N.Y. Mayor De Blasio Issues Transcript on Appointment of Lt. Col. Hendon
Mayor
Everyone has a chance to turn things around especially that is something we owe to those who have served us. So, you have set an extraordinary example today. I just want to commend you for doing that. I want to commend you for the strength you have shown, the way you have put your life on the track it's on now. You are - you're a role model to all of us. Thank you, James.
[Applause]
So, we're here because this is a very powerful, special place for our city and for our nation. The Intrepid stands for so much and means so much to all of us and it exemplifies the strength and resilience of those who serve us. Everyone knows the history of this ship, knows what it went through but it kept coming back. So, it's a symbol that is so powerful and we all feel it very personally, very humanly - and it takes on other meaning for us in different ways. For me personally this ship immediately reminds me of my dad.
This ship, in fact, brought many soldiers to fight on
And that brings us to 2016. And I want to be clear, even though we're celebrating and there's a lot to celebrate - Loree's leadership and the creation of this department and everyone who works for this department, all the good people they've reached and the new leadership to come - there's a lot to celebrate but I want to remind people, the fact that we had to create this department is a reminder of something profoundly wrong still because our men and women in uniform served our nation - our nation from that very moment should have been there for them and it's still not true today, in too many cases. Not taking away for a moment the good work a lot of folks in the
I'm speaking to the fact that so many men and women go without the help they need. So many families go without the help they need. The whole idea of helping a veteran is still so incomplete in America today. And that's why we had to act. And I think this department is going to be here for a long time. But I think on one level every one of us wished and still wish for the day where it would not be needed. But I think that day is a long way ahead and we got to keep fighting for it.
So, what we know is that I think the lesson we, kind of, are all taught, that the hard part was the time when you served, I think that was not the whole story, to say the least. For a lot of men and women the time they served was extraordinarily difficult and noble but equally hard sometimes, even harder, was the time after. And I saw that in my home and I came to understand that the war doesn't end for a lot of soldiers, sailors, airmen, a lot of families. The way doesn't end, it stays with them their whole life. And now that we understand that better, all of us, we know it's our job to do everything we can to be there for our veterans.
And this department serves an extraordinary amount of people. I think, you know, there may be in people's minds ideas of where veterans live in this country. Well, here is a home to over 200,000 veterans - this city. And this is the place where we need to make a change and we're trying every day and I now have the opportunity to praise the work of the founding commissioner,
[Laughter]
It's true. Now, they took the Energizer Bunny down a few notches because they didn't think people were ready for the level of energy that
[Laughter]
There it's out, Loree.
[Laughter]
I've often said, and I mean it, I've had so many wonderful experiences working with Loree, and I've said many a time and I feel it this very day - I want to eat for breakfast whatever she eats for breakfast because I don't understand it but I love it. So, her first year as leading our
And I say that fire and I saw that energy you felt that you didn't accept the status quo and you were not shocked when a bureaucracy had trouble acknowledging some of the challenges. Well, you took that spirit of not accepting the unacceptable and you put it to work, and with a great team you assembled. And I've had the joy of being with them at events and parades and meetings and they're just extraordinary people. Let's actually give a big round of applause to all of them.
[Applause]
Some of the achievements - just some - since 2014, we have a 97 percent drop in street homelessness among veterans to an all-time low level now.
[Applause]
And I want everyone to join me in your hearts with a commitment that the words veterans homelessness will someday be abolished and banned and unnecessary because one thing that does not make sense in our society is that any veteran would ever be homeless. And that's something we all have to aspire to. But we've seen remarkable progress.
