Lucerne Residents Set To Leave UWS As Judge Dismisses Suit

UPPER WEST SIDE, NY — The 200-plus homeless men who have lived at The Lucerne hotel on the Upper West Side since the end of July are set to leave the neighborhood.

Judge Debra James announced the decision around 11:30 a.m. on Wednesday, two days after she said the decision would be ready.

The men, whose presence has divided the Upper Manhattan community over the past four months, are now expected to be moved to the Radisson Hotel in the Financial District.

James dropped a restraining order that halted an earlier plan to move the residents out of The Lucerne, and also denied a petition by a group of Financial District residents to stop the 200-plus men from getting moved to the Radisson Hotel, according to court documents.

The Lower Manhattan hotel is being turned into a permanent homeless shelter.

"Their petition to restrain respondents City of New York, Bill de Blasio, in his official capacity as Mayor of the City of New York, the New York City Department of Homeless Services, and Steven Banks, in his official capacity as Commissioner of the New York City Department of Homeless Services, from relocating such petitioners and other persons currently residing at the Lucerne Hotel is denied on the grounds that this court lacks jurisdiction over the subject matter of such petition, and the temporary restraining order issued on Oct. 19, 2020 is hereby vacated," read the court ruling.

The West Side Rag reported that the decision came down to James deciding between the testimony of two Lucerne residents. One said he would suffer "irreparable harm" if he is moved downtown, and the other said the harm would be the same if he stayed on the Upper West Side.

The reaction to the decision differs drastically across the Upper West Side and city.

On one side, Mayor Bill de Blasio's administration and the West Side Community Organization, a nonprofit that spawned from the Upper West Siders for Safer Streets Facebook page, are expected to be happy with the judge's decision.

The West Side Community Organization had hired high-profile lawyer Randy Mastro to force the city's initial decision to move residents from The Lucerne hotel.

"The West Side Community Organization, a group formed to advocate for the health and safety of DHS Residents temporarily housed in three hotels on the Upper West Side, as well as for the safety of the community at large, today applauds the Manhattan Supreme Court's decision to allow the City to proceed with its plan to move the residents at the Lucerne Hotel to a better, safer, and more comprehensive facility in FiDi," the West Side Community Organization said in a news release about the decision.

On the other side, and for whom the decision brings great frustration, is an active group of Financial District residents, an Upper West Side residents advocacy group called the UWS Open Hearts Initiative, and multiple local and citywide politicians.

"We are hurt. This decision negatively affects homeless people throughout America and that's really what this fight was about: having our voices heard, challenging an irrational decision made by the Mayor to please some rich folk," said "Da Homeless Hero," a resident at The Lucerne and a leading advocate in the fight to stay on the Upper West Side.

Manhattan Borough President Gale Brewer's office was told that the move will not happen on Wednesday or Thursday. Additionally, there are currently 22 men at the Raddison Hotel who would have to move to another shelter if the move from The Lucerne does go through.

Disappointed in the judge's decision to lift the restraining order against the Mayor's decision to move homeless residents of the Lucerne. There may be more developments on the legal front underway, but this approach to our city's homeless population is misguided and ill-advised.
— Gale A. Brewer (@galeabrewer) November 25, 2020

NY1 reporter Courtney Gross says that Downtown New Yorkers, the Financial District residents group that filed the petition to stop the Lucerne residents from moving to the Radisson Hotel, will file an immediate appeal of Wednesday's decision.

"We are very disappointed that Judge James has given City Hall the green light to uproot the men staying at the Lucerne," Upper West Side Council Member Helen Rosenthal said in a statement to Patch. "We desperately need a thoughtful perspective on our homelessness crisis, not the Mayor's reactive and, sadly, destructive approach."

Rosenthal, Assembly Member Linda Rosenthal, Brewer, and Public Advocate Jumaane Williams have been some of the most active voices in the push to keep the residents on the Upper West Side.

This is a breaking story, please check back in for updates.