Transcript: Mayor Adams Establishes Historic Levels of Permanent DSNY Funding for Clean Public Spaces as Part of "Best Budget Ever," Expands "Second Shift" Program to Clean NYC Parks During Evening Hours and on Weekends

May 8, 2025

Acting Commissioner Javier Lojan, Department of Sanitation: Good morning. Thank you all for joining us. I am Javier Lojan, acting commissioner of the New York City Department of Sanitation, and I want to welcome one of the most stalwart advocates that Clean Streets have ever had. The author of The Best Budget Ever, Mayor Eric Adams. 

Mayor Eric Adams: Thanks so much commissioner and all the team that's here as we roll out another aspect of what we call The Best Budget Ever and we're seeing that. Before doing that, I want to just really acknowledge, as we're seeing the sun setting of the parks commissioner career, my good friend Sue, you know, she's moving on to better things.  

Sue and I served together in Brooklyn when I was the Brooklyn borough president, and I just watched her as the head of Prospect Park. It became a jewel in the center of Brooklyn. Her dedication, her commitment [for] what she has done around our parks, I think is unparalleled. It's going to go down in history as one of the greatest park commissioners that we've ever had. And we cannot thank her enough for her service and her team.  

You know, ran a few marathons. And just loved the job, brought her a game every day, no matter what was happening in the city, as we dealt with so many different issues. She was just laser-focused on the parks, and we're seeing the quality of that. And just thank you so much, Sue, for just being here for the people of the City of New York. We're a better place because of you.  

So we want to move forward today as part of our Best Budget Ever. We are baselining over $32 million in funding annually to keep our city clean and to be here with our park commissioner and to be here with our Department of Sanitation commissioner and the two teams. You know, I think sometimes we see how clean our city has become and don't realize it's because of the men and women who do this job every day and make sure that it often goes unacknowledged and unnoticed.  

When you get out during the snow time and your streets are clean and you're able to drive to and from when you sit in your parks and you see that your parks are clean, you don't realize it's because of the manpower that's behind it. And part of this budget allotment is going to include the highest level of permanent funding for litter basket pickups in our city's history.  

Everyone is tired of those overfilled waste baskets and trying to find a way to get another cup in, another newspaper in, but we are going to make sure that our funding is there to manage the waste baskets in our city. And we're making funding permanent.  

Funding for cleanliness programs like little basket services have typically been set year to year. You have to cross your fingers and hope that you can get the amount of funding that's needed. Not anymore. That ends today. We're going to make it permanently part of our budget. Now these programs will now be a permanent part of the city's allotment on how we ensure the city remains clean throughout our city, generally, but specifically in our parks.  

It will no longer have to worry about overflowing litter bins and baskets on our streets. And we are making it clear, rats don't run New York. The people enjoy and run it. This administration is putting cleanliness front and center because our city should look as good as the people who are in it. With this investment, we're going to continue targeting cleaning of public spaces and areas with persistent littering and fund eighteen Department of Sanitation positions dedicated to cleaning park perimeters.  

We're also shifting our park maintenance up a gear to keep our parks even cleaner by expanding our second shift. Evening and weekend park cleaning teams, while you come out, you're going to see the difference in our parks. We have added a second cleaning shift to 100 new hot spots across 64 parks, nearly doubling the number of parks that will receive this intensive cleaning and ensuring a total of 200 hot spots across 121 parks are cleaned each afternoon during peak hours between Thursday and Monday.  

No more trash, a breeze of rodents, forcing families to stay away from our beautiful spaces. We built them. We ensured that they were functional. Now we want to make sure they're clean so families can enjoy it. With this second shift, we are also going to keep restrooms in our parks on average for another two hours each day, five days a week.  

Everyone knows when you got to go, you got to go, and you don't want to be looking for a place to go. And so we're going to allow our restrooms to be open and allow people to enjoy the restrooms and families to enjoy the restrooms without frustration. With extended bathroom hours, New York families won't have to cut their time in our open green spaces.  

