Thursday, February 16, 2017

Yet another hotel used for homeless


From the Queens Chronicle:

The Department of Homeless Services recently moved dozens of homeless families into the Comfort Inn in Ozone Park — and a nearby resident says the area has become a hotspot for illicit activity.

“It’s filthy there,” said Dominic, a resident who lives nearby. “There’s food just laying on the windowsills all the time ... people smoking marijuana outside.”

It’s unclear when the families were moved to the hotel, located at 137-30 Redding St., a short distance from PS/MS 202.

Councilman Eric Ulrich (R-Ozone Park), Assemblywoman Stacey Pheffer Amato (D-Rockaway Park) and state Sen. Joe Addabbo Jr. (D-Howard Beach) condemned the use of the hotel as a homeless shelter in a joint statement issued Tuesday.

Dominic said in addition to people smoking marijuana, he’s spotted people he believes to be living in the hotel engaging in sexual activity.

He’s not the only one to report such acts, as other residents have reported them to area politicians.

Police could not immediately be reached for comment.

35 comments:

Anonymous said...

It's been a hot sheet motel for 20 years and nobody complained...

JQ LLC said...

I remembered when this opened in 2009 and wondered, who the hell would reserve a room all the way out in Ozone Park while visiting the city. It is even too far away from JFK. And there is a sleazy motel across the street that's been there for over 50 years.

Well 8 years later, and to clearly get out of the red, Comfort Inn management made a backdoor deal with the city to remain solvent by getting rent from the city to shelter families getting kicked out, I assume, Brooklyn. Maybe priced out of apartments in East NY which has seen rental rate averages go up at the prospect of new MIH/AQZ development approved by Mayor Big Show De Faustio.

Even though it's been repeated ad nauseum here, any new hotel being built will certainly be a homeless shelter, and this is the real affordable housing plan for the city's working poor individuals and families.

Anonymous said...

Hey, do you think that the politicians that are organizing communities now that Trump is in Washington could direct attention and support here where it is actually needed?

Naw, they just care about their cushy jobs in Albany Washington and City Council (shout out to Jimmy the 'Library Boy') and all the future Democrats housed in this facility and jobs for well connected Democrats taking care of them promise.

Wearing pink pussy hats. That solves so much. What is next, wearing brown shirts?

Anonymous said...

Thank you liberals for voting mayor dumbdumb into office.... Another bad choice made by liberal new yorkers.

Anonymous said...

Hotel construction in single family residential neighborhoods has been on the rise in the past ten years, precisely for this purpose (Bellerose, Floral Park, and other Queens nabes suddenly needed hotels, where none previously existed for 100 years??), and no one asked any questions about it. These homeless warehouses are now here; are permanent fixtures, and they're not going away.

Anonymous said...

I can't say if illicit activity increased because of the homeless population but to quote one person and they say "and other people see it too" is not proof.

Take video, take pictures. Provide some actual evidence.

The current Mayor didn't create the homeless problem.

The homeless problem is a result of, lack of unemployment, affordable housing,domestic violence, mental illness and drugs.

More resources need to go to those areas.

Anonymous said...

The cost of living here in NYC is high. People live not within their means. Some get affordable housing and work. Some prefer to live off the government and refuse to take care of their mental illness by saying they don't have a problem. Cuts in mental health hurt too.
Domestic violence is another issue.
The next mayor will inherit this on going problem. But one must also think being a sanctuary city is also the cause. Being illegal and living off the citizens can cause unemployment, untreated illness and issues of domestic violence.
For affordable housing NYC has lots of buildings that can be renovated and used for such.
Programs must be mandatory for those seeking housing just like working, services for mental illness, drugs and domestic violence.

Anonymous said...

Joe Addabbo Jr. told us he couldn't do anything about the Glendale shelter
we got lots of lip service and a ton of bullsh!t
now it really sucks when its at his back door
Lets see how much pressure & effort he puts into squashing this one
Karma can be a real bitch

Anonymous said...

The growth of the homeless problem is due to NYC being a sanctuary city. These hotels are not solving the problem, just creating a bigger one

Anonymous said...

