Firm: Housing Suffolk sex offenders pricier than vouchers

Housing Suffolk's homeless sex offenders in multiple sites across the county would cost almost twice as much as giving them vouchers to stay in local hotels, according to the lone company that bid on the project.

The plan from White Plains-based Community Housing Innovations Inc. - in which locations of the sites would not be made public until after the homeless sex offenders were placed at them - would cost the county between $173 and $190 per day per offender, depending on whether the county opts for one shelter or four. Legislation first passed in May called for the county's Social Services Department to house homeless sex offenders at multiple sites.

County Executive Steve Levy in January announced plans to give the county's two dozen homeless sex offenders daily vouchers worth $90 to stay in local hotels. Legislators voted in May to end funding for that strategy. Legis. Tom Barraga (R-West Islip) said keeping the site selection process secret combined with the higher price makes the proposal dead on arrival.

"Certainly $173 a day is outrageous compared to a voucher system I never had a problem with to begin with," Barraga said. "The proposal from this company is not acceptable."

But Legis. Kate Browning (WF-Shirley), whose Brookhaven district includes hotels at which sex offenders have stayed in with county vouchers, said Suffolk cannot abdicate its responsibility to monitor the offenders. "Is it worth more money to make sure that they're supervised?" she asked. "I think so."

CHI proposes to house homeless sex offenders at four or more sites in Suffolk. It's unclear what facilities CHI would use, though the proposal indicated it would seek locations in industrial, nonresidential areas.

Once sites are occupied by homeless sex offenders, local legislators would be notified of its location within 30 days and CHI would help create an advisory board of three "members from the local community" who would monitor the site's operations, according to CHI's proposal. The proposal, which Levy's Department of Social Services has yet to accept, states that CHI, "will not be involved in any process that requires community approval prior to occupancy" of any shelters.

"We do not want to get involved in a public siting fight," Alexander Roberts, CHI's executive director, said last week. He said the company would be happy to cede responsibility for finding shelter locations to Suffolk. "If the legislature would site them, we would accept that," Roberts said.

Last week, legislators voted 10-8 to require Levy to implement some version of its May plan to house homeless sex offenders by Oct. 15. Levy's spokesman said he is reviewing the legislation.

The legislature has yet to formally discuss the CHI proposal, while Levy is "assessing whether it would even be possible to implement a program that the legislature has not yet authorized," spokesman Dan Aug said.

Presiding Officer William Lindsay (D-Holbrook) said he's seeking more operators to submit proposals for the project.

"I've talked to a couple of vendors who are willing to do it," he said, declining to name them. "I think there are more out there that are willing to look at this."

What Nassau County does

Nassau County writes checks to its homeless sex offenders, who then have to find their own hotels.

Nassau provides the convicted offenders with between $75 and $100 per day, depending on their specific situation, Social Services spokeswoman Karen Garber said. While Suffolk's offenders had to collect their $90 vouchers every day when the program was in effect, Nassau gives most of its homeless sex offenders - there are 15 now - personal checks for housing on a weekly basis, Garber said. The offenders must submit hotel receipts to collect the next week's check.

The system is the result of a 2006 county law forbidding sex offenders from staying in county homeless shelters. Nassau does not direct its offenders to particular hotels, though some are off-limits because of their proximity to schools or playgrounds or because they are too expensive. "We certainly don't want them staying at the Ritz-Carlton," Garber said.

- Reid J. Epstein