Stephen Yang
A new type of homeless encampment has popped up in Brooklyn.
Dozens of Sheepshead Bay residents have been living in tents on Coyle Street for the past five weeks to protest against an incoming family homeless shelter, which they claim would trigger an explosion of crime in their otherwise sleepy enclave.
“Everyday. Anytime,” said Danny Pan, who was celebrating his 55th birthday Wednesday with his fellow protesters, adding that they’ll remain on Coyle Street “until there’s no homeless shelter. Until the project is gone.”
The four large tents spanning the length of the property line of the incoming shelter were erected last month, just days after hundreds of protesters stormed the streets to accuse the city of a “bait and switch” after the controversial lot was initially planned for affordable housing.
The plastic shelters are covered in American flags and protest signs, and are filled top-to-bottom with fliers, food and drink and personal items, like a drum kit.
The so-called volunteers stage the sit-in in shifts so that between six and up to 50 people are sitting outside the property at all times, with another small group stationed on the corner of Avenue U armed with protest signs.
Nearby bakeries and restaurants donate meals almost daily to the cause, and one donor even paid for a port-a-potty for the enduring group to utilize.
The goal of the sit-in is twofold: it is mostly in protest of the incoming shelter, which plans to accommodate 169 families, but is also to ensure that neither the city nor Westhab, the private owner, begins construction without the proper permits.
The protesters began consistently stationing themselves outside after catching construction crews allegedly sneaking onto the property under the cover of darkness.
“Westhab hired construction companies to come and demolish the buildings, and they came at like crazy hours. One time they came at 6 a.m.,” explained Benjamin Louie, a neighbor and organizer.
“So I thought that of the idea, ‘Why don’t we just stake out the whole night to prevent them from coming?’ We basically blocked the doors. We’re taking up space.”
The group initially tried to block workers from the site, but after a court order were forced to let them in. Nevertheless, they remained on the sidewalk.
The protesters argued that they were not against homeless people in general, but against the potential safety risk to their children — especially because of the property’s close proximity to the numerous daycare centers that line Avenue U, as well as the elementary and middle schools just several blocks away.
The city has previously emphasized that the shelter will be for families, but the protesters remain unconvinced, saying they were already duped by city officials who originally promised the controversial lot would be turned into affordable housing units.
That plan, supported by the City Council, was dropped by the original developer back in 2023. Westhab then swooped in with their own plan to build the district’s first long-term homeless shelter, housing 169 families, with a preference for those already living in the community.
