{"id":2052757,"date":"2023-10-02T16:51:01","date_gmt":"2023-10-02T20:51:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/massachusetts-city-has-its-own-immigration-crisis\/"},"modified":"2023-10-02T16:57:15","modified_gmt":"2023-10-02T20:57:15","slug":"massachusetts-city-has-its-own-immigration-crisis","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/massachusetts-city-has-its-own-immigration-crisis\/","title":{"rendered":"Massachusetts city faces immigration crisis."},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"&quot;\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">10<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Fmassachusetts-city-has-its-own-immigration-crisis%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2052757&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><div data-post-content=\"true\" class=\"post_content\" id=\"post_content\">\n<p>Taunton, Massachusetts, Mayor Shaunna O&#8217;Connell is among the many elected officials and municipal administrators across\u200d the United States who \u2064have seen the immigration crisis thrust upon them.<\/p>\n<p>Many\u200b mayors have been \u200dleft without support beyond their community&#8217;s own resources, frustrated with an immigration system\u2014managed by decision-makers in the White House and state capitals\u2014they say is\u200b broken and in need of major repair.<\/p>\n<p>Taunton is located in the southeast corner of \u200bthe Bay State,\u2063 at the northern tip of an area called the South Coast, which extends southward to the Atlantic Ocean\u2014taking in the\u200d coastal cities of Fall River, once a national leader in textile manufacturing; and New Bedford, a major whaling port in the\u2062 1800s and, today, still hosts\u2063 a \u2064thriving \u2062fishing industry.<\/p>\n<div class=\"shortcode\">\n    <!--$--><\/p>\n<div class=\"border-comp-divider mb-4 mr-4 w-full max-w-[500px] border px-5 py-4 text-[16px] leading-[20px] text-[#262626] md:float-left\" id=\"in_article_related_stories\">\n<h2 class=\"mb-3 font-sans text-[16px] font-semibold uppercase leading-[19px] text-[#2F2F2F]\">Related Stories<\/h2>\n<div class=\"mb-4 flex gap-2\">\n<div class=\"grow\">\n<div class=\"mb-1 line-clamp-2\">\n            <a href=\"http:\/\/www.theepochtimes.com\/us\/staten-island-illegal-immigration-debate-gets-heated-as-group-accuses-protestors-of-attempting-insurrection-5499637?ea_src=author_manual&#038;ea_med=related_stories\"><\/p>\n<h3>Staten Island\u2064 Illegal Immigration Debate\u200b Gets Heated \u200bas Group Accuses Protestors of \u2064Attempting &#8216;Insurrection&#8217;<\/h3>\n<p>            <\/a>\n          <\/div>\n<div class=\"text-comp-caption text-[14px] leading-[18px]\">9\/27\/2023<\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"shrink-0 basis-[120px]\">\n          <a href=\"http:\/\/www.theepochtimes.com\/us\/staten-island-illegal-immigration-debate-gets-heated-as-group-accuses-protestors-of-attempting-insurrection-5499637?ea_src=author_manual&#038;ea_med=related_stories\"><\/a>\n        <\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"mb-4 flex gap-2\">\n<div class=\"grow\">\n<div class=\"mb-1 line-clamp-2\">\n            <a href=\"http:\/\/www.theepochtimes.com\/us\/ice-failures-saw-over-1-million-erroneous-unsupported-payments-to-transport-illegal-immigrants-dhs-inspector-general-5499359?ea_src=author_manual&#038;ea_med=related_stories\"><\/p>\n<h3>ICE Failures \u200cSaw Over $1\u2063 Million &#8216;Erroneous, Unsupported Payments&#8217; to Transport Illegal Immigrants: DHS\u2063 Inspector General<\/h3>\n<p>            <\/a>\n          <\/div>\n<div class=\"text-comp-caption text-[14px] leading-[18px]\">9\/27\/2023<\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"shrink-0 basis-[120px]\">\n          <a href=\"http:\/\/www.theepochtimes.com\/us\/ice-failures-saw-over-1-million-erroneous-unsupported-payments-to-transport-illegal-immigrants-dhs-inspector-general-5499359?ea_src=author_manual&#038;ea_med=related_stories\"><\/a>\n        <\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p>    <!--\/$-->\n  <\/div>\n<div class=\"post-figure\">\n<figure style=\"width:469px\" class=\"alignright\"><figcaption>Taunton Mayor Shaunna O&#8217;Connell. (Office of Mayor O&#8217;Connell)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p>The city and the South Coast region generally have a large percentage of residents with Portuguese lineage; indeed, 18 percent of \u200cthose living in Taunton who are 5 years or older primarily speak Portuguese in\u2062 the home.<\/p>\n<p>  <!--$--><\/p>\n<div class=\"lazyload-wrapper\">\n<div class=\"lazyload-placeholder\"><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p>  <!