Former resident, a 95-year-old veteran, slams Island Shores’ after conversion into NYC migrant shelter
Originally published in
Silive.com: Former resident, a 95-year-old veteran, slams Island Shores’ after conversion into NYC migrant shelter
on
.
STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. — Frank Tammaro was one of the lucky ones.
When the owners of his former assisted living facility, Island Shores Senior Residence in Midland Beach, made it clear he was no longer welcome, Tammaro, 95, had a strong support system in place. After a brief stay at another senior living center, he now resides with his daughter, Barbara Annunziata.
Tammaro had to leave his former home by March of this year, and just six months later, the city has contracted with Island Shores’ owner, a non-profit organization called Homes for the Homeless, to set up one of its more-than 200 migrant shelters around the five boroughs.
“I thought my suitcases were going to be on the curb,” Tammaro, who keeps a sense of humor despite the circumstances, said of when he received notice that he was no longer welcome at Island Shores. “If it wasn’t for my daughter, they would’ve been on the curb.”
Malliotakis — joined by State Sen. Jessica Scarcella-Spanton (D-North Shore/South Brooklyn), Assemblyman Michael Tannousis (R-East Shore/South Brooklyn), City Councilman David Carr (R-Mid-Island) — said she had filed a Freedom of Information Law request with the city.
Scarcella-Spanton said Villa, where the city had promised to open a new public school, and Island Shores are examples of the impact the migrant crisis is having on the city.
“What we’re seeing right now is the true cracks in our foundation coming to light,” she said. “We will do everything we can to get to the bottom of this. It’s not right that this is what our community is dealing with and facing.”