Transcript: Mayor de Blasio Announces Expedited Removal of Sidewalk Sheds at NYCHA Developments

August 27, 2014

Mayor de Blasio: Well, it is absolutely a joy to be back at the Lincoln Houses. It’s a joy because there’s a lot of good people here who I had the honor to get to know last summer. It’s a joy because their concerns are finally being answered – and you’re going to hear from Reverend Sharpton in a few minutes – but I want to give credit where credit is due. You know, in the heat of the middle of campaign last year, Reverend Sharpton issued a very clear challenge to the candidates ­­– come with him. Stay overnight at the Lincoln Houses. Don’t talk about public housing as an abstraction. Talk to the residents. Learn from them. Understand what they need. Understand what they haven’t gotten. Treat them like the constituency they deserve to be and treat them with the respect they deserve.

The candidates answered that challenge. I was proud to be among them. I brought my daughter Chiara with me; it was a powerful experience for her. A lot of times our young people see things a little more clearly and Chiara immediately understood – a lot of people who live in public housing weren’t getting what they deserved. And the conversations I had – I have to tell you, I’ve spent a lot of time over the years talking to public housing residents, a lot of time walking through developments floor by floor, going to family days. But when you stay overnight, it’s a different reality. When you really listen to people, what their life is like 24/7, you learn a lot.

And so, some at the time said, well this is just a little passing thing, it’s just a moment. But I remember saying at the time that I thought what Reverend Sharpton was doing was something that could have a transcendent impact because it was [inaudible] the entire city on the question of public housing in a powerful way.

I, for one, was changed and made better by the experience. And some of that now has played out in instructions that I’ve given to the Housing Authority and the way the Housing Authority – to their great credit – has followed through.

Now, that night, I had the great honor of being hosted by the Wilson family. They were so kind, and warm, and embracing. I’ve stayed in touch with that family since, and I want to thank them. I want to thank Catherine and Reggie, and all the members of the family, who have been friends and who constantly keep me informed of what’s going on. My daughter also sends her thanks and her regards.

You’re going to hear from Speaker Melissa Mark-Viverito, Assembly Member Keith Wright and Councilmember Vanessa Gibson, who’s also the chair of our Public Safety Committee in the council. You’re going to hear from all of them because they too have spent a lot of time amongst residents of public housing, learning what needs to be done. And there’s a real consensus – that includes the help we get from Assembly Member Wright at the state level – a real consensus about the changes we have to make.

You’re going to hear from NYCHA. You’re going to hear from Chief Gomez, who runs the housing police. You’re going to hear about our efforts to improve safety here in this development and many developments. You’re going to hear about the efforts to make more repairs in NYCHA. You’re going to hear from the Tenant Association as well because we’re all in this together and the changes have to happen.

What did we learn when we were here last summer? We learned that repairs that need to be made – even if they involved health and safety – weren’t being made. It was eye opening. There was an urgency to it. We learned that these sheds – these scaffoldings that you see around you were part of the landscape and a really bad part of the landscape for years.

[Inaudible]

And they’re being removed – thank you. The speaker is correct again. They are being removed as we speak behind us. Do you see these sheds coming down? And they’re coming down for the last time. By Saturday, all the sheds in this development will be down and gone.

[Applause]

"People have been waiting for years – four years for this to happen". Imagine any neighborhood in this city – something put up for four years. A lot of time there wasn’t even work going on, just sitting there, an eyesore. Something that made life worse, and not just bad looking, it made it less safe. And you’re going to hear from Chief Gomez on that.

So, people in Lincoln Houses spoke up, and they said that they wanted action. And you’re seeing that action here, before your very eyes today. We’re committed – not just to people in Lincoln Houses – but to people all over the city who live in public housing, over 400,000 New Yorkers in 334 developments. Public housing is the ultimate expression of affordable housing. It’s something New York City committed to decades and decades ago. We have to keep that commitment, even when our federal partners aren’t doing all they should. We have to keep our commitment. We have to keep making these developments better and safer. That’s our obligation. We have to keep making the repairs.

Now, let me tell you what this means when it comes to these sheds, because they’re all over the city in public housing. Some of these sheds – in some developments in the city – were up for over a decade in a development. For over a decade – even when no work was going on, they just sat there. They caused all sorts of troubles for people. And we knew that the only way to break through was to say it’s an order. It has to happen from the top. Whenever this shed is not being used, get it down. If work has to be done, get the work done. Put it on a timeline that respects the people of the development. Yes, when you’re doing important work, when you’re fixing and repairing, sometimes you need the sheds for safety – but do the work and get them down.

