City To Open 175-Bed Homeless Shelter In Washington Heights

INWOOD, NY — A former parking garage in Washington Heights is being converted into a men's homeless shelter with 175 beds, city Department of Homeless Services officials confirmed.

Work has already started to convert the building, located at 286 Audubon Avenue between West 179th and 180th streets, for a projected late summer or fall 2019 opening, city officials said. The new shelter will help the city meet the need for shelter beds in Upper Manhattan, city officials said.

There are currently 425 households, made up of 862 people, from the Washington Heights and Inwood neighborhoods in the shelter system but only 409 beds in the area. Of those beds, 120 are located in a commercial hotel that will be phased out through Mayor Bill de Blasio's "Turning the Tide" homelessness initiative, city officials said.

"Homeless New Yorkers come from every community across the five boroughs, so we need every community to come together to address homelessness," Department of Homeless Services Spokeswoman Arianna Fishman said in a statement.

"This new high-quality facility will offer 175 individuals experiencing homelessness the opportunity to be sheltered in their home borough, closer to their support networks and communities they called home as they get back on their feet."

THE CITY reporter Rachel Holliday Smith first reported on the city's plan for the new shelter.

There are three DHS facilities currently operating in Washington Heights and Inwood in addition to the one commercial hotel, according to a department map of where shelters are located throughout the city as of Dec. 31, 2018.

The new shelter will be run by the nonprofit HELP USA, which will offer residents services such as case management, counseling, housing placement and life skills workshops. HELP USA will also conduct 24-hour security at the location, with a minimum of 10 security guards per shift and three guards posted at the shelter's entrance, city officials said. Seventy-three security cameras will be installed on the shelter grounds, officials said.

City officials said the community was notified of the shelter plans as early as Feb. 22. A letter was sent that day to Community Board 12's district manager Ebenezer Smith as well as local City Councilman Ydanis Rodriguez and Congressman Adriano Espaillat, according to city documents.

Community Board 12 will discuss the plans with DHS officials at a housing committee meeting on Thursday, March 7. The meeting will be held at the Allianza Dominicana Cultural Center on West 166th Street between St. Nicholas and Audubon avenues and will begin at 7 p.m., according to the CB 12 agenda.