NYC Mayoral Debates Fall 2017

Dietl Effervesces, Malliotakis Attacks & de Blasio Defends

October 15, 2017 / Upper West Side Neighborhood UWS / Queens Politics NYC / News Analysis & Opinion / Gotham Buzz NYC.

I attended the Mayoral Debate at Symphony Space on Tuesday, October 10th, where former NYC Detective [1970 - 1985] and security firm businessman Bo Dietl [Independent], New York State Assemblywoman Nicole Malliotakis [Republican Staten Island] and Mayor Bill de Blasio [Democrat] squared off for one of two general election debates. The debates are sponsored by the New York Campaign Finance Board and are a requirement for those candidates who receive matching funds.

 

NYC Mayoral Debates - Opening Statements

Each candidate came out and made opening statements. Bo Dietl talked about his time working the streets as a policeman in the 1970's and 1980's and how since then he has run a successful security firm that also employs minorities. He described his two opponents as Column A and Column B candidates.

Nicole Malliotakis told us how she is the first member of her family to obtain a college degree and a Masters of Business Administration and that she is the 'American Dream'. She went on to say she would fix our schools, transit system and homelessness.

Bill de Blasio said that his two opponents were both right wing Republicans and that he was the only one that would stand up to Trump. He went on to say that crime is down, test scores at NYC public schools are up, but that there's more to do and he needs New Yorkers' help to continue making progress.

There was a small, but very boisterous minority of rude and disruptive people in the audience, who began their noisy tirades with the opening statements. It wasn't until near the end of the program - that one of [several of] the loudest shouters and screamers was finally escorted out.

Click here for a fairly full recount of the NYC Mayoral Debates with Malliotakis, Dietl & de Blasio.

NYC Mayoral Debates Fall 2017

Dietl Effervesces, Malliotakis Attacks & de Blasio Defends

October 15, 2017 / Upper West Side Neighborhood UWS / Queens Politics NYC / News Analysis & Opinion / Gotham Buzz NYC. Continued.

The first question was to query the candidates about what they would do to solve the ongoing homeless situation in NYC.

How to Address Homelessness in NYC

Dietl started by saying that 30% of the people who live in homeless shelters are also holding down jobs. He saidhe would approach problems by fixing up what's broken, not necessarily investing in new facilities or new approaches.

Malliotakis accused the Mayor of turning homelessness into a business. She noted that in some cases NYC is paying up to $4,000 per month for homeless shelter rooms that don't have kitchens. She said she would create jobs by offering vocational training and accused the Mayor of not addressing mental health issues.

De Blasio noted that his wife, Chirlaine McCray, has been leading efforts to address the mental health issues in the city and that his administration has been focused on mental health issues since he first took office [Ed Note: The de Blasio Administration started a new program called Thrive NYC to address mental health issues in NYC last year]. He noted that 60,000 people have been moved out of homeless shelters, and that his Administration also prevented countless thousands from being evicted from their homes by mandating a rent freeze on rent stabilized apartments for two consecutive years. De Blasio went on to say that the city now offers legal help to help prevent low and middle income people from being evicted from their homes. And, as for the homeless, de Blasio noted that he has initiated active outreach to help bring the homeless in off the streets.

 

Mayor de Blasio's Proposal to Build Homeless Shelters Around the City

The next question was regarding the proposal to build 93 new homeless shelters around the city to replace the cluster apartments that currently house the homeless. The Mayor defended the cost of this initiative by noting that what's currently happening is that homeless people are being moved into homeless shelters that are out of their boroughs. The impact of this on them is that the homeless are being moved into institutional housing away from their friends, their families, their churches and employers - all of the people most likely to want to help them get back on their feet.

The Mayor defended his plan by noting that it's an investment that may cost more upfront, but that would pay back dividends over time [Ed Note: Reminded me of the old adage - Give a man a fish he eats for a day. Teach a man how to fish he eats for life.].

Malliotakis interjected that people don't want homeless shelters in their neighborhoods. De Blasio said that he thought New Yorkers were bigger than that and that they are good people who willing to help people in need.

As for mental health, de Blasio noted that one in five people are affected by mental health issues, ranging from fairly widespread mental health issues like depression, to very complex issues. He noted that as Mayor he instituted mental health training for NYC Departmental employees so that they can spot mental health issues early on. Part of this involves addressing social issues in schools.

Dietl mocked the Mayor saying that he has ten year plans. Dietl said he's a doer.