The homeless problem is due to a lack of employment? In order to be employed, one has to have some education. And if you would walk through the halls of NYC high schools, you would see a great number of students walking the hall in droves, cutting class, or not even showing up at school. Parents don't even know if their kid is in school, let alone when report cards come out. And they don't know if their kid is doing drugs as many of them are doing drugs themselves. So what kind of housing will these students be able to afford, if they cannot even read at grade level, have math skills way below grade level, and are incapable of critical thinking? Answer: they will be dependent on public funds for housing. The city does not "owe" you employment; you must apply yourself while in school to prepare to support yourself. So the "lack of employment" answer is not valid. It's more like, the "lack of employable". Good paying jobs are going unfilled as employers can't find qualified people to hire. Seeing other people, who DID apply themselves in school and who subsequently are enjoying the fruits of their endeavors in decent places to live, nice clothing, etc. brings about resentment from those who did not, which can lead to domestic violence and turning to drugs to escape a less rosy reality.

The public is not responsible for this. They provided funding to give a basic education. If this was not taken advantage of, you want to make it a public responsibility to supply that which other people have worked toward and earned. Does no one take responsibility for themselves these days?

It is also true that people are streaming into NYC in order to avail themselves of the generous housing/welfare services offered. We are already paying several BILLION dollars to support this mess. There needs to be a strict long residency requirement to get public housing, welfare, etc. and there needs to be a time limit set on this. No more multigenerational cases, so that the few can work to support the many. That's ridiculous and leads to the lowering of quality of life for all.

Anonymous said...

this is about moving darker skinned people into white neighborhoods. Are there any white homeless people living in that hotel for free? I really wonder where people who are on welfare, homeless and supposedly indigent get the money for marijuana. They always seem to have it. Any answers to that?

Gary W said...

Marijuana? That's nothing. Where to they get the money for tattoos, cigarettes, lottery tickets, booze, top of the line smart phones, gold tooth displays..etc etc.?

Why they get it from you.

Anonymous said...

Which highschool specifically because I have kids in highschool and I'm not witnessing this.

>> And if you would walk through the halls of NYC high schools, you would see a great number >> of students walking the hall in droves, cutting class, or not even showing up at school


Yes, this is one of the reasons. Some people lose their job then can't pay rent, then become homeless.
>>The homeless problem is due to a lack of employment?


Based on how fat people are today I'd say "no" to 60% of the population.
>>Does no one take responsibility for themselves these days?


Really, based on what evidence?
>>The growth of the homeless problem is due to NYC being a sanctuary city

Anonymous said...

Queens bordello, the mayor should be forced to live it !!!
Then again he would like the trannys, prostitutes and dope smoking freeloaders he invited to NYC.

Anonymous said...

This poster did not say the city or government was responsible for employment.

You are honestly saying the idea of getting laid off and then getting evicted is something you've never heard of before?

>> the "lack of employment" answer is not valid.

Julie B. said...

All of these comments are spot on. However, the problem is too massive and pervasive to resolve. Will NYC collapse under the weight? Let's face it, deBlasio will be re-elected so no change there.

Anonymous said...

Indigent people get the money for marijuana by dealing it, prostitution and trading stuff they buy with their government benefit cards. Money they get from stealing and being "lookouts" included.
Certain car headlights and assorted parts are big pay on the black market.
My neighbor had his whole front Cadillac bumper and impact shocks stolen right off the car in the Marriott parking lot.

I think the city is beyond repair at this point, I'm waiting to see what the dumb sheeple do next election time. Did they learn anything yet ? If this mayor and incumbent Queens crooks (with all the familiar names) are re-elected I have no choice but bail from here !!

Joe Moretti said...

AND let’s be REAL & HONEST, this is why NO ONE wants homeless shelters in their communities let alone communities that already have tons of them like Jamaica and SE Queens. The majority of the people going into them are problematic, lacking in social skills & manners, dirtbags, slobs and any other adjective or name you want to enter here______________. I have no damn sympathy for these folks, because they treat whatever areas they go into like a garbage dump.

AND no doubt that the homeless in this hotel turned slop house are not even from Ozone Park, I bet they are not even anywhere near the area. Again you don’t see these dirtbags being shipped into Forest Hills, hood of the evil white queens Melinda Katz. Wonder why?

Anonymous said...

*** In order to be employed, one has to have some education***

Very well said and put together.
Thank you.

Anonymous said...


You should educate yourself before you start calling people names.

