He is one of the thousands of homeless people in New York City. The homeless population in the city has risen sharply over the last year, increasing the demand for homeless shelters. The Bloomberg administration opened more homeless shelters in just the last two months. According to the city’s Department of Homeless Services, the city recorded 43,731 homeless people (25,475 adults and 18,256 children) in the shelter system this week, up 18 percent from the 37,143 (21,807 adults and 15,336 children) a year ago. By law, the city is obligated to supply shelter to people who have nowhere else to go, though there are limits to how long they can stay in certain shelters. The current shelter census is the highest ever. The number does not reflect the total homeless population, because some people avoid the shelter system. There are 228 homeless shelters in the city, up from 211 in June 2010. A vast majority of them are privately run and financed by the Department of Homeless Services.
