The asylum seeker shelter at the Brooklyn Cruise Terminal has made a lot of headlines in recent days. For this reason, a group of elected officials decided to visit the facilities this Wednesday to take a closer look at the situation.
“There’s no privacy. Right now it’s about a thousand people living one on top of the other … It has to be better,” said Antonio Reynoso, president of the Brooklyn Borough.
Reynoso said, “But he has experience out there with how people feel.
The city began moving unmarried men from the Watson Hotel to the shelter on weekends.
But immediately there were reports of poor conditions at the shelter, as well as complaints about how far some of them were from Manhattan.
We spoke to a person who was transferred, who asked not to be identified.
“At L Watson they shared a room with two people. The sleeping comfort was much better,” he said.
Hostel.
The immigrant is 41 years old and is from Venezuela. He had come alone, leaving his son with his mother. And although he admits that the hotel was more comfortable, he explains that here they find everything they need.
He said, “Kindness is good, food is great, that’s the only thing I told you, the little details, the coexistence, that we’re all there.”
After the tour, officials confirmed that the shelter is warm, has some storage and is secure, with some security guards on site in case of any incident, which they say has not happened so far.
However, Brooklyn Councilwoman Alexa Aviles believes more can be done.
“We’re going to work to make sure the position is as dignified as possible,” the councilor said.
“That’s what we need, a helping hand to work. These people who are here complain because they don’t really have jobs,” said the immigrant.
Elected officials also want to make sure asylum seekers are housed somewhere they don’t have to relocate, so that they have stability.