This investment is all about keeping our city clean and part of our trash revolution. Our plan to end the dominance of trash and rats on our streets is clear and we're focused and we're moving in the right direction. And that's something that we embrace from our times, from coming in office, helping end the practice of trash being left out for a full day and stinking up our streets.  

This was something that the previous Department of Sanitation commissioner started, and we're seeing a difference. And it's continuing under our current commissioner, and Commissioner Lojan, you're doing an amazing job of making sure the flow continues. And we brought in containerization, which many people thought it was impossible. They stated it was going to take five years to do.  

We're now containerizing 70 percent of our trash, a huge success. And next month, we are installing our own new Empire bin stationary on-street containers in West Harlem. This will make West Harlem the first part of New York City to ever have its trash fully containerized. In East New York, we have not forgotten you. We're gonna make sure we hit this part of the city also.  

All these efforts have a clear direction. A clean city is a safe city, and it's a city where people will feel safe as we continue to drive down crime. So our Best Budget Ever makes investments that many of us have expected in every area of this city, and we're going to continue to do so as we roll these items out. [I] want to thank everyone [for] the partnership between DSNY and New York City Parks. We will continue the legacy of clean safe spaces to raise children and families. Thank you. 

Acting Commissioner Lojan: Thank you, Mayor Adams. In my 26 years with the Department of Sanitation, I have worked alongside thousands of men and women who take pride in keeping the streets of our city clean. We have always worked hard but for too long just as New Yorkers have been asked to accept black bags of trash on our streets, New Yorkers and visitors alike have also been asked to accept overflowing litter baskets, abandoned lots full of trash and littered highway shoulders.  

Just look at the posters behind us. Horrible, disgusting and unnecessary. It does not have to be this way. I am proud to stand here with a mayor who has refused to accept the status quo. Who doesn't think that images like these are just the way it is. This administration has ushered in a trash revolution, giving New York's strongest the resources we need to clean our city and to keep it that way forever.  

Today, Mayor Adams has once again proven himself to be a staunch and unflinching advocate of the clean streets as we announce historic funding. $29.7 million growing to $31 million to empty our corner litter baskets, the highest baseline level of funding for litter basket service in history. As you can see the large litter basket over there.  

$1.4 million to clean park perimeters, 820,000 growing to $1.6 million to clean city owned or maintained vacant lots, $3.6 million increasing to $6.3 million to clean neglected spaces like underpasses, greenways, and step streets. And $1.1 million for DSNY's Precision Cleaning Initiative, which provides targeted cleaning to high need areas and assists with the city's interagency homeless encampment task force.  

Now in my years with the department I have seen lots of announcements, photo ops and press releases announcing funding for increased cleaning. And in nearly all of these events the funding was a one time thing subject to renegotiation a year later. But cleanliness should not be held hostage to the blowing winds of politics. We at the Department of Sanitation should not be left wondering whether we will have staffing levels to clean our city next year. you should not be left wondering either. 

A cleaner city should be guaranteed year after year and that is what Mayor Adams has done today. This historic investment in a cleaner city is now a permanent part of the New York City budget, yet another component of the citywide trash revolution. We have cleaner streets and fewer rats and we're going to keep it that way.  

These permanent high levels of funding to protect cleanliness and quality of life of our neighborhoods and that is not a moment too soon. So when you see us emptying your corner litter basket or cleaning a shoulder or a vacant lot you can be sure we'll be back to clean it up. I want to thank Mayor Adams for allowing New York Strongest to do what we do best, make the city shine. I now welcome New York City Parks Commissioner Sue Donoghue. 

Commissioner Sue Donoghue, Department of Parks and Recreation: Thank you Commissioner Lojan and thank you Mayor Adams. Just have to take a moment to thank the mayor. Almost 10 years ago at an event not far from here when I was the president of the Prospect Park Alliance, and the mayor was then borough president, he said to me, “You know, when I'm mayor, I want you to be my parks commissioner.” And the day he was elected, I thought to myself, uh-oh, I may have a job change.  

