NYC offers free airfare to homeless to leave city

When i first saw the headline i thought it was going to be something bad. However after reading the article it seems like a rather innovative solution to a problem. It helps homeless families reunite with family willing to help them out and eases the financial burden on the city. It seems like a win/win solution, maybe something for other cities hit with many homeless should take a look at.

NEW YORK – New York City is buying one-way plane tickets for homeless families to leave the city.

It's part of a Bloomberg administration program to keep the homeless out of the expensive shelter system, which costs $36,000 a year per family. More than 550 families have left the city since 2007. All it takes is for a relative to agree to take them in.

City officials say none of the relocated families have returned to city shelters.

news.yahoo.com...

Wouldn't be easier to just take that money, build an apartment building and have volunteers help them find a job a McDonalds and once they have accumulated enough money help them find a place to live?

Seems to me they are just giving them a fish instead of teaching them to fish.

Originally posted by jd140
Wouldn't be easier to just take that money, build an apartment building and have volunteers help them find a job a McDonalds and once they have accumulated enough money help them find a place to live?

Seems to me they are just giving them a fish instead of teaching them to fish.

Just because they are homeless don't mean they all have aspirations to work in McDonalds.

The jobs at Mcdonalds are all taken or are part time 8hr a week crap and require a 60 question psychological test.

[edit on 30-7-2009 by Soulhacking]

reply to post by jd140

It's part of a Bloomberg administration program to keep the homeless out of the expensive shelter system, which costs $36,000 a year per family. More than 550 families have left the city since 2007.

On average 275 families a year are reunited with family members willing to help them. How big would an apartment building have to be to hold 275 families

Do you really think a job at McDonalds will give them enough money to find a decent home ?

Don't you think it's actually better for all concerned that they are going to family that cares enough to take them in ?



[edit on 7/30/2009 by chise61]

I'm not trying to be the bad guy here.

I'm simply stating that these people are homeless because they don't have a job. If you find them a job then they can care for themselves instead of NYC just shipping them off.

Originally posted by woodwardjnr

Originally posted by jd140
Wouldn't be easier to just take that money, build an apartment building and have volunteers help them find a job a McDonalds and once they have accumulated enough money help them find a place to live?

Seems to me they are just giving them a fish instead of teaching them to fish.

Just because they are homeless don't mean they all have aspirations to work in McDonalds.

I used McDonalds as an example.

If you are homeless you take what you can get, aspirations for a great job be damned.

What a way to solve a problem, ... pass it on to another city/state. Is it so hard to imagine why this country is in the state its in ??? Nothing gets solved, ... just passed down, delayed, or ignored completely.

Wouldn't it be Ironic, If a homeless guy flew to India, ... took a job with an American company there, .... only to realize that same american company laid him off before moving to India, ... causing him to be homeless to begin with .....

I need to cut down on my caffeine.

reply to post by jd140


Yes but the problem is finding a job that pays enough to live on and support a family at that. True you take whatever job you can to survive, but in some cases that means both parents working , somtimes one or both working two jobs just to make ends meet, especially in today's economy. In a situation like that how can they ever spend time as a family, and who's raising the kids ? With the shape of the economy right now for some it's impossible to find work.

They're not being shipped off, they're being given an offer to relocate with family, probably to places where it's easier to find work, with more affordable cost of living. They're not being forced, it's an offer they willingly accept.

reply to post by IntastellaBurst


They're not passing it off to another city/state, they're sending them to family members that are willing to help. Family should be helping family during rough times.

Edit to add; So how would you propose that they solve the problem ?

[edit on 7/30/2009 by chise61]

reply to post by chise61


That is why I stated that they live in these apartments until they can get back on their feet.

Have them pay a small fee once they get a job that covers all expenses so that way they would be able to save.

Of course they aren't going to start off living in a great place, but as with everyone who has had to struggle to get to where they are at, they work their way up in life.

I started out in a house that cost 200 dollars a month and it didn't have hot water. Now I live in a large nice 2 bedroom apartment.

This is an okay program, but I see it as a way for them to not have to deal with the problem. As I said, they are giving them a fish instead of teaching them to fish.

reply to post by jd140


Maybe it would be easier for them to work their way up in life with the help of family. These are not single people, theese are families. It becomes much harder when you have children to support, especially if they need daycare which is extremely expensive. Perhaps by moving with family it alleviates the problem of daycare, which is a big problem for many. If they don't have to pay for daycare they get on their feet much faster. I believe they will get much more beneficial help from family than from government handouts.

reply to post by chise61


Again I don't see this as a bad program, just not the ideal one.

What are they going to do with the ones without family, the ones whos family rejects them or the ones who refuse to go?

A program that is beneficial to all of them is the ideal program.

reply to post by jd140


I know it's not ideal, just innovative, It is a way to help some families get out of a bad situation. They can't fix everyone's problems, but it does seem like a good idea for some.

I guess the ones that don't have family, or family willing to help, will have to stay in the shelters until they come up with a plan for them. The ones who refuse to go, are not forced into anything they don't want.

I just think it's a good thing for those that want to do it and have family that is willing, but perhaps just didn't have the money to get to them. For example i'm lucky enough to still have my 2 bedroom apt (maybe not much longer though) if i had a family member out of state that needed help i could put them up until they found a job and got back on their feet, but i wouldn't have the money for a plane ticket to get them here. A program like this would give them the little extra help they need to get to people who care and are willing to help.


I don't think we'll ever see a program that is beneficial to everyone.


[edit on 7/30/2009 by chise61]

Originally posted by woodwardjnr

Originally posted by jd140
Wouldn't be easier to just take that money, build an apartment building and have volunteers help them find a job a McDonalds and once they have accumulated enough money help them find a place to live?

Seems to me they are just giving them a fish instead of teaching them to fish.

Just because they are homeless don't mean they all have aspirations to work in McDonalds.

Seriously? So stay homeless and be a burden on society because it's easier or becasue they're to proud to work a lower end job?

And we wonder why this country is in the situation it is in. There's no reason(unless they are truely disabilitated) for the homeless not to find a stepping stone job. Hell, they should pick the fields by day and work Mc D's at night. Most would be in a better position then most of us simply becasue they're coming to the game debt free. Soon enough they'd open the door to all kinds of options they didn't have while on the streets.

Nah, it's easier to pan handle for coins, eat at soup houses, and leech off of society.






[edit on 30-7-2009 by Tyr Sog]

36,000 dollars for family? What the heck are they feeding those people. how can cots, electricity and 2 meals a day cost so friggin much?

I think it would be a better move to take that money and send illegals home which would open more jobs and services to Citizens.

second line

reply to post by Tyr Sog

Most would be in a better position then most of us simply becasue they're coming to the game debt free.

I'm unsure as to why you believe this to be true, many families are homeless due to enormous debt. Many that are homeless and have high debts (such as medical) have an even harder time finding employment because of that debt due to the fact that many employers now run credit checks on potential employees.


Let's not forget that this article is talking about a program for homeless families, not homeless single people. How would they ever get back on their feet if the majority of their income went on daycare while they worked two jobs ? There is also very little childcare available for parents that work nights.

reply to post by yeahright


Thank you for your informative contribution to the thread.

It's also nice to see that someone else sees the common sense in this program and the potential to truely help some of these homeless families