Mayor Adams Updates: NY Liberty WNBA Championship Victory, E-Bike Trade-In Program Keeping NYers Safe, Flag Raising For Kazakhstan, Questions From Media

Editor’s note: Below are the Mayor’s most recent updates for New Yorkers.  Topics include the e-bike trade-in program to keep New Yorkers safe, remarks at the flag-raising ceremony for Kazakhstan, Mayor Adams takes questions from the media including on support from Donald Trump, the migrant crisis, and other issues, Julie Coker’s unanimous vote to become President and CEO of NYC Tourism + Conventions, and NYC buildings were lit in seafoam to celebrate the New York Liberty’s WNBA Championship. 

We have extensively covered the issues related to battery fires and the safety issues related to lithium-ion battery technology.  You can view all stories associated with this topic here, as well as the announcement about the new battery charging swap stations, an announcement from the mayor on the how New Yorkers are being protected from unsafe lithium-ion batteries, along with legislation introduced by Senator Gillibrand to set consumer standards for these devices.  

MAYOR ADAMS ANNOUNCES FINALIZED E-BIKE TRADE-IN PROGRAM TO KEEP NEW YORKERS SAFE FROM LITHIUM-ION BATTERY FIRES

Thanks to $2 Million City Investment, Select Delivery Workers Will Be Able to Trade in Dangerous E-bikes and Mopeds for Safer Certified E-bikes and Batteries

Administration Initiatives Have Significantly Reduced Deaths, Injuries from Lithium-Ion Battery Fires

NEW YORK – New York City Mayor Eric Adams today announced final rules governing the city’s first-in-the-nation municipal trade-in pilot program for unsafe electric bikes and other electric-powered mobility devices and their batteries. The rules will allow eligible food delivery workers to replace their unsafe devices with certified, high-quality e-bikes and lithium-ion batteries. The program is part of the Adams administration’s “Charge Safe, Ride Safe: New York City’s Electric Micromobility Action Plan” to promote public safety as e-bike usage continues to skyrocket, and will help reduce the risk of deadly e-bike fires, often caused by uncertified lithium-ion batteries, as well as enhance street safety by getting faster and heavier illegal mopeds off city streets. Thanks to the Adams administration’s initiatives, there has been a significant decrease in lithium-ion battery fire deaths and injuries so far this year. At this time last year, New York City had experienced 224 lithium-ion battery-related fires resulting in 122 injuries and 14 deaths. So far, in 2024, there have been 222 fires, 88 injuries, and four fatalities caused by lithium-ion batteries.

“My top priority is keeping New Yorkers safe, and that includes from new and emerging threats like the dangers posed by uncertified lithium-ion batteries,” said Mayor Adams. “Thanks to our new trade-in program, eligible frontline delivery workers who keep our city moving will be able to swap their dangerous bikes and batteries for safe versions for free — this is how we make our city safer and more affordable. This initiative builds on our efforts to help New Yorkers charge safe and ride safe — and our efforts are working, with significantly fewer injuries and deaths from lithium-ion battery fires this year compared to last. One death is still one too many, but we are making progress, and the rules we’re finalizing today show that New York City is again leading the nation in getting battery safety done right.”

“E-bikes are an important part of reducing pollution but not at the expense of riders, their families, or neighbors,” said Deputy Mayor for Operations Meera Joshi. “Today, we are proud to accept dangerous e-bikes and, in return, provide zero-emission, safe equipment so hard-working delivery workers can have peace of mind on the job and off.”

“Safer e-bikes, safer batteries, and safer charging practices are integral to a cleaner and more sustainable future, and this program will do this while also protecting all New Yorkers from deadly fires,” said New York City Department of Transportation (DOT) Commissioner Ydanis Rodriguez. “Delivery workers have one of the toughest jobs in New York City, and this trade-in program gives them access to safe equipment at work, while giving their families and neighbors greater peace of mind.”

“For three years, the FDNY has been working to stem the scourge of lithium-ion battery fires, and we’ve been attacking the problem relentlessly,” said Fire Department of the City of New York (FDNY) Commissioner Robert S. Tucker. “Getting uncertified lithium-ion batteries and devices off our city’s streets is critically important, and this trade-in program will help do just that. We are grateful to partner with the DOT on this out-of-the-box initiative that we know will make our city safer for delivery workers, our first responders, and the public.”  

Currently, many food delivery workers utilize uncertified e-bikes and heavier electric and gas-powered mopeds, which cannot be registered with the New York State Department of Motor Vehicles due to the lack of Vehicle Identification Numbers. DOT’s e-bike trade-in program — the nation’s first municipal program of its kind — will focus on exchanging unsafe e-bikes and lithium-ion batteries for new devices. The $2 million trade-in program was established in response to Local Law 131 of 2023, sponsored by New York City Councilmember Keith Powers. The e-bikes provided will be UL-certified, the nationally-recognized standard for e-bike safety and performance. Selected participants will receive a UL-certified e-bike and two compatible, UL-certified batteries in exchange for their unsafe devices and batteries. By swapping these illegal devices for UL-certified e-bikes and batteries, the program will reduce fire and crash risks, help participants comply with local and state laws, and encourage workers to utilize cleaner and greener forms of e-mobility for deliveries. 

The program offers trade-ins of both e-micromobility devices and lithium-ion batteries to help ensure that unsafe batteries and devices are fully removed from New York City streets, and that batteries are compatible with the devices they are powering.  Eligible participants must reside in New York City, be at least 18 years of age, own an eligible working device, and have earned at least $1,500 in 2024 as a food delivery worker. Participants will receive two batteries because many delivery workers report that a full day of work often requires the use of two batteries. DOT will launch a public awareness campaign to share more details about the program among eligible applicants, who can start to apply in early 2025.

The program is one of several citywide initiatives to improve e-bike access and foster the growing use of legal e-micromobility options while keeping New Yorkers safe from uncertified batteries. DOT is working to install wider bike lanes along its busiest routes, undergoing a public e-bike charging pilot with delivery workers, and educating New Yorkers about safe and legal e-bike use. DOT’s e-bike charging stations feature battery-swapping cabinets from Popwheels and Swobbee, and provide free services to a group of pre-registered food delivery workers. Findings from the pilot show that food delivery workers are enthusiastically participating and now feel productive, and that access to these charging stations has resulted in a reduction, and some elimination, of home charging. In addition to enhanced safety for delivery workers and their neighbors, there have been no safety-related issues or 311 complaints at any of the pilot locations.

Additionally, in the coming months, DOT will publish final rules that will expedite approvals for property owners to install electric micromobility device battery swapping and charging cabinets on public sidewalks, which is currently prohibited. This rule will enable property owners, or commercial tenants with the property owner’s consent, to apply for a permit to install a battery swapping and charging cabinet in front of their business on the sidewalk. Each cabinet must comply with specific siting and dimensional requirements and undergo FDNY and DOB review and approval. 

“I have passed legislation and been a staunch advocate for lithium-ion battery safety. There have been four deaths already this year caused by fatal fires where e-bikes were suspected of being the cause. While that is a reduction from the 18 deaths last year, it is still four deaths too many,” said New York State Senator Cordell Cleare. “This e-bike trade-in pilot program to trade in unsafe electric-bikes and other electric-powered mobility devices and their batteries is an effort to keep New Yorkers safe. With the expansion of food delivery workers who use e-bikes and lithium-ion batteries, the Charge Safe, Ride Safe plan addresses the public safety concern of New Yorkers in the city, which this year alone has suffered 222 fires, 88 injuries, and four fatalities caused by lithium-ion batteries. We want to protect the people of the city, and this exchange plan can assist in that endeavor.”

“I am proud to lead in addressing dangerous e-bikes, including those with uncertified reconditioned batteries,” said New York State Assemblymember Jenifer Rajkumar. “Last year, New York City witnessed over 250 lithium-ion battery fires, taking the precious lives of 18 people and injuring another 133. To end this crisis, I authored Priscilla’s Law to require license plates and inspections of e-bikes, and I helped pass legislation to ban uncertified batteries. Our first-in-the-nation e-bike trade-in program continues our safety work by allowing delivery workers to exchange unsafe vehicles for high quality e-bikes with certified batteries. This $2 million program is a wise investment to take dangerous mobility devices off our streets, just as we do for firearms. Together, we will rid our city of unsafe and reckless e-bikes, paving the way for responsible use of the latest micromobility technology.”

“The safety of New Yorkers is a top priority, and the City of New York’s e-bike trade-in program is a significant step towards protecting our communities from the dangers of lithium-ion battery fires,” said New York State Assemblymember Yudelka Tapia.  “By providing safer, certified alternatives, we are helping to reduce risks while supporting delivery workers who rely on these devices. I’m proud to have passed a bill in the state legislature that will enact a similar program statewide, ensuring all New Yorkers can benefit from these critical safety measures.”

“Fires caused by lithium-ion batteries have already taken far too many lives in our city, so we need to do all we can to prevent further tragedies,” said Queens Borough President Donovan Richards Jr. “The trade-in program now being launched will take uncertified and unsafe e-bikes and lithium-ion batteries out of service so they will no longer be a threat to the public. I encourage all those eligible for this program to take advantage of it and do their part to keep our city and its residents safe.”