But I have to say, it has been just the greatest privilege of my career to be in this role, to work with so many dedicated parkies, to have the support of this administration and this mayor so thank you it has been an incredible incredible journey and now on to this announcement we know that all New Yorkers deserve access to clean well-maintained parks and as we move into warmer weather which we finally have and have today we know that visitors flock to our public spaces and it becomes even more challenging to keep our parks in top condition.  

That's why it is so important that today we're announcing that we're adding additional maintenance staff on weekends and in the evenings when people are using our parks the most, ensuring that over 200 hotspots are kept clean during the busiest hours in 121 of our parks citywide. That's why these additional staffers who recently started on the job in all five boroughs will handle trash removal and restroom cleanliness. They'll help us remove graffiti and also importantly assist with rodent mitigation.  

We know that cleaner parks mean less rats and that's what we're looking for. These folks, these new personnel will be with us during evenings and weekends when our parks need it the most. As part of our second shift announcement we're also pleased to announce as the mayor said that we're keeping park restrooms open on average for another two hours, every day, five days a week and adding second shift workers is such an important milestone.  

It's the first time in New York City's park history that will have dedicated full-time staff during evening and weekend hours cleaning our parks at peak times when it's needed most. All told, with the new baseline funding included in the fiscal year 2026 preliminary budget, there will be more than 400 new parks workers dedicated to second shift maintenance.  

We are grateful to the administration for consistently making park cleanliness and quality of life for all New Yorkers a top priority. I want to take a moment to give a huge thanks and shout out to our parks operations and maintenance team, many of [whom] are with us today. They do the hard work to keep our parks clean, thank you so much.  

And they work tirelessly, all year round, in all conditions, to make sure our public spaces are in good condition for all New Yorkers to enjoy. So when you're out enjoying our parks and beaches this spring and summer, I encourage you to take a minute, thank a park worker for all the great work they do to keep our parks clean. Thank you all so much for coming. 

Acting Commissioner Lojan: Thank you, commissioner. Finally, we will hear from a local faith leader, Bishop David Maldonado, who knows firsthand what an impact this announcement will have on this area and the city at large. 

Bishop David Maldonado: God bless you and good morning. Thank you, mayor, and the team for this opportunity. This is a wonderful initiative. Keeping our environment and our community parks clean is crucial, especially in the summer when our children spend time there. God bless our community, our nation, and our mayor, in Jesus' name. God bless you. 

Question: You face a lot of criticism for cutting the park's budget, which is still at only 0.6 percent of the city budget. If you're re-elected, would you commit to getting it up to 1 percent of the city's budget, which is what advocates have been asking for for quite a while? 

Mayor Adams: No, it's so true. And when running for office, the vision was clear, not only to pick the best park commissioner we've ever known, but also to do 1 percent of our budget. When you get in the seats and you are faced with unforeseen crisis, like a $7.5 billion gut in our budget, you have to make tough choices. This is not the budget we wanted for parks.  

We actually wanted to do more than 1 percent. But we had some tough challenges to face. We have to find ways of how [to] continue to expand our park footprint, how do we build up our open spaces, how do we ensure that they remain clean, and I think we've accomplished that. And so, next year, if we don't have some unforeseen challenges, we would love to reach the 1 percent number.  

But we have some real challenges, from COVID, cycling out of COVID, to [230,000] migrants and asylum seekers, and other issues that hit our city. And when you look at it and do an analysis, it was amazing the way we navigated through it, that bond rate has increased, our bond rate has stated that we've managed the fiscal crisis head on. And I'm proud of that. But yes. 

Question: How were parks chosen to benefit from the expanded services of these underserved communities?  

Commissioner Donoghue: Thank you so much for the question. And yes, we targeted areas that are known, what we call hot spots, barbecue areas, areas where people are known to convene into the later hours, on the weekends, and that can tend to be a challenge for our maintenance and operations staff. So, yes, they're based on heavy usage and where the cleaning is needed the most. 

Question: But I wanted to ask, you know, you brought up the commissioner leaving at the end of the month. Arguably, we're going into the busy season. Any worry about that? You know, who's going to take her position? Maybe she can also speak to that. 

