Protesters rip NYC for replacing promised affordable housing building with homeless shelter: Bait and switch

Enraged Brooklyn residents are accusing the city of a “bait and switch” to replace a building slated for affordable housing with a new homeless shelter.Hundreds of protesters — including parents, business owners and local politicians — rallied in Sheepshead Bay Tuesday, chanting “who decides” outside the controversial lot on Coyle Street.The group said they felt duped by city officials, and raised concerns that the shelter could bring skyrocketing crime to their otherwise sleepy residential neighborhood.“They tricked us.They lied.

And when you lie — the truth always comes out,” said Michelle Crisafulli, 71, who lives just a short walk from the proposed site.“They got caught.And we ain’t letting go because that is not going to be a homeless shelter.

By no means,” the retired school crosswalk guard told The Post.“It’s aggravating to me to know when I own my property — I feel like they’re just stepping on my face, you know? And it’s not right … I’m not letting go, I’m like a pitbull on the bone.”The lot at 2134 Coyle Street is expected to open this summer as the district’s first long-term homeless shelter, housing 169 families, with a preference for those already living in the community, according to City Hall.The site was eyed for years as an affordable housing project, and in 2022, the City Council OK’ed it as a mixed-use development with 119 dwelling units and ground-floor retail space.But those plans shifted the following year when the original developer dropped the project.Westhab, a not-for-profit developer, swept in and drew up plans to create the first long-term homeless shelter in City Councilmember Mercedes Narcisse’s district, which also includes parts of Bergen Beach, Canarsie and Gerritsen Beach.City officials sent a July 2023 letter to Narcisse alerting her of the change — but the councilmember fumed that the community should have been consulted before the shelter plans were put in place.“I’m not go...