 

How to Address the 'Tale of Two Cities'

The candidates were asked about how they would address the 'tale of two cities' - the theme that Mayor de Blasio had successfully run on four years ago which included promising Universal Pre-K and instituting a higher minimum wage.

Malliotakis accused the Mayor of doing nothing to close the gap on inequality. She noted that of the 75,000 affordable housing units created, only 11% of them were affordable to people earning less than $25,000 per year.

De Blasio said he had successfully fought for a higher minimum wage [Ed Note: When de Blasio entered office the minimum wage was $8 and it is now $9.70]. But he noted that there is more to do in that area, including helping people develop skills that warrant higher incomes.

De Blasio said he also helped address the 'Tale of Two Cities' by adding 2,000 new NYPD police officers so that he could keep New York City safe, while lowering the number of Stop N' Frisks by 93% [Ed Note: Stop N' Frisks were done mostly on people of color]. De Blasio said that he added after-school programs for all children and instituted the Universal Pre-K citywide.

There was something about 281,000 [more?] people living below poverty four years ago, but I'm not sure of this.

And the Mayor took a shot at Malliotakis, noting that Malliotakis had voted against raising the minimum wage in Albany.

Dietl made a colorful comment, something about how people who have had their heads in the potato field the past four years would vote for de Blasio by listening to him today.

Malliotakis went back on the offensive noting that 60% of kids graduating from NYC public high schools need some sort of remedial writing / reading / math help. She accused de Blasio of turning over an apartment complex to a contributor who bundled campaign donations [Ed Note: In March 2017 a Grand Jury cleared de Blasio of all of the allegations of campaign finance wrongdoing - NY Post readers & Fox News [Channels 5 & 9] viewers might not know that.].

De Blasio replied that Malliotakis should stick to commenting on things that really happened. He responded to her comment about affordable housing noting that paying one third of income on rent is considered affordable, and that there's a scale of affordability based on how much income one earns.

 

Management of NYC's $85 Billion Budget

The next question was about managing New York City's $85 million municipal budget. The questioner noted that under Mayor de Blasio the NYC budget has grown from $70 billion to $85 billion [Ed Note: As a point of reference Bloomberg's budget the last six years in office (2007 - 2013) grew from $36 billion to $70 billion].

De Blasio noted that while the budget has grown, he has retained the highest level of reserves in order to respond to unanticipated issues like the stock market taking a hit or possibly something negative impact coming out of policies implemented in Washington, D.C..

He also noted that under his administration the NYPD has grown, as he added 2,000 new police officers while they reduce the Bloomberg Administration policy of Stop N Frisk. He also said that his Administration invested in offering Universal Pre-K to all kids in the city. Other investments included adding Sanitation workers to keep the city clean [Ed Note: Over 60 million visitors come to NYC each year]. And that when de Blasio took office the city didn't have contracts with any of its unionized workers, while today nearly all [99%] of city workers are working under contract.

If I heard things correctly there was something about Bo Dietl's qualifications to manage the NYC budget, given he had some unpaid / back taxes issues.

Malliotakis said that she knew something about budgets having been in the Assembly while Sheldon Silver was there. She noted that she had bus service restored to her district and that she helped with funding to respond to Hurricane Sandy. She went on the offensive, attacking the Mayor for adding staff to the Mayor's Office, growing it from 100 to 300 Special Assistants. Then she went on to attack the Mayor saying the roads needed repairing, the homeless needed shelter and the subways didn't run.

She went on to say that the NYC Department of Design and Construction had done something wasteful in a school project. And something about [her] ending the hiring of contractors and consultants.

400,000 New Jobs Created in NYC Since de Blasio Took Office

The Mayor responded noting the things said previously, and adding that what he'd doing is working. NYC Public School graduation rates are up and New York City has added 400,000 new jobs since he took office.

 

What to do About & How to pay for NYC Transportation Infrastructure

Dietl said something about fixing the transportation infrastructure we have.

Malliotakis said she was for Congestion Traffic Pricing [Ed Note: The plan adds tolls to all East River bridges (and the Bronx next?) while reducing some of the fares on the further out of center bridges like the Washington Bridge, Goethals, Whitestone etc. Click this link to view an in-depth look into NYC Congestion Traffic Pricing.]. Malliotakis queried the Mayor as to why he hasn't done more to improve the subways, like not adding $456 million to the MTA capital budget? She noted that NYC has four members on the MTA board.

De Blasio responded noting that the MTA is run by the NYS Governor Cuomo. The Mayor stated that the Governor controls the board with the majority of board appointments and controls the budget. De Blasio went on to note that previously his Administration had added to the MTA capital budget, but this year he decided not to because that money was diverted away from the MTA by the State.

