Transcript: Mayor de Blasio Holds Media Availability

July 13, 2021

Mayor Bill de Blasio: Good morning, everyone. Well, more good news for New York City. I don't know if you were watching last night, but I sure was. The Home Run Derby – Pete Alonso, ladies and gentlemen, what a tribute he has given to New York City and the New York Mets with his incredible performance. Something to be really proud of. And what I loved about it was he had a lot of New York swagger. He was up there, he was joyful. He was positive. Reminds me a lot about New York City right now, the absolutely clear attitude out there in the city that we're going to get things done, we're going to come back strong. Pete Alonso, a great example to us all of what a champion looks like and someone who just went up there had a vision and made it happen. So, congratulations, Pete, congratulations to the Mets. A very, very good thing for New York City. Now, people are going back to Mets games because everyone went and got vaccinated, and that's allowed us to enjoy life again and have so many wonderful events and the things that we love in our lives, including going to a baseball game. It's back because of vaccination. So, we want to keep encouraging everyone to get vaccinated and every single day, thousands and thousands more New Yorkers get vaccinated. It's making a real difference. The vaccination totals as of today, amazing number, 9,628,278 doses from the very beginning of this effort. And we're going to keep it growing and continue to, every day, build up our efforts to protect all New Yorkers. Now this is what's allowing us to recover. This is what's allowing us to create a recovery for all of us. This is what's allowing us to bring New York City back and every single day we see more good news of the city coming back to life, things opening again, all because of that amazing vaccination effort. Well, here's some good news today, something that people absolutely feel strongly about in the city because it's made such a big difference in their lives, IDNYC. This is an amazing story of an idea that we took – it was started in other parts of the country. We brought it here and then we put it on steroids here in New York City. 1.4 million New Yorkers have an IDNYC. And for so many of them, it has unlocked incredible opportunities they would not have had without having an ID card. Simple, powerful things like being able to get a bank account or sign a lease or visit your child's school because folks have an ID. And this is true for all New Yorkers. It's been particularly powerful for undocumented New Yorkers and given folks a sense of belonging and respect and the ability to be full partners in the life of this city. So, this has been a great success story. Now IDNYC is coming back. The offices had to be closed because of COVID. We’re reopening now IDNYC offices so people can sign up starting with five new centers opening this month, including one in Lower Manhattan. There'll be additional sites opening up. Anyone who wants an IDNYC, has not had one so far, or wants to renew one, you can go to nyc.gov/IDNYC, or call 3-1-1, and just say IDNYC. And it's here for you. I want you to hear more about this good news from our new Commissioner for the Mayor's Office of Immigrant Affairs. She spent years fighting for immigrants all over the city and particularly for her own beloved Dominican community. And now she's leading this office, an example to the whole country, our Office of Immigrant Affairs, of how to embrace and support all people from all over the world. My pleasure to introduce Raquel Batista. Commissioner Raquel Batista, Mayor's Office of Immigrant Affairs: Thank you so much, Mayor. And I'm very excited to join the administration in assisting in the recovery efforts for the city. I want to thank all of our collaborators, our elected officials, and partners who have really made the reopening and the running of our enrollment centers possible. As the Mayor said, you can make an appointment to apply for an IDNYC card in person or at the enrollment center. Most existing IDNYC card holders can renew online, a quick and easy process at nyc.gov/IDNYC. And since the Mayor has begun this project back in 2015 this has been historic for New York City communities to be able to access various services throughout the city and have experiencing exciting benefits. I know for me, having worked in New York City for over 20 years with immigrant communities, both in the nonprofit sector, as an attorney, this is a really important effort to be able to create access for our communities, especially our undocumented communities, so that they're able to get the resources, so important. And this is especially important in our recovery as we're looking at State efforts such as the New York State Emergency Rental Assistance Program and the New York State Excluded Workers Fund. If you are applying for these services or you may utilize the IDNYC to be able to apply for these really important services. Again, regardless of immigration status, you can apply for IDNYC, and please visit our website at nyc.gov/IDNYC. Mayor: Thank you so much, Raquel. Thank you for all you are doing and for spreading the word about IDNYC. I want you to hear now from some leaders who feel passionately about this topic, about reaching and empowering and supporting immigrants. Each has a powerful, personal story of their own, and they've done so much to help immigrant New Yorkers. First, someone who served with us here in City Hall when we were creating IDNYC and now serves in the State Senate as a leading progressive champion, State Senator Jessica Ramos. [...] Thank