NEW YORK (PIX11) — New York City is now using gyms and even an old police academy to temporarily house migrants as more continue to arrive from the southern U.S. border.
“We desperately need federal and state support more than ever to quickly manage this crisis,” said City Hall spokesperson Fabien Levy.
Migrants were moved into the former police academy building in the Gramercy neighborhood of Manhattan early Friday morning. The building is still actively used by the NYPD. The union for the city’s police officers expressed concern.
“It is a significant security risk to house civilians in an active, working police facility, which means a large contingent of police officers will need to be posted there for both the safety of the migrants and the security of the building,” said Police Benevolent Association President Patrick J. Lynch.
New York City is also bracing for even more arrivals with the upcoming expiration of Title 42, a Trump-era policy that allowed border agents to turn people away on public health grounds.
The Biden administration ordered 1,500 active duty troops to support border agents with administrative work. White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre explained the troops will not be engaging with migrants.
