Four years ago, Patty Romero and her husband Juan purchased an Elmhurst home on what they considered a peaceful, quiet block.
Now, however, the Romeros and others on their stretch of 58th Avenue just blocks from Queens Boulevard are banding together in opposition of what they consider an audacious and dangerous affront to their residential community: a temporary shelter for the homeless.
Many area residents, including Romero, see the proposal not as a means to help those in dire straits, but as an invitation to those with criminal records and other problems to venture into a neighborhood teeming with vulnerable youngsters.
The Queens Alliance, Inc. (TQA), the non-profit organization that has reputedly rented space in the vacant building – which was at various points in time a nunnery and a student dormitory – maintains that its planned “emergency shelter” at 86-18 58th Avenue will not admit sex offenders, anyone with a violent criminal history, or those with active-phase HIV or AIDS.
According to a TQA fact sheet distributed at a community meeting held by TQA and Community Board 4 on Monday, June 29, the shelter “is designed primarily for those otherwise potentially self sufficient individuals who have fallen temporarily on hard times…”
But Romero, who lives with her husband and three young children next to the targeted site for the shelter, wants a guarantee.
“The head of the organization [TQA] said there will be one security guard and one camera,” said Romero, speaking in Spanish as she looked up at the vacant brick building that cast its shadow on the tricycles and other toys in her yard. “That’s not security for anyone.”
Mitchell Ross, the attorney representing the year-old TQA, said his client is dealing with nothing more than a textbook “NIMBY” – Not In My Backyard – situation.
Those who will seek shelter on 58th Avenue are everyday people, Ross said, emphasizing that the facility will be neither a halfway house nor an AIDS treatment center as some have incorrectly assumed. Instead, he said, the shelter will serve as a “bridge” for individuals looking for permanent housing.
“Things come up in people’s lives,” Ross said. “Sometimes people get evicted, they can’t pay the rent…They sort of fall on these hard times and go to the city and say, ‘I need a place to stay.’”
“Even every dog gets one bite before they put the dog down,” Ross added, “and these people are not listening to anything.”
For now, TQA, which is awaiting further approval from the Department of Buildings, appears to be involved in a public relations campaign, struggling to assuage the fears of a community that feels victimized.
According to Ross, angry residents marched to the vacant site of the shelter after their June 29 meeting, throwing rocks and cutting phone lines. Ross claims that TQA caught the criminal acts – which community members and activists have vehemently denied – on videotape, which has since been handed over to the authorities.
“Since when is helping the homeless a reason to act like the mob going after Dr. Frankenstein?” Ross asked.
Despite the outcry, however, TQA is legally prepared to open its 29-room shelter since the zoning of the building, according to many familiar with the situation, is As-of-Right and does not require special government approval.
But activists like Rosemarie Daraio feel the current zoning is outdated.
“I don’t think anything should come into the community without a public hearing,” said Daraio, the president of COMET (Communities of Maspeth and Elmhurst Together).
Daraio fears that in spite of TQA’s promise that all shelter residents will be pre-screened, the city Human Resources Administration (HRA) will have the final word on admittance.
“Personally,” Daraio said, “I don’t think they [TQA] have a right to turn anyone away if they’re homeless.”
After repeated calls and an email, the HRA finally allowed that the agency is “not commenting on this issue.”
While the 100 or so area residents present at the recent community meeting were collectively against the proposal – and are vying to continue their fight with a July 11 rally – some in the neighborhood are torn.
“It’s a good thing that the organization is trying to do it,” said Yi Liu, a student at City College, who added that a Neighborhood Watch would help “keep things nice and tight” if plans for the shelter went forward.
“I would encourage it,” Liu went on. “But if somebody does get hurt, they’re going to try really hard to push it out.”
Faustino Hernández had similar thoughts. Everybody needs an opportunity, he said, noting that the shelter would give people “a chance.”
At the same time, he added, people in the area will have to be vigilant if the shelter comes to fruition.
“It’s a problem,” Hernández said, referring to the predicament of wanting to help others while keeping his community safe. “I’m human,” he said, shrugging his shoulders, and walking off under the shade of the trees lining 58th Avenue.
