President-elect Donald Trump’s vow to crack down on illegal immigration and deport potential millions of people already in the U.S. illegally could be having an effect, even in parts of the country where Democratic officials have threatened to oppose him every step of the way.
Deep blue New York is set to close 12 migrant shelters before the end of the year, just weeks ahead of Trump taking office, Fox News reported Saturday.
Two hotels converted into migrant shelters—the Hotel Merit in Manhattan and the Quality Inn JFK in Queens—have already shut down. An additional 10 shelter facilities across the state are scheduled for closure by December 31, according to New York City Mayor Eric Adams’ office, as reported by Fox News Digital.
The 10 shelters, located in Albany, Dutchess, Erie, Orange, and Westchester counties, were established by the city after it ran out of available space to accommodate migrants, underscoring the magnitude of the crisis.
New York City’s expansive migrant shelter on Randall’s Island, designed to house up to 3,000 people, is scheduled to close by February 2025, just weeks after President-elect Donald Trump’s second inauguration on January 20.
The closures come as Mayor Eric Adams announced Monday that the city has provided for more than 223,000 migrants and asylum seekers since the spring of 2022, a number equivalent to about half the population of Albany, the state capital.
City taxpayers have been covering a $352 nightly cost per migrant, with only $130 going to hotels for housing. The remainder has been spent on services such as social support, food, and cleaning, according to The New York Post.
Currently, 58,000 migrants remain in taxpayer-funded shelters across New York City, the mayor’s office confirmed to Fox News Digital. Approximately 210 city-run shelter sites are spread across the five boroughs, according to The Post. The city estimates that the ongoing migrant crisis could cost taxpayers roughly $12 billion over the next three fiscal years without significant policy changes.
The city cited the declining number of migrants arriving in New York as the reason for the shelter closures, attributing the reduction to federal government efforts and executive orders issued by the Biden-Harris administration.
