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ROTTERDAM — Schenectady County lawmakers on Friday announced plans to convene a special meeting next week to direct the county manager to issue an emergency order prohibiting local businesses from housing any additional asylum-seekers, days after a Rotterdam motel suddenly closed to make room for a group of migrants from New York City.
“Our residents have legitimate concerns when it comes to the process through which asylum-seekers arrived in our community earlier this week,” Anthony Jasenski, chair of the Schenectady County Legislature, said in a statement. “We have these same concerns, which arise from the lack of transparency and clear community from New York city before sending these individuals to our community. Schenectady County will aggressively pursue all legal means at its disposal to deter the further relocation of asylum-seeking individuals by any party to the County of Schenectady.”
The county Legislature will meet at 7 p.m. Monday to discuss the issue further and call for the emergency order.
Local officials, including federal, state and local lawmakers, have said they were blindsided by the sudden closure of the motel at 3083 Carman Road on Tuesday, and only learned that the facility would be used to house asylum-seekers after receiving a phone call from DocGo, a third-party contractor hired by New York City to relocate migrants, notifying them that three buses of migrants would be arriving at the facility later that day.
New York City, through DocGo, signed a deal with the motel’s operator earlier in the week, according to the county. A total of 183 asylum-seekers are now staying at the facility. The county is unsure if more asylum-seekers will be arriving.
The situation, and lack of information, has lead to wide speculation in the community and on social media, prompting the Rotterdam Town Board to declare a special meeting of its own on Monday to answer any questions from residents. Lawmakers are also expected to approve a resolution calling on the county to adopt an emergency order barring asylum-seekers from being housed in the county. The town and county meetings are scheduled to take place at the same time, though the town scheduled their meeting on Wednesday.
Rotterdam Supervisor Mollie Collins said she supports the county’s decision to take action, but noted that she was disappointed county lawmakers would be meeting the same time as the town board. She had invited county, federal and state officials to join the meeting, so residents could get answers from all levels of government.
“The bottom line is that we’re going to have to work in conjunction with the county, and so far they’ve been very open with us,” she said.
County officials on Thursday held a conference call with representatives of New York City, in hopes of improving communication and learning more about the asylum-seekers, according to a release.
The individuals staying at the motel are primarily families, including pregnant women and children, that are at various stages in the asylum application process, and have been given health screenings prior to arriving in Rotterdam, the county said.
DocGo will provide services for the individuals, including three daily meals and access to a supervisor, case manager, licensed social worker, and a nurse practitioner or physician’s assistant who will be on site. The company also has private security on site and will be providing translation services to assist the asylum-seekers through the immigration process.
But the county, in a press release, also noted that “too many unanswered questions” remain about the ongoing situation, and that the “potential impact on the taxpayers of Schenectady County is considerable.”
“We will continue to monitor the situation and do everything we can to ensure that DocGo and New York City make good on all the promises they have made in regard to housing, feeding, securing, and managing the group of asylum-seekers staging at the Super 8 in Rotterdam,” Jasenski said.
DocGo and the office of New York City Mayor Eric Adams have not returned multiple requests seeking comment.
However, on Wednesday, Adams announced a new policy where adult-aged asylum-seekers would be given 60 days find alternative housing.
“With more than 54,800 asylum seekers still currently in our care, this effort will intensify adult asylum seekers’ casework services over the next two months to help them take the next step on their journey and ensure we have a bed to place children and families at night. For more than a year now, New York City has responded to this crisis alone — we need our state and federal partners to step up,” Adams said in a statement.
New York City for months has been inundated by the arrival of asylum-seekers, many of whom have arrived from states like Texas through the country’s southern border.
U.S. immigration law allows anyone arriving in the country to request asylum as long as they are physically present in the country. Once a request is made, individuals must then go through a months-long application process that includes security vetting and interviews to prove they face danger if they are returned to their country of origin.
Around 90,000 asylum-seekers have arrived in New York City since last spring. The city began relocating individuals to different parts of the state beginning in May, including throughout the Hudson Valley and Capital Region, due to a lack of available housing.
Jasenski, a District 4 representative who lives in Rotterdam, called New York City’s move to transport buses full of asylum-seekers to the county without warning “unconscionable.” He blamed the federal and state government for failing to address longstanding immigration policies in a “meaningful and responsible way.”