I provide volunteer medical help at a shelter and I can tell you most of the people are suffering from mental illness and or serious abuse in their lives. They need compassion not name calling.

<> lacking in social skills & manners, dirtbags,

Anonymous said...

Looks like these hotels were built and were probably told if it doesn't work out,we will pay you to house homeless......

Joe Moretti said...

Anon stated: You should educate yourself before you start calling people names.

I provide volunteer medical help at a shelter and I can tell you most of the people are suffering from mental illness and or serious abuse in their lives. They need compassion not name calling.

<> lacking in social skills & manners, dirtbags,
-------------

I have educated myself since my community has a slew of homeless shelters and I see all the problems that those lacking in social skills/manners and dirt bags cause. Whether they are mentally ill or serious abuse in their lives, drug addicts, etc, they still are a problematic bunch that causes many issues in communities.

Anonymous said...

And....why not?
It is guaranteed income for the owners.

Anonymous said...


I'm assuming, like most people, you get up everyday and go to your career. You work with a team at a company to solve problems. You work with problems and deadlines like most people do.

So, what do you suggest we do? What pragmatic approach do you suggest.

You "see" the problems. But you aren't trying to understand the problem. If you are working on syncing multiple financial systems and one system has a failure rate of 90% but the others have a failure rate of 1% do you just complain about 90% failure rate. No! You put together a solution. So, offer a solution.

>>Anonymous Joe Moretti said...

Anonymous said...

What a sick and costly joke on the honest, FOREVER invisible-and-languishing residents of Ozone Park!

It's a shaby and vile case of: SAME CIRCUS——SAME LETHALLY INCOMPETENT CLOWNS, where all three paper tiger (reactionary) stooges like Eric Ulrich, Joe Addabbo and walking corpse Audrey Pheffer's crummy offspring daughter, Stacy (another failed political dynasty of openly practiced nepotism!) are laughably commenting on the homeless, when they have been so completely useless and derelict to constituents like me, who've been complaining about quality of life issues in Ozone Park for more than a decade (and, especially after the unwelcome arrival of the regressive and cannibalistic foreing gambling mill at Aqueduct Race Track that continues to pad Addabbo's and Cuomo's pockets of failed state government (apparently Albany is the ONLY house that wins in THIS foreign house racket——every time)!

Well, F**K THEM ONE, F**K THEM ALL, these willfully derelict city/state payroll parasites, all of whom are the epitome of depraved, political worthlessness, as well as a collective waste of skin——depleting the Earth of precious oxygen.

Don't expect any solution from these vastly overpaid, publicly unauthorized stooges, fellow Ozone Park inmates, I mean residents! All THREE empowered idiots now DEVALUE all honesty itself! (I credit President DONALD J. TRUMP for telling the truth, by affirming what everybody else in the rank and file have already known for decades regarding ALL crooked politicians——NOT PUBLIC SERVANTS——when he so eloquently and correctly stated last year: ❝They're ALL no good!❞——And, these three cradle-to-grave clowns are Trump's living proof of epic, humanitarian and ecological fail!)

Anonymous said...

I have educated myself since my community has a slew of homeless shelters and I see all the problems that those lacking in social skills/manners and dirt bags cause. Whether they are mentally ill or serious abuse in their lives, drug addicts, etc, they still are a problematic bunch that causes many issues in communities.

Don't you understand, government is not run for you! It is run by the Democratic Party that has pretty much made formal government a zombie, a husk. These people vote Democrat, they are hired for made up jobs servicing Democrats, provide employment to legions of Democrats, and it you try to change it you will be attacked by pink hat fascists.

It is another reason developers backed up with bogus civics and community boards run your neighborhoods. Its all a sham people!

Anonymous said...


Maybe they can't understand run-on sentences along side rambling with random punctuation and capital letters.

>>... When they have been so completely useless and derelict to constituents like me,

Anonymous said...

So, what do you suggest we do? What pragmatic approach do you suggest.

Either reverse the Callahan decision, qualify it with a 1 year minimum residency requirement proved by rent or mortgage receipts, or remove the per-county burden and let HHAC place these people in cheaper facilities elsewhere in the state.

Anonymous said...

Homeless people come in all colors. Saying white neighborhoods don't want darker skinned people in their neighborhoods are wrong. Stop playing the race card. Enough already.
Let's just say no one wants to be homeless.

