NYC Health + Hospitals and the Department of Housing, Preservation & Development (HPD) announced in August 2022 that construction for Just Home, a housing project for formerly incarcerated New Yorkers with life-threatening medical conditions, was going ahead, as reported by YIMBY.

 

Located at 1900 Seminole Avenue in the Morris Park section of The Bronx, the initiative will create approximately 70 studio and two-bedroom apartments. The existing property at 1900 Seminole Avenue currently sits vacant on the NYC Health + Hospitals/Jacobi Medical Center campus. According to City officials, tenants will have access to intensive on-site social services provided by licensed clinical social workers, peer workers, and specialists, as well as health services at Jacobi Hospital.

 

In reference to the site, Public Advocate Jumaane D. Williams said, “After someone is released from city custody, it’s critical we do not abandon them or ignore their needs, especially medically. Supportive housing can be a medical necessity for anyone living with serious health conditions, and formerly incarcerated New Yorkers face additional unique barriers.” He added, “Just Home will provide an invaluable service to our neighbors with complex medical diagnoses, guaranteeing supportive housing, protecting some of our most vulnerable, and ensuring consistent health care. These kinds of support structures are vital to public health and public safety.”

 

City officials said The Fortune Society, a non-profit organization focused on individuals impacted by the criminal justice system, will act as the developer, manager, and social service provider for the project, to which there has been some community opposition, as reported.

 

 

Bronx District Attorney Darcel D. Clark welcomed news of the project, saying, “The Bronx needs supportive housing for people with serious health conditions. Providing a stable residence is an important step toward ending the cycle of homelessness and recidivism. Investing resources on individuals who return home from incarceration with supervision and appropriate medical care raises the level of health in our neighborhood, which promotes community safety.”

 

Clark continued, “At this early juncture in a long process, I believe we must enlist the support of community residents and stakeholders alike to ensure long term success. Further, I will continue to urge the city to create supportive housing for those who are homeless and navigating mental health challenges. We must exhaust every opportunity to improve the quality of life for everyone in our community.”

 

 

Meanwhile, Friends of Pelham Parkway founder Roxanne Delgado said, “This proposal is a humane and cost-effective initiative to help those in need, as well as an amenity for our community with affordable housing and community partnership.” She added, “People who are sick deserve medical care and a permanent home for comfort in their suffering. As founder of an organization that advocates for environmental and social justice, I believe the good in us outweighs the bad in us, and no one should be deprived of their dignity and rights because of their past transgressions.”

 

The Just Home project will ultimately require a ground lease between NYC Health + Hospitals and Fortune. Following a public hearing, the ground lease will need to be approved by the NYC Health + Hospitals board of directors and the New York City Council.

 

Stakeholders are currently contending with fierce backlash from local residents who fear how an influx in formerly incarcerated residents will impact the safety of the Morris Park neighborhood.

Stanley Richards, deputy CEO of the Fortune Society, said of the planned project, “Housing is foundational to a person’s well-being, especially for people in the process of reentry from prison or jail.” He added, “We know from our decades of safely housing people with conviction histories that they can be good neighbors. The neighborhoods that are home to our developments can attest to that.”

 

The Fortune Society does not expect to open the property until 2025 at the very earliest.