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“We’ve had too many fires due to defective e-bikes. We must provide delivery workers with tools to help prevent devastating incidents like the ones we’ve seen,” said New York City Councilmember Oswald Feliz.  “With the new e-bike trade-in program, workers will have the opportunity to trade their unsafe batteries for certified batteries — a crucial step to help resolve challenges concerning fire safety.”

“E-bikes are a growing part of our transportation system, and we must make sure that they are safe for riders and their neighbors,” said New York City Councilmember Carlina Rivera.  “We have made strides to reduce the risk of fire from uncertified lithium-ion batteries by passing important regulation for sales and making key investments in public and outdoor charging stations. This trade-in program will build on that progress to remove dangerous, uncertified batteries from our streets to make sure no one has to choose between a paycheck and their safety.”

“New York City’s 65,000 deliveristas are well-positioned to help lead our city’s transition to a more carbon-neutral future – but as independent contractors who pay for their own operating costs, these workers struggle to find safe and affordable e-bikes, batteries, and battery charging stations,” said Ligia Guallpa, executive director, Worker’s Justice Project (WJP) and co-founder, Los Deliveristas Unidos. “Lack of access to such critical resources not only increases the risk of injury for these essential workers; it imperils the opportunity to transition to more sustainable forms of delivery. WJP applauds Mayor Adams and the Department of Transportation for its vision in ensuring that our city’s drive toward a more sustainable future is rooted in equitable access to 21st-century innovations that will protect our workers, our city, and our planet.”

“The tragic impact of fires from lithium-ion batteries is preventable, and we’re thrilled to see a major solution through our country’s first-ever municipal e-bike and e-battery trade-in program,” said Ken Podziba, CEO, Bike New York.  “Obviously, we look forward to more being done and other solutions rolled out quicker, but we’re thankful that combating this crisis has become a top priority of our government leaders.  I commend Mayor Adams, Commissioner Rodriguez, and Councilmember Powers for their leadership in prioritizing the safety of our delivery workers and everyone using e-micromobility devices.”

“En el Movimiento de Repartidores de Comida de la Ciudad de Nueva York, esperamos con interés este programa, y vamos a estar atentos a los beneficios que traerá para nuestra comunidad y para nuestras herramientas de trabajo. Gracias al Departamento de Transporte de la ciudad por su colaboración para hacerlo realidad,” dijo Sergio Solano, representante del Movimiento de Entrega de Comida de la Ciudad de Nueva York.

“E-bikes are supporting access to jobs for tens of thousands of New Yorkers,” said Melinda Hanson, co-founder, Equitable Commute Project (ECP). “We applaud the city for funding this trade-in program that will protect lives and livelihoods by ensuring workers have access to fire-safe, UL-certified models. When combined with the ECP’s SAFE trade-in program and the city’s battery-swapping program, this effort puts us on a clear path to stopping the fires and fully realizing the many benefits that micromobility has to offer.”

“Replacing unsafe e-bikes and batteries with certified, high-quality e-bikes has already proven to be hugely successful in reducing battery fires and improving street safety,” said Elizabeth Adams, interim co-executive director, Transportation Alternatives. “We’re grateful City Hall is taking illegal batteries off the streets and working to ensure every New Yorker has access to a safe, legal, and affordable e-bike. Coupled with on-street public charging and more physical safety infrastructure, we can make our city’s streets safe for everyone to e-bike around the five boroughs.” 

TRANSCRIPT: MAYOR ADAMS ANNOUNCES FINALIZED E-BIKE TRADE-IN PROGRAM TO KEEP NEW YORKERS SAFE FROM LITHIUM-ION BATTERY FIRES

Commissioner Ydanis Rodríguez, Department of Transportation: Good afternoon, everyone. My name is Ydanis Rodriguez and I’m the commissioner of the New York City Department of Transportation. It is my honor to join Mayor Eric Adams, Fire Commissioner Robert Tucker, and everyone else here, including the great Councilmember Rivera and the advocates at Cooper Square, one of the locations for our public e-battery charging pilots with delivery workers. 

Today we are here to discuss another important way we are combating e-battery fires, enhancing traffic safety and supporting safe, sustainable travel options. Delivery workers are essential workers. They are critical to our economy’s success and to so many New Yorkers and local businesses who rely on them every day. They deserve to be able to do their jobs safely, and we are here together with this group of workers that they are worried about using uncertified equipment. 

We know that e-battery fires don’t just impact delivery workers. Though e-battery fires travel quickly, spreading from apartment to apartment, to building to building, so when we support safe e-battery charging, we support the safety of all New Yorkers. That’s why we are here to announce that we have finalized rules at DOT for a new e-bike trade-in program to delivery workers using uncertified equipment. 

When the program will be launched in early 2025, delivery workers will be able to apply online to trade in uncertified e-bikes and their batteries, or illegal mopeds for a UL certified bike and two UL certified batteries. Delivery workers will have to show proof that they live in the City of New York, that they work as delivery workers, and that they are at least 18 years old. They must trade in equipment in operating condition. We will be surveying workers who participate in the program to continue learning about charging practices, delivery patterns, and other safety challenges, and we look forward to learning more. 

Through the Adams administration’s Charge Safe Ride Safe Action Plan, we have seen promising trends in reducing fire deaths, and we will hear from the Fire Department very soon. We will continue working to combat these strategies. At New York City DOT, we are also working to expand access to public e-battery charging, like the equipment you see next to us today, to support safe outdoor charging options. 

And we are working to build wider bike lanes, which can provide more comfortable accommodation for cyclists traveling at different speeds, not only those who use regular bikes, but also those who use pedal-assisted bikes to also increase the level of delivery to their customers. This year, we are delivering wider bike lanes on 2nd Avenue, 6th Avenue, 7th Avenue, 10th Avenue, and on crosstown routes at 38th Street and 39th Street, our busiest crosstown streets in the city. 

I’d like to thank Councilmember Rivera and the other members of the Council for their partnership, and also thanks Councilmember Keith Powers, who couldn’t be here, who also passed the legislation, the legislation that developed this trade-in program, as well as the talented members of the DOT team who made this possible, including Will Carey, Irene Figueroa-Ortiz, Patrick Smith, Ryan Wanttaja, Naomi Silkowitz, and others. One minute in Español. 

Vamos a escuchar del alcalde Eric Adams en este momento. Nosotros estamos anunciando un plan donde, a principios del año que viene, estaremos proveyendo cientos de bicicletas eléctricas con su batería a aquellos trabajadores que tengan baterías con bicicleta que están usadas, pero que estén en buenas condiciones. Esa es la prioridad del alcalde, de los diferentes comisionados de los bomberos, de los concejales Rivera, Powers y otros. Están trabajando para nosotros ayudar a esas hermanas y hermanos trabajadores deliveristas que proveen un servicio esencial para proveerlo de libre y seguir moviendo la ciudad de Nueva York.

Translation: We’re going to hear from Mayor Eric Adams right now. We are announcing a plan where, at the beginning of next year, we will be providing hundreds of electric bicycles with their batteries to those workers who have used bicycles with batteries that are in good condition. This is the priority of the mayor, the various commissioners of the fire department, and council members Rivera, Powers, and others. They are working to help our sisters and brothers delivery workers who provide an essential service to keep the city of New York moving.

With that, now you have Mayor Eric Adams. 

Mayor Eric Adams: Thanks so much, commissioner. And I really thank the deliveristas who have partnered with us on this initiative throughout DOT, our councilperson, particularly Councilwoman Rivera, and the entire team. 

When we said safety, we were not only talking about dealing with gun violence, we were talking about making our streets safe, and making the storage of delivery bikes and e-scooters to be safe at the same time. And it’s more than just crime stats, it includes what we are here today to talk about this initiative on lithium ion batteries. Hats off to FDNY, former Commissioner Kavanagh, and now our current Commissioner Tucker, who’s continuing this pursuit of making sure that lithium ion batteries are safe to use, and safe for those who are using them to carry out their daily business functions. 

So today, we’re supercharging our safety efforts to get unsafe e-bikes and e-scooters and lithium ion batteries off our streets by announcing the final rules, as the commissioner stated, the final rules to our e-bike trading program, America’s first municipal trading pilot program. And we are happy that eligible delivery workers can now trade dangerous and unsafe e-bikes, mopeds, and batteries for safer, legal, and certified devices, and they can do so for that New York City, best word, for free. They can do it for free. These delivery workers can now trade them in and replace unsafe e-bikes and batteries. 

New Yorkers deserve access to safe devices and batteries, and we are getting them to them. And that’s how we tackle safety, at the same time tackling affordability. And we cannot do this without our partners, so again, Councilman Powers for passing this legislation, and Councilwoman Rivera and her team at the City Council. This is how government, industry worked together to ensure that we have operability, but safety at the same time. 

And they are a convenient, low-cost replacement, cost transportation option that these scooters provide, and we want to encourage people to use those cost transportation options, but we want them to do it safe. And they are essential for tens of thousands of New Yorkers who are already living, making deliveries like our deliveristas, but a faulty version of these e-bikes and scooters and e-scooters and illegal electric mopeds are being leased, rented, and sold to New Yorkers. And many of these devices do not meet safety standards and contain uncertified lithium-ion batteries. 

And too often people store these batteries near their place of exit, in their homes, in their bedrooms. We’ve witnessed over and over again the fire, the explosion that’s associated with these illegal batteries, and it takes lives. And there’s been great results based on our educational campaign and others with FDNY and DOT that allowed us to deal with the increased numbers we’ve witnessed over the years on these deaths and major injuries that FDNY commissioner will go over. 