What you and your team did in creating the Vets Care program to acknowledge and recognize and embrace vets who had PTSD. And I say this as the son of a veteran who unquestionably had PTSD. They didn't call it that, decades ago. But it is clear as a bell and it plagued him his whole life. But you are doing a wonderful thing by acknowledging that challenge, embracing those veterans, and then helping them to find the kind of jobs that will sustain them and their family, and the connection with now over 25,000 veterans and their families that has been achieved by this office. The fact that there was some place to turn that was compassionate and willing and able to provide help - what a blessing. But those numbers only tell us one piece of the story and so much more important is the story that James told. One example - and what a powerful one - of what can happen when someone actually gets the help they need and they are heard and they are seen and they are respected. And James, I am so happy so say, your story is not the only one. So many others have been helped by our
[Applause]
We've also gotten a lot of support every step along the way from the
[Applause]
Council member, I know you are upset because you thought the energizer bunny was based on you, but you are a close second. I've seen you in action, you're a close second. And I also want to acknowledge some of the folks who are gathered with us here today, for this very important moment. First of all, they have done a lot of great work and we're elevating one of their members today,
[Applause]
And let's thank an extraordinary organization that means so much to our veterans, the
[Applause]
And an organization that acknowledges how much we need to give all veterans the education and training opportunities they deserve. An organization that we are pleased to have here including the founding member, or founder I should say,
[Applause]
[Applause]
Commissioner
[Laughter]
Mr. Mayor, thank you so much. Thank you for your confidence, thank you for your support. Thank you and Chirlane for just giving me and my team and our community of veterans everything we need, we've needed to be able to support our veterans like James Brown. Thank you, Mr. Mayor, for your leadership.
[Applause]
Now I know that a lot of you all thought that you were coming here today for the launch of our three year start up report. Well we are gang. It's on the website. I wanted to sleep with this under my pillow last night, Laurie told me that would take it a little far. But this is something we are so proud of. It's taken a team of teams, not just the wonderful members of our team DVS. And I'll tell you,
[Applause]
And that brings us to today's ceremony. Isn't that great, the sounds of freedom, we got little David and we got little Grace, and we got Christine here, and we got daddy Ulysses. James, you've done well. Welcome here to the Intrepid, thank you so much.
[Applause]
And that comes to Susan, you and Dave. Thank you for your hospitality. You have been so welcoming to me and my team, our entire community. This is sacred ground as the Mayor said, it makes him think of his father and all of us think of those to whom we owe so much. There have been times over the last five years where I have really felt like, perhaps I should start paying rent to the Intrepid because we've just had so much time here and done so much for so many. And the best of all is that we have just begun. Thank you for your hospitality, all you give to this city.
[Applause]
Now I got to tell you gang. When Laurie and I first came to
[Applause]
And so when I was spreading the great news, I had to reach out to my battle buddy of the last 15 years,
[Applause]
And that brings us to where we are today. This ceremony today, led by firefighter Mike and his A-list
[Applause]
Sergeant
[Applause]
And our very own
[Applause]
For any of you who may be wondering, from whence does Tanya draw her passion, her soul, herself to her music, Tanya is one of our
[Applause]
Now, Chaplain Sears, you know that you're not going to be left out of this. Chaplain
[Applause]
One of my favorite lines over the last five years was when the Commandant of the
[Applause]
Deputy Mayor Thompson, you and your Dana have embraced me and my Laurie, and I got to tell you, our best is still yet ahead. Thank you for your leadership, your vision, everything that you've brought to this. And I know that under James's leadership DVS is going to continue going higher, further, farther than we even dreamt possible. Thank you so much.
[Applause]
Now, I got to tell you. Is this timing or what? Sweet grace, just at the time that I'm about ready to embarrass her daddy -
[Laughter]
Is grabbing onto him and James, you are demonstrating by your example, by your family, by your life of service and by your contributions already to our community. First, as the
[Applause]
Okay, okay gang. So, I just have to thank you enough, I cannot thank you enough. I'm looking around the room here, I see
Mayor: It's a long way from the Energizer Bunny.
Commissioner Sutton: It is.
[Laughter]
But when he said this is not the end, this is the not the beginning of the end, but it is perhaps the end of the beginning. Let us continue to march forward, let's continue to keep our eyes on the prize. Service is our
[Applause]
Mayor: Yes she will.
