Transcript: Mayor de Blasio Appoints Vicki Been as Deputy Mayor for Housing and Economic Development

April 4, 2019

Mayor Bill de Blasio: Good morning, everybody. So, I want to say at the outset that it's a special pleasure to make a major announcement of this nature. Every time we add to our team it is an opportunity to express our values and to recommit ourselves to our mission. In this case the value that really jumps here, and the reason we came here was to make sure that New York City remains a city for everyone. I've talked about this over the years, it was the core of so much of what was talked about back in 2013. It remains the most urgent issue today. The issue I hear the most about from my constituents in all those town hall meetings and the call-ins to the radio program and everything else, unquestionably, the number one issue is affordability and the concern people have keeping New York City a place for everyone, keeping New York City really New York City. Protecting the soul of this place, keeping ourselves consistent with our great history.

So, the appointment I'm making today really responds to that imperative. It's all about ensuring that New York City remains affordable for working people. And we've got a lot more work to do to make that happen. But we have the right person to lead us forward in that effort. I want to say that there's a lot of talented people out there and we conducted a nationwide search, looked at some very able and accomplished people but – I guess this is a little bit like the moral of the story in the Wizard of Oz, there's no place like home. It turned out the exact right person was right here under our nose the whole time. And Vicki Been did such an outstanding job as HPD Commissioner, was such a valued member of this team. I remember many a day in this room talking about some of the most complex and pressing issues – and what was so clear throughout, Vicki's intelligence, her experience, her analytical ability, her ability to see solutions that often times others didn't see. And her heart, her driving desire to get it right and ensure that working people can live in the greatest city in the world. I admired it many a time. And it is very, very gratifying to announce her as our new Deputy Mayor because she is the right person for the job.

So, I want to just say a few more words and then a couple more words in Spanish before we hear from Vicki. And I want to welcome her family who is with us here today as well. Important to say at the outset, we have a situation here, classic, there's a real continuity in this announcement and there's also an imperative to go a lot farther – continuity because Vicki's predecessor, Alicia Glen, did an outstanding job. What she achieved with the affordable housing plan, that Vicki was such a central player in, should be the stuff of legend because not too often in government do we get to be ahead of schedule, but that was the norm with the affordable housing plan and obviously there are so many other great examples of progress in terms of protecting everyday New Yorkers – the work we have all done and done with the Council to stop evictions, the work we have done to help keep people in their homes in so many ways. But there's also the very exciting work that's been done on the economic development side, particularly the growth of our technology community. We want to keep all that going and who better to keep it going than one of the architects of it?

But we must go farther. And today is a clear statement of purpose. We have to go a lot farther when it comes to protecting affordability. The challenges, in many ways, have gotten greater. And we have tools that work and we are going to take them farther and we are going to find new tools and I guarantee if there is anyone in this city, and I mean this as a literal statement, if there is anyone in this city creative enough, smart enough, thoughtful enough, to find new and better ways to do things, that person is Vicki Been. So I've seen it live, as I said, and it's not just a matter of her abilities, it's her values, in so many of the conversations over the last years Vicki was the person who drew upon her own personal experience to talk about how important it was to get it right when it came to protecting affordability and building more affordability. She took it very personally in the best sense and you'll hear a bit about her own story, her own New York story and her own life story but it's important to note Vicki is not someone born with a silver spoon in her mouth. She is the first person in her family to go to college. She came here to New York City with nothing more than an internship and was only able to live here because she had an affordable apartment. But like so many great New York City success stories, she took that opportunity and she ran with it, ended up going to NYU Law School, one of our great institutions, became a clerk for U.S. Supreme Court Justice Harry Blackmun, worked on the Iran Contra investigation, one of the most important investigations in the last few decades in this country, she was right in the mix of it. And that was a statement of her devotion to public service but also her ability. People who got chosen to work on that investigation were the best of the best.