Our e-bike trading program will save lives. It will save lives and protect the thousands of workers who rely on e-bikes for their livelihoods. We’re doing everything in our power to stop these deadly fires and make safe lithium-ion batteries more affordable. It is why we released our Charge Safe, Ride Safe plan to help New Yorkers use e-bikes and scooters safely. It’s why we banned the sale of uncertified e-vehicles and refurbished lithium-ion batteries. And it is why we launched a massive public awareness campaign to inform New Yorkers about the dangers of unsafe batteries. And earlier this year we announced the New York City Safe Charging Accelerator, making it easier and faster for property owners to install public battery charging and swapping cabinets on sidewalks in front of their buildings. 

And last year, fire caused by lithium-ion batteries were among the leading causes of fire-related death and injury. And I’m proud to announce that our efforts so far are getting results. And this time last year, New York City had 14 deaths from lithium-ion battery-related fires. Thus far this year, we have only four deaths. Four too many, but clearly we’re moving in the right direction. We are making progress. We will continue to make progress as long as we coordinate with our partners to move in the right direction. 

Again, I want to thank all our partners for the successful operation and the rollout of this unprecedented policy, first in the nation to do so, to ensure our riders are safe, homeowners are safe, the bikes are safe, and we can continue to use the e-mobility transportation methods to deal with congestion in our city. Thank you very much.

Commissioner Rodríguez: Thank you, Mr. Mayor. Now let’s see our great partners in this effort and a great leader in the City of New York, Commissioner Tucker.

Fire Commissioner Robert Tucker: Thank you, commissioner. Thank you, Mr. Mayor. Councilwoman Rivera, thank you to the members of the Council. Good afternoon on this gorgeous day in New York City, also during Fire Prevention Month. 

Our city and the FDNY in particular has been dealing with lithium-ion batteries and its crisis for more than three years. We are making progress, as the mayor said, but there’s always more work to be done. This is an issue that is not going away. Our response at the FDNY is focused on three areas, education, enforcement, and advocacy. We’ve been educating New Yorkers about best practices for these devices. We’ve been visiting schools and community groups, as well as a relentless PSA program. We will not stop until everyone hears us. 

We have conducted hundreds of proactive safety inspections of businesses who sell these devices and have issued thousands of dollars in fines, and we’ve even made some arrests. Working together, FDNY is leading the nation on this important issue by investing in innovative programs like our highly successful battery charging cabinet program to help New Yorkers stay safe. 

I look forward to the launch of this e-bike trade-in program as another way that we are protecting the public, which includes the brave men and women of the FDNY who rush towards danger when these fires erupt. Make no mistake about it, e-bikes are fun and an easy way to get around this city, but uncertified and malfunctioning batteries are a ticking time bomb. They put you in danger, they put your neighbors in danger, and they put FDNY members in danger. Thank you.

Commissioner Rodríguez: Thank you, commissioner. Now let’s hear from another person who had the opportunity to serve together. We both were at the City Council. Councilmember Rivera.

City Councilmember Carlina Rivera: Hello everyone, good afternoon. I just want to say welcome. Welcome to the Second Council District. I know we’ve been here before because this location is so important. 

This is a historic day, this is a historic program. We are hoping that what we are doing here in New York City and this program will be replicated at the federal level at some point. We do need that sort of collaboration. But until then, New York City will continue to be the model and of course the birthplace of a movement for our delivery workers and ensuring that they have better working conditions and continue to be supported as they endure one of the most challenging jobs in the city. 

And I want to thank Worker’s Justice Project and Ligia. We have been on this journey for a while now together. And you only have to be in this district for a little while to see how crowded the bike lanes are. I take a bike almost every single day and I am so thankful and grateful to the commissioner because he has stepped up really in every single ask that we have approached him with in terms of how to create better infrastructure in this neighborhood which sees so many deliveries daily. 

E-bikes are a growing part of our transportation system, connecting commuters from greater distances, enabling more sustainable modes of transportation and of course increasing opportunities for people with disabilities. In the delivery sector especially, we see the rise in importance of e-bikes for home delivery. It’s food, it’s medicine, it’s everyday items that you rely on to be brought directly to your door. And it’s critical that the city work closely with delivery workers to understand the breadth of needs to best support this evolving job and ensure safety for all. 

And the city has really done a lot in the past couple years in terms of banning the sale of e-mobility devices that have not been certified for safety. They’ve increased the inspection of bike shops of course and their public education campaign that’s in over 10 languages continues to also be a model for how we get this information directly in the hands of workers and approach that endeavor with cultural humility as well. 

This battery trade-in program will remove dangerous uncertified lithium-ion batteries from the streets and people’s apartments and replace them with certified, safe and regulated batteries. Many workers may have spent hundreds of dollars on their batteries, they can’t afford to replace them. Or they can’t afford to miss the days of work while they wait for a regulated battery either. And this program will make it so they don’t have to choose between a paycheck and safety.

I’m so proud to be standing here in my district at the first municipal e-bike battery station showcasing the important steps that the city has taken to prevent lithium-ion battery fires and I want to thank the Fire Department for their unwavering support. And even as we take these important steps we still have experienced over 200 battery fires, the tragic loss of four lives this year. This trade-in program will build on our investments. 

We don’t want to see another loss of life, clearly we certainly don’t want another fire. And unlicensed batteries, removing them and replacing them with safe and regulated batteries is a really great step in the right direction. We have to continue to fight for safer streets and better working conditions for the deliveristas and this is an important, important step in the right direction. I want to thank everyone involved. Thank you so much.

Commissioner Rodríguez: Thank you. Thank you, councilmember. And last but not least, Ligia Guallpa from the Worker’s Justice Project.

Ligia Guallpa, Executive Director, Worker’s Justice Project: Hello. I am extremely excited and really proud to stand here. And let’s just take it back. It’s been four years since I remember delivery workers started organizing all the way down from the Upper West Side to City Hall to ensure that they have the rights and they have the infrastructure that they deserve so they can continue to do one of the most essential jobs for the city. 

And it’s been four years and we got to this moment where we not only secure some basic essential protections, but we’re finally, finally launching the first in the nation municipality trade-in program. This is historic. And I’m going to say why it’s historic. Because it is the first time that a city in this nation puts a program that is not just about trading e-bikes. It’s about recognizing that delivery workers are essential. It’s recognizing that the city deserves, that the city will invest in one of the most essential workforces of our city. This is a recognition to the labor of 65,000 delivery workers. And today is a historic moment. 

And we’re proud to stand with a mayor who has fought along with us to make sure that there is not just a program, but there is key investment. A City Council member, like Councilmember Rivera, from the first day that we came to our office with deliverista leaders to talk about the issues that deliverista were experiencing in the road, especially becoming one of the most dangerous jobs in our nation was work with their leadership. Not only we passed laws, but have passed a legislation that allows the creation of this significant program. 

And we’re proud to make sure that this program, it’s not just a reality, but we’re also proud to continue to fight to create more policies that really addresses the needs of 65,000 deliveristas who do one of the most essential jobs for our city. And we’re, thank you so much for Mayor Adams, for your leadership, Councilmember Rivera, for really partnering and listening to the needs of deliveristas, the commissioner of DOT who has committed to put their resources and really the people to make sure that this program really becomes a reality on the ground. Thank you so, so much to all of you.

Question: [Inaudible.]

Commissioner Rodríguez: Yeah, this is a $2 million, Mayor Adams administration being allocated. DOT is ready to spend it. We expected that with that money, we’ll be able to provide a e-bike and it’s chargers to 400, around 400 delivery workers, as I described before what are the criteria. And we feel that not only it will improve safety for the deliveristas, but also for those buildings where they live. And also it will allow DOT to continue getting more data, learning more about all the work that we got to do in the city. 

We have 60,000 delivery workers in the city of New York. They work as we’re speaking right now, providing the services. They are the one who always responded to those delivery app company when they say, you have five minutes to deliver the food, you have 15 minutes to deliver it there. So they go so fast when they have to do it because they also have to follow the schedule. So what we are doing the game is not only providing the tool for them to be safe, but also for the city to continue learning more.

Question: [Inaudible.]

Commissioner Rodríguez: Again, I have the best team. There’s no other city in this nation that had a greater team in the case of policy as we have with Will and Irene, and they’re the one in [inaudible].

So I mentioned it before, what are the criterias. Those individuals that will be qualified, they will have the opportunity to apply starting 2025 online. If the numbers of individual delivery workers that will be applying online will be more than the couple of hundreds that we have the resources for, then we’re going to be doing a lottery. They also have to prove that they have made $1,500 in that year, in the previous year before, in this case, 2024, in order to qualify. And they also have to keep the e-bike and the battery that we’ll be getting at least for one year.

Question: [Inaudible.]

Irene Figueroa-Ortiz, Senior Policy Advisor, Department of Transportation: So you’re asking what is like a timeline between when they apply, when they get the e-bike? 

So it’s going to be an open application period where people are going to be submitting their application. We’re going to be spending two months maybe reviewing those applications, and then we’re going to be notifying people that got selected. And then they’re going to be booking a date to attend a distribution event where they’re going to be doing the whole thing within two hours. So they’re going to bring their e-bike and then they’re going to leave that event with a new e-bike.

