The Roosevelt Hotel in Midtown opened up for the first time in three years on Friday to house the influx of asylum seekers.
The hotel is the ninth Humanitarian Emergency Response and Relief Center to open in the Big Apple as the city tries to cope with the ongoing surge of migrants. According to the Mayor’s office, the facility is offering temporary accommodation to families with children, while adults without children are permitted to use the common areas in the front of the hotel.
A representative at city hall told amNewYork Metro that the opening had gone smoothly, although more arrivals are expected to be bussed to the hotel. However, as of May 19 the mayor’s office said it was unable to say how many people are likely to be housed in the building, since it was still unable to determine how many people would arrive.
While Mayor Adams continues to charge that the city is doing everything it can to properly care for the more than 60,000 migrants, Hizzoner is also doubling down on his call for aid from the federal government.
“With the opening of yet another humanitarian relief center, we continue to ask for our federal and state partners for a real decompression strategy and hope to open and operate temporary shelters across the state and nation, as New York City has reached its capacity,” Mayor Adams said in a statement.
“New York City has now cared for more than 65,000 asylum seekers — already opening up over 140 emergency shelters and eight large-scale humanitarian relief centers in addition to this one to manage this national crisis. While this new arrival center and humanitarian relief center will create hundreds of good-paying, union jobs and provide the infrastructure to help asylum seekers reach their final destination, without federal or state assistance, we will be unable to continue treating new arrivals and those already here with the dignity and care that they deserve,” Adams added.
Many of the migrants told reporters with the help of a translator that they are grateful for the opportunity to provide a better life for their children. While several parents could be observed cradling young children, others revealed they are expecting newborn babies within the coming weeks.
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