NYC mayor: I’ll fight Cuomo’s plan to shift costs to city

New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio, whose efforts to address homelessness have been criticized by Cuomo’s administration, called Cuomo’s $20 billion plan “a very positive sign”.

According to Assembly Member and Chair of the Committee on Housing Keith L.T. Wright, “There has never been a more dire need to preserve and expand affordable housing in this city”.

The city has seen larger-than-expected tax revenues in recent years, but Mr.de Blasio warned that it needs to stow away copious funds in the event of another recession-which he claimed struggling stock markets across the globe make a real possibility.

“Homeless shelters are our invisible city”, he said.

The task force is the latest announcement in a series of major city initiatives aimed at tackling homelessness, including HOME-STAT, the doubling of the city’s drop-in centers, and the addition of new beds for homeless youth. Hundreds of thousands of New Yorkers go to sleep every night anxious about whether they’ll be able to afford rent next month or next year.

Mr.de Blasio warned that the plan would mean mounting bills for the city with each passing year, possibly breaking a billion dollars annually by 2020, and would endanger the city’s longterm financial security.

When the mayor unveiled a plan in November to create 15,000 supportive housing units, which provide substance abuse and mental health treatment for the homeless, he declared that the city was “acting decisively; we are not waiting on Albany”, the New York Times reports.

“It’s not just about providing shelter for one night or one week, but really getting someone off the streets permanently”, said Grillo.

Cuomo also warned that the state wouldn’t tolerate what he earlier described as “dangerous” homeless shelters.

The panel said the mayor should be paid $258,750, based on factors including increases in the cost of living and salaries of comparable officials in other cities.

“I don’t want there to be any mistake, we are responsible of the safety of the women in this city”, de Blasio said.