De Blasio said he was not for the Congestion Traffic Pricing tolls as a means to pay for MTA infrastructure improvements [Ed Note: We took a look into NYC Congestion Traffic Pricing and found that in London, where it was implemented, less than half the money raised went toward improvements and the rest went toward building and running the toll system so it appears to be a very inefficient way to tax and it didn't appear to reduce overall traffic - just time shifted it. In doing the report we also found a lot of what appeared to be misleading / propaganda information sources, that may have been sponsored by those who benefit from this type of infrastructure investments.]. De Blasio said he preferred to levy a millionaires' tax to obtain added funding for the MTA [Ed Note: the Millionaires and Billionaires benefit the most from the rest of us getting to work in a timely fashion].

De Blasio went on to say that NYS should give back the MTA the $456 million they took out of the budget. He went on to call attention to the fact that Malliotakis voted along with the other Republicans in the NYS Senate, to take the $456 million of additional NYC contributed money - out of MTA budget.

 

How to Address Crime in NYC - Manhattan, Brooklyn, Queens, Bronx & Staten Island

What to do about crime in NYC. It was noted that the spike-in-crime scare tactics used by de Blasio's challenger four years ago never materialized.

The photo at right shows what appears to be one of multi-billionaire Rupert Murdoch's NY Post efforts to scare people into continuing what was essentially a racist policy of Stop N' Frisk, wherein people of color were stopped and frisked at a much higher rate than others [Editor's Note: Rupert Murdoch controls about 30% - 40% of New York 'mainstream media' as he also controls the Wall Street Journal, Channel Fox 5 TV, WWOR Channel 9, Fox News and the NY Post. So when you hear distorted accounts multiple times - make an effort to be sure they are not all coming from mouthpieces paid by the same multi-billionaire propagandist. Murdoch's news outlets appear not to favor Mayor de Blasio or his policies, perhaps because de Blasio favors raising taxes on people who [reportedly] own $57 million Park Avenue homes like Rupert Murdoch, to help fund improvements of our subways.

Dietl said he worked in the NYPD [ending 1985] and that he thought 9 of 10 officers would leave NYC for another job. He said he didn't go to college like both of his two opponents as he grew up as an inner city kid.

 

Prison Reform: What about closing the Rikers Island prison?

Dietl said he would fix what we have. Rikers Island is home to twelve jails holding 600 people in each of the jails.

Separately, Dietl went on to say that he changed his opinion about prison reform because kids shouldn't be in that kind of institution as juveniles. He noted that he'd changed, as previously he was not for prison reform.

Malliotakis said that the buildings should be retrofitted and that body scanners should be added. She noted she was against spending $10 billion for building jails in all five boroughs. She said she was for giving people a right to a speedy trial [Ed Note: many people in Rikers are detained for long periods of time awaiting arraignment - meaning they are officially charged - the New Yorker noted in a 2014 story that a young African American man was held for three years without being officially charged for anything]. She said she liked Rikers because when people escape they can't go anywhere. And she added that she was for helping the mentally ill through the justice system.

De Blasio said that we need four new jails to replace Rikers. De Blasio noted that the justice system needs to be reformed, and that those arrested need more than a speedy trial. He said the Department of Corrections should be about redemption, helping people get turned around [Ed Note: According to World Prison Brief, which the Washington Post called the go-to-source for prison statistics, the U.S. imprisons more people than any other nation in the world, including China (#2). The U.S. has 5% of the world population and 22% of its prisoners, while China has about 16% of the world's population and 16% of its prisoners. So the U.S. imprisons people at a rate 4 times what the rest of the world does and the increase has been over the past few decades due to government policy changes.]. De Blasio also noted that mental health services need to be included as a part of the solution and that no juvenile should be subjected to solitary confinement.

Malliotakis noted that some prisoners wait six months to six years for a trial. She also said something about 90 homeless shelters around the city.

Dietl said NYC has to make tough choices to make sure kids that end up in jail get turned around. And that the city has to make sure they don't end up back in jail. He then asked the Mayor why he built a $2 million wall around Gracie Mansion?

I didn't hear the Mayor's response, because of one of the rude noisemakers, who was finally asked to leave and then escorted out of the auditorium.

In this part of the debate, candidates were allowed to direct a question at one or both of their opponents.

Malliotakis went back on the offensive. She said that last summer an NYPD officer was killed and she asked the Mayor why he left the city to go to Germany to protest.