Question: [Inaudible.]

Mayor Adams: Yeah, as my press person said, we’re doing on-topic questions. Is there another on-topic question?

Question: [Inaudible.]

Mayor Adams: Yes, as we just stated that the number of deaths that decreased from last year this time to this year, while we are doing the swap program, we’re not sitting on our hands. 

We are moving forward to teach people how to use better language when they describe me, but we’re moving forward to let people, as the Fire Department stated, educate, to make sure we have safety measures in place. And we are targeting those areas where we have a high level of deliveristas and people who are using the bikes. So we’re not sitting still. At the same time, we’re putting our educational program, our enforcement program, and we’re going after those locations that have large charging stations, illegal charging stations. So there’s a multi-pronged approach. This is another prong on that multi-pronged approach. 

TRANSCRIPT: MAYOR ADAMS DELIVERS REMARKS AT FLAG-RAISING CEREMONY FOR KAZAKHSTAN

Commissioner Ed Mermelstein, Mayor’s Office of International Affairs: In the 1940s, Kazakhstan was a country that provided refuge to my father and his family during World War II. And that country provided refuge to so many from the Soviet Union during a very, very difficult time. 

Standing here today in front of all of you in an administration that represents a very similar type of story in a city that has been providing refuge for tens of millions of people over the last several hundred years. I am proud to introduce the mayor who has stood behind this very special city during such difficult times, providing refuge to hundreds of thousands of people that have passed through New York. It is a great honor and pleasure to introduce 110th mayor of New York City, Mayor Eric Adams. 

Mayor Eric Adams: Thank you. It’s a beautiful story that the commissioner talked about and it just goes to show us that although we celebrate our independence, we are dependent on each other. And nothing personifies that more than this great community, the Kazakhstan community and the three years that we have been raising the flag. 

When I became the mayor, I wanted to make sure that this community was acknowledged and understood that we appreciate your contributions and what you bring as part of the melting pot of ideas, of culture, of how we live in unison as one. When we do these flag raisings here at the foundation of our economic strength, a place we call Bowling Green, it’s an opportunity of all of our countries to know that you are not forgotten. In fact, you are part of the fabric of this great city. 

We want to continue that relationship, that success. We want you to continue to contribute to what we believe is the foundation of our city. You believe in family, you believe in faith, you believe in public safety, you believe in business, and that is why we want to celebrate you and lift your flag and say happy independence. 

Let’s continue to be independent as our individual cultures and countries, but let’s be dependent on each other how we continue to make this the city where we all can reach the full potential of our dreams, and that’s the American Dream. Thank you so much. Let’s raise your flag.

Mayor Eric Adams delivers remarks at a flag-raising ceremony for Kazakhstan. Bowling Green Park, Manhattan. Tuesday, October 22, 2024. Image Credit: Ed Reed/Mayoral Photography Office.

Mayor Eric Adams delivers remarks at a flag-raising ceremony for Kazakhstan. Bowling Green Park, Manhattan. Tuesday, October 22, 2024. Image Credit: Ed Reed/Mayoral Photography Office.

Mayor Eric Adams delivers remarks at a flag-raising ceremony for Kazakhstan. Bowling Green Park, Manhattan. Tuesday, October 22, 2024. Image Credit: Ed Reed/Mayoral Photography Office.

Mayor Eric Adams delivers remarks at a flag-raising ceremony for Kazakhstan. Bowling Green Park, Manhattan. Tuesday, October 22, 2024. Image Credit: Ed Reed/Mayoral Photography Office.

Mayor Eric Adams delivers remarks at a flag-raising ceremony for Kazakhstan. Bowling Green Park, Manhattan. Tuesday, October 22, 2024. Image Credit: Ed Reed/Mayoral Photography Office.

Mayor Eric Adams delivers remarks at a flag-raising ceremony for Kazakhstan. Bowling Green Park, Manhattan. Tuesday, October 22, 2024. Image Credit: Ed Reed/Mayoral Photography Office.

Mayor Eric Adams delivers remarks at a flag-raising ceremony for Kazakhstan. Bowling Green Park, Manhattan. Tuesday, October 22, 2024. Image Credit: Ed Reed/Mayoral Photography Office.

Mayor Eric Adams delivers remarks at a flag-raising ceremony for Kazakhstan. Bowling Green Park, Manhattan. Tuesday, October 22, 2024. Image Credit: Ed Reed/Mayoral Photography Office.

Mayor Eric Adams delivers remarks at a flag-raising ceremony for Kazakhstan. Bowling Green Park, Manhattan. Tuesday, October 22, 2024. Image Credit: Ed Reed/Mayoral Photography Office.

Mayor Eric Adams delivers remarks at a flag-raising ceremony for Kazakhstan. Bowling Green Park, Manhattan. Tuesday, October 22, 2024. Image Credit: Ed Reed/Mayoral Photography Office.

Mayor Eric Adams delivers remarks at a flag-raising ceremony for Kazakhstan. Bowling Green Park, Manhattan. Tuesday, October 22, 2024. Image Credit: Ed Reed/Mayoral Photography Office.

Mayor Eric Adams delivers remarks at a flag-raising ceremony for Kazakhstan. Bowling Green Park, Manhattan. Tuesday, October 22, 2024. Image Credit: Ed Reed/Mayoral Photography Office.

TRANSCRIPT: MAYOR ADAMS HOLDS IN-PERSON MEDIA AVAILABILITY

New York City Mayor Eric Adams holds an in-person media availability at City Hall on Tuesday, October 22, 2024. Image Credit – Michael Appleton/Mayoral Photography Office

Mayor Eric Adams: I had all these cameras. I had everything going on. It’s good to see you all. And I see that New York Yankees cap in the back. You know, Mets had a good run.

So, as I indicated, the team, I wanted to really focus and have the team focus on their work that they do every day. And since many of the questions we were doing was really leaning into investigations, I want them focused on that. And once things normalize better, we’ll have all my D.M.s back into action. But they need to be focused on running this city. And that’s what we’re going to continue to do.

And speaking on focusing, really hats off to the Liberty winning the first WNBA title. It says a lot. We’re looking forward to Thursday with having them have their ticker tape parade. And we are excited about the Mets run. They didn’t reach the full potential, but they gave it the team spirit. And we are looking forward to having a ticker tape parade for the New York Yankees when they bring home the World Series. And it just really shows how New York, the resiliency, the drive, the commitment, the dedication. It says a lot. And we’re looking forward to our heroes having a ticker tape parade down the Canyon of Heroes.

And for those who want to join the ceremony at City Hall, in addition to the Liberty giving away tickets, we’re giving away tickets to New Yorkers. We’ll be focusing on the distribution of 125 lucky winners and their guests to join us for the City Hall ceremony. To enter, your chance to win, just text LIBERTYTIX, T-I-X, to 917-909-2288 by 5 p.m. today to enter and we’ll contact the 125 winners and their guests immediately. And good luck. See you there. We’re excited about the celebration.

Now, back here, we’re in the Blue Room because we wanted the City Council to be able to use the rotunda space for the Housing Opportunity Proposal today. A very important initiative. I think the public advocate had it right. This is going to impact generations to come, so we have to get it right. And we know that the City of Yes for Housing Opportunity Proposal hearing yesterday. We heard from Dan Garodnick and HPD commissioner, and today we’re hearing from the public.

This is an important initiative of how we got the city to support we’re going to deal with housing. You can’t have a 1.4 [percent] vacancy rate in the city and believe that it is going to bring opportunities for New Yorkers who are looking for housing. And speaking of housing, every day we have been successful in moving forward on affordable housing, and we’re going to continue to move in that direction.

Keeping New Yorkers safe. We know that New York is the safest big city in America. We announced last week, not only have we removed over 18,000, almost 19,000 illegal guns from our streets, but we also know it’s about resiliency. And last week we announced the $1.5 billion project that is creating a flexible 2.4 mile long flood barrier on the Lower East Side. This is a major milestone. Earlier than expected and on time and on budget as well. It’s going to protect 110,000 Lower East Side residents, including 28,000 New Yorkers living in public housing from future storms.

And this is something that we believe is important. And we all believe that if we move together, we could ensure we have a safe shoreline in the city. Many people don’t realize that realize that this is a city that we are surrounded by water and we have to do everything possible to ensure that we protect New Yorkers to live near that water.

So as I indicated, City of Yes is in the homestretch. We’re looking forward to hearing from the public and looking forward to getting this deal sealed. We are confident that we believe we can land this plane in the process. So why don’t we open up to a few questions?

Question: Good morning, sir.

Mayor Adams: How are you?

Question: Well, thank you. As you know, former President Donald Trump is having a rally on Sunday at MSG. It’s your city. What do you intend to do that night?

Mayor Adams: Meditate. Meditate. You know, there’s so much energy going on now. We just got to get into that peaceful mode. And, you know, Madison Square Garden, the entire city, you know, I think is important that people exercise their right to vote. I was clear on who my candidate is. And I think that this is the last few days of campaign season and people are going to exercise their right to vote.

Question: To follow up, sir, if I may, what do you make of his support and some of the things that he said at the dinner the other night? Some Democrats say you want to disavow his support. You haven’t really disavowed his support.

