Cuomo sister plans large Greenpoint shelter

Maria Cuomo Cole

Andrew Cuomo’s sister is looking to turn a four-story Greenpoint industrial building into one of the largest homeless shelters in Northern Brooklyn, according to the Brooklyn Paper. Maria Cuomo Cole, who is married to designer Kenneth Cole, is the executive chair of the board at HELP USA, the non-profit low-income housing builder and operator, which has already submitted a proposal for a 200-bed men’s shelter to the city, city officials said. Cole also manages the HELP Women’s Center in Brownsville, among other transitional housing facilities across the northeast. The Greenpoint location, on McGuiness Boulevard and Clay Street, would be HELP’s first in the neighborhood, and would take on clients referred by the city for “comprehensive assessments, support services and housing placement assistance.” The loft property is zoned for light manufacturing use but is currently occupied by artists and residents who might turn out to be difficult to evict, given the loft law’s recent passage. HELP representatives have been invited to speak about the plan at the next Community Board 1 meeting Sept. 15. [Brooklyn Paper]

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