De Blasio responded that he went to the hospital shortly after the NYPD officer was shot. When it was learned that the NYPD officer had been killed, de Blasio went down to the precinct to meet with the family and clergy, at the time they were informed of their loss.

At some point in all of this, Dietl began muttering into his microphone. The moderator turned it off, so Dietl couldn't drown out what the Mayor was saying.

De Blasio asked Malliotakis and Dietl how they could vote for Donald Trump after Trump said Mexicans were rapists, called a woman a pig, and said he was going to repeal Obamacare / Affordable Care health insurance which affects 1.6 million New Yorkers.

Malliotakis said while she voted for Trump, she would stand up to him when she disagreed with him.

Dietl said that he voted for Trump, and that he is not afraid to stand up to Trump.

 

Addressing Inequality in NYC Public Schools

The candidates were asked how they would address segregation in New York City schools.

De Blasio said that addressing segregation in NYC schools is challenging and complicated because where you live affects where most people go to school. That said he noted that there's a test project going on in the Upper West Side. Historically people have been evaluated for admission to out-of-neighborhood schools based solely on the results of one standardized test score. He said that they were trying to change that - to include other measures for a more balanced evaluation. He also said that raising the level of the performance of all schools is another way to address the inequality.

Dietl said that 70% of Spanish kids and 80% of African American kids in the elementary grades are failing [Ed Note: I couldn't find information to verify Dietl's statement, but according to a 2014 report about only 60% of African Americans and 50% of Latinos graduate from NYC public high schools. Overall graduation rates have been rising under the de Blasio Administration and topped 70% for the first time this past year.] Dietl went on to say that one of the things he would do to address this would be to ban cell phones in school. Dietl also accused de Blasio of accepting money from the teachers union.

Malliotakis accused the Mayor of spending millions on contributors to address the school problem. She went on to say that some teachers have to buy their own supplies. She said that she supports charter schools, and that schools should be kept safe.

De Blasio said that they have installed metal detectors at [some / all?] schools. He noted that his Administration has been working closely with the NYPD and that they have brought down crime in schools by 35% over the past few years.

How to Control Real Estate Developers & Developments?

The next issue was regarding how to manage / reign in avaricious NYC real estate developers and landlords.

Dietl asked the Mayor what was happening with the hospital [Long Island Hospital in Brooklyn] that he succeeded in keeping open during the last campaign. Dietl also queried the Mayor as to the tax breaks that had been given to landlords to build luxury apartments in Astoria / LIC in Queens. He said those tax breaks should only be reserved for people building affordable housing units. He said something about building housing public / private, and that $2,000 month rent apartments are not affordable to half of New Yorkers. He cited the increase in rents in the Bronx, where some have risen from $700 to $1100 / month.

Malliotakis said she would take the pay to play out of City Hall. That she would ban lobbyists from bundling donations.

De Blasio responded to Dietl's question about the Brooklyn Hospital, noting that the developer was investing money to fix the now defunct hospital and that some of the money coming out of the deal would also be used to address other facilities / issues.

De Blasio responded to Dietl's comment about tax breaks being given to developers for luxury apartments like in LIC, but noting that the tax break [it was called the 421A] was allowed to expire and a new program called Affordable New York has been instituted to replace it. Affordable New York mandates that affordable housing be included in any new tax break developments.

De Blasio also said that his Administration supported zero percent rent increases for rent stabilized apartments for two years running and that his Administration won a suit brought by a Landlord lobbying group which took him to court over it.

Manage Relations with the Federal Government in the Era of Trump

One of the final questions of the debate was something about Trump and the NFL kneeling issue.

Malliotakis exploded and went ballistic on the panelist who asked the question, asserting that it was a loaded question. After a bit of fanfare, Malliotakis said she did vote for Trump and support Trump on taking issue with the players on kneeling during the National Anthem.

De Blasio went on the offensive noting that Malliotakis supports the repeal and replacement of the Affordable Care Act. At this point a small, but vocal minority in the crowd became boisterous again.

Dietl recounted incidents where he said something about Muslims, a Jewish lawyer and an African American. Absent additional context - some of which I found online - I still didn't understand the full meaning.

De Blasio finished by noting that Malliotakis had supported a lawsuit against New York City to force it to share [DACA] immigrant background information with the federal government.

And then the debate ended, and the crowd had grown quite boisterous again.

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De Blasio's State of the City Address 2016

Progress Moving NYC from 'Tale of Two Cities' to 'One New York'?

