As city officials continue to struggle with the influx of migrants, Council Speaker Adrienne Adamshas announced a $2.2 million public-private initiative to help nonprofits provide services to migrants, reports AMNY.
Since last April, the city has seen an influx of over 47,000 asylum seekers, most fleeing political violence in Central and South America. Now over 29,000 of those migrants are either in the city’s homeless shelter system or in one of the more than 80 emergency shelters created by Mayor Eric Adams’ administration to handle the surge— and it’s still not enough.
“The council is very excited to announce the launch of Welcome NYC, a $2.2 million public-private initiative to provide financial support for community-based organizations delivering crucial services for asylum seekers and our communities,” Adams stated. “Welcome NYC will help the organization’s providing asylum seekers and our communities with more broadly critical services including workforce development, adult literacy, mentorship and youth programs, social and economic and educational programs, food assistance and other programs that empower families and young adults.”
The council will be funding the initiative with a budget of $1.2 million, that was originally allocated to the Department of Youth and Community Development (DYCD) through the Fiscal Year 2023 budget passed last June, but is projected not to be spent before the start of the next fiscal year. The other $1 million is coming from several philanthropic organizations including the Robin Hood Foundation, New York Community Trust, Bronx Community Foundation, New York Women’s Foundation and Brooklyn Community Foundation.
“The fiscal year isn’t over yet, so the money is council money that was not spent,” stated Justin Brannan, the body’s Committee on Finance chair. “So we either allocate it here or it goes back into the general fund. This seems like a much more important way to allocate those funds.”
Among the many organizations that will receive support from Welcome NYC are Churches United for Fair Housing in Brooklyn, East Side House Inc. in the Bronx, Variety Boys and Girls Club in Queens, and United Way New York City.
“As the mayor said months ago, it will take all levels of government to solve this crisis, that we expect will cost the city $4.2 billion over this fiscal year and the next. We appreciate the council’s announcement putting $1.2 million in funding toward this.”
