Mayor Zohran Mamdani said Wednesday New York City will resume clearing homeless encampments after pausing the practice in January while the administration developed a new approach.<\/p>\n
Under the plan, the Department of Homeless Services \u2014 not the police \u2014 will lead efforts. Mamdani said the city will post a notice before a site is cleared, send outreach workers there daily for a week to connect people with shelter and services, and have sanitation crews dismantle the encampment on the seventh day with the expectation that tents and belongings will have been moved.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe will meet them looking to connect them with shelter, looking to connect them with services, looking to connect them with a city that wants them to be sheltered and indoors and warm and safe,\u201d Mamdani said during a news conference, adding he believed the sustained outreach would produce better results than the prior administration\u2019s policy. Mamdani paused the previous practice on Jan. 5 after taking office in December and had criticized how his predecessor handled encampments.<\/p>\n
David Giffen, executive director of the Coalition for the Homeless, said his group was \u201cblindsided\u201d by the announcement and called the move a \u201cpolitical response\u201d that could undermine trust between outreach workers and unsheltered people and increase risks during extreme weather. At least 19 people have died outside during a prolonged cold stretch in the city, officials said. The mayor\u2019s office said there is no evidence that anyone who died was living in encampments and encouraged people experiencing homelessness to use shelters, heated buses and warming centers.<\/p>\n