Anonymous said...

Maybe they detest trolls like you who lack basic education and comprehension skills, last Anonymous—or maybe you are just unnaturally slow and stupid! Funny how you are a minority of one here!

Don't visit your short, Twitter-addled attention span, and subpar education by launching a personal attack on me, while you ironically (and conveniently) ignore the topic of corrupt and dishonest politicians (and their willful public duty derelictions).

So, which one of the three stooges that I mentioned above writes your paycheck, fool? And, look—no capital letters to confuse your damaged brain chemistry—it's a win-win!

Anonymous said...

I don't think these are bad ideas but what do we do right now with the homeless?

No one wants a homeless shelter but there will need to be homeless shelters because there will be homeless people. The shelters should be balanced equally around the city ( and Westchester ).

>>Either reverse the Callahan decision, qualify it >>with a 1 year minimum residency requirement >>proved by rent or mortgage receipts, or remove the per-county burden and let HHAC place these people in cheaper facilities elsewhere in the state.

Anonymous said...

Is this how you conduct yourself professionally. If you want people to listen to you then be constructive in your comments . Don't call people names and curse.

>> anonymous
>>or maybe you are just unnaturally slow and stupid!

Anonymous said...

It is another reason developers backed up with bogus civics and community boards run your neighborhoods. Its all a sham people!
I have experienced that when attempting to get assistance from the local Community board Chair. How could he, an appointed son of God, even speak to a mere mortal such as myself? After all he makes six figures plus all the pay offs. It's depressing. The Community Board is packed with real estate people who if their life depended on it, could not locate any ethical behavior of theirs.


...walking corpse Audrey Pheffer's crummy offspring daughter, Stacy (another failed political dynasty of openly practiced nepotism!)Fascinating to see where her office is. Wonder why they chose that location?

I love the reality checks I get on Queens Crap from all you Anonymous People. Thanks, I am not crazy. Things really do suck in Queens.

I am becoming more aware of a few things in my neighborhood. Open drug dealing in the Yemen run delis and smoke shops. Every single deli is owned by people from Yemen, where no woman ever works. The employees barely speak English and they go back and forth to Yemen a couple of times a year for months. What is up with that? To me that's really spooky. It's a conglomerate. And serious low lives are being relocated into my area making it crummier place to live. I assume they all have housing subsidy vouchers or are in scattered site housing. Talk about mentally ill. They hang on the streets 24/7, blast music, create garbage and are probably part of that underground economy since they are always in the streets. Creepy. How do they get housing vouchers so quickly and get those hotel rooms paid for. that's what I want to know.

Anonymous said...


Really, that's spooky? I go back and forth to Greece and couple times a year is that spooky? I have a co-worker that goes back and forth to Brazil a couple times a year. Is that spooky?

I know a Nepali place and the people there barely speak English either.
There's open drug dealing in the dorm rooms of Columbia and Harvard University.

>>go back and forth to Yemen a couple of times a year for months. What is up with that? To me that's really spooky.

Anonymous said...

To third Anonymous from bottom: So, your concern is with my curse words that I correctly ascribed to all three of these hyper-corrupt and useless politicians (not public servants!), instead of why a languishing constituent like me isn't getting the urgent help that I need, while being victimized by taxation without representation? Where are your priorities?

My response was directed at most likely one of the three named political buffoons' personal payroll cronies, where all three completely ignored my complaint against systemic corruption and cover-ups that are not only dangerous, but unsonscionable!

But, the big bad constitutent who used foul language against three worthless politicians is what gets undernearth your flaky skin! No wonder Queens County is the biggest raw sewage plant of all, when people like you ignore the big, stinking elephant turd in the room of all OPENLY PRACTICED political corruption, but you ironically have PLENTY to say about a few correct expletives, where the bigger question that you have COMPLETELY overlooked is: Where is the professional respect from all Queens County henchmen, I mean politicians? Because, respect commands mutual respect, my dear, which I have NEVER EVER received from ANY and ALL of these vastly overpaid clowns who appoint their own salaries and pay bumps at will, without public consent! But, THAT'S not important to you, naturally!

Get your prioritis straight, Anonymous, and direct your contempt at the failed political leadership of Queens that I speak of—instead of carelessly and irresponsibly shooting the messenger!