Amid crisis, de Blasio’s homelessness czar resigns

The de Blasio deputy responsible for managing the homelessness crisis in the city is out of a job.

The Mayor’s Office last night announced the impending resignation of Lilliam Barrios-Paoli, the deputy mayor for health and human services. The de Blasio administration’s statement gave no explanation of the departure. Barrios-Paoli will become the volunteer chairwoman of the board of the Health and Hospitals corporation, which runs the city’s public hospitals.

Barrios-Paoli had been commissioner of aging under Mayor Michael Bloomberg and had, along with de Blasio, promised to change the city’s approach to homelessness. While the de Blasio administration has created new subsidy programs and implemented emergency measures, the number of homeless in the city remains high, the New York Times reported.

After the announcement, Barrios-Paoli was widely praised, by the Mayor, Council Members and advocates.

“It’s just sad to see her go,” Mary Brosnahan, president of the Coalition for the Homeless, told the Times. “Her experience is unparalleled. She really had a her finger on the pulse. I hope the mayor is looking for people with her accessibility and her caliber to replace her.” [NYT] – Ariel Stulberg