How to adopt a cat at the NYC ACC without a hassle?

I visited the Queens ACC on Sunday and was turned away by someone who kept telling me 'there's a system, you need to follow the system' but wouldn't explain anything. I asked other volunteers but they all seemed really timid and kept directing me back to the guy who wouldn't explain anything so we ended up just leaving even though we drove almost an hour to get there. We're looking for a young cat but not a kitten, and we have a toddler who is respectful but makes things slightly more difficult. Can someone tell me how it works to go to the ACC to adopt?