“The only immigration courts that exist in New York State where these asylum cases can be heard are in Buffalo and New York City, so housing these individuals here in Schenectady County makes absolutely no sense,” he said. “Our State and Federal government needs to do more to address this crisis.”
County lawmakers are expected to call on the state and federal leaders to allocate additional resources to help affected communities deal with the financial impacts of hosting migrants, and call on the state’s attorney general to launch an investigation into the Super 8 motel’s sudden closure.
More than 30 counties across the state issued emergency declarations prohibiting private businesses from entering into contracts to house or transport migrants, including Saratoga, Fulton, Schoharie and Rensselaer counties. New York City has since filed a lawsuit seeking to overturn the orders.
But Schenectady County never issued such an order.
Erin Laiacona, a county spokesperson, said on Thursday that the orders have not stopped New York City from contracting with private hotels, and an emergency order could bring litigation that would impact taxpayers.
“To fight a lawsuit would result in an undue expense to taxpayers for a case that the county would most likely lose,” she said.
But the county appears to have changed course less than a day later.
On Wednesday, the Glenville Town Board approved a resolution calling on the county to adopt an emergency order, and convene a task force to develop a strategy on how to deal with a potential influx of migrants to the county.
Glenville Supervisor Chris Koetzle said he was glad to see the county taking the step to adopt an emergency order, but added that he would like to see a task force appointed in order to develop a plan on how to address the situation moving forward.
“I think it’s the right move,” he said. “I’m glad we were able to come together as a community and have a positive impact by calling for this and keeping the pressure on them.”
But questions remain about the motel’s sudden closure earlier this week, including how many individuals staying at the facility have been displaced and where they have since ended up.
Schenectady, Saratoga and Albany counties have confirmed that their department of social services did not have anyone placed at the motel when it closed. Montgomery County did not return a request seeking comment.
State Assemblyman Angelo Santabarbara, D-Rotterdam, is trying to gather information about those displaced and determine if those impacted are in need of any services.
He has called on the state’s Attorney General’s office to launch an investigation into the matter, and has sent letters to U.S. Sens. Charles Schumer and Kirstin Gillibrand of New York, and U.S. Rep. Paul Tonko, D-Amsterdam, urging the lawmakers to intervene.
“I urgently implore you to use your influence and authority to work towards finding a fair and equitable solution,” Santabarbara wrote in the letter. “Proper protocols and consultation should be followed to ensure the best interests of all parties involved are safeguarded.”
Meanwhile, Shannon Shine, the superintendent of the Mohonasen Central School District in Rotterdam, released a letter to district parents on Friday about how the district would move forward.
He said details around the situation remain unclear, noting that the district’s response depends on the number of school-aged children being housed at the motel and how long they will be staying. Shine, however, noted that the district would educate any school-aged children as required under state law.
“The short answer is that we still do not know as it will largely depend on how many school-aged children are housed at the motel and how long they are there,” Shine wrote. “Should there be any school-aged children who are residing at the hotel for more than a very short duration, as required by NYS education law, we will educate and support those children.”
Rotterdam Town Board member Joseph Mastroianni said he was displeased that the county has scheduled its meeting the same time as the town, saying the move was designed to avoid scrutiny from town residents, and calling the decision “politically motivated.”
“The Schenectady County Legislature calling a meeting at the same exact time that the town of Rotterdam called a meeting is a political move to avoid having to feel the frustration, anger and vitriol of the citizens of Rotterdam,” he said.
Mastroianni, said he has received dozens of phone calls from concerned residents about the arrival of the asylum-seekers, and believes the county’s plans to adopt an emergency order is long overdue. He also criticized the federal government for failing to address longstanding immigration policy, noting the topic has been subject to partisan politics.
“We need to stop this hyper-partisan politics and start focusing on policy and not personalities,” he said.
Contact reporter Chad Arnold at: [email protected] or by calling 518-410-5117.
Categories: Email Newsletter, News, Rotterdam, Schenectady County
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they should send them to city of Albany.
Tiny tiny tiny when the name fits it fits i just have to wonder what these legal immigrants did to offend you so? Everyone deserves an opportunity no one is going to cheat you out of anything. Relax smile be an American