As everyone knows she spent time studying the issues of affordability and how to create a better urban environment. She's devoted a lot of her life to that as an academic. But what was so impressive to me was she took that academic knowledge and put it into practice so effortlessly, I was deeply, deeply impressed by that. It's not everyone who can take the abstract knowledge and then be dropped into the intensity of New York City government and convert that – those ideas, those concepts into action. And I saw it live from Vicki year after year. So as she returns to City government, she comes in with a mandate from me but she also comes in with her own strong values. We have to go farther, we have to accelerate the work we are doing in terms of preserving affordable housing and this is crucial, the preservation of affordable housing is 60 percent of our affordable housing plan. It's really the essence and the work horse of the affordable housing plan – keeping people in their neighborhoods, in affordable apartments. We are going to do more of that faster. We have to do – and I have to say, that is – I really want to say this because I think it hasn't gotten the attention it deserves. This is the ultimate anti-displacement tool. A lot of discussion about rezoning and that's a good discussion to have but the simplest, strongest, clearest anti-displacement tool is to protect a working family in their apartment, in their neighborhood, subsidize it, protect it for decades ahead. That's what this administration has been doing but we are going to do even more under Vicki's leadership.

We have more to do to make sure our affordable housing plan reaches lower income New Yorkers. We have more to do to ensure that seniors can reach affordable housing, a growing part of our population. We have a lot to do to make fundamental change at our Housing Authority but the good news is we have a great game plan and people ready to make to the changes we need, and Vicki will be a central architect of all we do at this point forward to turn around NYCHA. Our residents in public housing deserve a lot better and I think for the first time in decades there's a plan in place and the leadership in place to achieve that change. And, of course, Vicki's going to focus on jobs, she's going to focus on economic development but she comes onto the playing field at a propitious moment. This city has over 4.5 million jobs, the most in our history but we ain't done. We intend to create an even stronger and more diverse economy, and Vicki will lead the way.

So for all of those years that Vicki served us, we were all very fortunate and we could tell we had a great talent among us and she stuck with it a long time, took a little break, went out to think great thoughts again, and now she is back. So, Vicki, I am going to say a few words in Spanish but on behalf of a lot of people in this building are feeling what am I feeling right now – we are so happy to have you back and we welcome you.

[Applause]

The quick Spanish version –

[Mayor de Blasio speaks in Spanish]

With that, I now get to call you by a new name, I get to call you Deputy Mayor for Housing and Economic Development, Vicki Been.

[Applause]

Deputy Mayor Vicki Been, Housing and Economic Development: Thank you so much, Mr. Mayor. I am deeply honored to be asked to rejoin your team as Deputy Mayor. It's an awesome responsibility and I am humbled to take it on. But I am also super excited and grateful for the opportunity to work with the Mayor and his incredible team to make the city an even better place to live. This city has given me and my family so much and I want to be part of making sure that it gives everyone the opportunities that it gave me. Growing up, I couldn't have imagined ever being in a room like this. I couldn't have imagined the life I have been lucky to live.

I grew up in a tiny mining town, Naturita, Colorado, a hundred miles from New Mexico, 20 miles from Utah, a thousand people on a really good day in a really boom economy. My father was an auto mechanic and moved us there during the boom years when Naturita and the surrounding area were mining uranium and processing it into vanadium for the Cold War. But we arrived just in time for the bust and that bust continued for much of my childhood and continues to mark the area even today. My town didn't have much hope. It was hard, really hard, to see a way to get ahead, it was hard to escape sort of the crushing tedium and danger of the jobs that were available. It was town where too many young men, like my middle brother, succumbed to drugs and alcohol and violence and drunk driving. It's a town where girls became mothers before they got their learner's permit. My family lived in a Quonset hut, a corrugated tin building.

My dad's parts store was out in front and we lived in back. My sister and I spent many a night trying to ignore the paint and the exhaust fumes and the radiator cleaner and all kinds of other things that my dad used to fix cars in the garage just on the other side of our bedroom. And our home – and it turns out many of the houses and trailers and schools in the neighborhood – were built on the tailings from the mines, the radioactive wastes leftover once they had extracted the uranium.

It wasn't a healthy place and my father died at 59 but he was one of the oldest men left in town. So, I had a very loving and supportive family, and I have many, many happy memories of my childhood. But when I was 11 and my youngest brother was born, my parents separated for a while and I remember watching my mother get dressed up in her best dress and going down to apply for a job at the school district so she could support the five of us kids.

She came back crestfallen and she told me, 'I can't get a job because I don't have a college degree.' And I said, 'Note to self, I'm going to get one of those.'

