For weeks, Massachusetts leaders have warned that the state’s 7,500 emergency shelter beds are nearly full due to an influx of migrants.
“Massachusetts is a right to shelter state by law, and that means that families and pregnant women are entitled to shelter, regardless of their status, regardless of their citizenship," said Tyer. "And so, if you've been following it all what's happening in the commonwealth, we have many new arrivals coming into Massachusetts, and they have been settled in various communities around the state including Pittsfield and Great Barrington here in the Berkshires.”
At Tuesday night’s city council meeting, Tyer told the body that Pittsfield has taken in 37 people in need of shelter since October — 23 adults and 14 children primarily from Haiti.
“There are no costs incurred by the city of Pittsfield for this program," the mayor continued. "The accommodations are paid for by the state, and all of the food is paid for by the state. We have had some studies city staff who have done a few things as part of the welcoming and settling in process, but those are part of our normal day-to-day functions as an organization. Any children that are enrolled in our schools who come through the emergency assistance shelter program, the community will receive $104 a day per student for reimbursement.”
Tyer has chosen to not publicize which Pittsfield hotels are housing the migrants.
“The National Guard provides the day-to-day operations and functioning of the facility," she said. "They do not provide security. And here in the city of Pittsfield, I assigned Director [Andy] Cambi to serve as the lead liaison, because this program is managed by the Massachusetts Office of Executive Health and Human Services. And so, as the Director of Public Health, it would be his role to be the liaison between the state and the city. However, I have been actively engaged and involved in this process.”
Ward 2 city councilor Charles Kronick asked Tyer why Massachusetts chose Pittsfield as a community to accept migrants.
“The background problem of Pittsfield is that we have a housing shortage," said the councilor. "I mean, even if you want to rent an apartment and you’re marginal in income, and you need RAFT assistance, you can barely find a place. And yet, the state comes to us, they say we have, we felt like a very attractive spot for them, for their migrants.”
Tyer reiterated that Pittsfield and Great Barrington were only two of many communities across the commonwealth designated to receive those in need of shelter.
“The way that the state runs the program is that they interact on a one-on-one individual basis with the hotels that have been procured," the mayor explained. "And so that transaction occurs between the state and the owner of the hotel. And so, if an owner of a hotel makes a portion of their facility available, then the state will contract with that hotel and the rooms will be made available for the migrants. It doesn't have anything to do- I would like to say that we were chosen because we're a welcoming community and because we have a great set of partners in our nonprofit community partners that can provide all kinds of care for people in all kinds of situations. But the state doesn't operate that way. It is simply finding the space available in any community in the Commonwealth.”
The last meeting of the Pittsfield city council term is December 12th before a new roster is sworn in in January.
