A West Bronx facility could be
Demetrio Rivera, 68, gazed out of the 14th-fl oor apartment in the East Clarke Place Senior Residence. After battling chronic homelessness for years, Rivera has fi nally found a place to
call home. Photo/Volunteers of America
BY ROBBIE SEQUEIRA
When 68-year-old Demetrio
Rivera stepped into his
14th-fl oor apartment at 112 E.
Clarke St. — a $68.3 million
senior housing facility located
in the Jerome Avenue Highbridge
Concourse area of the
Bronx — Rivera was home.
Rivera, who has been homeless
for the past fi ve years,
broke in his new residence on
June 24 by opening every cabinet
drawer, admiring the size
of his twin bed, and gazing outside
the window that has an accompanying
view of the New
York City skyline and Yankee
Stadium in the distance.
“I couldn’t ask for much
more than this,” Rivera told
the Bronx Times. “I remember
sleeping on roofs, sleeping
on street corners and panhandling
… But I’m proof that
things can get better and that
you can never lose hope.”
Rivera is one of 46 tenants
who have moved into
the East Clarke Place Senior
Residence over the past few
weeks. The 14-story, 122-unit
complex features 84 apartments
designated for low-income
seniors, with an additional
37 units assigned to
chronically homeless seniors
like Rivera.
Tenants must be at least
62 years old and earn 60% or
less of the local area’s median
income to be accepted as residents
at East Clarke Place.
Volunteers of America-
Greater New York offi cials said
they received more than 26,000
applications for the 84 apartments
and room assignments
had been processed through a
random lottery.
Additionally, 50% of
the units are set aside for residents
of the Bronx Community
Board 5.
Offi cials from Volunteers
of America-Greater New York
hope that housing projects like
East Clarke Place can be the
fi rst step toward eradicating
homelessness in the Greater
New York area by 2050.
“Homelessness doesn’t
need to be an evergreen issue,”
said Myung J. Lee, president
and CEO of Volunteers of
America-Greater New York.
“We’re an anti-poverty organization
that aims to get rid of
homelessness … through three
steps — housing, generational
wealth-building and providing
services to address mental and
physical health.”
A grant from the state Department
of Health Empire
State Supportive Housing Initiative
BRONX TIMES R 8 EPORTER, JULY 2-8, 2021 BTR
(ESSHI) helps provide
rent subsidies for fi ve years —
$925,000 annually — for the 49
incoming seniors who are considered
low-income or chronically
homeless.
“Homelessness can’t be
solved by just one step, it involved
a strong support system
which includes fi nancial
stability, autonomy over fi -
nances, and decision-making
and there are systems in place
here to ensure that the seniors
living here won’t be without
support,” said Rachel Weinstein,
vice president of communications
for Volunteers of
America-Greater New York.
According to Coalition for
the Homeless, in April 2021,
there were 53,199 homeless people,
including 16,390 homeless
children, sleeping each
night in the New York City
municipal shelter system. The
Coalition for the Homeless estimates
that the amount of
people experiencing homelessness
in the city has reached its
highest levels since the Great
Depression.
New York ranks second in
the nation both in number and
per-capita homelessness, outpaced
only by California.
A concerning trend that
has been on the rise is homelessness
amongst senior citizens
in the city.
According to research
funded by New York State
Health Foundation, the number
of shelter residents age 50
and older in New York City
topped 17,000 in 2017, and that
number is expected to triple by
the end of the decade in 2030.
Data from the NYC Center
for Innovation through Data
Intelligence reported that the
number of homeless individuals
in shelters age 55 and up
increased by about 250% from
2004 to 2017, and the number of
homeless individuals age 65+
increased over 300% during
the same time period.
“Homelessness can happen
suddenly, whether it’s a medical
emergency that breaks the
bank or losing a job and being
unable to pay rent, homelessness
can happen to anyone,”
said Weinstein. “And we’re
particularly concerned about
older adults, so we’ve put a lot
of signifi cant resources into
developing housing specifi c
for this population because a
number of people are living in
housing that is completely inappropriate
for these circumstances.”
The factors that lead to a
person experiencing homelessness
can vary, but the National
Law Center on Homelessness
& Poverty indicates fi ve main
causes of homelessness: lack of
affordable housing, unemployment,
poverty, mental illness
and substance abuse.
Rivera held a steady job
for nearly two decades working
maintenance for the city
Department of Education and
had a permanent home with
his mother before her passing.
Following her death, Rivera
found himself in and out of
work in the subsequent years
before being evicted.
When he was in his 3o’s, Rivera
received a mental health
diagnosis, and without substantial
mental health services,
he began using drugs.
“I have regrets. We all do,”
he said. “But I can only look
forward now and make better
choices.”
While Rivera eventually
became sober, he still struggled
with homelessness and
knew he would need help if
he wanted to maintain his sobriety.
He entered the city’s
shelter system last year and
was referred to Volunteers of
America-Greater New York.
“It’s being treated as a human
being, instead of being
looked down upon,” Weinstein