you so much, Senator. And, hey, I want to thank you. And we're going to have one of your good colleagues from the Assembly in a moment. I want to thank both of you because what you guys did in this last legislative session was absolutely crucial for the recovery of New York City on so many levels. So, it's important to all New Yorkers. I – you know, if you see a State legislator walking by, stop and say, thank you. You guys did a great job for New York City. Thank you so much. And now we turn to a member of the Assembly who has also been an extraordinary champion for the rights of immigrants. Another one of the leading progressive voices in the Assembly. And again, thank you Assembly Member for the amazing work you all did in this last session, particularly the budget, which was groundbreaking in support from New York City and our recovery. My great pleasure to introduce Assembly Member Catalina Cruz. [...] Thank you so much, Assembly Member. We will immediately take you up on that offer. So, our Director for Immigrant Affairs, Raquel Batista, and her team will follow up with you today. Today. And thank you, that's amazing. That’s just with one pop-up, you reached 500 people is really outstanding, and I love what you said. This is a way for people to be able to access things that would never be available for them otherwise. And that's why it's so crucial to get this in the hands of as many New Yorkers as possible. Thank you for the great work you've been doing. And one more speaker I wanted to hear from, everyone, because she does amazing work as part of one of the organizations that has had the most profound impact for immigrants in this city, Make the Road New York extraordinary advocacy on behalf of all immigrants, including undocumented New Yorkers, from the grassroots and really making sure their voices were heard. And we appreciate that deeply. My pleasure to introduce the Co-Executive Director, Arlenis Morel. [...] Thank you so much, Arlenis, and thank you for the great work you and your colleagues do. I love when you talked about the smile on people's faces because, everyone – this is a human thing. Everyone wants to feel they belong and they are appreciated and they are respected. In this city, we appreciate all New Yorkers regardless of documentation status, and whether someone had an ID or didn't before, now there's something there for everyone. So, thank you for having brought the IDNYC to members of the community. And let's do more now that it's back. Let's get to so many more people who need it. Thank you. All right now everyone, that's one part of recovery for all of us, but another part I want to talk about today, a recovery for all of us, in New York City, that means arts and culture. You cannot have New York City back fully without arts and culture strong. It is who we are. It's our identity. It's our heart, our soul. It's a lot of our economy too. And we know that these amazing artists who make New York City such a special place, they struggle in even the best of times to make ends meet. A lot of them have gone through a really tough situation with the pandemic. And that's why we started the City Artist Corps, a way to get thousands of artists support, and an opportunity to do great things for their fellow New Yorkers, have an ability to make ends meet through the end of the pandemic here, and continue their great efforts in this city. We've now selected the first group of artists, 500 artists, more are being chosen. And we're going to give them an opportunity to do something special this summer, all over the five boroughs. We've got artists who will be working with our Summer Rising Program to support our kids and bring arts and culture to them. We've got artists who will be working with NYCHA residents to create murals in public housing developments. We've got artists who will be doing public performances in neighborhoods all over the city. We have thousands of more artists we're going to be reaching. And I want to urge all artists who want to be a part of this amazing effort, go to nyc.gov/CityArtistCorps to sign up. And I want you to hear from someone who applied and was chosen to share the gift of music. He is Cuban born, and he brings a love of Cuban music to this city. He lives in the Bronx and he wants to make sure that people get exposed to this beautiful part of New York City culture. My pleasure to introduce Elio Villafranca-West. […] Mayor: Thank you so much Elio. And I know people are going to really, really have an amazing experience listening to your compositions and the beautiful music that you create. And thank you for wanting to bring it to the community. And everyone, I'd say this, City Artists Corps, we are borrowing directly from a great initiative from the 1930’s, from the New Deal. When in the depths of the Depression, the federal government employed artists to bring people hope, to bring them joy, to keep artists doing the great work they do. This is our version of that for this moment in history. And thousands of artists in this city are going to benefit and that's going to be good for New York City and our comeback. And another crucial element of our comeback with arts and culture, look summer of New York City is going to be all about the amazing arts and culture that will be all over the city, particularly outdoors this summer, amazing things are going to be happening. This is going to be an unforgettable summer. And today we kick off a special element when it comes to the arts and culture that will be part of this summer. It's going to be called 7 Days of Summer, 7 Days of Summer. It's a week of events all over the five