New York City Mayor Eric Adams announced that the city will shut down the Floyd Bennett Field shelter in March 2025. This is the latest closure by the Adams administration, making it the 25th shelter to end its services.

Migrants will be moved out of the shelter by the middle of January.

In a statement, Adams said since its start, the operations have helped countless families.

“More than 170,000 migrants take their next steps on their journeys, because migrants don’t come here to live in our shelter system, they come here to pursue the American Dream.” 

Statement by Mayor Adams

In 2022, buses of asylum seekers sought refuge in the city’s five boroughs. Adams’ office stated Floyd Bennett Field served as an integral component to the city’s humanitarian mission.

The mayor’s office also said the city has seen a decrease in the need for migrant shelters over the last 22 weeks. Adams said it shows the city is managing the crisis better than “any other city in the nation.”

He also said executive orders by the Biden administration helped enforce stricter restrictions at the southern border. Adams said it reduced the number of migrants entering the city.

Following the announcement, New York Republican Rep. Nicole Malliotakis said President-elect Donald Trump continues to have an impact on the United States’ migrant crisis and Adams. She stated there were multiple attempts to close the shelter from lawsuits to protests, but all it took was the re-election of Trump.

Speculation has mounted surrounding the shelter for several weeks. Due to its location on federal land, the incoming Trump administration could’ve ended the shelter’s lease.

Adams also announced that his team will look at other shelters to consolidate or close. In October, he announced that the center at Randall’s Island would close in February 2025.