And I was lucky to get one. It was a circuitous route. My mother had many, many talents – God bless her – but she was not a good cook, so I decided to take things over and from the time that I was about 12 I did the cooking for the family, and I won a cooking scholarship that paid for me to go to college. I won on orange glazed pork chops –

[Laughter]

Razzle-dazzle Jell-O rings – it was the 1970s, most places had moved on from Jell-O but Naturita was a little behind. So, that allowed me to get to college and it allowed me to earn my degree. When I was in my last year of college I had a wonderful professor, Derry Inan, who said, 'You know, you're really good, why don't you send this application to somebody – to a magazine that I had wanted to work for. And I did. It never occurred to me if he hadn't helped me – but I sent it, Consumer Reports Magazine. They called me and offered me an internship, and I was able to take that internship only because I was lucky enough to find out about the Webster Apartments for Women on 34th Street and 9th Avenue.

It was a clean, safe, comfortable place to live with lots of other scared and lonely young women trying to make a go of it. I paid $50 a month for a small room and dinner and breakfast. That's what allowed me to come here. And that housing and the job opportunities that came because of that internship that that housing allowed me to take, allowed me to have this incredibly rewarding career.

I got to clerk not only for Justice Blackmun but for Edward Weinfeld who was the state's first housing commissioner ever under Governor Lehman. And I got to work on the Iran-Contra prosecution as the Mayor mentioned and then I got to come to NYU where I have had just the incredible privilege of working with smart, young people and smart colleagues – and of course, I've gotten to do lots of wonderful research at the Furman Center.

It also allowed me to be here and meet the warm and wonderful man who has been my husband for 30 years and my best friend for even longer – Ricky Revesz, who's here with us. It allowed me to raise two wonderful kids who I cherish and I learn from every day. Both of them are in public service. My son, Joshua, is working for the federal government in Washington. My daughter, Mira, is a public school teacher in downtown Philly and couldn't be here because she's working away.

So, I've been just incredibly fortunate and I want all New Yorkers to have that kind of experience, to look back on the city as a place that allowed them to make the kind of life that they wanted to make. I want this city to open doors for people in the way that it opened doors for me by providing an affordable home in a safe, vibrant neighborhood that offers jobs and schools and a sense of belonging and a sense of promise. I want them to be able to say, like I'm saying now, my neighborhood helped me be who I wanted to be.

So, that's my mission as Deputy Mayor of Housing and Economic Development. As someone who's taken a breather from the administration for the past few years, I have a unique vantage point. I see the progress and I also see the remaining challenges. I see the need to do even more to make New York City a fairer and better place.

I'll start with the piece that's closest to my heart and my experience which is housing of course. Too many tenants and homeowners still feel threatened and they worry that changes in their neighborhood could mean that they won't be able to stay or that they won't feel at home in the communities that they love. That threat is particularly acute, it's particularly painful for our seniors, for the lowest income New Yorkers who are most vulnerable. And I took this position because the Mayor and I see eye to eye about the need to go deeper, to push further, to meet the needs of those most vulnerable New Yorkers.

We raised the bar in 2014 in pledging to make many more of our subsidized housing homes more affordable to those with the extremely low and very low incomes. It wasn't enough. The Mayor, Deputy Mayor Glen, and the housing teams – many of whom are here today – raised the bar again in 2017 but it still isn't enough and we need to raise the bar again.

No city across the nation has done as much to prevent displacement as New York City. At the end of 2018 the city had preserved more than 83,000 homes. That's about 216,000 people who are in the home that they love, knowing that it's stable, knowing that it's secure, knowing that they'll be able to afford it because the housing team in this administration preserved those affordability protections.

Preservation, as the Mayor said, is the most important tool that we have. It keeps people in their homes at rents they can afford for the long run. But it's only one of our tools. This administration has built a tremendous tool kit from legal assistance to tenants facing eviction to anti-harassment protections, for more vigorous housing and building code enforcement, to more rental assistance – MIH, ZQA, I see Carl here. The list goes on and on. But people are still afraid and so we have to double down.

We have to use those tools faster, we have to be more effective, and we have to be more coordinated in trying to ensure that people aren't forced out of their homes or out of neighborhoods that they helped to build and that they call home.

