Neighbors in a wealthy Manhattan neighborhood notched a small victory in their fight against a controversial homeless shelter, with a judge granting a temporary restraining order blocking its opening.
The March 6 order from Manhattan Supreme Court Judge Sabrina Kraus means that the 200-bed homeless shelter for single women on the Upper East Side can’t open as planned in April until an in-person hearing to address the concerns from neighbors.
The board of a nearby tower condominium at 401 East 60th St. claimed in a lawsuit that the city and shelter operator failed to address “potentially significant noise impacts” to the area.
“No enforceable mechanism exists to ensure the assumed noise mitigation is implemented,” the suit states, adding that building permits for the shelter do not address the potential ruckus.
The condo board also alleges that the city forced through an “unlawful” environmental review of the shelter site at 1114 First Ave.
The city’s Department of Homeless Services “reached a pre-ordained conclusion rather than fulfilling its statutory obligations,” the suit charges.
Barry Temkin, an attorney for the shelter operator, Bronx Parent Housing Network, called the suit a bunch of hot air.
While the condo board claims their property is “adjacent” to the shelter, the two are actually roughly 100 feet apart and separated by East 61st Street and a low-rise Home Depot store, according to Temkin and court filings.
“The residents of 401 East 60th Street cannot hear ambient noise inside another building that is a football field away,” Temkin wrote. “On the other hand, the City has a legal mandate to provide shelter for the homeless.”
The shelter operator also refuted the board’s claims that it and the city had failed to conduct proper noise mitigation as “completely incorrect,” noting that publicly available building plans clearly show the “the exact protocol for sound attenuation that [the condo] says is somehow missing.”
“This facility will bring critical shelter capacity to a council district that currently contains no traditional DHS shelters facilities, and we look forward to working collaboratively with our experienced not-for-profit provider, Housing Services of New York to support our vulnerable neighbors as they work to get back on their feet and transition to permanent housing,” a city DHS spokesperson said in a statement Friday.
Since it was announced in January, the shelter on First Avenue and East 61st Street has provoked outrage from some denizens of the posh enclave, with over 5,000 people signing a petition in opposition.
Originally set up for single men, City Council Speaker Julie Menin, who reps the Upper East Side, said it would instead host women.
One resident opined at a raucous February community board meeting that the location next to a Home Depot would make neighbors sitting ducks to all sorts of brutal attacks.
“Any tool becomes a weapon when it’s held correctly,” the resident said of the nearby retail shop.
Other residents spoke out in favor of the shelter at the meeting, noting that a similar site in Yorkville run by the same operator was barely noticeable.
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