Coalition for the Homeless and The Legal Aid Society presented testimony before the New York City Council’s Committee on General Welfare on the NYC 15/15 supportive housing initiative and related topics. Supportive housing is permanent affordable housing with on-site services to help people with mental illness, substance abuse issues, or other special needs. Following robust advocacy by the Coalition and other members of the Campaign 4 NY/NY Housing, Mayor de Blasio announced the 15/15 initiative in late 2015 to create 15,000 units of supportive housing in New York City over the next 15 years. However, the pace of production has lagged behind schedule, while the single adult shelter census has continued to reach new records. Last year only 1,500 single adults were able to access supportive housing from shelters – the lowest number in six years.

In response to this urgent need, the Coalition has called on the City to accelerate the timeline for the creation of NYC 15/15 units by scheduling their completion within 10 rather than 15 years – a request echoed and amplified by several Councilmembers at Tuesday’s hearing, including Speaker Johnson who, as reported in the Daily News, said: “There are homeless people everywhere, living on the streets, and it’s heartbreaking, it’s horrific. We need to speed up this plan … I don’t really care about a 15-year plan. I care about a three-year plan, or a four-year plan, or maybe a five-year plan at most.”