Kortright Residents Want Bloomville Homeless Shelter Closed

BLOOMVILLLE - Residents of the hamlet of Bloomville and the town of Kortright got no promises from Delaware County Department of Social Services Commissioner Sylvia Armanno and little satisfaction during a public information meeting Monday night at the Kortright Town Hall. Their best hope is that the weather warms up soon, so the need for homeless shelters diminishes to the point that no one else will need to be placed at the Bloomville shelter.

The special meeting with DSS officials followed the arrest of two people, on of them a resident of the homeless shelter, on March 11 for possessing fentanyl.

Residents expressed their concerns last October when the foster home was turned into a homeless shelter by the county DSS without notification to town officials or community residents. By law, according to the commissioner, it isn't required. DSS officials and chairman of the county DSS committee, Wayne Marshfield, pointed to state and federal mandates requiring them to provide shelter when temperatures drop below 32 degrees F (Code Blue Law). When the homeless shelter in Delhi burned, it created the need to find more beds elsewhere. Another part is the lack of personnel (case workers) with a number of openings available in the county.

The meeting was held to inform the concerned public and provide an exchange with the county DSS regarding the shelter. The public was invited to submit questions to the town board, but would not be able to speak. The two individuals who were arrested were charged with criminal possession of a controlled substance in the seventh degree, fentanyl. They were ordered to appear in Kortright Town Court and,  as the Deputy DSS Commissioner Kieth Weaver put it, " they are now MIA (missing in action)" after being released on appearance tickets. The shelter is currently empty.

The homeless shelter, which residents were told is a temporary solution,  has led residents in the community to question their safety and the ability of the shelter's residents to meet the requirements of their residency and have responsibilities such as getting their own groceries and looking for a job in order to get back on their feet.

A resident of the shelter "high on something" rang the doorbell at the door Day Care non-stop at 11:30 one night, thinking it was a Dollar General. Another got locked out in 13-degree weather and was allowed to wait in the home for a caseworker to show up more than a half hour later. One pulled the family dog's leg through a fence and made it yelp in pain and then there were alleged drug deals near the daycare. And residents have made the phone calls they were told to make to the Sheriff's Office or 911. One resident called it a shelter for criminals. Residents were told that one of the residents was on parole for murder after serving 17 years in jail for manslaughter and another resident of the shelter confirmed that it was true. DSS has promised to research that allegation and denied anyone with that type of background would have been referred to the homeless shelter.

From the beginning, residents questioned DSS, due to the shelter's proximity to a longtime daycare and nearby playground. Just recently a resident told the town board that what she disliked most about it is that she was now feeling unsafe in her own community. Residents also questioned the lack of transportation, cell service, stores, libraries, or places of employment in the hamlet, unlike the larger communities of Stamford, Sidney, and Delhi, where other homeless shelters are located.

Outside the town hall after the meeting, residents expressed they believe they are not and have not received truthful answers, except that nothing will be done. If there are individuals who need shelter, prior to the completed construction of a new homeless shelter in Delhi, more residents will be placed at the Bloomville shelter, according to Armanno.

"There is nothing I can do about the shelter at this time," said Armanno. "In between the time the new shelter construction is completed and I have need of a shelter, they will be placed there."

She said she understood residents' concerns and had read all of their letters. She said she would have felt the same way if she had not worked in the field for the past 33 years. She knows people need her help to try to get their lives back together.  "We save money running it the way that we do. I don't see anything changing that much in the meantime."

When she referred to the safety of children in the community, she offered that no matter who moves into the community, parents need to watch their children. She said she was sorry they were upset. "If I moved this somewhere else, the people there will not feel safe."

One man in the audience said that was not an appropriate response, unable to contain himself and adhere to the request that the public not comment. 

There is a long list of complaints related to the shelter and its residents, such as open windows in the middle of winter, the aroma of marijuana smoke coming out of those windows, lights left on, residents hanging out near the park, and altercations near the school bus stop. 

Among the questions posed to DSS is if they are helping clients at more remote locations, how are those clients able to adhere to the rules? What is the current level of supervision and how are the residents vetted?

Council member Mike Pietrantoni, said they understand the need for the service and asked why they would choose the Bloomville shelter first when there is something else. He was told they are not placed due to convenience, but due to capacity. The need will diminish as the weather warms up.

With the homeless shelter in Stamford now empty, Pietrantoni asked why they wouldn't place people there rather than Bloomville. He said Stamford has more to offer.

Armanno was asked what would be done to increase the supervision, which is currently one visit to the shelter per week and one visit to Delhi per week.  What is the future plan for better supervision? "We need to hire more people."And they were asked about the success rate. Weaver said three clients now have a permanent home, two left and three continue to be homeless of the eight clients housed at Bloomville.

They asked that technology will be placed to ensure lights are not left on and windows are no left open.

One resident said leaving the windows open in winter shows a complete disregard for their circumstance.  

At the meeting in October, residents were asked by Weaver to have compassion and for community members to open their hearts to people who needed assistance to get back on their feet. The community did just that and they reiterated it on Monday. They understand but said Bloomville is not the place for people to receive the help that they need to get back on their feet, because there is nothing to offer them.

The community has given shelter residents food at Thanksgiving, fruit baskets at Christmas, provided them with clothing, shoes and puzzles, and many other acts of kindness.

Supervisor George Haynes read a draft of a letter to the DSS, citing the concerns of the board and the residents. It said the town of Kortright acknowledges having the shelter located there puts residents at risk and the board is also against the shelter in the community of Bloomville. It said it is time to be productive and since DSS had not properly notified the town they would like to see the shelter closed and cease operations immediately. It has already negatively affected people in the community emotionally. It asked for a timeline for that to occur and it thanked the Tuckers for helping to draft the letter. Haynes received a round of applause after reading the draft letter to the standing-room-only crowd.

Council member Nikki Fancher concluded the board's comments by saying there is technology available to help monitor the shelter without violating individual rights. She suggested DSS explore those technologies and put them in place.

She too has children and like many others in the room on Monday night, she does keep track of her children. However,  she said they are old enough that she shouldn't have to follow them around constantly.

The community believes DSS has placed people in a community where there is nothing available to help get them re-established and DSS has not monitored the situation as promised or established any rules.