boroughs, hosted by the city's Cultural Institutions Group. And it will be a wide variety of performances and events. The idea is to give people a chance to reconnect with arts and culture, to feel the joy, to feel the hope. And I want you to hear from a couple of the artists who are leading the way and are inspiring people in their communities and beyond to really see this recovery for all that’s going to be. First of all, a Grammy award-winning musician who has brought music to the community, who has done something really, really special in terms of making sure people get exposed to music that is so powerful. He is the Musical Director of the Spanish Harlem Orchestra. My pleasure to introduce Oscar Hernandez. Oscar, can you hear us? Hold on. Well, we don't see Oscar, yet. We're going to keep moving. Okay. Let's see if we can get Oscar back right after. All right. So, we'll go on to another musical leader, in fact a musical legend. We might say, a New York City musical legend, a hip-hop pioneer. He will be introducing – this is part of this 7 Days of Culture. He'll be introducing a sold-out screening of his 1985 hip-hop film, Crushed Groove at the Museum of the City of New York. That will be this Thursday. He is a hip-hop pioneer. His birth name, Damon Wimbley, but he is also known as Kool Rock-Ski of the Fat Boys. Welcome, Damon. […] I love it. Damon, thank you. Celebrate the musicians, celebrate the workers. I love that. And thank you. I really would love to be at your cookout because this is exactly what we see, great people doing all over city. Thank you for giving back. Thank you for bringing something joyous to East New York. People like you, leaders in the arts and culture are doing amazing things all over the city, out of love for the city to bring us back. So, really want to thank you for doing that and look forward to seeing you there. Damon Wimbley: Definitely. Love New York. Peace out, everybody. Mayor: Peace out, Damon. Okay. Now we are going to go over – we unfortunately, Oscar, we could not get back on the line. So, we'll hear from him another time, but we appreciate his efforts as well. And let's do today's indicators. Number one, daily number of people admitted to New York City hospitals for a suspected COVID-19. Today's report, 64 patients. Confirmed positivity level of 11.76 percent. Hospitalization rate 0.29 per 100,000. Number two, new reported cases on a seven-day average. Today’s report 363 cases. And number three, percentage of people testing citywide positive for COVID-19. Today's report on a seven-day rolling average, 1.28 percent. I'm going to say a few words in Spanish and going to focus on IDNYC. [Mayor de Blasio speaks in Spanish] With that, let's turn to our colleagues in the media. Please let me know the name and outlet of each journalist. Moderator: We'll now begin our Q-and-A. As a reminder, we're joined today by MOIA Commissioner Raquel Batista, by Dr. Mitch Katz and by Dr. Dave Chokshi. First question today goes to Juliet from 1010 WINS. Question: Hey, good morning, Mr. Mayor, and everybody out on the call today. So, I guess this is a good question for today's topic. This was from a listener to me the other day. They want to know if you need some sort of photo ID or a license to get vaccinated and or tested? Mayor: Great question. This question has come up before, but I'm glad we're talking about [inaudible] and I’m going to turn to Dr. Katz and Dr. Chokshi. Look, even though it is normal to ask for identity to keep track of things like second appointments, et cetera. My understanding is if for some reason, someone did not have an ID, of course, we still want to make sure that they get what they need. So, Dr. Katz, Dr. Chokshi, talk about how that works. President and CEO Mitchell Katz, NYC Health + Hospitals: Yes, Mr. Mayor. We often at Health + Hospitals have situations where people come to us without an identification at that moment. It's still our job to take care of them. And the same would be true of vaccination. We will do our best to help the person to establish their identity because we want it known for them in the future that they've been vaccinated. But we will go ahead and vaccinate someone, even if they do not have an identity card. But I think this NYC ID card is great and everybody should get one. Mayor: I like that. Amen. Dr. Chokshi you want to add? Commissioner Dave Chokshi, Department of Health and Mental Hygiene: Yes sir. Just to add briefly, I want to emphasize that in our city of immigrants and as the son of immigrants myself we do not ask for the immigration status of people who get the vaccine in any of our clinics or in Dr. Katz's public hospitals. We also never share anyone's information, such as where they reside with federal or immigration authorities. And the final point is a reminder that the vaccines are free and health insurance is also not required to get vaccinated. Mayor: Very, very good points. Thank you. Go ahead, Juliet. Question: Okay, great. Thank you. And I will convey that information to our listener. So, actually Commissioner Shea was on NY1 this morning seeming pretty perturbed about the gang related shootings and the teenage victims in the Bronx. He says the 16-year-old was arrested three prior time and released for gun-related crimes – no charges. So, he's asking where is the outrage? So, are you concerned about that? Mayor: Oh yeah. Juliet, look, we've got so much more we've got to do here. And I share his outrage. We can't see anything involving guns go unaddressed. And there's a lot we need to do. A lot we can do on the NYPD side, but a lot we have to – we need help from the federal