Mayor Adams: Well, listen, this is the season where the silliness comes into politics. I remember when I was running for mayor the last two weeks or so, I made a comment of people of color and it became articles after articles after articles about, Eric, don’t consider Chinese people as people of color. I mean, this is where we are right now. New Yorkers need to hear the issues. And I’m just not going to get back and forth on comments that are made on both sides. Let’s hear the issues. Let’s vote for the candidates and exercise the right to vote.

Question: I want to ask about the migrant situation. If you can update us because, of course, the closure of Randall’s Island was announced. But how is the situation now? Is it really that bad? Because also I want to ask you about who would you credit with that? Is it the cities or the national? Is the combination of both?

And if I may, November 11 is Poland’s Independence Day. November 12, there will be Polish Independence Night in the City Council. I heard from inside the City Council that the City Hall agreed to light the city hall white and red. So I just wanted to confirm that. And is that really going to be the case?

Mayor Adams: Thank you. Well, first of all, we would love to. And I’m pretty sure the team will find out exactly what day they’re going to do it. Polish heritage, as in all of our heritage. As a matter of fact, today I am doing a flag raising from one of our immigrant communities. This is something we to the diversity of the city, probably more than any other administration. I’ve been extremely active in doing that, and we’re going to continue to do so.

Now, when you talk about the migrants and asylum seekers who take credit, we should. 220,000 migrants and asylum seekers. That one child, a family sleeping on the street, 70 percent of those who came into our care because of our 30 day and 60-day program, 70 percent have moved on to the next step in the emergence of the American Dream and journey. We’ve done it, of course, with a great deal of cost to the city. We should have. I said it over and over again. We should have received, this is a federal problem. The federal government should have handled this problem. It should not have been placed on the back of cities. And it’s unfortunate that it was, but we stepped up.

And because of that, we’re seeing a decrease in numbers. Remember last year, we were talking about opening shelters and HERRCs. Now we’re talking about closing HERRCs. Last year, we were talking about how much we had to spend. Now we’re talking about how much we could save. And so, when you do a real analysis of it, hats off to this team, Deputy Mayor Williams-Isom, Chief of Staff Camille Joseph Varlack, and Molly and the whole team for just really responding with this crisis.

And, you know, it’s going to be a retrospective appreciation of what we were able to accomplish and how we brought together other cities to talk about this. We learned from each other. But where’s credit due? It’s credit to the amazing men and women who stepped up and made sure we showed a level of humanitarian response to a man-made humanitarian crisis. And I think history is going to be kind to us when we look at it.

Question: Yeah, you’ve said in the past that you plan on replacing Tim Pearson’s role and the NYPD commissioner. Can you share any names you’re considering? What the interest in these roles has been and what is your timeline for hiring for those roles?

Mayor Adams: Yes. As I stated, when it’s, you said NYPD commissioner, you said someone else?

Question: Tim Pearson’s senior advisor role.

Mayor Adams: Yeah. We’re looking at if we need that role filled. And if we don’t, we won’t. And right now, we have an interim police commissioner. Until that changes, Tom Donlon is the interim police commissioner. And we’re seeing. Again, nine straight months of decrease in crime, not only on the streets, in the subway.

I’m just really pleased that August has been the lowest number of shootings [for an August month] in recorded history. That is extremely impressive when I know from my days of policing that August has always been a month when you have those problems. Robberies, the lowest number on our subway system in recorded history. Rolling out our SCOUT program, our PATH program to go after those with severe mental health. And so, as long as we continue to do the work that I am expecting the team to do, when it’s time to make a change, we would do so.

You know, I love this. Safest big city in America. Okay? You see that guy down there? I don’t even know. I don’t know who that is. Look at all these other guys. And look at that guy right there. New York, New York. Safest big city in America.

That’s what I like. And as long as I keep seeing that, that tells me I have a deep bench. It doesn’t matter who comes and goes. That team over there continues. They continue to produce. Nine straight months of decrease in crime. And that should be the focus. When you see that turns into “dangerous big city in America,” then we should be concerned. Isn’t that just New York?

[Crosstalk]

Is that only New York?

Question: I see Queens. I mean, Queens is great. It goes …

Mayor Adams: Yes, it broke down into… Yeah, because we’re so big when you look at other cities. But even if you take out the Bronx, Queens and others. You take out those counties. We’re still Safest big city in America.

Question: Just following up on the police commissioner. So I know you have an interim Tom Donlon right now. But like, what is the, don’t New Yorkers deserve some stability in the police commissioner’s list? And so what is your timeline on that?

And then in selecting, I remember when you selected Keechant Sewell. When you selected Eddie Caban. You had a contingent, which consisted of Phil Banks and Tim Pearson who were very involved in selecting the police commissioner at that time. So who are you leaning on now? Is it an internal committee? An external committee? Who are the voices in the room?

Mayor Adams: Okay. New Yorkers deserve to be the safest big city in America. That’s their expectation. I know professional pollsters do their polling. My polling is when I’m out in the communities and I hear what people are asking. Is my community safe?

Like I was out in East New York yesterday. People. I’m concerned about the prostitution on Pennsylvania Avenue and what we’re doing on Roosevelt Avenue in Queens, you know, so people are concerned. Am I safe? And we’re the safest big city in America. As I just pointed out to you, that’s what New Yorkers deserve. They deserve to be safe.

And when it comes down to making an announcement, we’re going to make an announcement. Until then I have to continue to make sure this is the safest big city in America. And there’s a host of people I speak with on all of these positions. Not only on the Police Department, on chancellor, on Department of Health. Every position there are a host of New Yorkers that I sit down, and I get on the phone with, get their input, sit down and have a roundtable with. And we’ve been very fortunate with the contributions that people have given us.

Question: Do you have an internal committee doing this or an external?

Mayor Adams: I have a combination, internal, external, a combination of a host of ways of coming to decisions of staffing, which has proven to be a great way of doing it.

Because Deputy Mayor Maria Torres-Springer was part of how we chose to bring in and look at what we’re doing with housing. Deputy Mayor Williams-Isom was internal and external input. And look at what we’re doing with migrants and asylum seekers in health care. Department of Sanitation. Look at what we’re doing with this trash revolution. So, the processes that I use has proven to be successful because we keep hitting out the park on all of these issues.

Question: Mr. Mayor. There’s been reporting that the speaker… Well, actually, she already came out with this, that they’re going to do a charter revision commission. And now there’s been reporting that you’re considering, again, blocking this charter revision commission with your own. Can you confirm this? And, you know, is this just going to keep going on and on with these tit for tat commissions?

Mayor Adams: Okay, we didn’t make that announcement. So, I’m not sure what you said has been reported because we didn’t make that announcement. When there’s an announcement to be made, we will make it.

But let’s understand, this is the beauty of our government. The government is clear. The Council has an opportunity to do a charter revision commission as well. And then we have an opportunity to do so. So, the processes of government, those are the checks and balances of government. You know, in those other places, in other countries, you don’t have those checks and balances. So, if the speaker wants to do a commission, based on the law she could do that. If we want to do one, based on the law, we can do that.

So, I don’t I don’t know why people get sort of disenchanted in the fact that we have checks and balances in our government. That is why we have been able to celebrate, next year, 400 years. Many countries can’t celebrate because they are constantly, power is one sided. And so right now we have a commission, and that commission is where people have the right to vote on. And we’ll deal with what’s next when next comes.

Question: So, I just want to follow up on N.J.’s question, actually. He asked you point blank if you would disavow former President Donald Trump’s support. To me, it didn’t seem like you answered and you said there were problems on both sides. I just want to give you a chance to answer here.

And I also just wanted to know, are you going out to campaign for Kamala Harris at all? Are you going to be doing anything? To get out the vote for November?

Mayor Adams: Yeah. N.J. asked me point blank, and I answered point blank. People need to vote on these issues that are important. I can’t even get it clear that I was in [Chicago] for the DNC. And I said before, whatever the campaign needs me to do, I’m willing to do. But I’m not I’m not campaigning here right now. I’m dealing with running this amazing City of New York.

Question: Are you doing anything to get out the vote?

Mayor Adams: I would say it over and over again. It’s imperative, particularly here in New York, Pennsylvania and other places that we get to vote out. I’m willing to do whatever the campaign needs me to do to get the vote out.

Question: Coming off that, we’ve heard you talk in the past about the dangers of Donald Trump. We’ve heard you say less about that recently. What do you think New Yorkers should know about, you know, this very real possibility of Trump winning in a couple of weeks? I have a thought on a separate issue.

I mean, I also heard you say that the processes of staffing have been successful in your view.

Mayor Adams: I’m sorry.

Question: The processes you’ve used for staffing have been successful. I mean, given just the sheer number of resignations we’ve seen in the last few weeks, are you saying that there’s no lesson there about your earlier approach to staffing that you’re now putting into practice?

Mayor Adams: Okay. First, the Donald Trump question I answered already. I’m not going to go, I’m not going to keep going over and over and over the same thing. And your staffing issue. Life is about learning. Whoever is the same person they were at 11, at 111. That’s a problem. Life is about learning.

