Posted on September 15, 2015 by Nathan Tempey in Gothamist Gothamist, By Nathan Tempey About 15 families at a notoriously decrepit, privately run homeless shelter in Prospect Lefferts Gardens received notices yesterday saying that they have to pack their bags and leave as soon as tomorrow morning. Two-year resident Hilonka Saldana is a mother of three and became homeless after being kicked out by the father of her children. She has been in the shelter system for three years, and staying in the so-called cluster-site shelter at 60 Clarkson Ave. for more than two. The “shelter” consists of apartments that take up most of an 83-unit rent-stabilized apartment building. It is one of several such buildings in the area owned by a man who goes by Barry Hers, real name Isaac Hersko. Hersko’s nonprofit We Always Care collects $2,700 per apartment from the city for the homeless families it houses and is supposed to provide with services. We Always Care is midway through a 22-month city contract for $17.5 million.