February 6, 2016 / Kingsbridge Heights Neighborhood Bronx / NYC Neighborhoods / NYC Politics & Government / Gotham Buzz.

I attended Mayor de Blasio's second State of the City Address delivered at the Performing Arts Center at Lehman College in the Kingsbridge Heights neighborhood of the Bronx. In spite of its northern, non-central location, the speech was well attended. About three dozen protesters also made their way north of Manhattan into the Central west Bronx, wielding placards asking the Mayor to stop gentrification and something about fair labor practices.

I took my place among the press corps where we were seated right in the middle of the auditorium. After settling in, I started photographing the slides whizzing by on the main stage, showing the accomplishments of the de Blasio Administation during its first two years. I have included a slide show a bit later in this report, which contains some of the slides that I photographed.

Unlike last year, when the Mayor and the Police Commissioner were having difficulties adjusting to each other, this year the mood seemed buoyant. In front of me was a group of students from the Laboratory School of Finance & Technology - MS 223 - at 360 East 145th Street in the Mott Haven neighborhood in the Bronx. The school is connected with Bronx Prep and hence handles grades 6 through 12.

Click here to read our report of Mayor de Blasio's State of the City Address 2016. The report includes video excerpts of the Mayor's speech, as well as two other short video pieces including the harmony singing of the National Anthem by a talented Bronx choral group, and a few exchanges with the teachers and students of MS 223 in the Bronx.

De Blasio's State of the City Address 2016

Progress Moving NYC from 'Tale of Two Cities' to 'One New York'?

February 6, 2016 / Kingsbridge Heights Neighborhood Bronx / NYC Neighborhoods / NYC Politics & Government / Gotham Buzz. Continued.

Bronx Middle Schools: MS 223 in Mott Haven

The kids told me that they had a videoconference with the Mayor several months ago and based on that interaction, they believed, they were chosen to attend the Mayor's second State of the City Address. I spoke to two of MS 223 teachers, Adriadna Phillips-Santos along with Nicole Lentino, who made a short statement, and introduced the class.

Video of MS 223 - - Click Refresh if it doesn't appear

 

And then the show began.

CUNY Colleges in the Bronx: Lehman College - Kingsbridge Heights Neighborhood

Ricardo R. Fernandez, President of Lehman College, opened up the event by welcoming us all to CUNY Lehman at 250 Bedford Park Blvd West in the Bronx. The event was held in the Performing Arts Center on campus and he told us about some of the cultural events held there. He went on to talk a bit about the importance of computer skills in the 21st century economy and then something about Lehman College, Bronx Community College and I think Hostos Community College - the details of which I didn't catch. He closed by telling us that Lehman College had graduated 58,000 students during his 25 years as president of the college and he was looking forward to the years to come.

LGBT Fire Department Chaplain Leads Prayer

Next up was Reverend Ann Kansfield of Brooklyn's Greenpoint Reformed Church. According a March 3, 2015 WSJ report about her appointment to the post, she is one of the Fire Department's eight chaplains, and first that is openly gay.

Reverend Kansfield prayed for all of us to have food, housing and good health, as well as opportunities to get a good education and a good job that paid a living wage. She noted that New Yorkers have always been a generous people, welcoming immigrants and visitors from around the world, and she prayed that that kind of love and respect for one another would continue. She prayed that our Fire Figthers and Policemen would be kept safe, so that they could help keep the rest of us safe. She went on to pray for our teachers, our transit and sanitation workers, social workers and advocates. And she ended by praying that everyone checks their fire detectors twice each year.

Muslim Police Captain of NYPD Leads Pledge of Allegiance

Captain Jamiel Altaheri and his family, who I believe are Muslims, lead the Pledge of Allegiance to the Flag. Captain Altaheri's wife wore the traditional Muslim scarf, which is a cultural sign of the woman's modesty, during the ceremony. It was only decades ago that American women in the Catholic Church were required to wear hats or scarves in Church for similar reasons.

National Anthem by African American Choral Group

And then came the singing of the National Anthem by one rockin' chorus group from the Renaissance Youth Center at 3485 Third Avenue [at 168th Street] in the Bronx. You can enjoy the short innovative harmony by clicking the video below.