Four years people in this development have been waiting. It ends this week, this Saturday. But now, let’s talk about what this means in other parts of the city. We have already, since the beginning of this year, taken down 13,000 feet of similar sheds around the city. That is between two and three miles of sheds in developments around the city. The ones we’re taking down here, by the way, almost a half mile worth of sheds all throughout the Lincoln Houses. That’s how much of an impact it’s made on people’s lives. By this coming spring, we will have taken down 43,000 feet of sheds – that is roughly eight miles worth. It will be down and it will no longer be in the way of the residents. You can clap for that.

[Applause]

By the end of next year – in all but a handful of cases – by the end of next year, all of the sheds from past projects will be down city-wide – literally every last one. And from this point forward, when a shed goes up, it will be for the most limited time period. One building at a time, get the work done, get the shed back down. That’s how we’re going to do it.

Meanwhile, we’re making a lot of investments and we get so much support in this from Speaker Melissa Mark-Viverito and the City Council. They have been adamant about the need to invest in NYCHA. The City Council put in the money for cameras time and time again. They didn’t move in the previous administration. They’re moving now. In the Lincoln Houses, 214 security cameras will be installed by the end of this year. Two hundred and fourteen cameras to help keep people safer.

[Applause]

And that’s money from the City Council from the past that never was used.  We’ve now devoted – since the beginning of this year – we have devoted an additional $210 million dollars to NYCHA for repairs, for safety, for youth programs, for the things that help people have a better life and a safer life. In the 15 developments with the biggest crime problem, we have put up 165 light towers that light up the whole area, make the residents feel safer and better, help our police to do the job. This is what a new era in NYCHA will look like. Where residents are treated the right way, they get repairs, they get the investments in safety, and we move NYCHA forward. That’s what we are here to do together.

With that, I want to bring up the partner in all of this work – and she’s been a fantastic and responsive partner, and a focused partner. And she, by the way, in her district, has some of the greatest concentration of public housing anywhere in New York City – anywhere in the United States of America. Our Speaker, Melissa Mark-Viverito.

[City Council Speaker Melissa Mark-Viverito Gives Remarks]

Mayor: Thank you. The – I have to tell you, in all that we – in all that we’ve been doing, we have benefited from incredible partnerships. Thank you, brother. We have benefited from incredible partnerships with the NYPD. I’ve been working over these last eight months and Chief Gomez has been focused intensely, not just on making sure there are further officers – more officers where they’re needed, but also making sure we have the youth programs. Also making sure we had the lighting so that we could really create safety, and getting these sheds out of the way is a big piece of it. Let me call forward, Chief Gomez.

[Chief of Housing Carlos Gomez Gives Remarks]

Mayor: Thank you, thank you very much. Before we go on, I just want to note – I want to take a look here at the folks who are doing this work, to finally end this scourge that the Lincoln Houses have had to deal with. Let’s thank these workers who are doing so much to make life better here. Give them a round of applause. We thank you.

Now, giving credit where credit is due – as I said a few minutes back – is something we should do more often. The reason that this issue came to larger attention is because Reverend Sharpton called all of the candidates last year to this place, and said it is time to put this front and center on the agenda.  That is what leadership requires, saying we’re not going to accept an agenda that leaves out hundreds of thousands of people. We’re not going to accept a status quo that doesn’t work for people.

So, I want to give Reverend Sharpton credit for having played a transcendent role in the debate on public housing in this city. He stood up for the residents of public housing and because he did that last summer, you now see progress this summer. Ladies and gentlemen, Reverend Al Sharpton.

[Applause]

[Reverend Al Sharpton Gives Remarks]

Mayor: Thank you, Reverend. You know, Assemblyman Keith Wright has been representing this community for a long time. He has been fighting for years to get NYCHA to do the right thing here, and I want to thank him for his persistence, which also contributed to finally making progress. Let’s welcome Assembly Member Keith Wright.

[Applause]

[Assembly Member Keith Wright Gives Remarks]

Mayor: Thank you very much. Again, so much of why we want to get down this scaffolding, these sheds – whatever word you like – is because the impact they make. They’re actually making it harder for us to keep the developments safe, make it harder for the police to do their job. So, these sheds have to come down for a lot of reasons, but most especially safety. And the woman who provides a lot of leadership on that front for the whole City of New York is the chair of our Public Safety Committee in the Council, Vanessa Gibson.

