A huge voter turnout in southwestern Brooklyn was due in part to community mobilization that began as a fight against a homeless shelter proposed for 86^th Street and 25^th Avenue, says Assemblyman William Colton (D—Gravesend, Bensonhurst, Bath Beach and Dyker Heights).

Early voting in the vicinity of the shelter broke records, Assemblyman Colton said. Some 7,000 people cast ballots at the Harway Youth Center early voting site, and an additional 4,000 people voted at St. Dominic’s, another early voting site in the area.

The heavy vote, which was unprecedented in the area, followed sustained efforts to register voters outside 2501 86^th Street, where the city says it wants to build a shelter housing 150 single men with substance abuse or mental health issues. Since mid-July, when the daily protests commenced, approximately 3,000 people were registered to vote there.

“The city has awakened a sleeping giant,” said Assemblyman Colton. “In this area, the turnout was effectively a referendum on the shelter. The ill-considered plan, made without consultation with the community, has mobilized people across this part of Brooklyn to stand up for themselves and their neighborhood, as well as for the individuals who would be warehoused at the shelter. Instead of annually wasting millions of dollars on this shelter, and billions on shelters citywide, which only benefits developers and shelter operators, the city should take the responsible approach of developing permanent affordable housing and appropriate supportive services that would solve the issue, rather than perpetuating it.”

Opposition to the plan has been strong and sustained since the city announced its plans to open the shelter last year. Numerous prior protests have drawn thousands of protesters. In addition, more than 53,000 people have signed a petition in opposition to the plan.