You do an analysis. You ask yourself and you ask others around you that you trust. What can you do differently? What can you do better? But no one could argue the results. That we’ve shown in the city. We turned the city around. You know, we may not acknowledge it, but I know the city that we inherited 40 percent increase in crime, COVID, 220,000 migrants and asylum seekers, thousands of illegal guns on our streets, unable to build housing, you know, not invested in foster care children, not giving NYCHA residents free high-speed broadband so they can do telemedicine and remote learning. I can go on and on and on and on. So, yes, we’re going to do an analysis of what do we do? But I do know the success of this administration and it’s a very clear success. And the city is a better city than what I inherited.

[Crosstalk.]

I answered the Trump question already. If any of you have another Trump question, you should save it because I’m not wasting my time on that anymore. I’ve responded already.

New York City Mayor Eric Adams holds an in-person media availability at City Hall on Tuesday, October 22, 2024. Image Credit – Michael Appleton/Mayoral Photography Office

Question: DOI Commissioner Jocelyn Strauber released a report about the $4 billion nonprofit homeless complex that’s responsible for housing on average 86,000 people per night. One of the things he found was that widespread nepotism, CEOs getting sometimes $500,000, $700,000. And as you know, because your administration and the Council passed this COLA thing to uplift the people to do this work, the actual hands-on work with the homeless often rely on food stamps.

Is it time, you know, Wall Street, if you’re a CEO of a publicly traded company. Every year you have to disclose what you’re paid and the average pay of your employee. And that way, if you’re looking to invest in a company, you have a sense. Is it time for New York State to require nonprofits to do the same thing? And that includes Presbyterian, the not, I call them fugazi hospital nonprofits, where this disclosure about the average employee working, because we care about, and the CEO, so we can see that.

Mayor Adams: Listen, I don’t think that’s a bad idea. And I think that’s something the state need to look at and talk about. And I think that report that you’re talking about with the homeless shelters you’re talking about, that has been a report that was in the making for many years, even prior to this administration. And some of the things they call for, we don’t have power and authority in doing. We don’t determine the salaries of those individuals.

Question: One of the things that was real, you mentioned a deep bench, we had Gale Brewer on, head of Investigations for the Council. There’s a problem with, and you’ve mentioned the civil service took a hit during COVID, 600 civil servants died. In the back of its operations, I’m not talking commissioner level, we fixate on, but that next level of career civil service to oversee these nonprofits, there’s a problem and we need people in there to do that. Is that something you’re concerned about?

Mayor Adams: I’m sorry, I don’t understand.

Question: There’s no management within the civil service. So, it would keep an eye on the nonprofit homeless contracts. I’m hearing that there’s a problem that there’s not enough people, not the big jobs, but the middle level management that checks these forms.

Mayor Adams: To check …

Question: To check the nonprofit filings, to keep them on the straight and narrow, to make sure they don’t violate nepotism rule, to make sure the CEOs don’t make …

Mayor Adams: You’re saying who?

Question: Civil servants in the agencies that would watch over this. And there’s holes in that that we’re missing.

Mayor Adams: Okay, I’m not, maybe I’m just not comprehending. Whomever is in place to oversee these issues, they must do their job. And so I don’t know if you’re saying …

Question: They retired, people have retired.

Mayor Adams: We always, we have thousands of vacancies and that’s why we do our hiring halls. We go out because we want to fill these vacancies as much as possible. And we encourage people, historically, we waited for people to come to apply. That’s not what we’re doing now. We’re going out and seeking people in DCAS. And so we want to fill as many of these vacancies as possible. I think our number now is probably in the area of 10,000 vacancies, and these are good jobs, union paid jobs with pension that we want to encourage people to be employed in.

Question: Hi, Mr. Mayor.

Mayor Adams: How are you?

Question: Good. Thanks. Two questions on City of Yes. I know a lot of people have observed the fact that sort of politically with this proposal, some of the neighborhoods that had previously given you a lot of support, you know, these outer borough sort of lower rise neighborhoods that it’s those places where this. Plan is the most controversial. And so therefore the council members there are wary of it.

Have you personally, I know your team has, but have you personally met recently with any members from those kinds of neighborhoods to try to pitch them on this, on the housing plan?

Mayor Adams: Yes, yes. I spoke with several matter of fact, even yesterday I spoke with, um, when we did the,  acknowledgement of how well we’re doing with the Shirley Chisholm,  youth center in Brooklyn. I had a brief conversation with Councilwoman Louis, who, you know, she has a lot, many people don’t realize she has a lot of Victorian homes in her council district. That’s one of the concerns she raised some of the concerns that they have.  we know people are fearful,  particularly in low rise areas of seeing a complete transformation of their communities. We got that.

And that’s why these discussions are important. It’s important to hear from the Council. People engage in a conversation. No one would argue, we have a housing crisis. No one, you know, we have been talking about this 1.4 percent vacancy rate. We’ve been, we’ve been talking about this. This is real.

And so when you talk to all those council people, even the ones who are saying, we don’t know if City of Yes, is the exact thing for us, they will acknowledge we have a housing crisis. So we need a solution. And this is a great solution that Dan Garodnick and his team, put in place. And I have been speaking with council person to find out, okay, what are some of the concerns you have, can we find a place that we can land this plane? And I’m, I’m excited that many of them, so many issues that are troubling some of the council people, I think they’re fixable. And I think that we could come and land the plane.

Question: Sorry. I have a second question. Um, Jesse Hamilton, could you just explain a little sort of what his, what kinds of projects he’s done at DCAS? He has, you know, a pretty big job supervising the city’s real estate. I know the two of you go way back. Can you just explain anything about kind of what are a couple of initiatives he’s worked on in his job?

Mayor Adams: I think what was important to me as in all the agencies, we have to save money for our city and the commissioner over there, Commissioner Molina, and DCAS. I think that that question that you just answered, you should speak with DCAS. I do know, he saved taxpayers dollars on some of the things that we were doing previously. It’s important to me. We were doing too many things the same way that was costing taxpayers dollars. Far too much in my opinion, but I’ll reach out to Commissioner Molina and he could answer that question directly.

Question: I wanted to ask you about, the four-year-old we lost in Harlem, prosecutors say his parents starved him to death and also may have abused his siblings. ACS has been less than transparent with us. Have you had a conversation with your commissioner and are you concerned? And, um, I guess I gotta bottom-line it here. Did ACS in the city fail this boy? And are you worried? Are you worried about the caseload management at ACS?

Mayor Adams: You’ve heard me say this over and over again, not only as a, the mayor, but even as a borough president and a state senator, the balance of doing that job over at ACS, the challenge of doing that job. And many of you covered these stories, you know, in one end, you have a large number of New Yorkers that state ACS go, they go in and they remove children too quickly. We’ve heard it over and over. There have been rallies, lawsuits in so much around this.

Then another end, you state that when you have a tragedy like this, did a ACS drop the ball? I know we have a group of hard working professionals that don’t want to disrupt families, but would like to go in and take necessary steps to protect children. This is a horrific issue for a child to have been starved. This is a horrific issue of that. All of us feel the pain with something like this happened. And it’s not that they’re not trying to be transparent.

There are laws that they have to abide by on how much information that they can release and they can talk about it. And we’re not going to violate of those rules. I know they’re committed, dedicated men and women that work over at ACS. And every day they’re making these tough decisions on making sure these calls are right.

Question: In reviewing ACS’s budget documents, they have about 10 percent vacancy right now. So is the case management too much? Do they have a budget problem?

Mayor Adams: I think they manage their case loads. Like many of us have managed our case loads and many of our agencies are managing the case loads. And it’s a combination of, you know, the case load management is better per the MMR. If you look at the MMR, you see the case load management is, is far better. And that, that means less cases per case workers. But listen, let’s not kid ourselves. As I say over and over again, that is a challenging job.

It’s a challenging job. And it, for many years it has been, and you really have to take your hat off to the men and women who do that job. And, you know, as, as I indicated, our goal is to make sure they have the proper, case load so they can manage the challenges of doing the job. But we, we’re looking at this case as in any cases. Well, you have a young, a young person, that is lost, in the city. We’re going to review it and see what we can do better. Should it… are there things we could have done better? Our goal is not to have any young person lose his or her life.

Question: Hi, Mayor Adams.

Mayor Adams: Hey, what’s up, Katie?

Question: Two questions. First, have you been invited to go to game three of the World Series at Yankee Stadium? And the second question, um, you promised during your campaign to publish a list of police officers under watch for misbehavior, but why hasn’t that happened yet? In three years in, um, I know you promised to improve the disciplinary process for police officer, most notably speeding it up, but I don’t… it doesn’t seem to have been sped up.

Mayor Adams: Yeah, no, I think, I think to the contrary, we’re seeing a faster response, I’m going to direct you over to, Interim Police Commissioner Tom Donlon, to give you an analysis of the timeframe and, in this movement of cases. I said, we’ve had in the past, many cases and police officers stayed, in the trial room proceed procedure for too long. It was unfair to them. And it was unfair to those who they were brought charges, who brought charges against those officers. Our goal was to shorten that period of time.  Interim Commissioner Tom Donlon can give you an analysis of that.

Question: A published list of officers under watch for misbehavior?

Mayor Adams: Under watch for misbehavior? It depends on what you talk about… under watch for misbehavior. There’s… if the mere fact, if they’re on a special list, I don’t know exactly what list they use now that if someone is, have a severe record of misbehavior, but if someone has what’s called a low level command discipline, there’s no reason to post their name. If someone has a severe issue, that is something we could talk with the interim commissioner, Tom Donlon about.

Question: And the Yankees?

