Come out and have your voice heard.
Community Board 9 is hosting a town hall regarding the proposed 140-bed men’s/MICA shelter planned for the Ramada Inn at 169 Empire Blvd.
Whether you support, oppose, or are undecided about the shelter, I strongly encourage local residents to attend and hear directly from DHS and city officials.
A lot of residents are not opposed to helping vulnerable people - the concern is about how the city continues to implement these projects:
- very limited community notice,
- overburdening the same communities with a concentration of shelters in Central Brooklyn,
- lack of transparency and public input,
- insufficient mental health/substance abuse infrastructure,
- and the long-term quality-of-life impact on surrounding residential blocks.
Many people in the neighborhood feel the city is relying on a reactive shelter model which enriches private corporations without adequately investing in treatment, stabilization, or community support systems.
This meeting is an opportunity for residents to ask questions directly and make their voices heard before the shelter is scheduled to open on June 1.
(Town hall flyer attached.)