When people do lose their homes, we have to get them from shelter into permanent housing quickly and sustainable. We've made lots of progress but we still aren't where we need to be and I intend to work closely with Deputy Mayor Palacio and Commissioner Banks along with the Housing and Economic Development teams to make sure that we don't let a single opportunity pass to combat homelessness.

Rent regulation is up for reform in Albany – so a once-in-a-generation chance to end failed policies like the current vacancy de-control rules and to stop the irrevocable loss of those precious rent stabilized units. We also have a daunting challenge to bring NYCHA back to fiscal and physical health after a generation of neglect.

NYCHA is so critical to the city. It houses one out of 11 of our renters, it brings diversity to communities across New York City, and most importantly it houses many amazing hard-working adults who are the mainstay of City government, they're the mainstay of lots of work forces throughout the city, and it houses wonderful kids with enormous promise.

The federal government, of course, starved NYCHA for resources for decades and the price of that neglect hit us in the face, it came due. The Mayor and Deputy Glen and their teams have come up with a plan to fix the fundamentals, to generate revenue, to harness the workforce, to fix the heat, to stop the mold, to get the lead out – it won't be easy. It's required massive, massive thinking. We've seen some fits and starts but we have a solid plan and I intend to drive that plan forward every day of the year, meeting and beating time tables, stretching every dollar we have, and pushing for more money. The Mayor is committed to turning NYCHA around. The ground work's been laid, the time is now for action and every single day counts.

Being in a second term also liberates us a bit to take on tough challenges that were hard to take on in the first term. If the last few months have taught us anything, it's that New Yorkers are not going to allow economic development incentive programs that have been allowed for decades to go unquestioned. Some of those incentives and the larger tax programs – tax systems of which they are a part predate the globalization of the economy, the flood of money into real estate, they predate the tech and life sciences industries, they predate the horrendous inequality that faces the nation today. Programs designed when the problems were staunching the loss of people from the city and stopping the flight of jobs out of New York have to be re-examined and likely are going to need some reworking.

They have to be rigorously evidence-based. They have to meet today's standards of transparency and fairness and accountability and they have to be understandable to the public and to all of us for that matter.

I've worked very closely with the agencies in this portfolio and the amazing people that make up all of these agencies, and I have the deepest admiration for what the Mayor, for Deputy Mayor Glen, the commissioners, and all of their teams have achieved. And I look forward to working together with them to build on the amazing work that they've already done.

I'm humbled by the challenges and by the opportunities, and I'm excited about the chance to work with this Mayor and the incredible group of people again. I'm here to move the needle. The challenge for every part of the teams that I'll have the privilege of working with is going to be, do more, do better.

I didn't take the job just to stay the course. I want to take it up a notch. We have two years and nine months left to make this is a city of opportunity, a place where homes and neighborhoods are a source of security and safety and satisfaction, where every child born here and every person coming from Colorado or Colombia or China can trust that this is a place that's going to open doors for them.

So, that's what I hope to do. Let's get to work.

Mayor: Amen, well done.

[Applause]

You said it all – that was great. Beautiful. We will take questions from the media now on this appointment and then we'll go to other topics. On this appointment, yes?

Question: In the ranking of the toughest jobs in city government –

[Laughter]

– where does this fall?

Mayor: Way up. Way up high on the list.

Question: I mean the challenges are some of the biggest ones – you talked about affordability, NYCHA, you know, homelessness is obviously part of the portfolio. Is there anything tougher than this?

Mayor: I don't think we're here compare –

Deputy Mayor Been: Mayor?

[Laughter]

Mayor: – yeah, I think there are several jobs that are extraordinarily challenging. This is clearly one of them, and you can speak to it too, obviously, but I just would say look, a whole lot is asked of the Deputy Mayor for Housing and Economic Development, it is one of the pivot roles in all of New York City government. And you have to be strong, you have to be focused, you have to know why you're here, and I think you can hear in Vicki's statement, a very resolute vision and a strong persona and that's what we need. There's a lot to do. But, you know, I can assure you when you say to someone, hey, come on in, let's turn around the Housing Authority that was neglected for all those decades, and, you know, let's build even more affordable housing even though the cost of living keeps going up and more and more people keep coming here, et cetera, et cetera – that is not for the timid. You have to be a strong person to want to take that assignment. And there's no question that Vicki is that strong person. Please.