Mayor Adams: What about the Yankees?

Question: [Inaudible] invited to the Yankee Stadium [inaudible]?

Mayor Adams: Well, COIB [doesn’t] allow you to do that. You know, hey, listen, you’ll be surprised how stringent they are right now on being able last year, the year before when we wanted to go to the Yankee games. Um, you know, if you want it to sit in the box, we, they got the rules. They stated how it was done. If I attend, I’m going to buy a ticket and root the Yankees. But listen, I enjoy rooting at home also, at the same time, Jordan and I would grab some, some popcorn, put on our Yankee caps and, you know, call it a day. He’s a Yankee fan. I’m the Mets fan, you know, can’t get it 100 percent right.

Question: I know you said to hold the Trump questions. I have a slightly different question. Mr. Mayor, you and President Trump have both said that the criminal case against you is politically motivated. Would it be appropriate if whoever is our next president, either Trump or Kamala Harris or whoever heads their justice system, were to take another look at the fairness of your case? Is that something you think should happen?

Mayor Adams: That’s a question for Alex, my attorney, that’s not a question for me. He has been very clear, of questions as dealing with your case, refer them over to me, Eric.

Question: Hi, Mr. Mayor.

Mayor Adams: How are you, Dana?

Question: Okay. Today in the times, Dan Doctoroff, who helps lead your New New York panel wrote the following about your mayoralty, “The stench of corruption that surrounds him is not only a distraction; it is intolerable.” How would you respond to that?

Mayor Adams: Listen, Dan was very helpful on many levels, and I have a great deal of respect for him on some of the things he did when he was in this administration. And he was very helpful in the beginning on some of the things we did. And I think some of our W’s came from some of his suggestions. As you see, we have some great W’s from the Brooklyn Marine Terminal to what we’re doing on Governor’s Island. A whole list of infrastructure changes, you know, but I’ve said this a million times, 8.3 million New Yorkers, 35 million opinions. And out in East New York yesterday, the number of those New Yorkers in areas that are dealing with some real infrastructure issues that they know we’re correcting, they said, Eric, stay the course, finish the job.

And so as I move throughout the city, you’re going to have different opinions. That’s New York. New Yorkers have opinions. Not all of them get an opportunity to do an op-ed. But New York, listen, New Yorkers are very opinionated. If you don’t realize it, try walking down the block wearing a Yankee cap in Mets land or wearing a Mets cap in Yankees land or wearing Converse sneakers when someone wants you to wear Nike. New Yorkers are going to let you know how they feel. So Dan just shared his thoughts on how he feels, and that’s fine with me. I do not personalize any of this stuff. We’re going to continue to move the city forward.

Question: Hi, Mr. Mayor. How are you?

Mayor Adams: How are you?

Question: Good. I wanted to follow up on a question about the Speaker’s Charter Revision Commission. She said in her announcement that the reason she’d call it is to renew confidence in government. She said that your commission included lobbyists and that it had rushed its work. I want to get your thoughts on that.

And then also, the Campaign Finance Board proposed new rules this week. Some of them could affect your campaign and getting matching funds. I wanted to know, if you didn’t get matching funds, would you still stay in the race? You’ve raised a significant amount. And do you feel like these new rules are targeting your campaign specifically?

Mayor Adams: No, they have a job to do. They’re going to do their job. I have a job to do as the mayor. And with or without, we’re straight ahead. The speaker’s, she, again, balance of power. She presented her charter revision, and what was her reasoning for it? It’s fine with me. Balance of power. She has her balance. I have my balance. And that’s why the scales of justice are aligned and equal. And I enjoy being in this city, in this country, where the balance of power is crucial. She should not have all the power. I should not have all the power. That is the beauty of our system of governance in the city. And so she has the right to put out her charter revision and explain why. That doesn’t bother me at all.

Question: She said confidence in government. Do you feel like New Yorkers have lost confidence in government, in contrast to what she’s saying?

Mayor Adams: Well, listen, you cannot have gone through what we have gone through that people won’t say, okay, what’s going on here? But at the same time, people are saying, okay, this guy is moving the city forward. He is handling the issues that impact my community and my concern. People on the subway system are really pleased that we’ve had nine straight months of decrease in subways.

People who are seeing the issues of ghost cars are pleased that we’ve removed thousands of ghost cars off our streets. If you have a child and forced if you have a if you’re a young person and forced to care, they’re pleased what we’re doing. So, you know, did people feel the impact of this? Yes. Yes. You know, are there many questions they want answered? Yes. So we got it. We got it. But at the same time, my job is to keep moving the city forward. And anyone who states we are not continuing to do do that, they’re not looking at the numbers. How are you?

Question: Good. I have another question about City of Yes. You said in your opening remarks that the public advocate got it right. But he also said yesterday that he did not support the full scope of the plan specifically to remove parking mandates citywide. I’m curious what you think about him not supporting this part of the plan. And if that part of the plan is up for negotiation, in your view?

Mayor Adams: The team that’s negotiating these issues, because I heard the parking part often, the team that’s negotiating these issues need to look at that and hear what his concerns are. But one thing is clear. He knows that if we don’t get this right, it’s going to impact generations, generations. So he doesn’t… he to say, I don’t think this is needed. He didn’t say that, I don’t like any part of part of this plan. He did not say that, you know. So there are aspects of a plan that someone dislikes, that’s what negotiations is about.

Question: It’s about the proposal to remove parking mandates, you know, Dan Garodnick really stressed that it’s very critical to making other pillars of the plan, like transit oriented development, town center zoning and accessory dwelling units function at all. So is that isn’t that part very important? Or what do you say—

Mayor Adams: All parts are important. Every part of it. That’s why he put in place a whole plan. But those of us who have been in government know it’s all about creativity. It’s about negotiating. It’s about finding a way to land the plane, which we want to do. And right now there’s a [mandate] being created.

This proposal makes options. And that is what’s important. And so now, we got the public speaking. We had Dan yesterday. The goal is to get the the plane [to] land. We need to build more housing. He’s clear on that. Not only do we need to build more housing now, but we’re going to need it for the future.

Question: Hi, Mr. Mayor. I remember you saying that New Yorkers have to not just be safe, they need to feel safe. And one of the points that Dan Doctoroff made in his opinion piece was that crime must come down. He said from 2019 to 2023, there was a jump of nearly 33 percent in the seven major felonies, murder, rape, robbery, assault, burglary, grand larceny and auto theft. The Police Department has failed to bring down crime. I know many there are ways to play around with the numbers, and I’d like you to comment on that. But why is there this gap between the numbers that you’re presenting and the way that some experts like him and everyday New Yorkers feel about crime?

Mayor Adams: Well, I’m not quite sure why he’s a public safety expert, you know, but the numbers don’t don’t lie. I inherited a city, January 1st, 2022, where we had a 40 percent increase in crime, 40 percent. And so when you do an analysis,  I didn’t make up that the shootings in August, they were the lowest numbers in recorded history.

I didn’t make up that robberies on our subway system is at the lowest number in recorded history. And so when you do an analysis of not only are we the safest big city in America, but when you look at the work we have done, it shows that we’re moving in the right direction. I remember in 2022 when I was saying that people need to feel safe and be safe, everyone attacked me for that. Because I believe you got to feel safe and be safe.

And what is overshadowing our success? Random acts of violence, severe mental health issues on the street with people who are carrying out some of those random acts of violence and repeated offenders. Those are the three areas that we want to zero in and focus on. But the numbers are clear. Murders are down 10 percent year over year after double digit decreases last year and a year before.

Shootings are down 8.2 percent over last year. And overall index crime is down by 2.1 percent. So no matter how low numbers are, if these random acts that are put in your face all the time or you see disruptive behavior in your subway system, that’s why we put in place PATH and SCOUT. We know there are things we can do to make New York feel safer because quality of life means everything. And that’s why we went after the encampments.

That’s why we’re going after these actions that we’re seeing taking place on the street. So the goal is to do exactly what the Police Department is doing. Continue to bring down crimes close to close to 19,000 illegal guns removed off our streets. Our ghost cars initiatives, the scooters that you that you see were running rampant on our streets. And so it’s a combination of all of those things. Closing twelve hundred cannabis shops. These are all the things we’re doing to make people feel safe in their communities.

Question: Hi Mayor, how’s it going?

Mayor Adams: Pretty good.

Question: I wanted to ask you about a migrant shelter that opened in Riverdale last month on West 238th Street. There are elected officials in that district who say the city didn’t communicate to them when it was going to open or who is going to live there in terms of single individuals or families. I wonder if you might have any explanation for why that wouldn’t have been communicated to them and also if you might have some of those details now and who’s living there, single individuals or families?

Mayor Adams: Well, they should have and we’d like to, Tiffany Raspberry, the director of Intergovernmental Affairs, she does an amazing job of communicating with our electeds. And I would be surprised if there were no calls made. And if there weren’t, there should have been. But listen, let’s be honest. Not one elected official I know would raise their hand and say, hey, bring the shelter here. You know, so, you know, we’ve been having these discussions. And I think it’s unfair when you look at someone like Councilmember Salamanca and others, even Speaker Adrienne Adams and others who have these large number of shelters.

