An Indian-American businessman in Queens has been facing the wrath of the community over a controversial proposal to turn a hotel he owns into a into a city homeless shelter, which residents fear, would create many problems, real or perceived, including decrease in property values in the neighborhood.
The month long protest by area residents against the proposal to convert a Holiday Inn Express in Maspeth, owned by Harshad Patel, is also fueled by allegations that Patel was involved in a 2011 bribery scandal. News reports said that State Senator Tony Avella (D-Queens) has asked U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York, Preet Bharara, to investigate the bribery issue.
“Mr. Patel openly admitted to paying a former state elected official more than $20,000 to get that official to effect a zoning change in his favor,” Avella wrote to Bharara in a letter earlier this month, according to a PIX 11 news report.
“I find it shocking that Mayor Bill de Blasio and the New York City Department of Homeless Services would seek to enter into an agreement with an individual who has openly admitted to what appears to be a lengthy bribery scheme seeking action from a city agency for a prior hotel property he owned,” PIX 11 quoted him as saying in an interview.
News NY reported that on Sept. 24 more than 200 people protested in front of two of Patel’s businesses. Dozens of Bellerose, Floral Park and Long Island residents also joined in when the group marched to his home.
CBS said quoting unidentified City officials as saying that with nearly 60,000 people currently in homeless shelters across the city, they must turn to hotels, like the Holiday Inn in Maspeth as an alternative and they want to use the 110-room facility as an adult-only shelter. However, the Mayor’s office said nothing has been finalized yet, and the city will consider any alternate locations the Community Board comes up with.
Earlier this month Patel said in the face of protests that he has decided not to go against the wishes of the masses who have protested the plan. “We plead to the community to stop this protest. It has hurt our business drastically over the last few weeks,” a letter from hotel management read,” PIX 11 News quoted him as saying in a letter issued by the hotel management. The embattled entrepreneur also said that he ultimately realized it is bad for business.
Such statements notwithstanding, there seemed to be no letup in protests. Residents said last week that they will not only continue to protest in front of the Holiday Inn Express, but they also planned a protest at City Hall.
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