Mayor Adams: Yeah, and she can also. But what I have learned is that all of our agencies [have] a deep bench. And you know, the commissioner and I, both commissioners, you know, we get to accolades, but we have a real team that's behind us. And thank God that when you have these transitions, you see the cities don't fall apart.  

Because once a commissioner lays a clear pathway and plan and the team is executing, the team knows how to execute. You know, I would love to believe, all of us would love to believe that we're the only ones that's holding everything together, but it's not true. And if you don't have a good bench that is actually operating, then you do your job.  

When I spoke with the commissioner over the weekend, she said, “Listen, there are good people in place that can continue to do the great work that we're doing. They know how to clean the parks. They know how to make sure we continue to expand.” She left a good plan in place, a good team. Every new commissioner brings his or her desires and vision, but, you know, this commissioner, she has a deep end.  

She has an amazing staff, and some of the staff, they have been here and served under several administrations. And so they know how to keep the lights on. They know how to make sure the trucks are moving. They know how to make sure that the grass is cut. Where's Marty Mark? You know how long this man has been around? He teaches us about pongs. 

So, no matter what mayor or commissioner comes on board, they're going to reach out to Marty, you know. And so, you know, the system will still operate. That's what's great about this city. We have great civil servants that know how to do the job every day. Commissioner? 

Commissioner Donoghue: Thank you, Mr. Mayor. I would second everything that the mayor has said. One of the things that has been a huge priority of mine in this administration is an initiative I launched right when I started called People at Parks, and it's really been about focusing on staff development and how we are helping to lift up our leaders, lift up the members of the Parks Department.  

And as the mayor said, we have an extraordinary team. I've got five borough commissioners. Marty Mark, as the mayor said, is one of them who's here, so dedicated to the task at hand, and many of our leaders, you know, in the borough of Brooklyn are here, but across the city. So I am confident that with the incredible and incredibly dedicated staff of Parks employees, the good work will continue for the City of New York. 

Question: I just had a question about containerization. You mentioned that West Harlem is moving towards total containerization. Harlem is moving towards total containerization, can you touch a little bit on how that transition has been going and how you're choosing neighborhoods moving forward that you're going to focus on getting to that 100 percent first? 

Acting Commissioner Lojan: Thank you for that question. So we began installations [in the] middle of April. They're ongoing. They're going to be about a thousand containers across the community board. As far as future districts, I think this is a one-year pilot. We're going to learn a lot from it. This is the first time we've had any kind of entree containerization.  

The truck that we had put together was the first of its kind in the country. Very special. So we're going to learn a lot from the pilot, and then once we learn more, we'll have a better sense of what's the appropriate path forward for the next districts. But we're very excited about it, and we hope to see a lot of positive impacts on the community. Thank you. 

Mayor Adams: You know, and as the commissioner stated, this truck is the first of its kind in the nation. When you make this shift to containerized garbage in New York City, of many, like I said, people say it's going to take us five years. We hit that number in little under three years when we really started, and we were very clear that we were going to get it done.  

This is a major shift in cleanliness in our city to containerize our garbage and you know New Yorkers when you first roll out the bins you know they don't want to hear [it]. New Yorkers don't like anyone telling them anything to do but then when you start to see how the garbage is going in the bins, you're starting to see your sidewalks are cleaner [and] less rodents.  

People are saying wait a minute this is not a bad idea and so we're looking forward to the continuing evolution and the commissioner and his team, they have done an amazing job of education, getting the information out there, and executing the plan.  

Question: [Inaudible] enforcement for littering and illegal dumping?  

Mayor Adams: Yes, huge, huge. Illegal dumping we saw was a constant problem. We did everything from installation of cameras to increasing our enforcement. There were a small number of New Yorkers that determined that they were going to dump either construction material or other items.  

And we have really beefed up our enforcement to identify those who are carrying out. If you ignore it and allow it to happen, it will just—it will continue to grow. And we knew we had to stop just walking by, and enforcement is very much part of our plan.