[Councilwoman Vanessa Gibson Gives Remarks]

Mayor: Thank you so much. You know, I want to give credit where credit is due. We have one more speaker, and I think this really makes the point more powerfully. Reverend Sharpton brought us here, and then the important thing was to listen to voices of the residents – the residents who have been so clear in their activism to get this change.

And when you think about it, the folks who are a part of the Tenant Association, they fight long and hard every day. They persevere to make sure that NYCHA and the city government do the right thing by them. It is not the easiest job. It has all been a thankless task, but I want the folks here who have worked so hard representing their fellow tenants to know their voices were heard that day last year. And it stuck in my mind and it has helped us to get to this day. And representing all of the tenant leadership – someone who has served this development with great distinction – the Tenant Association President, Pat Herman. 

[Tenant Association President Patricia Herman Gives Remarks]

Mayor: Thank you very much, Pat. Thank you for your leadership. I just want to say a quick word in Spanish, and then we are going to do questions from the media, on topic and then off topic.

[Mayor speaks in Spanish]

Mayor: With that, first on this topic – yes. Thank you.

Question: Mayor, as you were speaking, some residents [inaudible] and were talking about how crime had gone down. I heard some shouts of people saying that’s a lie. And clearly [inaudible] their concerns known to you. So I’m wondering, what’s your response to them? Why do you think that they don’t feel like it’s safer here?

Mayor: Because it takes time, first of all, for everyone to feel it. And I don’t blame anyone who’s feeling that there isn’t enough yet in the way of improvement. We have a lot to do. The numbers that Chief Gomez gave are the numbers – and that clearly means progress. That means some people are alive today who wouldn’t have been otherwise. Some people are safe today who wouldn’t have been otherwise – that’s progress. We’ve got a lot more to do. You know, we’re living in a city, for example, with 29 fewer murders today than this time last year. We’re living in a city with a 1,000 fewer robberies today than this time last year. That means real change in people’s lives. But for anyone who has been a victim, it’s still not enough. So we’re going to continue the efforts to deepen this progress. Getting these sheds down is part of guaranteeing safety. Until people see the sheds down, they aren’t going to feel the benefits. More police visible and active is part of it, the light towers, the youth programs that give young people a good alternative and a safe alternative – but it takes time for people to really believe that’s going to be a part of the landscape. In this administration, I’m telling you it will be a part of the landscape. On topic. On topic. Yes.

Question: [inaudible]

Chief Gomez: Sure. In the housing bureau, down 4.2 percent – that’s the entire city. Murders are down 5.9 percent. Rapes are down 3 percent. Robberies are down 5.6 percent. Burglaries are down 7.5 percent. Grand larcenies are down 11.5 percent. GLA’s are down 2 percent. The crime that is up is felonious assault – and that’s up less than 1 percent. Now, shootings year-to-date are still up in housing, as they are in the city. But as I said before, from July 1 to the present, which is, I believe, a little more than eight weeks, those shootings are down in housing developments. But, you know, these are stats that – there’s things that you really can’t measure. And the mayor [inaudible] pointed out before, the community centers [inaudible] extended hours. You can’t measure the positive effects of personal interactions between our police officers – [inaudible] with the youth in our community. There isn’t a meeting I attend where I don’t get positive feedback from the residents, from the community centers themselves, even from the officers. I attended a meeting with the [inaudible] president and I see Reggie Bowman is here. Some of the officers at this meeting even said that I didn’t know these centers were here, because they used to shut early. Some of our officers worked late hours. Some of the officers even said I would love to bring my children here, so stats are one thing – and the stats are heading in the right direction – the first time in five years that crime is down in housing. But I really say, you know, one crime is one too many, one murder is one too many, that one shooting is one too many, but we have more officers now, more resources – 165 light towers in 15 developments and, as you can see, physical improvements being made all around you.

Mayor: Thank you very much. [inaudible]

Question: [inaudible]

Chief Gomez: Those are housing –

Mayor: [inaudible]

Chief Gomez: Yeah.

Mayor: Citywide.

Question: [inaudible]

Chief Gomez: [inaudible] houses – and, by the way, our crime figures are available to anybody here. You go onto the website nyc.gov/nypd, you click on crime statistics. There’s a link for housing crimes and you will see that you can follow it by development. Here in the Lincoln Houses, I checked this morning, crime was flat – 38 crimes versus 38 crimes. There were no murders. There was one shooting versus one shooting last year. Robberies were down. There was a little increase in felony assaults. All of that is online – nyc.gov/nypd – and you click on the link.