Question: Yes, question for Ms. Been. First, why are you coming back? Second, will you be taking another leave of absence from the Furman Center, and third, of the things you mentioned, what will be your number one, top priority?

Deputy Mayor Been: So why I'm coming back is I see the challenges, I want to help, right? I want to make this city the kind of city that I talked about. A city of opportunity, and we have a saying in my family: if not us, who? And so here – you know, I'm here to do that job. Will I be taking a leave of absence from NYU? Yes, NYU has been very generous and gracious in loaning me to the city, not just once, but twice. Maybe they're happy to get rid of me, I don't know, but—

[Laughter]

– but they've been very gracious and so I will be taking a leave again, so. What are my top priorities? My top priorities is getting NYCHA back on track. Making that path a path forward that puts it on a course that won't – that nobody can turn back from, right?

Mayor: Amen. Please?

Question: You talked about sort of doubling down on the housing plan. Do you plan to do anything different in terms of the – the terms of the economics of the plan or just do it faster?

Deputy Mayor Been: I think we have to work faster and harder and better, and coordinate better with the other agencies – I'm not coming out with "Housing Plan 3.0" so that's not what we're talking about, we're just talking about being more effective, being more efficient, and getting it done even faster because people are worried.

Mayor: But I want to add to that, you know, my mandate to Vicki is to come back with a vision of how we can certainly do more with what we have and then also if she thinks there's other things we have to add to the equation and the bottom line is we have to reach more people, particularly more lower-income New Yorkers, and again more seniors – crucial piece of the equation. So, I'm going to be listening for evaluation of how we get there.

Question: Do you have any other ideas of rezoning that you want to undertake? Any specific neighborhoods?

Deputy Mayor Been: I'll be working with City Planning to think that through, but okay.

Mayor: Okay, other question on this appointment? Yes?

Question: How about a purview question?

Mayor: A what?

Question: Purview.

Mayor: Purview, purview.

Question: Yeah.

[Laughter]

Mayor: Purview, yes.

Question: About—

Mayor: Bailiwick.

Question: There's been some—

Mayor: I think you should have used bailiwick, really.

[Laughter]

Question: Maybe next time. Comptroller Stringer and Corey Johnson have both recommended moving the ferries out of EDC and into DOT, and I'm wondering if either Mr. Mayor or Deputy Mayor have – would think that's an idea worth considering?

Mayor: I'll start and obviously welcome Vicki's comments. The – what I would ask everyone to look at first is how is the ferry program working? I think it's working very well. I think it was something that we asked EDC to do very quickly, they've done an exceptional job, there's a high level of customer satisfaction. It's working. So, when something is working, my first impulse is let is keep working especially because there's another expansion planned. I think it's perfectly fair to say when you're looking forward, years down the line, should we look at the possibility of DOT, I have no problem with that discussion, but for the immediate future, I think we should keep it where it is because it's working. Please.

Question: Can we get your razzle-dazzle Jell-O [inaudible]?

Mayor: That's proprietary, Willie, I'm sorry.

[Laughter]

Deputy Mayor Been: Willie, I really don't think you'd want it. There was a reason why Jell-O went out right? But I'll try to hunt it up, alright?

Mayor: We have to get it now. It's like this has to be part of the – the inauguration of your new job. Let's get that out there. Yes?

Question: Yes, another question for Vicki Been. So, back in January, the Community Service society released a report that noted 60 percent of affordable housing units went to New Yorkers that faced the most urgent need, so the homeless and those earning 30 percent of the area median income. So what will you do to target New Yorkers who need affordable housing the most to make sure that that number goes up?

Deputy Mayor Been: So the teams already have a large set of tools to make that happen. We – when I was commissioner, we rewrote the terms sheets, we invented new programs, and so really what's at stake now is just making them work better, making it all work faster, getting people into those homes quicker, and addressing, you know, really addressing the needs in a much smarter, more effective way.

Question: Can you elaborate a little bit more on the tools and the specific plans for making that number go up?

Deputy Mayor Been: So the kinds of plans that have been put into place and that are rolling out, right – that are rolling out are things like – we have what we call "Our Space", which is a program designed to get more and more of the extremely low-income units into every building, right – into buildings across the city, and across neighborhoods. So it's programs like that but every one of our programs we have taken a look to see – can we push more? Can we get more of those units at the lowest income levels? Can we bring in more seniors? How can we get more of those homes to the people that need them most, quicker?

