BUFFALO, N.Y. (WKBW) — In Buffalo's Schiller Park neighborhood, dozens of people are facing uncertainty Friday night, after city officials ordered the closure of Sylvia's House Inc., a homeless shelter operating in a former church on Bailey Avenue.
The shelter, located between Doat Street and Walden Avenue, was served with a cease operations order, with city officials citing violations of state laws and building codes. This closure comes at a challenging time as Western New York prepares for extreme heat in the coming days.
For many in our community, this shelter represented their only housing option. I spoke with shelter operators and clients to understand how this closure impacts some of our most vulnerable neighbors.
"We just want people to work with us, help us fix the problem, but the answer is not putting these people on the street. They are not trash. We will not throw them out," said Nadia Pizarro, Sylvia's House Client Services Manager and Code Blue Co-Chair.
The Bailey Avenue location had only been operating for just over a week when city officials ordered them to vacate.
"Yesterday we had a seized order on the door stating that we had to vacate immediately with no expectation, no inspection, they state that their inspection permits were non-existent," said Felicia Cruz, Sylvia's House Inc. Founder and Director. "We have vulnerable people in wheelchairs and walkers, and there's no way that we can have these people go back in the street without a plan or another place to be."
According to Pizarro and Cruz, the city gave them 24 hours to vacate, with the deadline set for noon on Friday. When I visited the location shortly before 4 p.m., clients were protesting the closure order.
Wayne Ernie, a client at Sylvia's House, expressed his frustration with the situation. "It made me very mad... because if we didn't have these good people in this good staff for us, we wouldn't have nothing."
For some residents, the closure creates an immediate housing crisis. Dawn Weevie, who is nearly four months pregnant, fears ending up on the street.
"Both me and my fiance have been staying here, and if we have to leave, I'm almost four months pregnant and I'll be outside on the street with absolutely nothing and nowhere to go. I have no family, no friends. The state ain't helping me, so we're on our own and these are the only people who are willing to help us," Weevie said.
Approximately 65 clients are registered at the Bailey Avenue location, with about 30 more people in the process of being registered as new clients.
Pizarro noted the timing of the order was particularly problematic. "On top of it, we were served this on Juneteenth, a national holiday when the permit office was closed. We had no notice. We had no opportunity to address any issue. We were just told that we needed to put 65 people on the street."
In response to my inquiries, the City of Buffalo and Councilmember Bryan Bollman, who represents the Lovejoy District, provided a joint statement:
"The City of Buffalo’s Department of Permit & Inspection Services issued a Cease All Operations Order to Sylvia's House at 1947 Bailey Avenue for an illegal sheltering operation in a former, long vacant rectory and is in violation of New York State laws and building codes and numerous City of Buffalo building codes and ordinances.
As a result of very recently being dislocated from a location on Genesee Street, Sylvia's House has illegally begun using the dilapidated former rectory at 1947 Bailey Avenue as a sheltering operation unbeknownst to the city. There was no attempt by the building owner or representatives from Sylvia's House to contact and discuss a potential shelter with the city's Department of Permit & Inspection Services, the Mayor’s Office, or Council President Bollman's office as the district representative of the impacted neighborhood.
All housing shelters in Buffalo must comply with the laws and building codes of the State of New York and city building codes and ordinances. These laws and requirements exist to protect the health and safety of the individuals using the shelters and the residents and community in which they are located. Sylvia's House is not an exception to these requirements.
Over the past several days, dozens of individuals have been living in unsanitary and hazardous conditions that lack basic life safety protections and are putting these individuals lives in danger and at risk, particularly those with disabilities. This type of living environment is not only illegal, it's unacceptable. The Cease Operations Order was issued to protect these vulnerable individuals and to ensure that the quality of life for residents in the neighborhood is not further impacted.
Erie County provides taxpayer funds to Sylvia's House to offer what should be safe and healthy accommodations for vulnerable individuals, and the organization must meet its responsibility of complying with all laws and codes for housing shelter operations in the City of Buffalo and State of New York. We are committed to working with Erie County and appropriate service providers to ensure that any future housing shelter operations in the city are legal, safe and support the individuals they serve with respect and dignity."
JOINT STATEMENT FROM BUFFALO MAYOR CHRISTOPHER P. SCANLON AND COUNCIL PRESIDENT BRYAN BOLLMAN
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