government. We need help from the State government. We're losing young people. And we shouldn't be losing these young people. I want to commend the Commissioner because he's talking about trying to stop these horrible realities before they happen by reaching young people early. It’s the whole youth initiative that he started, to focus on reaching young people, especially when we start to see signs of trouble and help them towards a positive path. And there's a lot we can do in the city, but we need federal help stopping the flow of guns into the city. We need State help, continuing to improve our laws. Really want to see this parole bill passed soon by the Senate so we can help make sure that folks who are coming out of prison, break out of that cycle of violence. We definitely need help. Moderator: The next is Andrew Siff from WNBC. Question: Hi, Mayor and everyone on the call. Mayor about a year ago, tropical storm Isaias pounded New York City pretty hard. And some local electeds in Eastern Queens are saying that the damage from that storm has still not been addressed by the city. They're saying that the Parks Department is blaming DOT and the DOT is blaming the Parks Department. And it sounds like one of those situations where agencies finger-point at one another. I'm wondering if you are aware of what the status is and what you're doing to make sure that these homeowners get relief a year later. Mayor: Yeah, I'm glad you're raising this, Andrew. And, unfortunately, this is not the first time I've seen a situation where agencies may be pointing the finger at each other. I don't want to see that. I want to just make sure we help New Yorkers who need help and address the issues. Please share the specific cases you know about with our team here at City Hall. We'll get to work on it immediately. It really bothers me to hear that this much time has passed and anyone isn't getting the help they need. So, we will expedite that. Go ahead, Andrew. Question: Only got one today, Mr. Mayor, and everyone on the call. Wishing you the best. Mayor: Thank you very much. Moderator: The next is Bob Hennelly from the Chief Leader. Question: Thanks for taking the call. Considering the growing challenge with the Delta variant, shouldn't you and the City be highlighting on a daily basis – and I mean, in the dashboard that we hear every day – the data points from ZIP codes where vaccination rates continue to lag the city or the national average, isn't this a critical indicator? Mayor: Bob, it's a fair question, but I'd say, you know, that information we put up regularly through the Health Department and we act on it by sending more of our mobile efforts into those communities, working with community leaders. We know, Bob, a lot of this has to be done very locally. That's why we have this bonus referral initiative where local committee-based organizations, houses of worship, and others can actually directly benefit financially for their community for every single person that they bring in to get vaccinated. So, we know there are areas that need more work and we put the information out publicly, and then we act on it. Go ahead, Bob. Question: This is for you and that would be great to hear from your health experts. I just spoke with Dr. Prezant, of the FDNY's chief medical officer. He mentions that they're still dealing with vaccination [inaudible] among first responders and firefighters in EMT is at the 50 percent rate. In light of this Delta issue and of the fact that you do have a serious problem with ZIP codes that are lagging, isn't there a potential problem here if you have first responders – I understand even the Police Department still has an issue here – that are not getting vaccinated, operating as they must and do in areas that are so below the national average and even the City average for vaccination acceptance? Mayor: I'll start and I'll turn to Dr. Katz and Dr. Chokshi. Bob, look, we've got a lot of work to do. Now, 9.6 million vaccinations so far – clearly, a lot of people have responded and that's why overall the city is so safe. But I think your point is very well taken, we've got to reach more people and we’ve got to figure out what's going to move them. I do think time has helped for a lot of people. I think incentives have helped for some people. I think making it convenient is help for some people. But I think we’ve got to keep, especially within agencies, redoubling our efforts, because every single additional vaccination matters. So, in terms of everything we can do, particularly within our City agencies – first Dr. Katz, then Dr. Chokshi. President Katz: Yes, Mr. Mayor, I think you've covered it very well. The key continues to be vaccination and that we hope that people listening understand that the increase in cases is all occurring among unvaccinated people and we have a city that's prepared to vaccinate people with a highly effective vaccine at no cost with great convenience. We understand that there are populations, including first responders, who continue to, you know, be wary of vaccination. We're doing our best to provide information, to provide peer support, testimonials of other people, community leaders, religious leaders, all to make people more comfortable with vaccination, and it is working. I mean, as you continue to say, sir, every day more and more New Yorkers are vaccinated. Thank you, sir. Mayor: Thank you. Dr. Chokshi? Commissioner Chokshi: Thank you and thanks for this important question. Just to build a little bit on what Dr. Katz has said, our starting point is that the Delta variant does add one more reason why it is so urgent to get vaccinated. We