Rockland, Orangetown Take Legal Action Against Orangeburg Hotel & Nyc

New City, NY - On Wednesday, Rockland County Executive Ed Day and Orangetown Town Supervisor announced additional enforcement actions executed against the Armoni Inn & Suites Hotel in Orangeburg and the City of New York.

The City of New York announced plans Friday to house over 300 migrants in the Armoni Inn & Suites Hotel in Orangeburg for four months, which violates the towns local laws. In response, the town filed a lawsuit and was granted a Temporary Restraining Order late Tuesday by a judge.

"It is my understanding no buses will be coming from New York City but if they do the Sheriff is authorized under the order to turn them away. The legal status of these individuals is irrelevant to this lawsuit," explained Orangetown Supervisor Kenny. "This has to do with zoning codes and legal use of this property."

Rockland County, while beautiful, is suburban and does not have the infrastructure to support rapid population growth and is already tackling a severe housing crisis that includes a shortage of safe and affordable units. This has led to overcrowding as unscrupulous landlords take advantage of both new legal migrants and the undocumented.

"We saw this situation turn tragic in March when five people, including two children ages 4 and 13, died in a fire in a two-family home in Spring Valley that 18 people were living in," explained County Executive Day. "Yesterday on a call with County Executives, Governor Kathy Hochul's administration confirmed two things… they were also left in the dark about the City of New York's decompression plan and that this plan does not have their support or blessing. What they do support is working with New York City on selecting appropriate sites *within the city* to shelter migrants as they arrive and await legal work status."

The hotel permit for Armoni Inn & Suites in Orangeburg expired April 30th, 2023, and the hotel should not be in operation until that permit is reissued by Rockland County Department of Health. That renewal is on hold due to the pending litigation. Also, as the County of Rockland has declared a State of Emergency, the establishment must now obtain a license under our Emergency Order before that renewal is granted.

Furthermore, the County of Rockland filed a lawsuit seeking a Temporary Restraining Order against the City of New York for its lack of authority to establish a shelter outside of its boundaries. The lawsuit also underscores the City of New York's failure to follow New York State rules and regulations required for setting up a shelter.

"That includes going to site plans, approvals, inspections; it's a lengthy process. The Mayor knows this because he issued his own executive order in his boroughs to accelerate that process," explained Rockland County Department of Social Services Commissioner Joan Silvestri. "He has no authority to do that in Rockland County and any attempt to set up a shelter has to go through the State and, as indicated by Ed, they don't have the State's support."

The County has learned that the City's contracted operator of these shelters DocGo, is actively searching for other commercial spaces to house migrants and has learned this operator has recently reached out to a hotel in Nyack to pursue a similar deal.

"This is a home rule state and New York City does not have the authority over this County or Town to volunteer us for placement, especially when we are telling them we do not have the infrastructure to help," concluded Day.

As the litigation process plays out, the County urges residents to contact Federal lawmakers about the concerns surrounding the current immigration system:

Senator Charles Schumer https://www.schumer.senate.gov/
Phone: (202) 224-6542 Fax: (202) 228-3027

Senator Kirsten Gillibrand: https://www.gillibrand.senate.gov/
Tel. (202) 224-4451 Fax (202) 228-4977

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