4 times • AUGUST 11, 2016 FOR BREAKING NEWS VISIT www.qns.com Operator of proposed Maspeth homeless shelter has a sketchy history at other locations BY ANTHONY GIUDICE agiudice@ridgewoodtimes.com @A_GiudiceReport Acacia Network, the service provider that plans to operate a homeless shelter at the Holiday Inn Express in Maspeth on the city’s behalf, has a history of violent incidents Joe’s Restaurant Right here in the heart of Ridgewood 1-718-497-1300 or 1-718-497-3734 • Between Gates Ave & Palmetto St. Gift Certificates Available 66-11 FOREST AVENUE You can find us on www.joesrestaurantny.com HIGH ACCLAIM 1/2 Daily News Accepting Credit Cards Font: Engravers Old English Normal OPEN 7 DAYS A WEEK FOR LUNCH AND DINNER ––––– A Small Sampling of Our Menu Items ––––– Pollo CHICKEN CUTLET ..................................................$11.45 CHICKEN CUTLET WITH SAUCE ........................$12.45 CHICKEN CUTLET PARMIGIANA ......................$13.45 CHICKEN MARSALA ..............................................$13.45 CHICKEN CACCIATORE .......................................$14.75 CHICKEN FRANCESE ..............................................$13.45 Pesce FRIED CALAMARI ....................................................$9.00 BAKED CLAMS ...........................................................$9.00 STEAMED CLAMS RED OR WHITE ........................9.00 STEAMED MUSSELS RED OR WHITE .................$9.00 LITTLE NECK CLAMS ON THE HALF SHELL ..$9.00 SHRIMP COCKTAIL ..................................................$9.00 ANTIPASTO SML. $9.45 LGE .................................$13.45 MIXED SALAD .......................................................... $5.00 CAESAR SALAD......................................................... $5.45 CAESAR SALAD with GRILLED CHICKEN .........$9.00 SLICED TOMATOES with AVOCADO & HEARTS OF PALM ...........................$9.00 SLICED TOMATOES with ANCHOVIES. ...............$8.00 SLICED TOMATOES with MOZZARELLA ...........$9.00 LOBSTER & SHRIMP & MUSSELS .....................$27.45 FILET OF SOLE FRANCESE ..................................$15.45 CALAMARI FRA DIAVOLO ...................................$15.45 CALAMARI MARINARA ....................................... $14.45 SHRIMP FRA DIAVOLO .........................................$17.45 EVERYTHING COOKED TO ORDER • ASK FOR OUR DAILY SPECIALS NOW ACCEPTING RESERVATIONS FOR ANY OCCASION. 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The Bronx-based organization is responsible for security at their sites, but reports over the last few years have shown that they have been lax in their duties to protect the residents of their shelters. In November 2015, state Senator Ruben Diaz released a letter highlighting the lack of security measures at a homeless shelter located at 941 Intervale Ave. in the Bronx, which is run by Acacia Network, after one of the female residents was stabbed by another shelter resident. According to Diaz’s letter, the offender was caught on tape breaking the shelter’s security cameras the weekend before the attack took place. No one at Acacia viewed security footage to notice that the cameras had been destroyed until the following Monday, leaving residents in quite the predicament without working security cameras. Another Acacia Network-run homeless shelter, this one located in Long Island City, made the news earlier in the year for a pair of violent incidents. In February, Pam’s Settlement, a women’s homeless shelter that opened in the former Verve Hotel, located at 40-03 29th St., was the scene of two incidents that left several of the shelter’s residents, as well as police officers, injured. Police were called to the shelter site on Feb. 11 to deal with a dispute among residents in which one woman struck her roommate with a metal object and headbutted an officer. Officers returned to Pam’s Settlement the following day when a resident broke the shelter’s metal detector and threw chairs and soda cans across the lobby. The 114th Precinct reported responding to calls of residents trying to hurt themselves and a chronic 911 call from someone who has repeatedly reported that a woman was stabbed inside the shelter. There have also been complaints of women from the shelter harassing store owners in the area. The Ridgewood Times has repeatedly contacted Acacia Network for comment on the violence at Pam’s Settlement and the proposed Maspeth shelter. In both instances, we received no response to our requests. The silence from Acacia Network sends an unsettling signal to both the reader and the media that the company is willing to ignore any concerns raised over the operations of its shelters. According to a source, Acacia Network said at a Aug. 3 meeting they are committed to a “robust security plan” at the proposed Holiday Inn Express location by providing full-time, onsite security staff, and would work closely with the 104th Precinct on matters off-site. Residents of Maspeth who are concerned about the proposed homeless shelter can voice their opinions at the town hall meeting set up by Communities of Maspeth and Elmhurst Together (COMET) on Thursday, Aug. 11, at Martin Luther High School, located at 60-02 Maspeth Ave., at 7:30 p.m.
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