Choir Harmony Video - Click Refresh if it doesn't appear

 

A Human Mosaic: Mayor's Film of New York City

Next up was a short film showing the marvelous mosaic of Metropolis' humanity who talked about the issues facing them in their daily lives. People challenged to make rent, looking for good paying jobs, trying to get a good education in the face of linguistic and academic and technological [access to computers] challenges, and trying to get to work on time using public transit. Mixed into the video were things the de Blasio administration has championed like now having an ID card through the IDNYC program, like no longer being accosted by the police on the street in your own neighborhood because the phase out of the Stop N' Frisk program. They mentioned the raises given to municipal employees to help them cover their living expense increases. The experiences, the ethnicities, the cultures were all different - but all of the people shown in the film comprise ONE NEW YORK ... which was the theme tonight. The theme embraced the American ideals of multi-culturalism, multi-racialism and equal opportunity.

African American Fighting For Fair Housing

Ausar Burke - a young African American male - of the Churches United For Fair Housing in Brooklyn at 41 Adelphi Street in Brooklyn [they have five locations & this appears to be the main one] was given the honor of introducing the Mayor. He told us how he felt empowered, in part because he was no longer stopped and frisked in his own neighborhood, but also because he could now really help people when they ran into landlord-tenant problems because of the Mayoral deployment of lawyers to help tenants in trouble.

Mayor Bill de Blasio's State of the City Address 2016

The Mayor then came on stage to a largely friendly audience who gave him a welcoming applause.

NYPD Successes in 2015 Were Many

The Mayor started by talking about the success of the NYPD's neighborhood outreach program which is in two [maybe three?] precincts including the 43rd in Brooklyn and the 109th in Queens. The intent of the program is to facilitate communication and understanding between the NYPD and the folks in the neighborhood, so that people have multiple interactions with police instead of only one - being when they're in trouble. Studies have shown that this helps establish trust and respect between the police and community, and that both are subsequently better able to communicate with one another, because they have a better understanding and appreciation of the challenges both face.

Strengthening the Human Bonds: Police in Neighborhoods

In 2016 the outreach program is being rolled out into four more neighborhoods. There's also going to be bias training, because we all have biases, many of which we're unaware of, that work on a subconscious level. I think the Maor said that there are 35,000 uniformed police officers and that that number is up 2,000 versus year ago, which is the first increase in fifteen years for the police force. The last year there was an expansion of the Police force was in 2000.

NYPD Acts of Heroism 2015 - On & Off Duty / In & Out of State

The Mayor then went on to tell us anecdotal acts of heroism by several members of the Police Department [please note that I've requested help with these names so they may not yet be correct]. Officer Healey was hit in the head with a hatchet, which he survived, while apprehending a criminal. Campaverde talked down a suicidal person, I think while he was off-duty. Gordon of the 109th exercised the Heimlich maneuver to save someone from suffocating. Ramos was off-duty in Los Angeles and subdued an attacker. Somebody helped folks out of an overturned ambulette [?] in Pennsylvania. Barton and Puzilkowitz delivered a baby on the Long Island Expressway. Less than two weeks later three officers delivered a baby on the FDR. And within another couple weeks an EMS team delivered a baby near the Lincoln Tunnel.

The Mayor went on to say:

"ladies, please have your babies in the hospital"

Acts of Heroism II: Fire Department & an NYC Sanitation Worker

The Mayor told us that a Fireman saved a woman from a blaze in the Village. That a Sanitation Worker who is a former Marine stopped a theft. That a Corrections Officer helped a disoriented person on the street into a coffee shop, bought them lunch and gave them his coat. The point of these anecdotal tales was that we are all ONE NEW YORK ... one community. And if we embrace one another, instead of battling with one another, life doesn't have to be that hard.

Acts of Heroism II: Fire Department & an NYC Sanitation Worker

The Mayor told us that a Fireman saved a woman from a blaze in the Village. That a Sanitation Worker who is a former Marine stopped a theft. That a Corrections Officer helped a disoriented person on the street into a coffee shop, bought them lunch and gave them his coat. The point of these anecdotal tales was that we are all ONE NEW YORK ... one community. And if we embrace one another, instead of battling with one another, life doesn't have to be that hard.

The Zadroga Act: Lifetime Health Benefits for 911 Responders

Mayor de Blasio went onto thank Congress for authorizing the Zadroga Act, which guarantees lifetime health benefits to all of the first responders to 911. I believe the Act or its reauthorization was sponsored, in whole or in part, by U.S. Congresswoman Carolyn Maloney.

James Zadroga was an New York City Police Officer who died in 2006 due to respiratory disease, believed to be linked to his service while helping at the 911 World Trade Center site in 2001. Zadroga entered the NYPD in 1992 and had no prior respiratory ailments and was not a smoker. He died in 2006 of respiratory problems.

