New York, NY —
Last night the Department of Homeless Services began refusing to shelter families that they believe have other housing options. WNYC's Cindy Rodriguez spoke to several families outside a homeless intake center in the Bronx.
REPORTER: Prior to last night, Shanet Badillo and her 14 year old daughter would have shown up at this Bronx intake center and been given a bed for the night. But the city says families like hers have other places they can go:
BADILLO: They're saying that I can go back to my cousins house in Laurel Maryland but my cousin sent me a letter faxed stating that she cannot hold me and my daughter in her house.
REPORTER: Badillo says she originally became homeless after fleeing an abusive relationship in New Jersey. She then moved in with her Maryland relative and things were ok at first:
BADILLO: I had a mcdonald's job and everything. But she came and she hit my daughter so I had to leave her house and they're saying I can go back to the house I'm not going to put my 14 year old through that.
REPORTER: The single mom insists she will sleep outside the intake center if necessary. Several families in similar situations were also holding out for shelter placements.
REPORTER: The city says these families have been taking advantage of a loophole by showing up at the intake center after normal business hours requiring the city to give them a one night placement. In a years time officials says the number of families doing this jumped from about 12-hundred to 24 hundred. But Virginia Badin, a single mom with two daughters says she was told by DHS staff to show up after 5pm and she's been doing just that for over a month:
BADIN: It's just ridiculous what they're putting us through. Yes, I'm scared. I'm scared for me and my kids I don't know where to go. I'm scared of the cold not just for me but for my children. My daughter she suffers from ear infections and the cold is going to get in her ears and I'm scared she's going to wind up in the hospital.
REPORTER: Badin says she's been told to go stay with her mother. But the 31 year old says her mother lives in public housing and isn't allowed to move anyone into her apartment. The Department of Homeless Services says it conducts thorough investigations when determining whether a family has another place to stay. It takes them 10 days and they visit the homes of relatives and friends. But often families are told to go back to overcrowded apartments. Michael Watson says he was told to stay with an aunt that already had 8 other people living in her 2 bedroom apartment. Instead he tracked down his mother:
WATSON: We leaving right now. I haven't seen my mother in over 10 years. Yesterday I finally got her number and her address and I called her and she told me I could move with her to Pennsylvania so that's my last resort. other than that I'm gonna have my wife and my son sleeping out on the street and I can't have that.
REPORTER: Watson said goodbye to the other parents who he says have become like family. They watch each others children and each other's belongings, suitcases and garbage bags packed with clothes and pillows. The city helped transport Watson's family to Pennsylvania. The Department of Homeless Services says social service staff was on hand last night to assist families with going back to live with relatives or friends. For wnyc, I'm Cindy Rodriguez