And you have some when they get one or two, they’re saying, no, you can’t have it anywhere here. That’s just not acceptable. And it’s not right. And it’s wrong. And from the first my first few months as mayor, we showed councilmembers here, your colleagues and the number of shelters they have in their districts. And here’s the number you have in your district. And those numbers are dismal. And I think other council persons should be talking to their colleagues and say, listen, we all have to share the homeless crisis that we’re facing.

Now, we move thousands of people, the largest number in year one, year two, moved out of shelters into permanent housing. We’re doing our part. But we still have the shelter system with sixty four thousand when we started twenty thousand people came into the city. Those numbers are just astronomical.

And that’s why we knew that we had to do those 30 day and 60 day programs to cycle people out of our shelter system. And that’s why we have 17 percent of the people that are out of our shelter systems that came through the migrant and asylum seeker crisis. And some who say they don’t want shelters are telling us we should not have the 30 and 60 day program. Can’t have it both ways.

Question: Hi, Mayor.

Mayor Adams: How are you?

Question: Good. Thanks. I have a question about the Evolv gun scanners. In August, you were asked about whether the then police commissioner would release data on how the pilot program in the subway system went over the summer. You said he would. It’s been a couple of months. We haven’t seen that data or gotten a response from DCPI about when they would release it. Do you and your administration still plan to release that data, regardless of whether you enter a contract with Evolv or not? If so, when? You also mentioned wanting to work with other companies with similar technology and opening it up to other companies. Is are any other companies anywhere in the pipeline of having a contract or a pilot with the city right now?

Mayor Adams: Yeah, no, we definitely want to release the results of Evolv. We have Deputy Commissioner Kaz Daughtry. You should reach out to DCPI and have Deputy Commissioner Kaz Daughtry give you the numbers on what we have. We’re going to release it if we if we continue the program or not. And they want to get it right. This is a major shift in our subway system. We want to make sure that it’s right. But Deputy Commissioner Kaz Daughtry can give you those exact numbers.

Question: You haven’t given us those numbers.

Mayor Adams: Okay, Fabien, can you make sure to give them the information? Fabien will make sure you get it.

Question: So, you’ve mentioned subway safety numerous times today and in previous conferences. One of the more egregious incidents on the subway occurred last month and was an officer involved shooting with three injured. One on, I forget if it’s life support or if their brain dead, but someone’s very seriously injured and there’s an $80 million lawsuit against the city now. Has that brought about any changes in policy and how heavily do you think that should, or how heavily does it weigh on your overall picture that you’re giving to us of success?

Mayor Adams: Listen, you know, anytime an innocent person is the victim of any form of shooting, it doesn’t matter if it’s from a police officer or if it’s from a bad person carrying an illegal gun, it impacts us all.

After every shooting involving a police officer, there’s a shooting response team. They do an analysis. They make a determination. Were there… parts of that shooting that police officers could have done better? What type of retraining we can do? So, there’s a whole analysis after every shooting. And you want to do everything that’s possible to alleviate, if not eradicate, innocent people being shot.

My heart goes out to the family. I visited the young lady and her parent, her mom, in the hospital when I stopped to speak with the police officers. It’s traumatizing. But that shooting happened because we had a person who was dangerous to the system and refused to drop his knife.

I saw that video and I saw how many times police officers went beyond the call using the escalation of force from verbal commands to using their tasers to having to use a firearm. The goal is to try to really alleviate those issues as much as possible.

Question: Yeah, any reaction to the Save Our City Committee that Betsy McCaughey and [former] Police Commissioner Ray Kelly formed? They said they want to stop the exodus of business, tenants, and taxpayers, deterring crime, restoring civil order, protecting civil services without raising taxes. I think they also want to increase voter turnout. Any reaction to the claims that say the city is in trouble? You know, you’ve touched on a lot of the general topics that they’re complaining about.

Mayor Adams: Well, listen, I don’t think they realize that we have more small businesses open in the city, in the city’s history, what we’re doing with jobs that are started under this administration. So some of this stuff they may not be aware of.

They should go online and look at our wins list, everything from housing, to bringing down crime, to so many other things that we’ve done. And look, how can I say this enough? 8.3 million New Yorkers. 35 million opinions. Everyone is going to have an opinion in this city. The goal is the city has to move forward. The city has to… it must go after those communities and people that have been betrayed for so long. That’s why we’re doing dyslexia screening.

Question: The other question is on the proposal to put in a cell phone ban. Is your current education commissioner—

Mayor Adams: I’m sorry?

Question: Cell phone ban? Where does that—

Mayor Adams: You see, just as I predicted, as soon as it was announced that we were even looking at it, you started to hear a host of people who were saying, you know, we don’t want it done. We don’t want it done. That’s New York.

That is New York. Just as I stated, you know, yes, people say, oh, this is a great idea. But as soon as you say it’s about to be done, you’re going to hear everyone come out that… Don’t want it to be done and become as loud as those who are saying it should be done.

We’re going to get it right. We’re going to have stakeholders. We’re going to have children, educators, parents come up with the right way to do it. Phones are disruptive to the education practice. Not only does it encourage bullying, but it also distracts the children.

But if you don’t get it right, you’re going to have to do like other administrations. You’re going to have to remove it and then you’re going to have to implement it again. I want to get it right. And that was my conversation with the chancellor.

Question: Is there a time frame on when—

Mayor Adams: No, [there’s] not. No, [there’s] not. It’s the right time to do it and the right time to make sure that we can do it and leave it in place. That is my goal. Leave it in place when we do it.

Question: Security at the Liberty Game—

Mayor Adams: I’m sorry?

Question: Security at the Liberty Game. Is there going to be extra security? Excuse me. Parade.

Mayor Adams: Security?

Question: Yeah, is there going to be extra security at the Liberty Parade?

Mayor Adams: We’re going to make sure that New Yorkers are safe. People didn’t want us to do the Israeli Day Parade and we said no. We’re going to be safe. People didn’t want us to do the celebration of [inaudible]. And what happened on the commemoration of October 7th, we said no. We’re going to be safe. So we’re going to continue to make sure that people celebrate and be safe.

New York City Mayor Eric Adams holds an in-person media availability at City Hall on Tuesday, October 22, 2024. Image Credit – Michael Appleton/Mayoral Photography Office

MAYOR ADAMS CELEBRATES JULIE COKER’S UNAMINOUS VOTE AS PRESIDENT AND CEO OF NYC TOURISM + CONVENTIONS 

MAYOR ADAMS ANNOUNCES TICKER TAPE PARADE, CITY HALL, OTHER CITY BUILDINGS TO BE LIT IN SEAFOAM TO CELEBRATE NEW YORK LIBERTY’S WNBA CHAMPIONSHIP

City to Announce Details on Ticker Tape Parade Honoring Championship Winning WNBA Team on Monday, October 21

NEW YORK – New York City Mayor Eric Adams today announced that the City of New York will hold a ticker tape parade to celebrate the Women’s National Basketball Association (WNBA) champions, the New York Liberty. Additionally, Mayor Adams announced that City Hall and other municipal buildings will be lit up seafoam on Monday night to celebrate the victory. The New York Liberty are an original franchise of the WNBA and tonight’s win marked their first-ever WNBA Championship in 28 seasons. Mayor Adams will release details on a ticker tape parade tomorrow, Monday, October 21.

“From the start of the season to the very last game, the New York Liberty were focused on one singular objective: winning. Tonight, they delivered a historic win — making our great city proud by becoming champions, the first in the franchise’s history,” said Mayor Adams. “At a time when the rest of the country is finally acknowledging the endless talent in our WNBA, we are proud to have New York City bring home the trophy. To our WNBA champions, thank you for being a role model to our city, and showcasing the values of grit, determination, and hard work. Now, we can’t wait to celebrate off the court and throw you the parade you deserve down the Canyon of Heroes!”

“This moment means everything — not only to the Liberty organization, but to our fans and all of New York City,” said Keia Clarke, CEO, New York Liberty. “The Liberty have been chasing this dream since 1997 and after a strategic five-year turnaround, driven by ownership’s vision of rebuilding and regrowing this historic team, we are proud to get back to first and win this championship for New York. We would not be here without our fans whose passion has helped energize this team all season long. We take great pride in what we’ve built with our fans — something special that extends far beyond the basketball court — and this moment is just as much for them as it is for us.”

Led by a 17-point performance from 2024 WNBA Finals MVP Jonquel Jones, the Liberty secured its third win to clinch the title after defeating the Minnesota Lynx in Game 5 tonight of the WNBA finals. The 2024 regular season was a record-breaking year for the New York Liberty, clinching the overall number 1 seed in the WNBA Playoffs for a second time in franchise history, tying a franchise-best finish of 32-8, and becoming the first team in WNBA history with back-to-back 30+ win seasons.

In addition to City Hall, the following city buildings will be lit up seafoam Monday night in honor of the Liberty:

• Brooklyn Borough Hall: 209 Joralemon Street, Brooklyn, NY 11201
• The David N. Dinkins Manhattan Municipal Building: 1 Centre Street, New York, NY 10007
• Queens Borough Hall: 120-55 Queens Blvd, Kew Gardens, NY 11424
• Staten Island Borough Hall: 10 Richmond Terrace, Staten Island, NY 10301

Banner Image: Mayor Eric Adams delivers remarks at a flag-raising ceremony for Kazakhstan. Bowling Green Park, Manhattan. Tuesday, October 22, 2024. Image Credit: Ed Reed/Mayoral Photography Office.