Last year was a roller coaster of emotion and action. As we celebrated the arrival of effective vaccines and responded to the advent of new and more easily transmitted variants, Breaking Ground was steadfast in our commitment to helping vulnerable New Yorkers come off the streets and into safe, stable housing.
Our teams in street outreach, transitional housing, and our scatter site supportive housing programs helped hundreds of vulnerable clients access vaccination through a variety of means, including onsite clinics and facilitating connections to sites in the community. And across our portfolio of permanent housing sites, we helped nearly 1,000 residents get vaccinated throughout the year. This effort was crucial and we have no doubt that it saved lives, considering the vulnerable populations we serve.
While our outreach and transitional housing teams worked tirelessly to help people come indoors off the streets, we expanded into new and innovative partnerships with Starbucks, the MetLife Foundation, and Vornado Realty Trust, who joined our partners at Macy’s Herald Square to bring dedicated outreach teams into privately owned and managed spaces. On average, through these programs, we’re able to help someone come indoors three times faster, and in many cases discover people who might otherwise fall through the cracks.
In July of 2021, we officially opened Edwin’s Place, celebrating the completion of this supportive and affordable housing project that was a long time coming. With 125 units for individuals and families with children, Edwin’s Place has become a vibrant and thriving community in just a year since its completion. Learn more in this lovely profile of our residents by Wendy Goodman for Curbed.
And with new permanent housing like Betances Senior Residence, 90 Sands, Jamaica Senior Housing, and the Kingsboro project in central Brooklyn, we have over 1,400 new units of supportive and affordable housing in development across the City. Thank you for making an impact with Breaking Ground in 2021 and beyond.
