The Bronx will soon become the temporary home for up to 1,000 asylum seekers coming into New York City.

In the next few weeks, five tents will be placed in the parking lot at Orchard Beach to serve as temporary homes for asylum seekers. This is a part of Mayor Eric Adams' humanitarian emergency response to address the thousands of asylum seekers coming into the city.

Since May, over 13,000 asylum seekers have entered the New York City shelter system and more than 10,000 remain in the shelters. To address the overflow, the city is opening a new relief site at Orchard Beach that is expected to house 1,000 adult asylum seekers. The tents will be climate-controlled as temperatures begin to drop and will provide asylum seekers with food, medical attention and legal support.

​Public Advocate Jumaane Williams checked on the conditions at a shelter where a Colombian mother took her life last weekend, as other elected officials made surprise visits to other shelters citywide. 

Williams says that while there were no red flags, the city's overall shelter capacity is at a breaking point.

“I just want to be clear we are at a crisis level right now," said Williams. "It makes me really angry because many of us tried to make it known that we had to sure up our safety net systems because we saw this coming.”

Sen. Brad Hoylman and Assembly Member Catalina Cruz introduced the Access to Representation Act to ensure that all asylum seekers coming into New York will have a right to legal representation, even if they can't afford it.

The relief shelters are meant to offer temporary support, but the Legal Aid Society has concerns about these congregate settings.

Once the tents are up and running, asylum seekers will be transported to Orchard Beach by bus from Port Authority where they can stay for 24-96 hours.