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Elected
Officials Thank City for Preserving Coney
Island Food Stamp Center

Urge City to make commitment to keep Center in Coney Island indefinitely, beyond lease expiration of May
2010

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: Friday, October 16, 2009
CONTACT:

Ilan Kayatsky (Nadler), 212-367-7350

Anthony Hogrebe (Quinn), 212-788-7157

Karen Becker (Recchia), 212-788-7045

Ana Tinsly (Savino), 718-727-9406

Jason Koppel (Kruger), 718-743-8610

Kate Cucco (Brook-Krasny), 718-266-0267

NEW YORK, N.Y.
– Today, Congressman Jerrold Nadler, City Council Speaker Christine C.
Quinn, Councilman Domenic Recchia, State Senators Diane Savino and Carl Kruger,
and Assemblyman Alec Brook-Krasny expressed thanks to Robert Doar, Commissioner
of the New York City Human Resources Administration (HRA), for his willingness
to maintain services at the City’s Coney Island Food
Stamp Center. 
Last month, HRA announced its plan to close the Center, located on 2865 West 8th Street
in Brooklyn, but reversed its decision this week following community outcry and
a September 23rd letter from Coney Island’s
elected officials requesting that the Center remain open.  The
closure of that Center would have forced the 28,000 people who rely on its
services to travel many miles to downtown and central Brooklyn
to apply for and receive food stamps.

At
present, the Center’s lease is set to expire in May 2010, prompting the
elected officials to urge the City to make an additional commitment to maintain
a permanent presence in Coney Island and
ensure that food stamp recipients continue to receive vital services locally.
 As of now, the Coney Island office is the only source of comprehensive
food stamp services for residents of southern Brooklyn.

“I
am very pleased that the City has agreed to do the right thing and maintain
this important service in Coney Island,”
said Rep. Nadler.  “This office serves 28,000 people who rely on
food stamps to provide for their families and fill the financial holes deepened
by this economic recession.  Particularly now, when making ends meet has
become especially hard for regular, hard working New Yorkers, it is essential
to retain social services for our most vulnerable citizens.”

“New
Yorkers are suffering from the worst recession in decades, with many families struggling
to put food on the table and food stamp enrollment at an all time high,”
said Council Speaker Quinn.  “Since I became Speaker, the Council
has been working to make sure every New Yorker that qualifies for food stamps
has access to those benefits.  This Coney Island
food stamp office serves over 28,000 New Yorkers, and I’m extremely glad
the Administration took our recommendations to heart and agreed to keep its
doors open.”

“The
loss of this food stamp office would have been devastating to the Coney Island
community, and all of southern Brooklyn,”
said Councilman Recchia.  “A family living in Coney Island would
have to travel an hour or more to downtown or central Brooklyn
to get food stamps, and that’s just not acceptable.  Especially
during these tough economic times, we have to ensure proper access to necessary
services.  I would like to thank the City for meeting with us and
recognizing the importance of keeping this office open, and I look forward to
working with the City to ensure a more equitable distribution of food stamp
offices around Brooklyn.”

“I
am very pleased that HRA revisited their decision to close the Coney Island food stamp office,” said Senator
Savino.  “It is a relief to the constituents and to the workers who
would have been adversely affected.  In these tough fiscal
times, more and more families are having to turn to social safety nets and
it is important to have the safety net as large as possible.”

“I
am pleased that the City realized that shuttering the Coney
Island food stamp office was a misguided attempt at fiscal
austerity that would have penalized those most in need of compassionate
assistance,” said Senator Kruger.  “Now the City must fulfill
its obligation to these vulnerable New Yorkers by turning this temporary reprieve
into a permanent action.”

“It
brings me such joy to know that this vital community asset will be remaining
open here in the heart of our community,” said Assemblyman
Brook-Krasny.  “This center truly brings help to many New
Yorkers.  As we start getting into the colder part of the year, this food
stamp center is the first step in getting warm food to those who need it. 
I thank all my colleagues, especially Congressman Nadler, who have fought hard
to keep this center open.”

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