Ferreras, Peralta not notified of shelter

From the Queens Chronicle:

When asked Monday when it was decided that the space would become a shelter, the DHS did not immediately answer.

In June, state Sen. Jose Peralta (D-East Elmhurst) said in an emailed statement to the Queens Chronicle that it would be "inconceivable" to him to learn that there would be another homeless shelter would be opened in the area without community input.

On Monday, Peralta issued a written statement saying that there is an understanding of the city's need to house homeless families, but called it a "Bloomberg or Giuliani tactic of shoving a homeless shelter down a community's throat." He called the DHS's emergency authority a "cover" for putting a shelter into a community without input.

“Here we go again, another permanent homeless shelter coming into my district, which makes it the second one under this administration,” said Peralta.

The DHS will arrange for transportation to and from school and other appointments.
Also Monday, the office of City Councilwoman Julissa Ferreras (D-East Elmhurst), who also stressed in June the importance of community input, said the addition of the shelter brings a need for more support to the area.

"Of course she would have liked to have been told back in June when we first asked but overall, the council member and the people she's spoken to are sympathetic to the families who are moving into The Landing," a spokesperson said.

The spokesperson added that poor bus service is a constant issue and must be improved with more traffic generated by the shelter.