The 2005 Lexington Avenue Armory proposal

In 2005, the City’s Department of Homeless Services proposed using the Lexington Avenue Armory, between East 25th and 26th Streets, for a men’s shelter and assessment center. The Gramercy Park Block Association’s later account described a neighborhood campaign opposing that use.

Arlene Harrison worked with Timothy Cohen, then program director of the 23rd Street Association. The August 2014 retrospective reported extensive outreach through flyers, letters and email, bringing residents’ objections to public attention.

The campaign raised concerns about the proposed assessment operation, public safety and the lack of advance consultation with residents, nearby schools, police, community boards and elected officials. These were the concerns expressed by the organizers; they are not findings about the conduct of individual people seeking shelter.

The retrospective also distinguished opposition to this particular proposal from the Block Association’s support for social-service organizations developed with community involvement. The Block Association’s work at Kenmore Hall records one of those longer relationships.

The Block Association reported that the Armory plan was withdrawn in October 2005 and collected contemporary press coverage of the decision. The episode belongs to the Block Association’s history of neighborhood advocacy, with the original proposal and the campaign kept in their period.

The 2005 proposal is no longer active.