According to FireLaw.com, beginning after 911, many NYC Firefighters were denied pension or disability benefits in the face of new respiratory problems. According to Wikipedia, the first Zadroga autopsy in 2006 asserted that Zadroga's lung ailment was related to his time spent at the World Trade Center in 2001.

The assertion of 911 related health claims was subsequently challenged / refuted by NYC Chief Medical Examiner, Charles Hirsch, in 2007. NYC Chief Medical Examiner Hirsch said Zadroga's lung scarring was from the injection of pharmaceutical drugs. According to FireLaw.com former Mayor Bloomberg subsequently said of Zadroga, "he was a drug user ... he was no hero." Apparently this was a statement, which former Mayor Bloomberg later recanted.

The Zadroga Family requested a third opinion which was rendered shortly after the second, by Dr. Michael Baden who was a former NYC Medical Examiner and the then Chief Forensic Pathologist for the NYS Police, who confirmed the first autopsy findings - that Zadroga's lung ailment was related to his time spent at the World Trade Center in 2001. Thus, in 2015, the Federal government authorized the Zadroga Act, granting all of the first responders lifetime health benefits for helping during a national crisis: 911.

Uneven Disbursal of Policemen & Firemen Pension Benefits?

It's worth mentioning that while doing the research on the management of policemen and firemen pension benefits, there were numerous stories regarding what appears to be the uneven awarding of pension benefits. Some stories were about people who had to go to court to win the benefits they appeared to have rightly deserved, and ther were other stories about alleged fraud by members to obtain benefits for which they were not eligible.

Photos: De Blasio Administration Accomplishments 2014 - 2016

Go to the ManhattanBuzz.nyc to view a photo album feeding the slide show of Mayor de Blasio Administration's Accomplishments 2014 - 2016.

 

NYC Department of Transportation: Filling Potholes & Repaving Streets

Mayor de Blasio then went on to tell us that 2,200 lane miles of NYC streets had been repaved. That the NYC DOT [Department of Transportation] had filled one million potholes since he took office two years ago.

Staten Island Ferry: Boat Upgrades & Service Expansion

The Mayor announced that the Staten Island Ferry would be getting three new boats, which apparently are better designed to withstand inclement weather. And that the Staten Island Ferry will begin running 24/7 every five minutes? Sometime soon.

NYCHA: New York City Housing Authority Building Improvements

The Mayor told us that approximately 400,000 people live in New York City Housing Authority housing [NYCHA]. He said that the New York City Housing Authority was started by former NYC Mayor Fiorello LaGuardia in 1934 during the Depression to help New Yorkers with housing. The de Blasio Administration has invested $300 million in New York City Housing Authority buildings to fix the roofs at Queensbridge Houses and Ravenswood in Queens, Stapleton Houses on Staten Island and Soundview and [I think he said] Edenwald Houses in the Bronx. And to provide wifi services so the lower income residents of New York City aren't left behind in what has been characterized as a digital divide.

Homeless Population Leveled Off This Year After Decade(s) Growth

The Mayor noted that there are a number of working families now living out of homeless shelters in New York City. We checked the Coalition of the Homeless website which showed that about 60,000 people in New York City currently live in homeless shelters. Given we have a population of 8.4 million residents that's 0.7% [two thirds of 1%] of the population.

New York City Homeless Population

The Mayor talked about various efforts his Administration has been making to remedy this problem, including lobbying for the first 0% rent increase for rent stabilized apartment dwellers this past year. This was one of the contributing causes of the significant rise in homeless during the Bloomberg era, when the homeless population of New York City rose 75% from 31,000 to 54,000 and continued to rise in the first year of Mayor de Blasio's first term, to 61,000.

According to the Furman Center at NYU, it is estimated that about one million New York City apartments are rent stabilized out of about two million rental apartments. Another one million apartments are owner occupied.

Actions Taken to Alleviate NYC Homelessness

During this past year the de Blasio Administration efforts to stem the rise in homeless have been successful, as the homeless population in NYC has held steady at between 60,000 to 61,000. The de Blasio Administration has worked to preserve existing rent stabilized apartments and to help move families out of the homeless shelters and into either public or private housing.

The Mayor said one initiative got underway to provide 15,000 supported apartments over the next year. He credited City Councilmember Hevesi and Levin with leading the effort. He also noted that NYC is adding 300 more beds to youth shelters to accommodate children under age 18 who are kicked out of their own homes. Many of them are LGBT.

