VERNIKOV GETS TEMPORARY RESTRAINING ORDER IN SHELTER FIGHT
Councilwoman Vernikov, Assemblyman Yeger, community stakeholders, secure legal win as fight against shelter conversion continues
| BROOKLYN, NY : The Appellate Division of the Kings County Supreme Court has granted a request for a Temporary Restraining Order (TRO) in Vernikov v. City of New York, Index No. 527627/2026, immediately restricting the city from admitting any additional single adult men into the shelter at 3218 Emmons Avenue, pending a hearing scheduled for mid-August. The suit was filed amidst a fight to prevent the city from converting the Emmons Avenue hotel from a family shelter into a shelter exclusively serving single adult men. Councilwoman Vernikov filed for the TRO on July 24 alongside Assemblyman Kalman Yeger, Community Board 15 Chairwoman Theresa Scavo, and several community members directly affected by the conversion, including a parent of three children who lives blocks from the shelter, the owner of a senior center located roughly 300 feet away, and a resident of that senior center. The legal action was brought by Lloyd Eisenberg of Eisenberg & Carton and Mitchell Shpelfogel of Pinczewski & Shpelfogel, P.C. Defendants named in the suit include the City of New York, the New York City Department of Social Services (DSS), DSS Commissioner Erin Dalton, the New York City Department of Homeless Services (DHS), and BHRAGS Home Care Corp. The lawsuit follows weeks of community outrage and organizing led by Councilwoman Vernikov, Assemblyman Kalman Yeger, and other elected officials. On July 16, the electeds organized a rally attended by hundreds of protesters. They have also sent formal letters of opposition to DSS, NYC Comptroller Mark Levine, and Assistant U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of New York Laura Zuckerwise. Comptroller Levine has since opened an investigation and is actively auditing BHRAGS. “I am thrilled to see the TRO granted and extremely thankful to attorneys Lloyd Eisenberg and Mitchell Shpelfogel for their time and tremendous efforts to make this happen, as we could not have done this without them,” said Councilwoman Vernikov. “I will not allow this administration to target our neighborhoods and place our children and seniors at risk. My district is not a dumping ground for Mamdani’s political games. We will fight this tooth and nail.”  |