have seen over the past 18 months how much the coronavirus is a formidable foe and how it will find the cracks in our armor. But we have the most powerful weapons to actually do something about it and protect ourselves in the safe and effective COVID-19 vaccines. With respect to the scale of outreach that we've described, much of it hinges on the one-on-one conversations, those individual discussions where people can share their values and preferences and find a listening ear to talk through any remaining concerns from them. But in that conversation, we have to be very clear that it is a dangerous time to remain unvaccinated, particularly because of the new that are circulating. Mayor: Thank you very much. Moderator: The next is Emma from the New York Times. Question: Hi. Good morning, Mayor. I have a question about congestion pricing. So, Eric Adams called for it to start immediately after the recent subway flooding. You told us you’d check with your MTA board members. Can you tell us why is it so delayed and have you nominated your one pick to the Traffic Mobility Review Board? Mayor: I will get back to you on the board, where that stands. But look, I want to see a congestion pricing start as quickly as possible. I believe that some of the federal issues that we were previously dealing with, the previous administration, obviously have been cleared away. But I've got to get you an exact update, Emma, on the steps we can take. I want it to be as fast as humanly possible. I think it would be tremendously helpful at this point, reducing congestion, obviously, people turned back to their cars intensely during COVID. We need to get people back into mass transit and we need the support from mass transit. So, we'll get back to you today with an update on each of those pieces. Question: Thank you. My next question is on ranked choice voting. I'm wondering if you think New York City should reconsider it? There's a bill in the Council by several Black members to get rid of ranked choice voting, or do you think it should be here to stay? Mayor: It's a great question. Emma. I'll tell you what I'm thinking so far. If it turns out that it was utilized well across the board in all sorts of communities, then I feel pretty good about it, because what I like is someone's vote having power through multiple rounds and not being lost or spoiled because, you know, a candidate they liked didn't win in the first round. I liked the fact that we don't go to a runoff, and run offs, unfortunately, so often we're lower turnout. But I like that if – if there was relative equality in how people utilize their ballots. In other words, if in more privileged and less privileged communities, you saw consistent voting one through five or as close to that as possible, everyone maximizing the power of the ballot. We don't have that analysis yet, Emma. If it turns out conversely that we see a real skew, then I think it's time to reassess, because what I don't want to see is a system that enfranchises some people and not others and we need the research to really tell what happened here. Moderator: The next is Yehudit from Borough Park 24 News. Question: Good morning, Mr. Mayor. How are you? Mayor: I'm doing great. How are you today? Question: Good. Thank God. So, because of New York's current bail reform laws, many perpetrators of hate crimes against Jews and other groups are released within 24-to-48 hours without being prosecuted to just return back to the streets and commit more hate crimes and hurt more people. So, Assemblyman Simcha Eichenstein, who feels that other avenues of justice have been thwarted has proposed that victims of hate crimes legally pursue their attackers by filing civil lawsuits against their attackers. One of the lawyers with whom Assemblyman Eichenstein is working speaks about using the courts to create financial consequences for perpetrators of hate crimes, such as garnishing their wages, freezing their bank accounts, and putting liens on their property. My question is, do you think the threat and practice of bringing civil lawsuits against perpetrators of hate crimes would have any effect in deterring them? And, if not, what other measures could be taken? Mayor: I have a lot of respect for the Assembly Member. He was a member of our team and did great work here in City Hall and has done great work in the Assembly. I think it's an idea that needs to be explored, because we've got to create every conceivable disincentive to stop hate crimes. And I think that's a real interesting one, hitting people in their pocket book. I kind of like that, but we need to look at, of course, all the pros and cons and how it would play out. I also think in terms of the bail laws, that hate crimes are one of those categories that needs to be reconsidered, because if someone has committed a hate crime there needs to be a very clear, sharp sense of consequence. People have to see the consequences. So, that's another area I think that needs to be reconsidered now. Go ahead, Yehudit. Question: Thank you. And then, last week, Dr. Chokshi said that the vast majority of both new cases and hospitalizations are occurring for those who are not yet fully vaccinated. I'm wondering whether you have any data on whether anyone who has gotten the Delta variant or is hospitalized had, had antibodies from having previously had the original strain of COVID? Mayor: Very good question and I'm going to turn it to Dr. Chokshi. Commissioner Chokshi: Thank you for this important question, which is if someone has had previous infection and particularly if they have antibodies after that prior infection, are they at risk of getting