[Applause]
Well done, Loree. Well, Loree has set the stage perfectly for the passing of the torch and you can imagine as we at
Commissioner Sutton: We can all be glad.
[Laughter]
Mayor: But we have a successor who is extraordinary. And I agree with Loree that the beginning has been achieved over these last three years. But now it is a time to take this agency even farther, because there is a lot of work to be done, there's a lot of people to be reached. And we've seen how much can be done by our
[Laughter]
I give you credit.
[Laughter]
Cool under pressure. But we also really thought about as someone who could relate and feel experiences deeply of those he would serve and as I got to know Colonel
And then upon returning, having a vision of wanting to do so much more for the world, and I think
[Laughter]
Excellent transition, that was symbolic.
[Laughter]
It's now my pleasure to introduce the next Commissioner for the
[Applause]
Incoming Commissioner
[Applause]
Like many members of the veteran's community and our allies, a feeling of appreciation for this great nation and a compulsion to serve are in my DNA. Funny thing is, you know, when I was a child, many moons ago but maybe David and Grace's age, I would have been the last person to tell you that I would be standing here right now. I was born in
So, on the way home from the hospital, he had to take me, you know, a newborn, and just hold me out of the window of the car so that rioters would not flip the vehicle. And this wasn't us driving from one neighborhood - passing through a neighborhood to get where we needed to go. This was us heading home. This was where we lived at the time. And, you know, fast forward - I've always had love within the places where I've stayed, within the homes where I've lived, and amongst the people who lived with me, but I kept changing homes. I kept changing households and living arrangements after my parents got divorced.
So, for me, between grandparents and aunts and parents, there was a handful of places where I could stay at a given time at night. So, you keep changing spots, changing spots, and, you know, you get these times where you wake up at night, it's dark, you don't know where you are, and you realize, you know, this is where I am and it just got at me. And, you know, this is me as a kid.
The things that stood out to me throughout those times - and the other piece of it was just constantly changing schools also when I was young. So the things that stood out to me was gratitude and ZIP codes. For gratitude, when you see a lot of things and move around a great deal, you don't take for granted what you have. You know, to this day, I tell my wife, Christine, who is here today - you know, my compass - I tell her thank you for even little things. So - just thank you for food. You know, we might get some pizza from a place down the street and I'll - she'll give me a plate or more likely I will go get myself a plate -
[Laughter]
And I will say thank you, honey, so much for this pizza. You know, that's just who I am. And I tell her how much I appreciate her, that I love her. Same thing happens with my kids. With Grace, with David - Grace will open a door for me and I will just say thank you so much, I'm just so grateful because I think when you come for certain settings you just develop this deep appreciation.
And the thoughts on gratitude especially extend to my time in military service. I think this is an incredible country that we live in and [inaudible] America is the best place on Earth, in my opinion and it's worth defending, it's worth fighting for, and with that in mind when I was of age - as soon as I was old enough, I put my right hand up and swore to protect and serve this
As far as ZIP codes - so I moved around so much and I attended so many different places that I started to see this disconnect between certain lives and others just based on where you live and where you grow up. And when you travel so much and you're young, you see these outcomes - it just forged within me a desire to serve and to help people connect dots to be able to get to a better place. This is something that is a theme throughout my life.
My theory of the case is that life is like a race - a track. Picture a track, several lanes, you've got different people running in their own lane. I believe that based on your religion, based on your race, based on your creed, based on your military affiliation, based on your sexual orientation, based on your disability status, that you start at a different place on this track. And everything that I care about is how do we connect the dots so that everyone can be at that starting line. That applies to not only members of the veteran's community but just all who are within this mantle.
