The Roosevelt Hotel, owned by Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) and leased to NYC in a $220 million three-year deal, functioned as a primary processing center, handling approximately 75% of the migrants arriving in the city.
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People stand outside the Roosevelt Hotel, which has acted as a makeshift shelter for arriving migrants in the Midtown section of New York City, US, November 28, 2023. File Image/Reuters
Following intense backlash from MAGA supporters over the use of American taxpayer money to support asylum seekers in the US, the New York City is terminating its $220 million lease agreement with the Pakistan-owned
Roosevelt Hotel, which had been operating as a shelter for migrants.
Facing pressure from the federal government and MAGA hardliners, Mayor Eric Adams, a Democrat who has aligned more closely with Trump-era policies after facing corruption allegations from the Biden administration, announced the facility’s closure.
The historic Manhattan hotel repurposed as an emergency shelter reportedly accommodated tens of thousands of migrants across its 1,025 rooms at an estimated cost of $200 per night.
Today, we announced we will begin the process of closing down The Roosevelt Hotel’s Asylum Arrival Center and Humanitarian Emergency Response and Relief Center.
Here’s what to know: pic.twitter.com/l1NKtCNElC
— Mayor Eric Adams (@NYCMayor) February 24, 2025
The city has experienced a notable decrease in weekly migrant arrivals with numbers falling from 4,000 at the peak of the crisis in 2023 to around 350 currently.
Mayor Adams attributed the closure to the administration’s effective emergency response and policy measures, emphasizing that it would save millions in taxpayer dollars.
The deal with the Pakistani government, which effectively turned the historic Manhattan hotel into a migrant shelter had drawn sharp criticism from various quarters including Republican leaders and conservative commentators.
Businessman and former Republican presidential candi