Street homelessness is one of the top challenges the city faces and now the business community is stepping in.

Sixty-one private companies, many of them in the banking and finance sectors, are contributing a total of $8 million to fund an initiative that will deal with a top concern for their workers.

“They want their employees to feel comfortable in the city and on the subways, etcetera, and this was what the employees really urged them to do,” said Kathryn Wylde, President and CEO of the Partnership for New York City.

What You Need To Know

  • The Homeless Assistance Fund will spend $8 million to help individuals living in the streets

  • The nonprofit organization Breaking Ground will do the outreach and offer assistance

  • Employees of these companies wanted something to be done about safety, homelessness and mental illness before returning to the office

  • The initiative will focus on Midtown and Downtown Manhattan and the MetroTech area of Brooklyn

A survey conducted by Wylde’s organization earlier this year found that many employees of these companies wanted something to be done about safety, homelessness and mental illness before returning to the office.

The nonprofit organization Breaking Ground will lead the outreach to individuals living in the street, offering services ranging from food, clothing, substance abuse and mental health assistance.

“This will allow us to have nearly 100 more outreach workers in high-density areas,” said Brenda Rosen, President and CEO of Breaking Ground.

The initiative will be targeted to midtown and downtown Manhattan and the MetroTech area of Brooklyn.

“Breaking Ground has a proven track record of interacting with people in coffee shops, vestibules of banks and other locations,” said Mayor Eric Adams.

This approach has already been used by companies like Macy’s, Vornado and MetLife.

The Partnership for New York City hopes to attract more companies to join the new effort.