This focus on empowerment it's within everything that I do from teaching ROTC at
I just keep trying to move this ball forward on the same theory of the case - we're getting people to that starting line. I told the Mayor, when we last spoke, that my efforts in DVS will continue the work that started years ago when I was asked to build - to lead that veterans incubator for
Outstanding work is already being done by Commissioner Sutton and her team - the unsung, world class heroes of DVS - to build the lines of actions as we see them. Everything from housing to engagement to administrative activities and various other services. The mechanism, the vehicle already exists to fulfill DVS' mission which is the foster purpose-driven lives in
I am speaking of all of
Do these things and we continue to move the needle forward towards achieving functional zero in combating veterans homeless. Do these things and we continue to increase the number of positive outcomes that vets have when working with our engagement and community support team. Do these things and we amplify our ability to help veterans not only help themselves land jobs but to also start and grow their own successful ventures.
As I learned at the
All of this is Commissioner Sutton's legacy. We will especially honor VetsThriveNYC and the Core4 Model just with a small twist. We want to significantly amplify the engagement and connection aspects at the base of the model. In layman's terms, if we continue to strengthen the bonds within
That being said, ideas are important but execution is nine-tenths of the game. Over and over again I have witnessed entrepreneurs thrive not because they were brilliant, not because they gave a good speech, or had good connection, not because of their resumes, and definitely not because they looked a certain part. I have seen leaders thrive including a lot of the people in this room - I'm talking about folks on the top of the chain all the way to the bottom because they were able to execute.
In my old job, I liked to say action is currency. In this new position, I'll start saying the words, let the work talk. That is what we at DVS will continue to do. Despite any issues surrounding us, despite any challenges we face - and once again I'm not just talking about DVS, I'm speaking of all city veterans who will remain grateful for all that we offer, all that we have, for all that we can be as we help one another. We will be mindful of the city's 178 ZIP codes - I counted -
[Laughter]
And the need to empower our veterans to close the gap where necessary so that they can start at the starting line in order to fit in. I've been an entrepreneur long enough to know - I think some people will agree with me when I say this - no one gives you anything. Be wary of someone offering to give you something for nothing in the world that precedes our military service.
True, lasting success must be earned. You just heard James talk about, he started his - we helped him connect the dots to get housing. He connected the dots for himself to have his business and cook at the U. N. I wanted to try some of his chicken. By the way, I'm going to talk to him offline. That's a whole other thing, sorry. I was just thinking about that while you were talking. I know you got good chicken.
[Laughter]
What I'm trying to say is DVS cannot give you dignity but I recognize that all of this is about dignity. Dignity - it's an undercurrent of things. I'm talking about economic access, housing, mental health, you name it. It's the idea that you are on top of things, that you remain proactive and not reactive. The idea that you are in control. We're going to do everything in our power to facilitate our veteran community having the tools to build that reality.
We're going to stand on the shoulders on the good work of this administration, of the [inaudible] qualities of this city, and on warrior ethos as it pertains to veterans and military families in pursuit of our objective. As we do all of that, I'm going to turn around and I'm going to ask you to continue to give because as was already said here today, this is never over.
Generations of veterans sacrificed for us to be here, to have the infrastructure, the benefits, and the community that we have, for us to not be in the shadows, for us as a group to exist. It is now our turn to steward the present while making contributions towards tomorrow. Post military service - if everyone takes and no one gives, and when I say give I'm speaking of anything you have - anything from time, talent, resources, whatever you can give - if everyone takes and no one gives then we as a body will fade away.
To quote JFK, "Ask not what your country can do for you, ask what you can do for your country." The challenge did not stop when we took the uniform off, it simply evolved. We will succeed but these things do not happen by themselves. I challenge everyone here and outside of the Intrepid right now to do your part to fight for what we have, to fight for our future, and to fight for one another.
I told my story but every single person here has gone through something in and out of the military. We have come this far. And for me, as someone who was born into a riot, literally and turned out okay, I can assure you that we will be alright. Thank you.
[Applause]
Mayor: Well done. Well done. That was absolutely beautiful,
[Laughter]
- stayed calm for that entire speech. We're about to have a benediction and then we will go to the press questions. I just want to say that
[...]
