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NYC pauses relocation of homeless men's intake center after East Village residents sue
By
Karen Yi
Published Apr 22, 2026
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Aristide Economopoulos for Gothamist
By
Karen Yi
Published Apr 22, 2026
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A state judge has ordered the Mamdani administration to pause its plan to relocate the intake office where homeless men can ask for a shelter bed.
The plan to relocate intake services from Midtown to the East Village was set to take effect May 1 until residents sued the city this week to stop it.
The Mamdani administration was set to fully shutter the enormous men’s shelter on East 30th Street known as Bellevue due to decrepit conditions and after the building was deemed unsafe by building experts.
The city already emptied the shelter of 250 men, moving them to other locations in Brooklyn but planned to relocate intake services to two existing men’s shelters in the East Village.
But a group of residents sued the city on Monday to stop the new intake location at 8 East Third St. The lawsuit argued the administration rushed the process and didn’t subject the plan to necessary review and adequate public notice.
While state Supreme Court Judge Sabrina Kraus' ruling on Wednesday halts the city’s plans to open intake services at 8 East Third St. next week, it does allow the city to continue construction on site.
“This is an important start, and we appreciate the judge’s fast action on this crucially important matter,” said Trisha Goff, a longtime neighborhood resident who was part of the lawsuit. “But it is only the beginning. There’s much more work to be done. Now there’s time for due process, to listen to the community, and to find a far better solution to this challenging problem.”
The Legal Aid Society and the Coalition for the Homeless said 8 East Third St. has long served as a shelter and previously functioned as an intake facility before those services were moved to Bellevue in the 1980s.
In a statement the groups said they remained concerned about whether the facility would be compliant with the Americans With Disabilities Act, and accessible to all homeless men.
City Hall spokesperson Sneha Choudhary said the conditions at the shelter were unacceptable and that intake services for single men would continue at Bellevue for now.
“Leaving people in a space that is falling apart is a failure of our responsibility to care for our fellow New Yorkers. The decision to vacate was necessary for safety, and based on clear expert guidance,” Choudhary said.
“We look forward to addressing the immediate need to relocate shelter intake with the court.”
The next hearing in the case will take place May 7.
Tagged
economy
manhattan
Karen Yi
Karen Yi covers homelessness and poverty. She joined the WNYC and Gothamist newsroom in 2020. Before that, Karen covered Newark for the Star-Ledger and spent almost a decade working for newspapers in New Jersey and Florida. She grew up in Miami and has a dog named Cashew. Got a tip? Email [email protected] or Signal 917-589-1460.
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Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
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