New York taxpayers are set to shoulder a substantial financial burden as the state grapples with the increasing influx of illegal immigrants. Documents and internal emails shared with the press by a state source reveal the cost of holding migrants on Randall’s Island will cost a staggering $20 million per month.
The asylum seeker crisis requires a national solution. But we will do our part because that's the New York City way.
It is time for that to be the American way again. pic.twitter.com/t6bJ4yasua
— Mayor Eric Adams (@NYCMayor) August 9, 2023
This equates to an average of $10,000 per person, should the facility reach its full capacity of 2,000 beds. The temporary facility, strategically positioned off the coast of Manhattan, is just one of four immigrant housing establishments that the state is fully sponsoring.
This concerted effort is aimed at addressing the escalating wave of illegals that have pushed New York City to the limit. Mayor Eric Adams (D-NY), did not mince words when discussing the financial toll of the city’s immigration crisis.
He recently announced the city is bracing itself for an astounding expenditure of $12 billion over the next three years to manage this unprecedented situation.
In a City Hall briefing, Mayor Adams stated, “We are past our breaking point. With more than 57,300 individuals currently in our care on an average night, it amounts to $9.8 million a day, almost $300 million a month and nearly $3.6 billion a year.”
Since the spring of 2022, over 100,000 illegal immigrants, including men, women, and children, have arrived in New York City. Currently, over 57,000 people are housed in 198 emergency shelters across the city’s five boroughs.
This surge in numbers has not only strained the city’s shelter capacity, but has also led to a visible presence of migrants on the streets of Manhattan. Just a few weeks ago, hundreds of refugees were compelled to sleep outside the Roosevelt Hotel in Midtown due to the lack of space.
Nevertheless, the decision to utilize select soccer fields on Randall’s Island to house male immigrants was approved, sparking controversy within the local sports community. Vilda Vera Mayuga, who heads the city’s Department of Consumer and Worker Protection, has rallied against the use of youth soccer fields to be used as shelters for non-citizens.
Gov. Kathy Hochul (D-NY) has expressed her commitment to include Floyd Bennett Field, a former military airfield in Brooklyn, among the state-funded shelters. However, this plan encountered a significant setback as White House officials declined to provide their endorsement, demanding a more thorough review of the proposal.
