Harlem’s Cluster House facility prepares for renovation

Cluster House, a facility for formerly homeless women diagnosed with severe mental illnesses, has no elevator.

Climbing up five narrow flights of stairs has proven difficult for the building’s older residents. Cluster House’s water heater was just replaced, its old fire escapes are dangerous, and its overall crumbling state strains its capacity to serve those who need it most.

In response, its parent organization, Urban Pathways, Inc., announced preparations this month to renovate the complex on Amsterdam Ave. between 104th and 105th Streets, in the hopes of making it a more modern and permanent home.

Directors say that the multi-million dollar renovation of its facilities and revamp of its services will address a growing local need. The plan would convert the dormitory-like residential layout into studio apartments fitted with separate bathrooms and kitchens. It will modernize and restore the building, install an elevator, and add another three floors.

Cluster House is a program of Urban Pathways, Inc., a New York City organization that provides drop-in centers for homeless individuals still living on the streets. It also places qualified adults and previously homeless residents into scattered site housing or independent living facilities, according to Frederick Shack, executive director of Urban Pathways.

Steve Muchnick, Cluster House’s program director, said his facility provides “transitional housing.” Women leaving homeless shelters see it as the next step toward permanent housing.
Muchnick said that women usually live in the house for only two or three years, picking up skills before they move elsewhere.

Last week, Cluster House affiliates met at the facility to discuss the involvement of the residents in creating its future. Robert Robinson, an Urban Pathways volunteer and former client, addressed the crowd of ten residents and case managers at the meeting, saying, “If we sit and complain, nothing changes.”

Thirty women currently live in Cluster House, though it can accommodate up to 48.

One woman who moved to Cluster House in April—and who, along with other residents, was granted anonymity because of mental illness—said she had been homeless for months. Another woman said she had been in and out of mental institutions for eight years and chronically homeless for 12 before moving to Cluster House in 1992 at the age of 38.

Some residents work in the neighborhood, and others participate in drug-addiction treatment programs or vocational training.

Muchnick said the ultimate goal is to “keep people in the community instead of in the hospitals.”

But providing these services has become difficult, Muchnick said, because the building itself has become less functional over time. He cited its crumbling interior, lack of elevator, and water heater problems as aspects, among others, that must be fixed to insure continued care.

The renovation plan is projected to span two years, according to Shack, who presented the proposal to Community Board 7’s Health and Human Services Committee on Nov. 17. He added that Cluster House is working to secure appropriate placement for its current residents, who will not return to Cluster House after the renovations are completed. Twenty-five of the residents will move to more self-sufficient housing programs, and five will be transferred to comparable programs. Shack said Cluster House plans to relocate its current residents in February and March and start construction in April.

Shack emphasized the enormous need for scattered site housing for formerly homeless people. “There are not enough beds,” he said.

Upon completion, Cluster House will include 52 studios. Occupants will learn how to cook and shop for groceries. They will also live there on a more permanent basis and will receive less intensive care. Cluster House will also become co-ed.

CB7 Health and Human Services Committee co-chair Barbara Van Buren initially expressed reservations about Cluster House’s plan to relocate its residents before renovations. But after the meeting, she added, “We are comfortable with their plans.”