reinfected, particularly with the Delta variant? And the answer is that there is a small risk of reinfection, and it appears that the Delta variant does have some slightly greater properties to invade the immune system. But natural infection does provide good protection against all of the variants of the virus that are circulating in New York City, including the Delta variant. The final point, which is very important, is that the best way to augment that immunity is to get vaccinated. So, if you're someone like me who had COVID-19 in the past, my recommendation is for you to get vaccinated as well, because we do have evidence that strengthens immunity and it may extend the duration of immunity as well. Mayor: Thank you very much. Moderator: The next is Steve Burns from WCBS 880. Question: Hey. Good morning, Mr. Mayor. How have you been? Mayor: Good, Steve. How are you doing today? Question: Doing all right. Wanted to ask another COVID-related question. In terms of, you know, how we deal with – if I could borrow a phrase from Governor Murphy in New Jersey, a pandemic among the unvaccinated – I know the vaccination effort continues a pace, but if we do see, you know, growing amounts of cases and hospitalizations that are almost solely among the unvaccinated, how do you tackle that from a regulatory or a policy perspective? I take it, we're not going to see too many wide-scale restrictions or closures anymore. But do we just resign ourselves to letting this, you know, spread among the unvaccinated? Or how do we – how do we kind of tackle that from a policy perspective? Mayor: Well, huge, powerful question, Steve. Thank you. And I'll start and I'll turn to Dr. Katz and Dr. Chokshi. We are talking about this constantly lately. Look, what's clear is, there's still a lot of running room here in terms of reaching people, because, every day, thousands and thousands more people get vaccinated. So, I want to start with that, but then address, I think, the other element of question. Just to give you the update, Steve, right now, again, 4.4 million fully vaccinated New York City residents – 4.8 million if include folks who have had at least one dose and, therefore, have some protection. And, overwhelmingly, folks who get one dose do come back and get the second. So, we're continuing to make progress. Every day we see new people coming in, because they are being reached through these grassroots efforts in particular. So, we know that sort of constantly working it is having an effect. And every single additional vaccination really helps us, it just keeps cutting off avenues for COVID. To your point, though, what are the other tools? We're continually exploring that. We've got to look at, you know, a variety of options as we go forward. I don't think right now we need a different tool, because we see the most important indicators – we go over them every day. Hospitalization is really the leading edge here, the thing that tells us the most about the ability of people to either not get COVID or survive COVID. That number remains very, very low. And, you know, as vaccinations every day go up and that hospitalization number remains low, we're in the right place. But we do need to think about what if that changes, what can we do differently? And that's something we're going to be continually exploring, you know, in the weeks ahead. Go ahead, Dr. Katz. President Katz: Think you've said it all, sir. I find it very pleasing every day to review the number people who are still coming forward for vaccination. I know in my own clinical practice, I still get more people vaccinated when I talked to them about it. I think there were a large number of people for whom it still seems like this vaccine is very new, it's only been available for six or seven months, they want a little more time to feel that they know the side effects profile and that a lot of people I talk to don't say no, but say not now, I'm not quite ready yet. And I think especially as more information comes forward and people see that the unvaccinated are getting sick and the vaccinated are staying safe, we're going to see the rest of the population move forward for vaccination. Thank you, sir. Mayor: Thank you. Go ahead, Dr. Chokshi. Commissioner Chokshi: Thank you. And just to answer your question, Steve, directly – no, we do not resign ourselves, because we have the chance to save more lives and prevent more suffering. The most important way to do that is what the Mayor and Dr. Katz had talked about, which is extending vaccination as broadly as we possibly can. We have particularly younger adults as well as youth adolescents who remain eligible for vaccination. And I do think we'll see more uptake among those groups in particular in the coming weeks and ahead of a return to school in the fall. The other thing that I have to mention is, to protect people who are unvaccinated, we have to continue emphasizing the precautions that have worked over the last 18 months. That means, if you are not yet fully vaccinated, you should continue wearing your face covering, continue practicing physical distancing, getting tested regularly, keeping your hands clean – all of these things help to curb the spread before there were vaccines. And if one remains unvaccinated, they remain important for you right now as well. Mayor: Thank you. Go ahead, Steve. Question: I appreciate the detailed responses there. Second question is a little more offbeat. There's been a lot of conversation about Manhattan's final Kmart closing at Astor Place. And I wanted to see, Mr. Mayor, if you have had any experiences at that Kmart, if you draw any larger conclusions of a