--\/$--><\/p>\n<div class=\"my-5\">\n<h2>Not a Sanctuary City; Deep in Immigrant Crisis<\/h2>\n<p>While several cities\u2063 and towns in Massachusetts have designated themselves as sanctuary municipalities from immigration law for immigrants, the city of Taunton isn&#8217;t one of them. Even so, \u2063the city is experiencing a major and daunting immigrant problem that includes both legal and illegal \u200cimmigrants.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p>Since last spring, the administration of Massachusetts Gov. Maura Healey \u2062has been housing immigrants at a hotel\u2064 in the city as part of a contract that it \u200bholds with the hotel to provide what it says is temporary shelter for up to 120 immigrant and homeless families.<\/p>\n<div class=\"shortcode post-related-videos\">\n    <!--$--><\/p>\n<div class=\"lazyload-wrapper\">\n<div class=\"lazyload-placeholder\"><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p>    <!--\/$-->\n  <\/div>\n<p>The housing is provided under the state&#8217;s\u2064 Emergency Assistance (EA) shelter for families and pregnant\u200c women program.<\/p>\n<div class=\"post-figure\">\n<figure style=\"width:600px\" class=\"alignnone\"><figcaption>Massachusetts Gov. Maura Healey in Boston on Nov. 30, 2022. (Angela Weiss\/AFP via Getty Images)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p>At the end of March, Ms. Healey, a Democrat, signed a $389 million supplemental budget for fiscal year 2023 that included $85 million she had proposed for the state\u2019s\u200c EA program.<\/p>\n<div class=\"my-5\">\n<h2>Not a Sanctuary City; Deep in Immigrant Crisis<\/h2>\n<p>Taunton is one of the 28 \u200cmunicipalities in the state in which the Healey \u2064administration is\u200c spending millions to house, feed, and provide other services to immigrants.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p>Mayor O\u2019Connell\u2019s office first learned about the arrangement when families started showing up in early May at the 155-room Clarion\u200d Hotel located in \u2064a busy \u200bindustrial park in Taunton.\u200b The hotel is now closed \u2062to the \u200bpublic, although a \u200dconference center \u200battached to the property is still open for meetings and business.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe \u200bwere caught by surprise, totally,\u201d Ms. O\u2019Connell said\u2063 in \u200dan interview with The Epoch Times. \u201cAnd we had earlier, before the decision was made \u200bto house the families \u2062at the hotel, expressed to the state that we did not \u2063want the hotel shut down and turned into\u2064 a shelter.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe\u200b currently have a housing crisis\u200d in\u200d this state and\u200c across this country. And thousands and thousands of \u2062people are pouring into\u2062 our\u2062 state and exacerbating the problem.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The mayor added, \u201cWe have \u200csenior citizens,\u2062 families, \u200band veterans that are in desperate need of housing, and we have\u2063 thousands and thousands of\u2062 people coming into the state and there\u2019s nowhere for them to go.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Ms. O\u2019Connell,\u200d 51, estimates\u2062 that a third of those sheltered at the Clarion Hotel are foreign immigrants, mostly from Haiti. The mayor has taken action against the Clarion Hotel, issuing the hotel, beginning May 26,\u200d a daily fine of $1,000 for overcrowding and\u200c creating a safety hazard.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe need to ensure that we\u2019re following \u2063and are able to uphold all our \u200dsafety\u200c protocols,\u201d Ms. O\u2019Connell said. \u201cAnd the\u200d occupancy limit for the hotel is about 360, and in the neighborhood of 450, people are living there, we\u200d discovered.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>\u201cSo, we requested that \u2063the hotel fill out the \u2062appropriate paperwork, and to submit engineering \u2062and architectural studies that will certify that the building can safely house more than 360. But the hotel has neglected to provide us with that information, and that is why it is being fined.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Ms. O\u2019Connell said that \u200dthe Taunton building commissioner\u200c has been trying to receive information from and have questions answered by Jamsan Hotel Management.<\/p>\n<p>The\u200c Epoch Times reached out to Ms. Healey&#8217;s\u200c office and the Executive Office of\u200c Housing and Livable Communities (EOHLC), the department\u2062 that manages \u2063the\u2062 EA program, to \u2064ask how many of those living at the \u200dClarion Hotel are illegal immigrants, and also requested \u200dcomment on the fines that Ms. O&#8217;Connell has placed on the\u200d hotel.<\/p>\n<div class=\"my-5\">\n<h2>Governor Backs Programs, Resources for Illegal Immigrants<\/h2>\n<p>While \u2064the office of Ms. Healey asserts that the &#8220;wholly undocumented&#8221; and those whose \u2063presence \u2063in the United States aren&#8217;t known to the federal government don&#8217;t qualify for EA shelter, the governor has\u200b a track record of \u2064supporting\u2062 accommodations for illegal immigrants, and for sanctuary cities.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p>In 2017, then-Attorney General Healey responded\u2062 to a Boston Globe reporter&#8217;s question on\u2062 whether she opposed Massachusetts becoming a sanctuary state.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI\u2019m not saying that I\u2019m opposed to it. I\u2019m just saying that as a \u2064practical\u2014and I think that the Legislature is \u200babsolutely entitled to discuss \u200dand debate it. I also think just the fact\u200c that we\u2019re\u200b having a conversation about immigration is good.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Ms.\u200d Healey\u200b had opposed the Trump\u2063 administration&#8217;s ban on federal grants to sanctuary cities. The\u200d ban was reversed by the Biden administration and its Department of Justice.<\/p>\n<p>During her run for governor, Ms. Healey didn&#8217;t comment on what Massachusetts\u200c should do with <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/rep-chip-roy-fellow-lawmakers-demand-fbi-provide-data-on-face-act-enforcement\/\" title=\"Rep. Chip Roy, Fellow Lawmakers Demand FBI Provide Data on FACE Act Enforcement\">illegal immigrants shipped<\/a> to \u200bthe state but supported a question on the November 2022 election ballot approved by a majority of voters, which upheld the state law that allowed illegal\u2062 immigrants to receive driver&#8217;s licenses.<\/p>\n<p>The governor, though, like other\u200d politicians in the United States who push \u2062leniency and a \u200dwelcoming\u200b approach to illegal immigrants, has found herself \u2062beset with problems that her critics say her <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/prageru-nikki-haley-explains-why-capitalism-wins\/\" title=\"PragerU: Nikki Haley Explains Why \u2018Capitalism Wins\u2019\">policies helped bring<\/a> about.<\/p>\n<div class=\"my-5\">\n<h2>State Contract With Hotel<\/h2>\n<p>The Epoch Times obtained a copy of the state\u2019s EA family shelter contract between the Massachusetts \u200dDepartment \u2064of Housing and Community Development (DHCD) and Clarion Hotel, which is owned by Jamsan Hotel Management, a company based in Lexington, Massachusetts.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p>The contract between DHCD and the hotel officially commenced on April 7\u200c but \u2062wasn&#8217;t fully executed until May 5. The initial\u200d phase of the\u2062 contract is for 15 months, but it can be renewed in 12-month increments \u200duntil June 30, 2032.<\/p>\n<p>DHCD estimates that under the contract, it will pay \u200cthe hotel $2.6 million for fiscal year 2023, and $10.7 million for fiscal year 2024.<\/p>\n<p>Among\u200c specifics of the contract are \u200cthat from May 1, 2023, \u200dthrough \u2064June 30,\u2062 2024, the state will be charged a per-day room rate of $123, \u200dand the hotel will provide each person being \u2063sheltered three meals per \u200bday at\u2062 a daily\u200d feeding rate of $37, with that cost broken down to\u200d $5\u2062 for breakfast, $14\u200c for lunch, and $18 for dinner.<\/p>\n<p>The contract stipulates that the hotel must have the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/hunter-biden-was-odd-couple-roommates-with-crackhead-mother-of-7-named-bicycle\/\" title=\"Hunter Biden Was \u2018Odd Couple\u2019 Roommates With Crackhead Mother of 7 Named \u2018Bicycle\u2019\">front desk<\/a> staffed 24 hours a day, seven days a week, and that it is \u201crequired\u201d \u200cto \u201cinquire of a family\u2019s preferred language at placement\u201d and to provide, if needed, access to bilingual staff and translation services.<\/p>\n<p>On Sept. 27, The Epoch \u200dTimes sent an email to Ashok Patel, the owner of Jamsan Hotel Management. Later in the day, The \u200cEpoch Times visited the Clarion Hotel, and\u2064 a man at the front desk said that he had no information concerning\u200c the future of the hotel and recommended sending \u2064an email to\u2064 Mr. Patel.<\/p>\n<p>Jamsan \u200cHotel \u2063Management\u200c didn&#8217;t respond by press time to a request by The Epoch \u200dTimes for comment.<\/p>\n<div class=\"my-5\">\n<h2>Past Violations for State\u200d Vendor<\/h2>\n<p>Jamsan Hotel Management previously has run afoul of the state government. In 2020, the office of Attorney General Healey slapped the company with fines and citations for \u200bits role in committing theft of wages of\u2062 employees who worked for a restaurant chain, and for \u200bretaliating against employees who alerted the AG\u2019s office about its wage and payment\u200d practices.