'05 4000 homeless on Long Island - mostly families with children

[donsu]

http://www.newsday.com/news/local/longisland/ny-lihud0301,0,2858424.story


There were nearly 4,000 homeless people on Long Island and more than 48,000 in New York City in 2005 -- the vast majority of them families with children, according to a federal government report released Wednesday.

The numbers were the result of a Department of Housing and Urban Development project that crunched numbers from shelters and thousands of volunteers who fanned out across the country to count the homeless, one by one.

-snip-

In Suffolk, there were 2,728 homeless people, the vast majority in shelters. Dozens of volunteers walked through woods, over train tracks and into abandoned buildings to find 196 of them living on the streets. In Nassau there were 1,215 homeless, 91 of them outside.

-snip-

However, even those who helped compile the numbers said they missed many homeless people, especially those living outside in scattered forest encampments on Long Island.

-snip-

The high cost of housing has driven thousands of families into shelters and onto the streets in the last seven years, homeless experts said.
-snip-
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and the numbers will continue to rise

I'd bet none of them are illegals

[hashibabba]

1. And yet, Bush's 2008 proposed budget makes cuts in Housing

Assistance. Not to mention another 161 programs for the poor and needy. It just never ends with this putz in charge.

[Forkboy]

2. Almost 50,000 in one fucking city

Sometimes this country makes me ill.

[TreasonousBastard]

3. I help out with one small program...

Maureen's Haven, which handles maybe 20-30 people a night in eastern Suffolk County. Every night one of the local churches opens its doors to the homeless who can't get to the shelters, or don't trust them. Immigrants, even legal ones, often have a deep distrust of government largess since it's only one step away from the INS and big trouble. And, Suffolk's social programs haven't been all that friendly to poor local citizens over the ears, and are downright unfriendly to noncitizens.

Unfortunately, we can't handle families, so there are other appeals for families, which seem to come up every other month just in this tiny, and very wealthy, town. And, I'd say up to a third of the nightly arrivals are illegals-- it's winter so the landscaping, construction and farm jobs they depend on haven't started serious hiring yet. When they do, it's well known that a lot of houses around here were bought up by landscapers, farmers, and others just to house the seasonal workers so they wouldn't be wandering off looking for a job closer to a roof.

Our guests are screened before getting on the bus to the night's church, with the drunk, drugged, or potentially violent not let aboard. On a really cold night they might end up in the shelters, possibly giving the shelters reason for being seen as scary places.

Between rent and utilities, it's going to cost around 2,000 a month to rent a small house around here, and that's if you're not thrown out when the owners want to use it during the summer, or want to rent it out at astronomical summer rates. Rental apartments are actively discouraged by the town, and if you manage to find a legal one, it'll be around a grand a month for a small place-- no pets, no smoking, and no kids allowed. With the going rate of $8-11 an hour for anything less than highly skilled work around here, it does not make it easy.

[Book Lover]

4. There was an article in the SI Reporter a few years ago that

recounted the story of an Island guy who was living in a tent during the summer when rents skyrocket. After the season was over, he could afford to live under a roof again. I know he isn't the only one living that way on Shelter Island... I really, really wish that a town such as Shelter Island, a place that for instance has a free venison food bank for all comers, could forge the political will to create low-income housing.

[TreasonousBastard]

5. Low-income housing scares the crap out of...

everyone out here.

In the land of half-million dollar little shitboxes, the very thought of even "affordable" housing of $250,000 condos brings screaming matches to the zoning board and town meetings.

Speaking of famous alternative housing, when I lived in Joisey, there was a guy who lived deep in a wooded part of a town park for years. Forget the name of the town, but it was probably around Edison somewhere. He built himself a little stone house that looked kinda like a mausoleum and never bothered anyone. Was part of the local folklore, in fact, and some were kinda proud of him.

Sure enough, he didn't pay taxes, was a "troublemaker," was using "town facilities" and mainly just didn't fit in with the new breed of homeowner and bureaucrat, and after all those years was finally thrown out of his little place.

[KittyWampus]

8. I live in the Hamptons. Had friends living in their cars during summer. And I had to move

as did many of my friends twice a year. One rental for winter and another for the 3 months of summer.

[donsu]

7. yesterday I replied to your post but for some reason it has

disappeared.

I thanked you for reporting on the illegals you all were helping

[killbotfactory]

6. I'm sure they all deserved it for some reason

They should read some Ayn Rand, that will fix 'em.

:sarcasm: :sarcasm: :sarcasm: :sarcasm: :sarcasm:

[butterfly77]

9. The american dream

:sarcasm: