"The [change in location] is moving too quickly for anyone’s comfort," Dave Giffen, executive director of Coalition for the Homeless, said in an interview with @politico.com. "Nobody quite understands why it’s on this timeline."

"Advocates emphasized that the debate over CityFHEPS is not just about budget lines but about the lived realities of thousands of New Yorkers navigating an increasingly unaffordable housing market.” Read the full amNY piece here.

*** Legal Aid, Coalition for the Homeless Respond to Court Ruling on East Village Intake Shelter ***

"If the rent wasn't so much, then I don't think I would be in a shelter right now.” @mayormamdani.bsky.social must keep his promise to expand CityFHEPS -- a key tool to ending the housing affordability crisis that has pushed over 100,000 people into shelters.

Reflecting on the Mayor's 1st 100 days, Alison Wilkey, our Dir. of Gov. Affairs told @thecity.nyc, “The Mamdani administration has yet to really articulate a plan for how it is addressing homelessness & the housing crisis for extremely low income New Yorkers. What we’ve seen is disappointing.”

No surprises in NYC's new cost of living measure: 62% of NYers don't earn enough to afford living here and housing is the biggest cost for most household types. Affordability will continue to be out of reach for the lowest income households unless NYC builds housing for those who need it most. 1/

“The back-pedalling he did on CityFHEPS was very disappointing. The back-pedaling he did on encampment sweeps was very disappointing...We will continue to push him to do...the right thing: to help homeless and at-risk New Yorkers.” said CFTH Exec. Dir. @giffendave.bsky.social to @theguardian.com.

Executive Director of CFTH, @giffendave.bsky.social, speaking to amNY, said the @mayor.nyc.gov affordability agenda so far appears too focused on middle- and working-class New Yorkers and “doesn’t seem to be adequately inclusive of lower-income New Yorkers and homeless New Yorkers.”

“The food quality is not good at most places. We’re also...seeing food that is not heated up all the way so it’s still semi-frozen, or food that...smells like it’s spoiled," Jamie Powlovich, Sr. Mgr for Systems Access & Shelter Compliance at @nyhomeless.bsky.social told @citylimitsnews.bsky.social.

In testimony to the @council.nyc.gov, Dir. of Government Affairs for @nyhomeless.bsky.social, Alison Wilkey said “The city is left with a moral choice here of, do we invest in CityFHEPS to house people and make sure that our people, our residents have a home? Or do we leave people in homelessness?”

“For every 100 extremely low-income families in the NYC metro...only 35 apartments are available & affordable to them. According to city data, about 70% of subsidized exits from city homeless shelters involved CityFHEPS.” CFTH Dir. of Gov. Affairs, Alison Wilkey testified to @council.nyc.gov.

“If I’m a vegetarian and you keep offering me a trip to Gallagher’s Steakhouse, you can offer it to me every single day and it’s still not what I need,” @giffendave.bsky.social, Executive Director of @nyhomeless.bsky.social told @nytimes.com. 1/

“The best way to end the use of hotels is to dramatically reduce the number of people who need shelters in the first place by building more housing that’s actually affordable to the lowest-income New Yorkers”, @nyhomeless.bsky.social Executive Director Dave Giffen told the New York Post.

Encampment sweeps do not effectively address the root causes of homelessness and often disrupt individuals’ access to essential services. There are other more effective and ethical approaches. www.world-today-journal.com/nyc-homeless...

We're in Albany w/ @nyhomeless.bsky.social, @vocal-ny.bsky.social, @nycbarassociation.bsky.social and Assembly Member Reyes to urge lawmakers to ensure that internet access is available in shelters. Internet access is not a luxury - it's a necessity + is essential to secure housing, jobs, and more.

Can you imagine not having internet in your home? Tens of thousands of people sleep in shelters without WiFi every night, making it harder to search for apartments, apply for benefits, & access healthcare. You can help us by taking 2 mins to support WiFi in shelters by contacting your legislator.

“No young person in New York City should ever be faced with the question of where they're going to be sleeping at night,” Jamie Powlovich, a senior manager for the Coalition for the Homeless told @gothamist.com.

*** The Legal Aid Society and Coalition for the Homeless Statement on City’s Planned Closure of 30th Street Intake Shelter ***

“If we want to live in a city where people don’t die on the streets, let’s live in a city where people don’t have to live on the street,” Coalition for the Homeless Executive Director @giffendave.bsky.social told @crainsnewyork.bsky.social this week.

“They shouldn’t be taking any actions that are going to put people at risk or lessen their ability to stay warm or survive the blizzard,” @giffendave.bsky.social, Coalition for the Homeless Executive Director, told @nytimes.com reporters. www.nytimes.com/2026/02/23/w...

Regardless of the historic blizzard, the Coalition’s Grand Central Food Program vans were out last night – as they are every night – bringing hot meals, critical supplies, and info about the warming sites to people surviving on the streets of NYC.

Outreach is more effective when people do not fear enforcement. “When city workers show up & throw away all the belongings of somebody who’s surviving out on the streets, that creates a real feeling of distrust,” our Exec. Dir. @giffendave.bsky.social told amNY.

Alexius Marcano from @nyhomeless.bsky.social explains how imposing fees on unhoused populations creates a cycle of debt that makes it even harder to secure stable housing and undermines public safety. This was just one idea discussed in our recent webinar, ‘Serve & Protect or Curb & Collect?’

*** Coalition for the Homeless and @legalaidnyc.bsky.social on City Revamping Homeless Sweeps *** Read full statement here.

Our Exec. Dir. Dave Giffen and @winnyc.bsky.social CEO Chris Quinn, penned an op-ed in @cityandstateny.bsky.social. "Over the last 4 years, former Mayor Adams responded to the homelessness crisis with a series of...sweeps of encampments that failed to move a single NYer into permanent housing." 1/

Mark your calendars for April 24th! This year's Women Mean Business Luncheon is a celebration of courage. Join hundreds of NYC's most passionate leaders as we come together to raise crucial funds for the Coalition's First Step Job Training Program. www.coalitionforthehomeless.org/wmbl-tickets

Our new policy brief focuses on building more affordable housing for those who need it most. We are calling on NYC to build 60,000 new units over the next five years for New York's homeless and extremely low income households.

*** @LegalAidNYC, Coalition for the Homeless Urge City to Bolster Measures to Protect Unhoused New Yorkers From Looming Subzero Temperatures *** read full statement here:

The call for sweeps is an “opportunistic misframing of a terrible tragedy to try to get the administration to try failed approaches of the past,” @nyhomeless.bsky.social Executive Director @giffendave.bsky.social told @davidfbrand.bsky.social for @gothamist.com.

*** Coalition for the Homeless and The Legal Aid Society Applaud Opening of Pearl Street Safe Haven Shelter *** Read full statement here:

"The system does not do a good job of making sure that individuals are getting what they need in order to come in off of the street. We need to see far far more low-barrier shelters like safe havens," @nyhomeless.bsky.social Executive Director @giffendave.bsky.social told @cbsnews.com.

“As a guiding principle, when you have a limited resource, you’d start with the people who are most in need," Executive Director for @nyhomeless.bsky.social, @giffendave.bsky.social told @smaldo.bsky.social for @thecity.nyc. 1/

Our donate page is currently under construction. If you would like to donate, please use www.paypal.com/donate/?host...

“If placement into supportive housing isn't an integral part of the approach, the revolving door between hospitals, shelters, jails, and the streets will sadly continue” @giffendave.bsky.social told @gothamist.com.

Our thoughts go out to Louis Gerstner’s family and friends today. Lou's generosity & vision saved 100s of families from homelessness through his support of our Eviction Prevention Program. His deep humanity inspired us all, & leaves an enduring legacy.

@giffendave.bsky.social, Exec. Dir. of @nyhomeless.bsky.social told @nytimes.com, "There’s really only one number that matters: how many people in New York City are homeless at any given time?”

A coordinated approach to NYC’s historic housing and homelessness crisis is long overdue. The Coalition looks forward to working with newly appointed Deputy Mayor for Housing and Planning Leila Borzog in the new year to ensure that every New Yorker has a home.

Code Blue is in effect from 4pm today, December 12 until 8am tomorrow, December 13. Learn more about Code Blue here: www.coalitionforthehomeless.org/get-help/kno...

There are only 3 days left to donate to our Holiday Toy Drive 2025! We urgently need 2,000 more toys to guarantee we can fulfill every order. One toy can transform a child's holiday season. Give a toy now: www.amazon.com/hz/wishlist/...

"With Mayor Adams...the main concern is creating the appearance that homelessness is being reduced by removing people from sight,...without any thought to what's happening [to them]," @nyhomeless.bsky.social Exec. Dir. @giffendave.bsky.social shares with @alibauman.bsky.social for @cbsnews.com.

“The reason that we have a right to shelter in New York City is because [the cold] is dangerous,” @giffendave.bsky.social told @spectrumnewsny1.bsky.social. “It can threaten your life to sleep out exposed to the elements and especially on nights like tonight.”

*** The Coalition for the Homeless commends the New York City Council for standing up for low-income New Yorkers by overriding the Mayor’s veto of Intro 1372. *** Read full statement here: www.coalitionforthehomeless.org/press/coalit...

Glad to help!

This morning, @abc7ny.bsky.social and Taryn Delanie Smith spread the word about our Holiday Toy Drive. During this holiday season, give the joy of a new toy for children living in NYC shelters.

Thank you for being a crucial part of our Grand Central Food Program and for giving it such a great shout out. Wishing you a happy holiday season 💙

Thank you for your constant support David! Wishing you happy holidays

I just bought a kid a Hello Kitty doll!

American friends, especially NYC and surrounds, this is for you. Everyone else, if you can, consider a local community group that helps those in need. Where I am, our Community Resource Centre coordinates an annual hamper drive. If you aren't sure of what's around, check in with your council.