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p>Employee complaints against Waxy\u2019s Modern Irish Pub, which had five locations\u200c in the state (all\u2064 now\u200d out of business), included that it bounced employee paychecks, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/massachusetts-city-has-its-own-immigration-crisis\/\" title=\"Massachusetts city faces immigration crisis.\">denied earned sick\u2062 time<\/a> for workers, and committed other violations.<\/p>\n<div class=\"my-5\">\n<h2>A \u200cContinuing Challenge<\/h2>\n<p>Even as, at the state level, money is committed to help housing\u200b and care for families sheltered at the Clarion Hotel, Taunton\u2019s municipal budget and resources\u200c are being stretched and stressed in\u200c response to \u2063the\u200c EA sheltering at the property.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p>Sixty \u200bof the children of the immigrant families are \u200bnow enrolled in the Taunton public school system, and calls for police and fire support at the hotel have risen \u2062since the arrival of the immigrants.<\/p>\n<p>Taunton has assigned a one-officer police detail to the hotel.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhen we \u200bwere blindsided \u200dby the arrival of the immigrants,\u200b and \u2064the hotel being turned into \u200ca shelter, we \u200cof course contacted \u200bthe state, and the state did arrange a meeting with the city to help \u2062bring everyone up to speed and to get\u200c everyone on \u200cthe\u200d same \u2062page, but much more needs to be done,&#8221; Ms. \u2063O\u2019Connell \u2062said.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAnd other\u200d mayors and town managers and administrators have begun to express their frustration over the situation; it is unsustainable.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThere are not enough services; there is nowhere to put people and we cannot \u200dcontinue on this path. I mean, the state had to use the National Guard to deal with the crisis; that, \u200din itself, is evidence of the extraordinary problem the country faces.&#8221;<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p> <\/p>\n<h2> \u2064How has the influx of immigrants affected the\u200c resources and\u2062 services available in the city of\u200b Taunton?<\/h2>\n<p><span>  \u200cD\u2064 showing \u2063up in the city, seeking assistance and resources. \u2064Since then, \u200cthe city has been grappling with the challenges that come with such an influx of immigrants.<\/p>\n<p>While other cities and\u2064 towns in Massachusetts have declared themselves\u200c sanctuary\u2064 municipalities, Taunton is not one of them. However, \u200cit is facing a significant immigrant \u200ccrisis, encompassing both legal and illegal immigrants.<\/p>\n<p>The state government, under the administration of \u2064Governor Maura Healey, has been\u2064 housing immigrants in a hotel in Taunton since last spring. This arrangement is\u2063 part \u200dof a contract between the\u2063 state and the hotel to provide temporary shelter\u2063 for up to 120 immigrant and homeless families.\u2062 The\u200c housing is provided through the state&#8217;s Emergency<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Mayor Shaunna O&#8217;Connell of Taunton, Massachusetts, is one of numerous officials grappling with the immigration crisis. Many mayors feel abandoned, relying solely on local resources, as they criticize a broken immigration system controlled by decision-makers in the White House and state capitals.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1640,"featured_media":2052758,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/cndimages.nyc3.digitaloceanspaces.com\/breaking-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/IMG_2758-scaled-1.jpg","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[543],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2052757","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-the-epoch-times"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/cndimages.nyc3.digitaloceanspaces.com\/breaking-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/IMG_2758-scaled-1.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2052757","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1640"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2052757"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2052757\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2052758"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2052757"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2052757"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2052757"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}