BUFFALO, N.Y. — 2 On Your Side has an update on the asylum seekers staying at hotels in Western New York. Jewish Family Services is now screening them to help them find new homes.
State Senator Sean Ryan says Jewish Family Services has started the process of screening families to find them new apartments with the goal of moving everyone out of hotels by the start of the new year.
"There's people out there right now scouting out locations, so you know, we're really optimistic this is going to go fast, and it's going to go smooth, but it's going to have a good impact all around," said State Sen. Sean Ryan.
In May, we learned Jewish Family Services and New York City intended to enter into a more than $22-million contract to help move asylum seekers in Western New York out of their temporary housing at hotels.
"We're leaving it up to the families of where do you want to live, and so we're going to give them a choice so it will be really, it will be centered on where do people think they want to live. Some people already have jobs and they might want to relocate closer to their jobs, but I know, you know, the school districts in Amherst have made these families so welcome, I have a feeling a lot of them are going to try to stay right in Amherst," said State Sen. Sean Ryan.
State Senator Sean Ryan says it will be a priority to get elementary school children and their families into apartments this summer so they can start the school year in their new homes. 539 asylum seekers have been living at three hotels in Amherst and Cheektowaga for several months.
"New York City was paying a super high amount of money to keep people in hotels, and for a fraction of that cost, we could put people in their own apartments and give them a lot of wrap around services to integrate them into America, into our economy, and into our school districts," said State Sen. Sean Ryan.
Clients in this program must have a path to a more permanent legal immigration status.
"This makes it so JFS can help people get their work permits, help link them with jobs, help get them into job training programs because we want these about three-hundred adults, we want them into our economy as fast as possible," said State Sen. Sean Ryan.
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