Mayor Adams, Norman Siegel Celebrate Massive Increase In Percentage Of Homeless New Yorkers Being Connected To Housing Through Street Homeless Advocacy Project

August 9, 2024

In Second Year, Volunteer Outreach Initiative Helped Nearly 50 Percent of Individuals Experiencing Homelessness Connect to Referral or Placement with Supportive Programs

NEW YORK – New York City Mayor Eric Adams and veteran civil rights advocate and former executive director of the New York Civil Liberties Union Norman Siegel today celebrated major milestones for the Street Homelessness Advocacy Project (SHAP) as the program marks two years since it began operating. SHAP is a volunteer outreach initiative that aims to build relationships and provide direct support to those experiencing homelessness. SHAP’s primary purpose is to train volunteers, including those with lived experience, to advocate for and offer services to unhoused New Yorkers. Between year one and year two of the program, the SHAP team increased the percentage of homeless New Yorkers they are assisting in moving voluntarily off the streets and into some form of supportive programing from an approximate 33 percent success rate to almost 50 percent. Those interested in volunteering with SHAP should visit the SHAP website or email shapnewyorkcity@gmail.com.

“Thanks to the Street Homelessness Advocacy Project, everyday New Yorkers are answering the call to volunteer and lend a helping hand to their neighbors in need, and their good work is paying off, with nearly 50 percent of homeless individuals connecting with SHAP choosing to voluntarily come off our streets,” said Mayor Adams. “Solving our homelessness crisis requires each and every one of us to follow in the footsteps of SHAP volunteers by treating those experiencing homelessness with dignity and humanity. Thank you to all the volunteers, partner organizations, and to Norman Siegel for leading the way and working so no one is forced to sleep on the streets of our city.”

“Since the start of our administration, we said that we would no longer walk past our brothers and sisters in need without extending support,” said Deputy Mayor for Health and Human Services Anne Williams-Isom. “SHAP is one way we are actualizing that commitment. The model shows that we can all play a role in connecting with our fellow New Yorkers and, when we do, roughly one out of two people are now voluntarily connecting to supportive programs. We also know that homelessness is a housing challenge. That is why our administration has connected more people than ever to CityFHEPS and we are building more affordable housing in the months and years to come. Thank you to Norman and all our volunteers for their efforts over the last two years, and for all they will do in the time to come.”

“Effectively engaging New Yorkers experiencing homelessness and convincing them to access services requires understanding, respect, compassion, and trust, which are all built through sustained engagements over time,” said New York City Department of Social Services (DSS) Commissioner Molly Wasow Park. “SHAP provides New Yorkers of all walks of life the opportunity to meaningfully participate in this critical work and help their vulnerable neighbors access life-changing supports. This initiative has been an effective supplement to the agency’s comprehensive outreach efforts, and we look forward to continuing to work alongside SHAP volunteers to support our neighbors in need.”

“SHAP’s vision and approach — the same volunteers conducting outreach at the same locations on the same day and time — increases the likelihood of trust being developed between the volunteer and the person experiencing homelessness,” said Norman Siegel, former executive director, New York Civil Liberties Union. “With our strong placement and referral rate over the past two years, the SHAP model has proven to be a successful model for helping people experiencing homelessness voluntarily leave the streets and parks of New York City.”

Since its formation, SHAP has made considerable progress in helping those experiencing homelessness connect with vital services. In its first year, SHAP successfully helped one out of three people experiencing homelessness voluntarily leave the streets. Now, in its second year, approximately one out of two people — 223 individuals experiencing homelessness out of 451 — that have interacted with SHAP have voluntarily left the streets through a referral or placement with a supportive program, a nearly 50 percent rate of success.

Any New Yorker who sees someone in need of assistance can call 311 or file a report through the 311 app.

The Adams administration continues to prioritize transitioning homeless New Yorkers from streets, subways, and homeless shelters into stable, permanent housing. Just last week, Mayor Adams announced that, for the second year in a row, the city has produced more supportive housing and housing for formerly homeless New Yorkers than ever before in New York’s history. The Adams administration additionally moved a record number of homeless New Yorkers into permanent housing through the highest usage of City Fighting Homelessness and Eviction Prevention Supplement (CityFHEPS) housing vouchers and placed a record number of formerly homeless households into permanently-affordable housing.

Additionally, in Fiscal Year (FY) 24, the city built the highest-ever count of supportive homes and homes for the homeless in the city's history, and increased production of housing for the formerly homeless by 15 percent. DSS helped 16,902 households move out of shelter and into permanent housing over FY24, 12,526 of which were placed into subsidized permanent housing — a more than 20 percent increase over FY23.