Manhattan losing one of its, you know, last big box discount type stores. Mayor: Thanks for the question, Steve. I have not gone to that Kmart. I've spent a lot of time in that area, because I went to NYU and I love that part of our city, and I go to Astor Place for my haircuts right there, down the street from that Kmart. But no, look, I think the bottom line is, as New York City's coming back, you're going to see all sorts of options made available to people. You know, I think, in the end, people are going to constantly demand what they need and the economy and the business sector are going to respond to it. So, I can't personally read too much into that. I think there's going to be a lot of good – other good options for people. Moderator: We have time for two more for today. The next is Gersh from Streetsblog. Question: Hey. Good morning, Mr. Mayor, and everyone on the call. How are you? Mayor: Good, Gersh. How you feel about that home run derby? Question: You know, I think it changes the guy's swing and it's going to be a disaster. I know that that's an unpopular position. Mayor: Gersh, I just knew you'd have an opinion. I had no fear that I'd throw that out there and get no response. Thank you, Gersh. Question: You put me on the spot. I will tell all your listeners that the Mets offered an 80 percent discount on upcoming tickets. So, I scooped up a lot of tickets yesterday. Mayor: Very good, wise man. Question: Exactly. So, listen, Mr. Mayor, on Thursday on East Houston Street a hit and run driver struck and kill the delivery worker. You know, multiple videos obtained by Streetsblog that we've published, showed that, in fact, the driver was being chased at high speed by the NYPD for reasons that are unclear. Now, we've asked the NYPD about this incident repeatedly and had been told only that it's under review and that the driver who killed the delivery worker remains at large. So, we think this incident reveals two things I want to ask you about – one is the need to review the policy on high-speed chases in dense areas; and two the need for the NYPD to properly inform the media when questioned about policy. What do you think about that? Mayor: Of course, I want to see transparency on these issues, and I appreciate you raising it, seriously. We need to get the facts out on what happened here. It's horrible. It's an absolute tragedy. Understandably, if the NYPD saw something they were trying to address, that's something that's important in and of itself. But if, inadvertently, that had anything to do with the death of this individual, that's horrible. But I do want to say there's been very clear policies limiting those kinds of chases. They are not typical in New York City. I think the NYPD has done a lot to create a very, very careful approach in general. It's not something you see a lot of in this city. It is something you see much more in other parts of the country, and that comes with real problems and dangers, and I think that's why the NYPD has modified their approach over time. But we do need to get the facts in this case, and we will get them to you. Go ahead, Gersh. Question: Okay, let me go in a different direction. So, you often say that you like it when journalists bring you information you might not know about, so I'll tell you that right now on your gold standard Open Street, which you know, I asked you about all the time, 34th Avenue in Jackson Heights, the Fresh Air Fund, which provides low-income children with fun recreation, which as you would probably tell me should be a privilege –not, it should be a right, not a privilege. They've set up play areas that are designated as no parking zones. Fresh Air Fund has the permits from SAPO and the NYPD, yet drivers continue to park in those zones and are in fact being encouraged to park in those zones by City Council candidate, Andy Yi Chen, to ignore those signs, which he claims are unauthorized. Now, when people complain to 3-1-1 about the illegally parked cars in the Fresh Air Fund zone, the NYPD closes the 3-1-1 cases in mere minutes without taking action. So, my guess is that you don't want children playing where they can be struck by moving cars, so what will you do today to protect those children and hold those drivers accountable? Mayor: I appreciate this question a lot Gersh, and you and I were at McGuinness Boulevard and talked about the fact that some neighborhood residents had tried to disrupt an Open Street there. With all due respect to any neighborhood resident that wants their parking, and I, you know, I've been very honest about the fact that I spent many a year searching for parking in my neighborhood in Brooklyn. I know the feeling, but an Open Street is an Open Street. It is the law. It is the approach that has been agreed upon by this city. And you're right, when you're giving kids an opportunity in summer to do something that's sacred, it's just not acceptable for people to ignore those rules. Today we will get enforcement going in that area and I think it's very important, and you and I think will be kindred on this, Gersh, that we send a message to anyone who tries to violate those rules that it won't be tolerated because the Open Streets have been a great success and we need to defend that success. Moderator: Last question for today goes to Jillian from WBAI. Question: Hey, Mr. Mayor, how are you doing? Mayor: Hey, Jillian, it's been a while. How are you doing? Question: I know, I know it's been real busy. How are you doing? Mayor: All right. All right. Much of the world is a better place since we last spoke. Question: Maybe getting there, we still have a way to go. I'm glad that Gersh got you, so you could talk about the Mets with him, and I don't have to, so I will say dating myself here, “Krush Groovin', Body Movin'” – Mayor: There you go. Question: That was, yeah, I remember moving. Mayor: Good. Question: Yeah, I know, great. So, I wanted to ask you about the recent Department of Buildings announcement of a zero-tolerance policy over worker safety violation. They did a safety sweep. 