Mayor: Okay, let's take - please be seated everybody - let's take questions from the media on the appointment of
Question: I just wanted to ask you Mayor de Blasio, you took a lot of - through your reporting at the time of launch of this [inaudible] reflected about it [inaudible] veteran's community [inaudible] veteran's groups, have you been kind off convinced about the benefits--
Mayor: Long since, long since. In the beginning, we wanted to make sure we could get it right and we wanted to make sure if we created something, it would really be value-added. It's not a shock to know that sometimes good people think creating a new vehicle will be achievement onto itself. What I've learned in my experience is you got to construct in a way that's actually going to reach people and be value added and achieve the things that the federal government was not, and that was really one of the big questions. Could we fill that gap? Could we do it responsibly? Could we do it effectively? I'm very satisfied by what's been achieved, I think it beyond what we all thought could be done in three years. So, absolutely, yes.
Anything else on the appointment today or on Veteran Services? Yes?
Question: So this question is for the new Commissioner [inaudible]?
Incoming Commissioner Hendon: I think one of the biggest challenges is just employment as far as just access to economic opportunities and upward mobility in that realm, so you know, really want to pay heed to the continued work of the Veteran Success Network the DVS has and all the efforts that we can do for the entrepreneurship side as well, so folks are agile between navigating things in a typical business lens for the jobs but also within the lens of starting one's non-profit, one's own for-profit venture.
Question: [Inaudible] legislation [inaudible].
Mayor: Speak up.
Question: There is legislation out there to rename the
Incoming Commissioner Hendon: I got to say I don't have a stance at this time, please forgive me. So I'm just getting right into things, so just yeah, I'm sorry.
Question: How about any thoughts on [inaudible] court case saying that the federal government has to reimburse veterans for out of pocket medical expenses [inaudible] -
Incoming Commissioner Hendon: Same thing, I'm just getting read into all the different issues. As far as, you know, holding on the mantle that
Mayor: Let me know before we go onto - stay up here - that on the question of employment, and I'm so glad that
[Applause]
Go ahead Rich.
Question: When does he take office, when do you take office?
Incoming Commissioner Hendon: My first official day will be
Question: I wanted to ask about the
Commissioner Sutton: So the question is about our
Question: [Inaudible].
Mayor: A little louder.
Question: The Department's budget in the past fiscal year has risen by 70 percent but there was a slight decline in homeless veterans getting housing or any other services. Some activists have told us that they felt it was because you were out of town with too much campaigning, what would you attribute it to?
Mayor: That is - with all due respect, that is a nonsensical question. Would you like to add Loree?
Commissioner Sutton: Yeah - no, absolutely. First of all, the budget, I came into this position as Commissioner - first, five years go as the Commissioner of the
Great people who worked there, certainly giants upon whose shoulders I stand and now James will stand, but when I came on board, we were called the "
On the budget, we had - let's just put it this way, we had four people on board, great people on board when we started out three years ago. Today we have 40 people on board. So yes, there is an increase in budget. We had - we had - we had a reputation that really was unworthy of a city like
You heard what we've done with homelessness. We are continuing to work on that.
Mayor: I mean before - hold on one second, I'm sorry, we'll come right back to you. I just want to see if there's anything else for
Question: [Inaudible].
Mayor: I'm coming to you, but let me just see if there's anything else for
Question: [Inaudible] you view the federal government as a reliable partner [inaudible] the chaos of the Trump administration now. There are also reports [inaudible] -
Commissioner Sutton: I'll come back to that. Is there anything for
Incoming Commissioner Hendon: I think it's just what I said in my speech in that you know, here at DVS we will, you know, let the work talk. We will put one foot in front of the other, do everything that we can to, you know, fulfill our mission within the agency and work with all around us and not get bogged down and any other issues aside from the direct idea of assisting veterans and helping them foster purposed driven lives, helping folks help themselves.
Mayor: Alright, thank you Colonel, congratulations.
[Applause]
Alright continue, go ahead.
Question: Just clarify what [inaudible] from the Mayor's Management Report?
