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City Investigating Home for LGBT Youth
Current and former residents of a group home for LGBT youth say physical abuse, sexual misconduct and financial mismanagement were common.
Deep Concerns about ‘Three-Quarter’ Housing
Three-quarter homes give people who are homeless, leaving prison or seeking substance-abuse treatment a place to stay. But critics say the houses are unregulated and sometimes unsafe.
Lawsuits Target Three-Quarter Operators
At some dormitories for homeless people, lawyers allege, landlords forced tenants to attend particular drug programs and failed to provide safe housing. But operators say they were trying to do good—or at least following the law.
Three-Quarter Houses Mix Problems with Positives
The unregulated rooming houses often feature crowded, unsafe conditions. But even some critics point out that they play an important role in keeping people off the street.
Amid Court Fight, Formerly Homeless In Limbo
The end of the Advantage subsidy program leaves advocates battling to salvage a policy they criticized, the city bracing for more demand for scarce shelter beds and low-income families wondering what comes next.
Winter Raises Stakes for Homeless in Greenpoint
Community opposition hasn't stopped plans for a large shelter in the waterfront neighborhood, where five homeless people have been found dead in the past 15 months.
From Blue-Collar to the Welfare Line
Walter Greene worked for a living. Then the work disappeared. Now, like thousands of other low-income New Yorkers, he navigates homeless shelter rules and the welfare bureaucracy.
One Woman's Plan to Beat Poverty
Beverly Davis has a full-time job, a family she supports and a college course to complete. She has plans to become a police officer. Public benefits are essential to her move from low-wage work to economic independence.
The Principal Is New. The School Is Closing.
With new boss Dennis Walcott, the city school system gets a new chance to improve relations with parents and teachers. But there'll be no second chance for Robeson High in Bed-Stuy. What does that mean for students?
On The Street, Making Plans: Q&A With A Homeless Girl
She came to the city for a concert and never left. Now she's part of the city's complex culture of street homelessness—where cardboard signs are gold, and you're either a "crusty" or you're not.
Senate, Assembly Resist Cuomo Cuts To Services
Legislators want to restore many human services that Gov. Cuomo proposed cutting. But the Senate and Assembly still differ by tens of millions of dollars on social funding, and some programs still face elimination.
Critics Of Homeless Program Fight To Save It
Advocates for the homeless have long criticized the Bloomberg administration's approach to getting people out of shelters. But with the state threatening to end funding for the program, most advocates have joined the city to oppose the cuts.
Grandparents Who Parent Are Facing Budget Cuts
Thousands of New York children are raised by relatives other than their parents. Many rely on state programs to support their unexpected second stint as guardians.
As AIDS Threat Changes, Push For Housing Renews
Advocates, hoping Gov. Cuomo will back a cap on rent for people in AIDS housing, say research shows that shelter saves lives and reduces government expenditures.
Cuomo's Cuts Could Hit The Poor
The tiff between Albany and City Hall over education aid isn't the only fight brewing over the governor's budget. His cuts to public assistance, homeless services and child welfare are also coming under fire.
Housing That's More Than A Home
Many of New York City's homeless need more than just a place to live. As this audio slidehow reveals, they need services to help them get and keep their lives on track.
No Vacancy: Why Empty Condos Aren't Becoming Affordable Housing
Boom-time overbuilding left thousands of units vacant. But a city program to convert them to affordable housing has found the market uncooperative.
For Transgender Homeless, Choice Of Shelter Can Prevent Violence
A pilot policy to allow transgender people to choose between men's and women's shelters has reduced violence. But women's shelters are safer for either identity.
Report: NYC's Bail System Punishes The Poor
Human Rights Watch calls on New York City to come up with a better way than putting a price on freedom for low-income defendants awaiting trial for minor crimes.
BIDs These Days
The ups and downs of Business Improvement Districts
Homelessness
Over 3,000 New Yorkers live on the streets or in the subways and nearly 40,000 reside in shelters. These numbers have soared in recent years reportedly due to the economic recession. With thousands of layoffs, it is not surprising that many New Yorkers found it challenging to keep up with home payments while keeping food on the table. Many turn to the shelters as a means of support during difficult times. The city’s Department of Homeless Services works to prevent homelessness and to aid those already homeless.
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City Limits Criminal Justice Reporting Honored - Jarrett Murphy
The National Council on Crime and Delinquency recognized our coverage of staff sexual misconduct in New York's prisons and the housing challenges facing former inmates.
Feds Fall Down on Homeless Women Vets - Jarrett Murphy
The number of homeless women veterans tracked by the federal Department of Veterans Affairs has more than doubled in the past five years, but they are poorly served by existing programs, an investigation finds.
Plan Calls for Longer Shelter Stays - Jarrett Murphy
A new report on homelessness in New York calls for some shelter residents to be housed for a year to 18 months, so they can get the time and resources needed to become self-sufficient.
Read It: Court Backs City Cut of Homeless Program - Jarrett Murphy
A state judge ruled that New York can end a rent-subsidy program for formerly homeless people that lost its state and federal funding.
AIDS Program Cuts Stir Protest - Johann Hamilton
Advocates are speaking out against proposed cuts to programs that feed and house people living with HIV/AIDS.
CONVERSATIONS/OPINONS
Homelessness: It's About Race, Not Just Poverty
A new report finds black families are seven times more likely than whites to end up in the shelter system. For a minority group that's faced official and informal housing discrimination, poverty is only part of the explanation.
MULTIMEDIA
NYC DOT: Sustainable Streets Index 2010
Detailed statistics on traffic congestion, transit use and transportation safety.
Audit of a Drug Treatment Service
A New York State agency audit detailed links between a substance-abuse treatment service and a provider of "sober homes."
