your single origin coffee. There's plenty of that in the West Village, you could always move there. True colors shown.
FWIW, I've lived in the neighborhood for decades, and while yes there are risks, I am all for helping the homeless. Thank you to places like the Bowery Mission and other spots that still show we have a heart.
Thats great news! Hopefully the city sells this shelter and builds a much better one elsewhere that can serve these people much better.
Thank you to EVgrieve for providing us with this information and opportunity to sign the petition.
What a deranged plot. It's clear the EV is too comfortable for vagrants etc. To even consider this is a scandal. These are the people who should be looking to leave NYC, not get comfortable in the revolving doors.
I'll choose...another neighborhood. One with less neighbors and more medical facilities to care for these troubled people. We have more than our share of this type of trouble already. Perfect spot is the UES and that hospital zone south of Gracie Mansion. That way the Mayor can stay close to the issue.
Just because Bellevue is closed doesn't mean the EV has to be responsible for the problem they created without our input. Or the if it's something approved by Carlina Rivera before she left office.
I'd prefer it be near a hospital too as it makes the most sense but with what existing facility? Bellevue is ripping at the seams and already empty, there is no time.
thank you for your humanity
Hear hear
How about a non residential area?
You voted for Mamdani. You got him and all his stupidity. Socialism is great until you have to pay for it. Liberals will now pay for it with the erosion of the fabric of society.
"How about a non residential area" yeah why don't we just make all the homeless people walk to some other neighborhood so it's not our problem anymore?
There will always be issues to manage with an intake facility, but all this does is delay the inevitable - the city owns this site and has historically used it for homeless services, and there is absolutely nothing about zoning or review requirements that prevents this use of the facility. If the fight is to "put it somewhere else" it's not going to legally prevail and it certainly doesn't look good to observers who are exhausted seeing rich neighbors target the poor as the cause of all of society's ills. Maybe everyone needs a reminder that most "homeless" people are not criminally-insane squatters but working-class people who are between apartments and jobs.
And if "not having the intake center here" was a measure in quelling complaints about people seeing the homeless around, I don't think I would have seen as many complaints about it as I have over the prior years. There are unhoused people all throughout the East Side with the intake center currently on 30th Street. I think the only issue this introduces is if the intake is going to have long queues outdoors on the sidewalk, which the city needs to reasonably avoid for the safety/comfort of the families directly across the street (out of an abundance of caution). I don't see the city's plan changing anything otherwise.
You know for a fact Carlina Rivera was out-of-office when this was announced by more than a half year. She stepped down in August 2025. This was announced March 2026. I am struggling to understand how this connection was made.
Peak hypocrisy from those residents.
Our primary focus should be on making our city safe and supporting businesses and individuals that generate taxes for the city. Its the revenue the city makes that allows for programs to help those in need. It seems the city has lost its way and prioritizes people that don't contribute in a positive or fiscal way to the city. This will have long term significant impacts on the city.
I did not vote for him.
It makes me ashamed to hear this hateful and frightened shit. We need to take care of each other.
Agree or disagree with the proposed location - shouldn’t everyone agree that the community should have the most say in what happens in their neighborhood? I’m 100% positive that’s what the mayor said just a few months ago.
Homeless intake on this corner is not suitable for anyone. Imagine that you have just managed to find your way to these east village locations, dropped off from Rikers transport or walking (?) from an emergency room or port authority. These locations are a 10-min walk from the subway. There is no nearby emergency medical care. Nearby businesses are expensive hotels, trendy bars with $25 cocktails, and coffee shops where a muffin and coffee is $15. They need to locate this intake in a lower cost area that has more space and access to items that this population would actually need. This location is just starting people off on the wrong foot and puts the homeless population at odds with the affluent neighbors who admittedly have a very different lifestyle.
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