Mayor: Yeah, that's not how you asked, so don't play around. So we will happily ask that - we'll answer that question because it's not a ridiculous question. Go ahead.
Commissioner Sutton: I think the best answer to that question I would refer any of you and all of you to our three year report. It is currently on the website and you will see there are thousands of veterans today like James Brown and so many others who are getting services that they wouldn't have gotten just a very short time ago and best of all we've just begun. The execution, the mission, the passion, the drive, the leadership, it will continue and take us places that other cities are already contacting us to emulate. So we can be very proud of that. Thank you.
Question: Commissioner, you mentioned the report, but this shows data from 2016 to the current date and I think what the Mayor's Management Report shows is that there was a decline in services for veterans in placing homeless veterans in housing, and providing those necessary services, so the question is why would there be such a large uptick in the budget? Not criticizing the budget necessarily but [inaudible] concern is the decrease services, in many cases they are vital services for veterans.
Commissioner Sutton: Okay. So for any of you who have ever started up an organization, and I did that in the
Question: So the decrease in [inaudible] for homeless veterans, a very crucial thing, the decrease in services, particularly mental health services, for veterans is due to start-up fluctuation, or?
Deputy Mayor
Commissioner Sutton: So there's been no decrease in mental health services for our veterans. What we have experienced and we're continuing to work with our developers, our landlords, our folks around the city, is to be able to create that system, which we have, that takes a homeless veteran like James Brown from the time they're placed into the shelter system to the time that they get a permanent home and apartment - less than 90 days. When we started this journey it was 500, 600, 700, 800, 900 days or more, and so it's that system, it's the need that we are there for a veteran, whatever they need - VetConnectNYC is the next step up and I will tell you, just so you know what to expect going forward. These first three years, I don't think we could have worked much harder. That's what it took. Last time the City stood up an agency - 15-20 years ago, no institutional memory - we're leaving a template now with OMB and the Mayor's Office so the next time this is done it - we'll know more of what to expect going forward and that's a good thing. But now, what
Deputy Mayor Thompson: So I just wanted to add that we have expanded staff for placing homeless veterans and helping them find housing and it's always a dynamic situation because as the Mayor said - it's not just what we do, it's also the private sector. Veterans are not the only people finding themselves unable to afford housing in
The other thing I want to say, Commissioner Sutton actually went further than I was going to go on this but we are doing some really exciting things that will become public soon on the employment side for veterans. Because if you don't have a job, nothing is affordable, and I think we're about to launch something which is state-of-the-art, not just for veterans, but for connecting people, period, into employment. And she let a little bit of it out, but we are tackling the homelessness issue not only from the housing angle, and placement and housing, but also on the other side which is the income-side. And also the new Commissioner has said entrepreneurship. And so we're approaching it from all these different angles to really try and get at the source of the problem.
Mayor: Okay, anything else related to DVS before we go to other topics? Yes?
Question: [Inaudible]
Mayor: I'm going to take what you're saying but it is media questions right now. Would it be okay to see you afterwards? Okay, I'll see you after. Any other media questions, DVS?
Yes?
Question: Can the Commissioner talk a little bit more about why she's leaving at this--
Mayor: More about?
Question: Talk about why she's leaving at this moment, and also early on when the Department was formed it was a criticism from advocates that they don't feel there was enough direct impact through
Commissioner Sutton: So the question is, to talk about some of the criticism over the last several years, as well as why I might be thinking of moving on at this point in my tenure, let me take the first one first. You know we have the world's best advocate community for veterans and their families here in
Now in terms of my situation, I will tell you, I have been in this position for longer - five years and two months - longer than I've been in any other position in my entire career. And I have given it everything I possible had. And you know, as a leader it's important for us to know, when is it time for an infusion of new energy, and an infusion of new expertise, and new ideas, to take things to the next level. Well I hope you saw with
Mayor: Last call, anything on DVS? And then we'll turn to general questions. Last call? Okay. Media questions on anything else?
Yes?