322 sites were partially or fully closed down. They distributed information called Worker Alert, but it sounded familiar. So, I did some research, and I went through all the DOB press releases since 2015. In 2016, the city announced an “aggressive campaign”. You increased penalties for safety hazards from about $2,000 to $25,000 and increased oversight. And it also in 2016, you'll be introduced reforms to decrease onsite accidents but not enough campaign steps for worker safety. So, what's the difference between the two efforts and isn't the amount, even with the increased penalties, still so low within the context of workers lives that developers, contractors, et cetera, will continue to consider safety violations the cost of doing business? Mayor: No, I don't think that's the case. I appreciate the question a lot, Jillian, and this has been an area where we've put a lot of work in trying to figure out how to break out of the pattern of the past, where I think you're right to say historically were workers lives and their safety taken advantage of by certain contractors and certain developers. Absolutely, and that's unacceptable, and a lot has changed, and we've worked very closely with the City Council, to tighten up laws, to increase penalties, to provide more training and support to workers, and I think this recent blitz was additive. I think it was another step in the right direction to keep tightening up and tightening up and showing more and more consequence. We'll have our Buildings Commissioner Melanie La Rocca speak with you because I think she's been very aggressive about building on what was there before and ensuring that people never – anyone who's owns one of those sites, that's running those sites, never thinks that they can get away with this stuff, or it's not going to have hugely negative impact on them, including, and this is something her predecessor, Rick Chandler worked on with local DA's, there are cases where we work with the DA's to bring criminal charges depending on how a site has been handled. So, we need a culture of consequence at building sites, and I think we've been building that up steadily. Go ahead, Jillian. Question: Thanks for that. The second question in regard to that supermarket in Crown Heights, the subject of the Save Associated campaign that we discussed. Brooklyn Paper and others reported that the lot owner has made some kind of agreement with the market owner. In theory, the market's going to close by the end of the month and a new expanded market will be part of the lot redevelopment. But the deal follows somewhat acrimonious negotiations between the two, including still unresolved lawsuit. The lot owner sued the market owner for a smear campaign, alleging millions of dollars loss in tax breaks and future deals, and that in and of itself is a question, but I – that's not this question. There's no timeline for the redevelopment, so therefore there's no timeline for when the market is going to reopen meaning that the area is left indefinitely without, you know, affordable market. There's no apparent guarantee either that it will really happen in the end, what can, and will the city do to ensure it will happen? And where do things stand on those protections for affordable markets, laundromats, bodegas, et cetera, on which average New Yorkers rely. Mayor: So, it's a great question, Jillian, thank you. On the bigger effort, we continue in specific developments trying to make sure that we're protecting the opportunities for people to shop in an affordable way for what they need. I've said to you before, we're still trying to figure a bigger solution out. I think we need a different kind of initiative to protect community supermarkets and some other crucial services like laundromats, and we still haven't figured out the right mechanism, that's something we're going to keep working on over these next months. But in this particular case, I think you’re phrasing it right. Whatever the back and forth we have to make sure that this supermarket will ultimately be there for the community on a clear timeline, with clear guarantees, and I'm going to look into this today in terms of what that is, what that timeline needs to be. I understand that there's going to be new development and as a result, there's going to be a new supermarket. That could be a very good thing for the community, but it has to be on a reasonable timeline because people need this service. So, I'm glad you raised it and we'll get you an update later on today about the specific steps we're taking and we're going to keep working on this bigger issue. And as we wrap up today, everyone, look, this is a whole another piece of bringing the city back, making sure that as we have development and a lot of development is now happening in this city again, for all those folks who said New York City was over, they were entirely wrong. People are, you know, staking their claim here like never before and a lot of people are coming here to live, coming back, et cetera. We got to make sure development is right and we got to make sure it is about community needs, and this is an example of the kind of thing that we intend to do as part of a Recovery for All Of Us. Thank you, everybody. ###