Question: How can we get more homes to them, quicker?

Mayor: Well, I'm going to jump in for a sec, and Vicki will continue but, that's what she's here to determine. It's a mandate to ensure that we go farther now in terms of reaching low-income New Yorkers and again, I add, seniors. The plan – look, it's a wonderful thing when you have a plan that is meeting its goals and in many ways continues to pleasantly shock us with the ability of this team to exceed the goals on a regular basis. That's a great platform to then say, okay now we have to take this up another notch. Now, we have to find a way to reach those who need it the most, better. That's her mandate – to figure out what it's going to take to do that. And again, she's perfectly positioned to do that because she understands this plan as well as anyone on Earth. Any other questions on this appointment? Yes?

Question: What's your position on having a higher set aside for homelessness in the housing plan that's being debated – I think the terms—

Mayor: The Council legislation, you mean.

Question: —yeah, I think the term sheets are being reworked to possibly increase it?

Mayor: Look, we're – I just will start by saying we're having an ongoing conversation with the Council. I mean, everyone knows that I believe the most salient fact here is that we have a 100,000 people, in the last five years, who were in shelter and got to affordable housing because of the strategies of this administration. 100,000 people, and when you compare that with the goal of the affordable housing plan, which is to reach about 700,000 people – it already shows you, and these are things that happened already, this is not theory, this happened – that we're already reaching a very high level. That said, I think the Council is raising real and important concerns, and we're in the middle of negotiations as we speak.

Deputy Mayor Been: Look, I'm always nervous about across-the board mandates, right? Housing is different. Neighborhoods are different. We used, you know, it – the housing teams use and enormous number of financing tools, so you need flexibility, right? So we're doing all we can, and we'll do even more to reach that population, but mandating a particular percentage in each and every building sometimes just gets in the way of your goal rather than furthering the goal, right? Flexibility is important.

Mayor: Any other questions on this appointment? Okay, let's go to other topics. Yes?

Question: Mr. Mayor, Quinnipiac came out with a poll just yesterday saying that New Yorkers, 76 percent of them, don't think that you should run for president. It's across all race, class, gender—

Mayor: I'm glad I've unified the people of New York City.

[Laughter]

Question: So if those who know you the best think you shouldn't run, would that factor into your decision?

Mayor: Look, I respect every piece of information I receive and polls have meaning, but I also want to caution that polls, when it comes to elections, for me – I have a very particular experience with polls in elections, that things are very different at the end than they are at the beginning. And if I had made my decision based on polls, I would never have run for several of the offices that I ran for and won, including this one. So, I respect my fellow New Yorkers a lot, I care deeply about making sure their lives are better, and today's announcement, I think, is indicative of that. But the decision before me is a very personal one, and a family one, ultimately. Yes?

Question: I have a question on two different issues. Back on the ferries, apparently when the management of the ferry system was bid out there were some firms that offered essentially to bring their own boats to the system and the city opted to go with Hornblower instead, and now rather than having accepted bids that came with boats and over the long haul appeared to have been cheaper, the city is now investing in a lot of money in buying these boats, and I guess I'm wondering if that's an issue that you think needs to be looked at? You know the comptroller is kind of questioning some of the financing of the ferry system, is that something you think might be worth reviewing?

Mayor: No, the – there's a simple answer for you. I want EDC to provide you with the reasoning that went into the original decision and why the economics do work in the long run. But I want you to really get back to the origin of what we were trying to do. This had not been done before. 100 years ago, you know, ferry service around all five boroughs was normal and then somehow we turned away from our water, our waterways, and our waterfront, and lost a huge opportunity. And this was a pretty audacious concept to reestablish citywide ferry service and see what it could mean for a 21st century city.

And so far, I have to say, it's been a clear success. The ridership keeps growing, we're reaching some of the areas in the city that really were transit deserts that needed the help the most like the Rockaways, and Soundview, Astoria Houses, and Red Hook, and I see a quality level which people really appreciate. So I think EDC handled this right and they believed that they had an initial mission to see if the concept would work in practice, it was a sort of proof of concept reality here because you weren't – it's not like a lot of things in government where your just putting out the next contract for something you've done already. This hadn't been done. So they wanted to make sure it would work and they wanted to limit exposure until they could figure out what would work for the long haul. So I think it was a smart approach and I think it will prove to be cost effective. Please.