Question: I wanted to ask you about the -
Mayor: I think standing up would help me hear you -
Question: I wanted to ask you about the [inaudible] schools initiative that [inaudible] -
Mayor: Yeah -
Question: So, I have a lot of questions, but I think the biggest one is sort of, what do you imagine this initiative - [inaudible] any different from what schools are already doing? There's some stuff - you know, your office [inaudible]?
Mayor: I think the power of this announcement is, first of all, we're bringing in substantial resources to determine how to make our public schools better. And I think that says something about how we've changed as a city. I am someone who believes in public education, I believe in traditional public schools and what they mean in our society, and what they should aspire to be for our communities. We are not there yet, which is why we have the Equity and Excellence vision. We have a whole transformation we have to go through. I think in the past there was, sort of, a fault line where there were a number of well-intentioned people who were not sure that traditional public schools could work, and there were different ideas about, you know - maybe very specific ways that they only could work. And we challenged that from the beginning and both my Chancellors have believed fundamentally as educators that a whole range of traditional public schools can work, and that is the future. So, this announcement today provides us with resources and expertise to determine how to make our public schools better for the future, including in some of the communities where we've had, as a city, the least success previously, and to re-engineer those schools, or, in some cases, start new schools to answer, sort of, the essential question - why in some communities is public education not succeed the way it should have? And I'm very excited about this because I think it's going to be part of how we crack the code and come up with new models that are the vision of the future.
Question: Just a follow-up - can you say where these school are going to be? And if [inaudible] close schools to make room for the new ones?
Mayor: So, that is not the assumption to begin with. Where it's going to be - there will be a process, obviously, to determine where the fit is best. Remember, some of this is re-engineering existing schools, some of it is starting new schools - that doesn't always have to come with a closure. It can sometimes come with a closure, but it doesn't have to. I think if you've been watching the situation, I'm sure we've announced from our previous efforts around renewal schools, etcetera, we've announced that schools are going to close, we've announced the schools that are going to continue to work in different ways. So, I think in terms of thinking about this, I'd say, re-engineering some schools in place, starting some new schools just to start new schools, because we think there's a need and a demand in certain places. In some cases it could be connected to a closure but it's not an assumption.
Yeah?
Question: [Inaudible] opinions on billionaires. Do you think that this new school plan will give them too much influence?
Mayor: I like billionaires I just want them to pay their fair share in taxes. No, I think this is about a coming together of different strands. You know, when you look at the foundation world, they've evolved quite a bit. And I give them a lot of credit, this doesn't happen to involved the
Go ahead -
Question: [Inaudible]
Mayor: I can't tell you the specifics of this one at this hour, we can get you more detail today, but I can tell you the broad situation. First of all, I commend the community for embracing and supporting that shelter. The reality of what's happening with our homeless population, even though our shelter population has gone down recently, the composition of the shelter population keeps changing, and one of the things we've seen is that, you know, we have different types of people at different times, and different times of year and year-by-year, that changes. So, we have to adjust to the people we are here to serve, while simultaneously, as you know, getting out of those old cluster, scattered site buildings, getting out of as many of the pay-per-day hotels as we can. So, that leaves us only so many options and we have to make adjustments according to who we have to serve. But we'll get you a more detailed answer.
Question: [Inaudible]
Mayor: What questions raised - what was the last part?
Question: [Inaudible]
Mayor: I've spoken to Commissioner O'Neill about this extensively. There's a very thorough review going on right now in what happened in this tragedy. And it's horribly painful - you know, I was at the hospital with
Question: [Inaudible]
Mayor: No, it's an ongoing conversation with the Council. And look, I think overall we have - there's a very good partnership, relationship between the Council and the Mayor's Office. We're always going to have some differences, but if you just look day-by-day at the way things get done, we ultimately get there on a whole host of things. So, they've raised real concerns, we want to answer those concerns, and that's an ongoing discussion, but I don't have any doubt we'll get it done.
