BARUCH COLLEGE– Le Xian Chen was walking her daughter home from school when she overheard her upset neighbors. They were talking about a letter they got in the mail, notifying residents of plans for building a new homeless shelter in the area. Chen rushed to check her mailbox, but didn’t find anything.
In December of 2020, the Department of Homeless Services announced plans for an all-male, 150-person shelter at 2147 Bath Avenue in Bath Beach, Brooklyn. Replacing a car rental location, the site would become one of 90 shelters that are part of Mayor Bill de Blasio’s ‘Turning the Tide’ initiative, which aims to combat homelessness and reduce cluster sites.
