NYC begins evicting migrant families from shelters

MANHATTAN, N.Y. (PIX11) -- Migrant families, including at least one pregnant woman, were evicted from a New York City shelter on Tuesday.

The mayor's office is defending the policy, saying it continues to do all it can to help migrants who are already here while making space for new arrivals. Others say the latest development is cruel.

Among those evicted was Maria, who stood outside the Row Hotel eight months pregnant. She and her husband are among the roughly 40 families, many with young children, whose 60-day notice from the city is up.

Maria explained how her extension request to stay at the Row was denied.

Maria said she would make her way to the Roosevelt Hotel, the city's main migrant navigation center, and likely be granted additional shelter.

"To kick families out of shelter in the middle of wintertime, to displace kids out of school, is honestly one of the cruelest things New York City Hall has done in generations," New York City Comptroller Brad Lander said.

Lander is launching a formal investigation into the 60-day policy for migrant families that will see thousands more get evicted in the coming weeks.

A frustrated New Yorker crashed the comptroller's press conference to voice anger with the whole situation. The city's multi-billion dollar migrant response will soon lead to services being slashed.

Outside the Roosevelt Hotel, PIX11 News pressed city officials about whether evicting families was the best way to manage the flood of migrants who continue to come -- especially when the mayor has said that no families will sleep on the street.

"The most important thing we are doing as part of this effort is not what we are doing today, but the multiple meetings we had had over the past few months with Maria, with our caseworkers who really care," said Dr. Ted Long with the mayor's office.

The mayor's team believes the new deadline, combined with helping migrants file asylum paperwork plus find jobs and housing, will clear the strained shelter system and better serve the migrants themselves.

"They deserve that stability," Long said. "That stability can never be in a hotel room."