Question: Just on the other issue, [inaudible] the cost of building parks bathroom has tripled from 2011 – nearly tripled from 2011 to 2019 and a lot of the people we asked about why that is, according to kind of procurement issues and also just the kind of bureaucracy, there's a lot of different oversight, and I guess since you're in charge of that bureaucracy is there anything you think you can or would like to see done?

Mayor: No, it has to change and I think all of us here are not happy with that situation, it has to change, certainly our new Deputy Mayor will be helping to lead the charge. It is a fact that procurement rules got more and more complex over the years, and in the name of making sure everything was done properly, but it also added a lot of layers of complexity and delay. A whole lot of work is being done right now to weed a lot of that out while still making sure we get a fair product and the appropriate product. So yeah, it has to change, and that's going to be something we're going to be doing a lot more in the coming months. Please.

Question: Have you offered the NYCHA chairmanship to anyone and if you have, what did they say? For would you like to offer it to anyone, is there anyone you're –

Mayor: One day I would like to offer it to someone.

[Laughter]

No we have not made an offer. No. We have not made an offer.

Question: Have you like talked about attending [inaudible] –

Mayor: I like these variations on a theme. Let me give you the overview, it's really straightforward –

Question: [Inaudible] NYCHA chairmanship [inaudible] –

Mayor: That's right. Did it happen on a Tuesday? Did it happen on a Wednesday? The – so I am pleased and, you know, when we agreed with the federal government on the a process, I certainly had not seen a process like it before, but I thought it made sense because everyone had to believe – this was the bottom line – everyone had to believe that we were going in the right direction. And I was very conscious of making a choice to do this collaboratively with the federal government.

It has proven to be an extraordinarily productive process, daily communication, daily comparing of notes, nationwide search, dozens of candidates looked at, and I'm very confident that we're going to get to a good outcome. But we have not gotten to the point yet of making an offer because that's the point when I believe we – believe we have the right candidate. We're not going to make an offer to someone to we don't think is ready to take it. We're not going to make an offer to someone we don't think is the best choice. New candidates have continued to emerge, that's why together with the federal government, we decided to give it more time, but I'm confident we're going to get to a good outcome.

Question: I want to ask you about Frank Carone and fundraising. Can you describe – two question – but first, can you describe the extent of Carone's fundraising [inaudible] and explain why it's appropriate for you to take that help and accept donations from him when he is a lawyer representing a landlord in a major negotiation?

Mayor: So Frank is someone I've known for many years. He's been a supporter for many years. Like anyone involved in my outside efforts, there is a vetting process that our lawyers go through to determine if someone is appropriate and they determined he was appropriate. It's as simple as that. So, you know, I feel comfortable that things have been handled properly.

Question: I didn't understand, what lawyers determine –

Mayor: Again I'm not here to do the technicalities. I'll have the team follow up with you.

Question: [Inaudible] answer [inaudible].

Mayor: I thought my answer was clear, but I'm happy to repeat it. We have a vetting process which anyone in public life should have to determine who is appropriate to ask to help. That process is ongoing. He is someone through that process determined to be appropriate, longstanding supporter, been working with him, and I think it was handled appropriately.

Question: So we in that sense is the PAC not the city?

Mayor: The PAC, yes. But the PAC of course has to figure out a set of rules and what's appropriate.

Question: Okay, so now you're the Mayor and you take a $5,000 donation from a lawyer who is representing someone doing business with the City. There is certainly an appearance of a potential conflict of interests –

Mayor: I believe if there is a vetting system based on the laws and the standards that we're supposed to live up to, that that is absolutely appropriate. Look we have a political system that requires us to seek individual donations. As I think a lot of you know, I don't think this is the right system. I think we should have a full public financing system. I think the City of New York is leading the way because of the referendum that I put on the ballot greatly increased the amount of public funding available for elections. I wish we had that in the entire country and one day I think we will. But in the meantime, when you're looking for resources, you have to turn to individuals, but what's important is to follow every law, every rule, and have very consistent vetting process, that's what we do.

