The first busloads of asylum seekers arrived in Monroe County on Monday. County officials say they arrived with a housing plan, identified sources of food, shelter, medical and personal needs – all funded by New York City.

A hotel in downtown Rochester is home for now for 77 people who fled their homeland and crossed the southern border into the United States seeking asylum. The county says the migrants were admitted to the United States lawfully while they officially seek asylum.

What You Need To Know

  • The first busloads of asylum seekers arrived in Monroe County Monday night

  • Seventy-seven people arrived on two buses including families and children

  • They are being housed at the Holiday Inn in downtown Rochester

“There is a humanitarian crisis that we're facing," said United Way President and CEO Jaime Saunders.

Two busloads of people pulled up to the Holiday Inn in downtown Rochester at 10 p.m. Monday and dropped off families, including 30 children.

“It is really important that these people feel welcomed,” said the president and CEO of IBERO American Action League, Angie Perez-Delgado. “And that was the message that they received last night. And I'm very proud that all of our partners came together around this very dear need.”

Monroe County and the city of Rochester say New York City is footing the bill.

“Prior to their arrival and pursuant to my May 23, 2023 executive order, the hotel where these individuals will be staying filed an emergency housing plan and received approval from the Monroe County Department of Human Services,” Monroe County Executive Adam Bello said. “The executive order was put in place to ensure that any asylum seekers brought here would have their housing, medical and personal needs addressed in the plan. Our goal was to avoid a chaotic scramble for services and to respect the dignity of those individuals lawfully awaiting resolution of their asylum claims.”

“We have every expectation that what we were promised will be delivered,” Rochester Mayor Malik Evans said. “Promises made have to be promises kept. So we expect the food to be paid for. We expect the transportation to be paid for. The security to be paid for. We expect all those things to be paid for.”

In the meantime, though, there are some immediate needs for Rochester’s new arrivals.

“The local governments are working with our federal partners. Resources shall be coming. And then right now we have immediate needs,” Saunders said. “Our immediate needs are our nonprofit partners do not have extra resources to meet this moment. We encourage you to support them if you are so moved to volunteer. We are working on hygiene kits. We're working on emergency food. We're looking for diapers. We're looking for all the things you can imagine that families when they come with nothing are in need of.”

The area’s organizations will continue to work to ensure a smooth transition for those who have come so far seeking asylum and to help them feel welcome in their new home.

The arrival of the migrants comes two-and-a-half months after Bello issued an executive order preparing for asylum-seekers.