Question: [Inaudible] timeline -
Mayor: Relatively soon, I can't give you an exact -
Right there, coming to you - we're going right to left. Go ahead.
Question: [Inaudible] ask you about the parking situation in Brooklyn Borough Hall. There's been kind of a longstanding [inaudible] to allow the Brooklyn Borough President's office to park in the public plaza there, which is technically park land, even though they have [inaudible]. And your administration has kind of continued that arrangement. Why is that a good use of public space like that?
Mayor: I'm not an expert on that location. I've been there plenty of times, but I'm not an expert of what the history is or any of that. Look, I think the central question is, we've got to make sure where there's a valid need for official parking, it's covered; and where we don't need it, then we don't need it. And that's the assessment we have to make. Honestly, having been a public servant in
Question: Yesterday, Congresswoman
Mayor: Yeah, I'm confident. I want to commend the Council - and this is over two Speakers and, now, several years. Both Speaker Johnson and Speaker Mark-Viverito and the four Council members in whose districts the new facilities will be have all been extraordinarily consistent. Everyone believes this change is needed for the good of
Question: [Inaudible]
Mayor: She thinks what?
Question: She mentioned training also [inaudible] -
Mayor: Yeah, look, she is - I know her, and she's a very good person, and she's speaking out of real personal pain. My experience has been very different over now six years, having seen so many situations and a lot of body camera footage and other footage where officers showed extraordinary restraint. We can get you the exact number, but the number of discharges of weapons in adversarial situations in 2018 by
Okay, who has not gone yet? Way back?
Question: [Inaudible] the folks from the No Jails campaign are concerned about building jails and whether - once you build those jails, they'll then have to be filled. Do you have any concern about whether building more jail [inaudible]?
Mayor: No, I don't, and I'll tell you why. First of all, here's a city right now - 30 percent-plus decrease in incarceration in the last six years we've been here. In terms of the number of people walking through the door of one of our correctional facilities is literally half as many as six years ago. So, the fact is, this is the way of the future, I'm absolutely convinced. I'm very proud that we've been driving down crime for six years, extraordinary work was done before us, I'm convinced it will continue. I think as a society, we in this city want to end the era of mass incarceration once and for all, and I think that's becoming an American consensus too. I don't feat that community jail create an unintended consequence. In fact, I think a community jail puts the humanity back in the equation, because the idea here is - and God forbid anyone ever gets in trouble with law enforcement, we want them to get a speedy trial, we want their loved ones to be able to visit them, which is part of turning their life back around, we want redemption, we want to end recidivism, we can't do that with the kind of jail facilities that we inherited, we need new facilities to keep driving down crime, to keep reducing the number of people who end up in a life of crime. So, I actually think it's quite the opposite. I think these are the jails that are actually going to help us to continue to decarcerate in a meaningful, safe way. But to those who say we don't need any jails, that's just - there's no human history that tells us that that's a realistic proposition. We want as few people in jail as possible, but we do need to have something. And we know that what we've had historically hasn't worked, so, some people - ironically on both right and left - sort of, wanted to stay on
Go ahead -
Question: I wanted to ask you about the
Mayor: There's no plan to introduce anything like that right away. When I was presented that plan, I thought it was a really exceptional opportunity to figure out if this strategy would work. We had a situation that we had to make adjustments for anyway, because of what was going on with the L-train. And we had a question before us that was important to the whole city - was there actually something we could do to actually speed up bus service meaningfully, given how many people depend on it, and what would it do to everything else if we were to do that? So, I said, I accept this as a pilot, and only as a pilot, and I'm going to see what those results are, and it's going to tell us whether it's something we want to do in other places. And some places might be right for it and other places not, obviously. But no - the jury is out. We want to see what we learn from this pilot.
Question: A resident of
Mayor: Did you say a horse?
[Laughter]
Question: And he's keeping it in his backyard [inaudible] -
Mayor: I did not expect this question -
[Laughter]
Question: [Inaudible] neighbo
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Injured Farmington firefighters progressing; Jay man remains critical
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