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Mount Pleasant Town Supervisor Carl Fulgenzi issued the State of Emergency declaration on Friday, May 26 in response to New York City's alleged plan to send migrants to the Pleasantville Cottage School at 1075 Broadway (Route 141),
According to Fulgenzi, the plan, which he said would be coming from New York City and state officials, would be illegal as it would violate the town's zoning laws.
He also added that the town does not have the needed resources at a town and school level to handle an influx of migrants, and did not receive any direct communications about the potential arrival of the migrants.
In his State of Emergency declaration, Fulgenzi, a Republican, wrote that the town "already struggles with available manpower, emergency services, parks and recreation areas, and the school districts within the town have an ever-burdening concern if there is a spike in students attending."
Fulgenzi also wrote that the town has "no reason to believe that these migrant persons or asylum seekers will leave such jurisdictions after New York City ceases to pay for the housing and any services they are currently receiving...or that this will be the last time this kind of spike will occur."
As part of the declaration, Fulgenzi also an emergency order that states the following:
- No person, business, or entity can make contracts to transport migrants or asylum seekers to locations in the town;
- No hotel, motel, school, commercially zoned property, or owner of a multiple dwelling or any other building in the town can contract with any municipality besides Mount Pleasant for the purpose of housing migrants or asylum seekers without a license granted by the town.
Anyone who violates these orders may be issued a ticket or civil penalty of up to $2,000 per migrant housed.
"There is nothing humanitarian about a sanctuary city sending busloads of people to a municipality that does not have the infrastructure to care for them," Fulgenzi wrote.
The State of Emergency declaration will last for thirty days, while the emergency order will last five days unless extended or revoked.
The declaration comes almost two weeks since 38 asylum seekers arrived in Yonkers at a Ramada Inn. City officials said they would accept the migrants and integrate their children into the Yonkers school system if needed.
So far, the executives of Putnam, Dutchess, Orange, and Rockland counties have also declared states of emergency in response to New York City sending migrants north.
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