Introduction to the Just Home Project
Just Home, a supportive housing project for people exiting incarceration with major medical needs, was approved by City Council on Thursday after years of contentious debate — and after losing the support of Mayor Eric Adams, who first touted the project in 2022. The Sept. 25 vote also broke from the tradition of member deference, whereby members usually vote in accordance with the local representative on land use decisions. In this case, Council Member Kristy Marmorato long opposed Just Home on behalf of her Morris Park constituents, who made their opposition loud and clear, but was ultimately overruled.
Details of the Project
The council approved a 99-year sublease to the nonprofit Fortune Society, which will operate the development at a vacant building on the Jacobi Hospital campus. Just Home will include 82 apartments, 58 of which will be supportive units with on-site services and medical care, and the rest will be regular affordable units. NYC Health + Hospitals approved the project in 2024 but sent written testimony to the Sept. 18 hearing saying the city wanted to move Just Home to a different location and postpone the hearing and upcoming vote.
Objections from Mayor Adams and Council Member Marmorato
Ultimately, the full council held the Sept. 25 vote over the direct objections of First Deputy Mayor Randy Mastro, on the mayor’s behalf. In a statement, Marmorato blasted the vote as “embarrassing and hypocritical.” “This was not about housing,” she said. “The administration already committed to relocating this project and expanding affordable housing at Jacobi. This was about power, ego, and politics. And how shameful that personal feelings were allowed to outweigh the voices of the people we represent,” she said.
Reaction from the Fortune Society
Stanley Richards, president and CEO of The Fortune Society, celebrated the verdict. “The fact is that providing formerly incarcerated people with supportive housing does not make our neighborhoods less safe — on the contrary, it makes us all safer,” said Richards in a statement. “Just Home will prevent physically vulnerable individuals from entering our overburdened shelters, winding up on the streets, or languishing on Rikers Island. As we say at Fortune, everyone deserves a home, and today, the City Council has upheld and affirmed that belief.”
A Jacobi campus police officer walks up the ramp at 1900 Seminole Ave. on Friday, Feb. 2, 2024, the site of the proposed Just Home project. Photo Camille Botello
The Just Home Vote Survives
Before the vote, Marmorato pleaded for member deference, saying she should have the democratic right to represent her constituents’ opposition to Just Home. She also blamed the council for letting the project remain in limbo. “If the council cared so much about housing, this would not have sat for over a year,” she said. But Council Speaker Adrienne Adams made it clear the Just Home vote would proceed as scheduled and slammed the mayor for his “desperate, last-ditch attempt” to stop it.
Alternative Locations Proposed
In a Sept. 24 letter to the council, First Deputy Mayor Randy Mastro had said a Just Home vote should not be held because the location originally applied for (Jacobi) was no longer being considered. A footnote to Mastro’s letter said the city wanted to site Just Home at one of two possible buildings near Broadway Junction in Brooklyn. The vacant buildings are city-owned properties in Council Member Sandy Nurse’s district, and Mastro said he was “confident of greater local elected and community buy-in” at those sites. Mastro said that “without the mayor’s approval, the project cannot proceed [at Jacobi] as currently contemplated.”
Support for Just Home
However, Speaker Adams said the letter was an “irrelevant” attempt to subvert the council’s power. At the meeting, several members spoke in support of Just Home. Nurse, who said she recently cut the ribbon on a similar project in her district, said she hoped Marmorato would build a relationship with The Fortune Society and Just Home residents, who are “in most cases, dying” and “need our sympathy and care.” She also said she dedicated her approval vote to Mastro, drawing snickers from the members.
Impact on the Community
Bronx Council Member Pierina Sanchez said Just Home will provide “stable, dignified housing” for a “population that too often is pushed to the margins with nowhere safe to go.” She also said some neighborhoods have “resisted doing their fair share” of housing, especially for vulnerable communities. East Bronx District 13 has historically lagged behind in affordable housing construction, according to a report by the New York Housing Conference. District 13 ranked 38 out of 51 districts for affordable housing creation, having produced just 484 units between 2014 and 2024.
Conclusion
The approval of the Just Home project is a significant step towards providing supportive housing for individuals exiting incarceration with major medical needs. Despite the objections from Mayor Adams and Council Member Marmorato, the City Council voted in favor of the project, breaking from the tradition of member deference. The project is expected to provide stable and dignified housing for a vulnerable population and will help to address the shortage of affordable housing in the East Bronx.
FAQs
Q: What is the Just Home project?
A: Just Home is a supportive housing project for people exiting incarceration with major medical needs.
Q: Where will the project be located?
A: The project will be located at a vacant building on the Jacobi Hospital campus.
Q: How many apartments will the project include?
A: The project will include 82 apartments, 58 of which will be supportive units with on-site services and medical care.
Q: Who will operate the development?
A: The nonprofit Fortune Society will operate the development.
Q: What was the outcome of the City Council vote?
A: The City Council voted in favor of the project, despite objections from Mayor Adams and Council Member Marmorato.
