UWS Org To Protest Decision To Move Homeless From Hotel Shelters

UPPER WEST SIDE, NY — An Upper West Side homeless advocacy group is holding a protest in the neighborhood in response to Mayor Bill de Blasio's recent statements about pushing to move nearly 8,000 people experiencing homelessness currently staying in hotels back into permanent shelters.

The UWS Open Hearts Initiative will host the protest on Saturday at 1:15 p.m. in front of the Belleclaire Hotel at 77th Street and Broadway.

The Belleclaire, along with The Lucerne, and Belnord Hotel were the three Upper West Side hotels that received temporary populations of people experiencing homelessness in the summer of 2020 due to COVID-19 worries concerning the overcrowding in congregate shelters in Lower Manhattan.

The Open Hearts Initiative is calling for de Blasio and the Department of Homeless Services to enact an emergency plan this summer to ensure individuals moved from the temporary hotel shelters get placed into permanent housing — instead of back into congregate shelters.

The protest will coincide with the Upper West Side organization's monthly free store, which provides clothes, shoes, and toiletries for no cost to people in need. The store is run by volunteers and stocked completely with donated goods.

This Saturday's store will also include a "West Side Fridge Pop-Up Pantry," featuring packaged foods, baked goods, drinks, sandwiches, and fresh produce.

You can learn more about the UWS Open Heart's Initiative on its website.