Overview
- Mayor Zohran Mamdani reversed his January pause, saying encampment clearings will resume this week after a cold snap that left at least 19 people dead outdoors.
- Under the new approach, DHS will post notice and conduct daily outreach for seven days before Sanitation clears sites on day seven with NYPD present as observers.
- City Hall frames the policy as focused on connecting people to shelter and services, with a proposed $6 million to hire about 60 additional outreach workers.
- Legal Aid Society and Coalition for the Homeless condemned the reversal as a broken promise, pointing to past sweeps that displaced thousands with few shelter placements.
- City data show more than 3,300 encampment complaints this year, while some elected officials and business groups praised the restart as a step for safety and order.