Policing Schools with Improving Results

The Mayor talked about adding mental health professionals to help the police in their work on the streets as they can help manage some of those who don't follow the rules, motivated by less clear reasons than criminals.

Advanced Placement [AP] which here-to-fore hasn't been available at all high schools, will now be available system-wide. And the Administration is bringing computer science to all middle schools. He noted that a city cannot have equality if it doesn't provide access to a quality education and opportunities to all.

As for crime, the Mayor told us that it's down 29% since 2011 [he took office January 2014]. And that school suspensions are also down 36%, through an effort to curtail the criminal school-to-prison-pipeline.

NYC Retirement Plan For Small Businesses

As the demographics of the New Yorker population city age, the Mayor noted that less than half of all New Yorkers have a retirement plan, and worse, that about 40% of all New Yorkers have $10,000 or less in savings for their retirement. To help New Yorkers save for their retirement, businesses with ten employees or more will be eligible to join a New York City retirement plan, which I believe begins this year.

Big Investments in Targeted Neighborhoods

The Mayor talked about the efforts of the de Blasio Administration to fight inequality. To that end the de Blasio Administration has allocated $91 million to Far Rockaway to upgrade the Sorentino Recreation Center and build a new library and provide job training programs.

The Mayor noted that of the 62 counties in New York State, the residents of the Bronx face the greatest health challenges. The Mayor again referenced former NYC Mayor Fiorello LaGuardia, when he told us that NYC was adding 14 new health centers to the most underserved neighborhoods in the city - including one that becomes operational this winter in Mott Haven neighborhood in the Bronx.

The Mayor also noted that the neighborhood of Brownsville in Brooklyn has faced numerous obstacles to it being able to provide its residents with a safe, clean neighborhood with competitive schools and opportunities. To help get Brownsville moving again, the Mayor is expanding the NYPD's use of ShotSpotter technology so the police can quickly respond to trouble. And they are adding a new neighborhood Health Action Center where residents can gain access to healthcare and SNAP benefits. And 5,000 middle schoolers in Brownsville will gain access to Single Shepherds, who are a mix between guidance counselors and mentors to help the middle schoolers through high school graduation.

Preparing & Enabling NYC Population for the 21st Century

Wifi. The de Blasio Administration has also repurposed the 7,500 payphones in NYC to become wifi hubs. The intent of this is to enable people of all demographics to access the internet to learn and communicate. The first is on Third Avenue in Midtown and it will become operational within the month. Another 500 will be ready by summer (?).

Weapons Reductions. The NYPD has a new 200 officer Gun Violence Suppression Unit which just indicted 18 gang members. Gun violence was down 3% and gun arrests were up 10%, last year.

Transit. And then there was transit. There are 85,000 metered parking spaces in NYC. Over time those will be equipped with smart phone enabled technology to allow motorists to pay for their parking space via their phone. He thanked CCM Ydanis Rodriguez for his leadership on this issue. The Mayor talked about increased sanitation department efforts to clean up the streets, roads and walls of the city.

New York City Economic Development

The Mayor told us about the growth of various industries around the city, including movie production, fashion design studios and white-collar office jobs. He noted that the city is at full employment with 4.2 million jobs in New York City, which is up over 5% or 220,000 since he took office in 2014. And he credited small business with fueling the jobs growth.

He told us that Citibike sold 10 million rides last year. And that his Administration is expanding the system by 2,500 bikes in Brooklyn, Queens and Manhattan.

Brooklyn Queens Street Car & Governor's Island

The Mayor closed with two key announcements. The first was the announcement of the BQX or Brooklyn Queens Connector which will be a street car along the East River connecting Brooklyn and Queens along the waterfront. He noted that there are about 400,000 residents living there and about 40,000 of them live in public housing.

And the second was to provide regular daily transit to Governors Island, which is a 172 acre island, first settled by the Dutch in 1624. He wants it to evolve into a technology hub.

All in all it seemed an upbeat assessment by the Mayor of the current State of the City and the de Blasio Administration's efforts to move the city in the direction of more equality. The Mayor keyed off his 2013 campaign theme of the 'Tale of Two Cities' by highlighting his administration's efforts to work toward 'One New York' ... a global community of people helping one another.

The following is a ten minute video which you can watch in full or skip through containing excerpts of his speech.

Sources: Wikipedia.org, Firelaw.com, Coalition For The Homeless, NYU Furman Center and I fact checked things using other sources on the web related to some of the people and organizations mentioned above.

Video Excerpts From Mayor's Speech - Click Refresh Button If Video Not Showing

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