Transcript: Mayor de Blasio Appears on News 12 The Bronx

May 25, 2017

Jessica Cunnington: Thank you for joining us, I’m Jessica Cunnington. Darryl Green, we’re getting to your weather on the two’s in just a bit. But first – our exclusive interview with the Mayor. He continues his week-long trip here in the Bronx, and our Eric Steltzer got to sit down with him to talk about what he’s learned so far this week from Bronxites. 

Eric Steltzer: We met with Mayor Bill de Blasio on the roof of the Bronx County Courthouse about halfway through his Bronx City Hall In Your Borough Tour. 

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Mayor Bill de Blasio: A lot of times, whether it’s a town hall meeting, or the kind of office hours we had at the resource fair, it causes us to send our people out to the community to figure out what we need to learn and what we need to do better. 

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Steltzer: The Mayor is spending the week in the borough, stopping by Madonia Brothers Bakery, Tuesday. 

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Mayor: They fill the cannoli right there, you know? It’s not pre-filled. 

Steltzer: It’s not in the refrigerator. 

Mayor: That’s a sin in my point of view. 

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Steltzer: But it’s not about food, it’s about keeping shops like this in business. The Mayor says the city is increasing its number of contracts for minorities and women, making it easier for them to open a business, while also cutting through some red tape to keep small businesses afloat. 

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Mayor: We’ve reduced fines on small businesses by 40 percent – that’s millions and millions of dollars back in the pockets of small business owners. That’s been something that’s really been recognized and felt by a lot of small business owners, including on Arthur Avenue. 

Steltzer: But what about overdevelopment and rezoning? How do you balance affordable housing and also making sure that the rent doesn’t go up for the people that have been here for a long time?

Mayor: This is a fundamental question. A lot of people – I don’t blame them – look at new development and say, wait, that’s going to raise prices for everyone. I would argue that we need to recognize that that development is natural in the history of New York City. It’s not always good, but it’s natural in a free-market economy. 

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Steltzer: I also asked the Mayor about infrastructure and crippling subway delays. He says the city is undergoing the biggest repaving effort in history, saying the Bronx should see improvements by summer. But he also had this to say –

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Mayor: I’m going to argue that there’s a lot we can do to make it easier not to use a car to begin with. On the mass transit piece with the subways, I always say – and it’s finally become clear in this last week or two – the State of New York, the Governor of New York control the MTA. 

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Steltzer: The Mayor says he wants to see the state hone in on those delays and invest in reducing them.

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Mayor: The number one problem in New York City subways is the delays, not where the money should be focused, not on all sorts of other things that may be good things, but they’re not as important has helping the 5 or 6 million straphangers who ride the subway every day get where they’re trying to go. We still haven’t seen that plan from the Governor and the MTA, but we’re pushing for it.