Advocates, Lawmakers Frustrated By Late City Hall Report on Homeless Encampment 'Sweeps'

Before he entered a Manhattan shelter at the end of December, Eduardo Ventura spent several months sleeping outside in the East Village, where he said he was routinely caught up in the city's longstanding 'sweeps' practice... 'Basically, we used to start from scratch, every other day.'

The new reports on homeless sweeps, required each quarter under Local Law 34, are delayed, frustrating advocates and lawmakers... 'But a month after the first due date, advocates and lawmakers are still waiting.'

Brooklyn Councilmember Shahana Hanif expressed disappointment at the delay in reporting on homeless sweeps, citing it as an obstacle to critical legislation... 'This is a lack of cooperation... it really undermines the Council's ability to move on critical legislation.'

Hanif emphasized the urgency of the reporting bill due to an increase in the city's unsheltered homeless population, and stricter rules for adult migrants in the shelter system... 'The legislation is even more urgent now than when it was passed.'

Read at City Limits