An unidentified man who, as reported, is currently homeless and had been living in a tent along the tree-lined center of Mosholu Parkway in Bedford Park in October, seems determined to stay in the neighborhood though, to date, he has refused different offers of assistance.

 

As reported, the man suddenly appeared in mid-October, at one stage constructing a makeshift tent of plywood and yellow tarp at Mosholu Parkway and Bainbridge Avenue, and was sometimes seen battling both wind and rain.

 

When residents called 311 in October about the man’s circumstances, officials from New York City’s departments of social services (DSS), homeless services (DHS), and parks & recreation (Parks’) sent teams to engage with him and offer him assistance. He was initially moved out of the Mosholu site but later returned.

 

As reported by Norwood News, on Oct. 19, Dan Kastanis, press officer with the Parks’ department said, “We conducted two clean-ups at Mosholu Parkway today as part of the Mayor’s Homeless Interagency Taskforce to address tents and refuse at the sites and we continue to coordinate with DHS on providing outreach to these [homeless] individuals.”

 

 

Kastanis added, “Being homeless in and around a New York City park is not a crime. As part of the City’s effort to provide shelter, support, and services to homeless individuals, if you see someone suffering from homelessness in a City park or setting up an encampment, please report it to 311.”

 

Two members of two different, local community organizations, who preferred not to identify themselves or their respective organizations, told the Norwood News, individually, that they had also attempted to reach out directly to the man, asking if he needed assistance, but he had declined.

 

On Oct. 20, a spokesperson for NYC DSS-DHS said, “Helping our neighbors experiencing unsheltered homelessness get back on their feet is hard work in the best of times.” The spokesperson added that throughout the pandemic, their outreach teams had gone above and beyond amid unprecedented circumstances to engage unsheltered New Yorkers, provide them with information on the range of resources available to them, and encourage them to accept those services.

 

DSS-DHS officials said they coordinate their outreach efforts in the Mosholu Parkway area via the nonprofit, BronxWorks, whose representatives, they said, canvass the Mosholu location at least 28 times every week. They said Bronxworks engages with six individuals who are known to their team, offers them services, and helps them come indoors.

 

In October, Norwood News also attempted to speak with the man who at one point was located across the street from the veteran’s monument on Mosholu Parkway. However, our attempts were met initially with profanities. He later added, “I’m fine. I don’t need no help.”

The Mosholu Parkway area is marked by both heavy vehicle traffic and constant foot traffic due to its proximity to nearby schools. At various intervals, the man was seen in a more secluded area behind the veteran’s monument at Bainbridge Avenue, as well as on Hull Avenue.

 

From at least Oct. 30 through Nov. 13, he was seen by Norwood News lying on a traffic island on the parkway in the center of 6 lanes of traffic, including two turning lanes, miraculously escaping injury. On Nov. 13, the man’s belongings were seen strewn about after a heavy storm.

 

On Nov. 20, he was discovered living under the Mosholu Parkway overpass at Webster Avenue, across the street and just south of the 52nd precinct station house. He was wearing a hooded jacket and sleeping in a chair, with two supermarket shopping carts on either side of him which held two suitcases and other items.

 

Describing the situation regarding the man’s circumstances when he had been living on the parkway, one of the local community organization members told the Norwood News, “There is a process which must be followed. The authorities have to wait a period of time before they can remove his belongings.”

The community member continued, “DHS, police & PEP [Parks Enforcement Patrol] can then remove his belongings from the park. This was done at the monument, and again, the next day when he settled on the Parkway at Bainbridge Avenue.” The man has since moved to the area under the Mosholu Parkway overpass at Webster Avenue. The community member concluded, “I guess no one is complaining about his current location.”

 

In fact, the overpass area was the focus of several complaints by residents earlier this year, but for a different reason. The site, just south of the 52nd precinct station house, is where the NYPD stores vehicles that have been either confiscated or involved in a crime or accident.

 

Residents had been complaining that trash and bird droppings had been piling up around and on top of the vehicles, and that some vehicles had not been moved in months. As reported, the NYPD told Norwood News that tow companies have been slow to remove such vehicles.

 

Norwood News has since followed up with DHS and Parks to provide City officials with the man’s latest known location so that they can continue to engage with him and offer him assistance, especially as the weather gets increasingly colder. Ian Martin, DSS deputy press secretary, responded, saying, “Thank you. We will pass this information along to our colleagues who oversee unsheltered outreach efforts.”

 

#CodeBlue is in effect until tomorrow, Tuesday, November 30 at 8:00 AM. If you see a homeless person outside in these frigid temperatures, please call us at 311. pic.twitter.com/J2J7I0pvcY

— City of New York (@nycgov) November 29, 2021

 

When temperatures drop below freezing, it triggers a Code Blue warning across the City. People who may be at risk of hypothermia, especially those living on the street, can be helped. Residents can call 311 and provide the location of the affected person. Outreach teams will follow up and bring them to a shelter. Accommodations are also available for walk-ins.

 

*Síle Moloney contributed to this story.