Question: [Inaudible] fundraising for the PAC?

Mayor: I don't know, we can get you the details.

Question: [Inaudible] there are two City Hall staffers who are working on their own time but still being paid by City Hall on your exploration for –

Mayor: When you say still being paid by City Hall, I don't think that's accurate.

Question: [Inaudible] waivers or some sort of permission to use paid time off [inaudible] salary wise –

Mayor: Clarifying – when you said paid time off, and we'll get folks to give you details, this is their vacation time.

Question: I mean –

Mayor: Right, so it's not – I just want to be careful because you said paid by the City. I think when someone is taking their own personal vacation time –

Question: They're still on City payroll, correct?

Mayor: Let's have the team update you on that.

Question: [Inaudible] at what point, is there a point, and what is that point in which they would have to go over and be paid by the Fairness PAC?

Mayor: If – look, that's a decision for each of them, obviously, if they want to do something on their own personal time, that's their right. But we can – I'm just not familiar with all the specific rules governing it. I know, of course, that's been looked at by our legal folks here. But the bottom line is if anyone leaves the administration entirely to go work on outside efforts, of course at that point they would no longer be on the payroll. Yes – hold on one second.

Question: [Inaudible] on the national conversation we're now having about Joe Biden and all these allegations of unwelcome, inappropriate touching. Do you think that's something that could potentially disqualify him as a candidate?

Mayor: First of all, I think we have to further clarify a central point in our national discussion. When someone comes forward with an allegation, they have to be believed. And I think this country's still struggling with that, and we've said very clearly here in the City of New York, anyone who comes forward will be believed. And any situation like this needs to be looked at, reviewed, investigated depending on its nature. Look, I think the Vice President issued a statement that was clearly heartfelt and an acknowledgement of change that has occurred in our society, but I still think he should apologize. Who hasn't gone? Go ahead.

Question: So, back in September you said that you were still deciding whether or not to remove the protected bike lanes on Dyckman Avenue and since then they've been taken out, making them the first bike lanes that have been uninstalled since you started your Vision Zero campaign. Can you explain why you decided to remove the Dyckman Avenue bike lanes?

Mayor: We are still sorting that through. This is a case where I think a lot of different imperatives came together and it wasn't well coordinated, honestly, and we are resetting that whole equation. So, the final decision is still not – has still not been achieved there and that's something we have to do soon. Go ahead –

Question: [Inaudible] related to Biden – the City Council Standards and Ethics Committee met this morning over sexual harassment allegations against Councilman Barry Grodenchik. Do you know any [inaudible] same thing apply? Do you believe that Council staffer who says she's been sexually harassed by him, and if so, should he resign? What should happen?

Mayor: Anyone who brings forward an allegation has to be believed. There needs to be a full investigation. I don't know any of the details here. I've only heard that there is some kind of investigation being initiated by the Council. I think that's exactly the right thing to do. When someone comes forward, take it seriously, believe them, act immediately – let's see what the investigation yields. Anyone else? Yes –

Question: [Inaudible]

Mayor: I'm coming to you, I'm sorry. Let me do this and I'll come right to you. Go ahead.

Question: Quick follow-up [inaudible] still should apologize?

Mayor: Yes.

Question: [Inaudible]

Mayor: I don't think there was an apology there. I mean I believe – I watched some of the coverage earlier and I think that's broadly recognized. I think it was an honest statement about cultural change and I take him at his word that he is going to change his behavior. But I think it's important to apologize, even if he didn't mean any harm it still is a healthy thing to apologize in a case like this.

Question: [Inaudible] disqualify him –

Mayor: The voters have to decide. I mean, look, he has to make his own personal decision obviously, but then the voters will weigh what they think of it. That's the ultimate judgement. But I just think getting very, very clear that if someone comes forward with an allegation, we start by believing them and if someone feels that they were treated wrongly – even if that wasn't the intention – I just think an apology is a healthy thing.

Question: [Inaudible] talk about the Eric Garner and the chokehold, with the chief surgeon saying that it wasn't a chokehold?

Mayor: I haven't seen that so I can't speak to it because I just haven't seen the statement. My apology. Okay last call – once, twice. Welcome, Vicki Been.

Thank you, everyone.

[Applause]