Mayor: I just want to add to this that the point – yeah, we’re going to be doing media questions. The point about the investments we have made – remember, we looked at 15 developments out of 334 that accounted for 20 percent of all violent crime. We put a huge amount of additional resources, personnel, lights, etcetera in those. That is part of why you see these big reductions, because we went to the places were the problem was the greatest. On topic.

Question: [inaudible] safety initiatives like bringing down these sidewalk sheds over the scaffolding – how much do you think stop and frisk [inaudible] broken windows play a role in those reductions?

Mayor: I think that you're talking about a couple of different concepts. Again, the previous stop and frisk policy was broken. That's why we've changed it profoundly, and we are not stopping innocent people as was done in the past, and the numbers of stops are obviously greatly down, and that's progress for the city. That allows our police to focus on actual crime and actual criminals. On the question of quality of life crimes, I think it's clear around the city – people want to see enforcement on quality of life crimes. They want it to be fair, they want it to be equal treatment under the law in all parts of the city, but they don't want to see small acts of vandalism, or situations where people affront their neighbors, go unaddressed. I think what you hear all over the city – I certainly hear it from constituents in every neighborhood – they want police support. They want police involvement and response. They also want to make sure it's fair and equal.

Question: General guidelines allow public housing [inaudible] entire family is one person that can live in an apartment [inaudible] been defined [inaudible] public housing [inaudible] ?

Mayor: I'm not – I'm going to be honest with you – I'm not an expert on the policies. I want to look at it carefully before I give you a response. Obviously, we have to address any acts of criminality aggressively, but let me come back to you on that one. 

Question: [inaudible] prepared to have a backlog here [inaudible]?

Mayor: Ok, let me – I'm going to have Ray come up and speak to that. The – I think what we started with is a lot more resources. Remember, we no longer charge NYCHA for the police services that they get from NYPD. That's already produced over $120 million dollars in resources for NYCHA. That allowed Shola Olatoye, and Cecil House, and Ray Rivera and others, to go and make the repairs. So, the backlog is greatly reduced, particularly in terms of the health and safety concerns, but that's work that we're going to continue to do. Why don't you give an update?

Raymond Ribeiro: Sure, so, there are a number of – a number of measures that we can put in place, and when the mayor has challenged us to do things better, to do things smarter and more effectively, and what we've gotten is, once those plans were developed, we've actually gotten the support to actually implement those plans, and that support is – as the mayor alluded to – in the form of resources, in the form of having the ability to issue contracts in a different way than we've done in the past, having us have the ability to have contracts in place is an example – to be at the ready for when things – like an issue on our facade – come up, we have the immediate ability to put the shed up, make a repair, and then take the shed down, rather than going through that process once the defect is identified.

Question: [inaudible] throughout houses?

Raymond Riberio: I think in terms of overall repairs, both within units and the exterior facade – right, most of the work that we're talking about today, and the sidewalk shedding, is a result of facade issues – so cracked or swollen brick, parapet wall issues on our bricks. For the buildings themselves, the entire buildings, I would say one of the biggest areas has to do with plaster, plastering interior walls in the buildings. 

Mayor: Thanks [inaudible]. All right, we're going to switch over to off topic, because you've all been very patient. We don't want to have our friends in the media have too much sun. Go ahead, Marcia.

Question: I have a question for you and the Reverend Sharpton. I know you just spoke about quality of life crimes, saying that people want them prosecuted and arrested. There's a new poll out today from Quinnipiac [inaudible] that very thing, that broken windows is [inaudible] – they want low-level quality of life crimes to be prosecuted. In light of the Garner case, where [inaudible] a lot of criticism because Garner was being arrested for selling loosies on the street. I wonder how you feel about that. I know the Reverend Sharpton has been critical, saying that people of color are, um, have more –

Mayor: We need fair and equal application of the law. That's what this is all about. That's what the discussion in this city last year was about. That's why we got rid of a broken stop and frisk policy, and that's why when we look at broken windows, or any other policy, we're going to keep working to make sure it's applied fairly and equally. So, I want to separate the question of whether every community should be treated equally. Obviously, that is our obligation. And we're going to emphasize that in the retraining effort for the police, and everything else we do. But I'm also saying that the notion that we need to address small problems before they become big problems is equally true. And I think the poll today certainly indicates how broadly felt that is around the city.

Reverend Sharpton: My contention was and is that you cannot have unequal enforcement of the law. And what my concerns was, is you can't treat our communities one way, and other communities another way. Now, that does not mean we do not want to see crimes prosecuted. We are under siege in many of our communities by criminal elements that no one does anything about. And then we also want bad cops – not all cops, not most cops – bad cops removed. The poll also said that about Staten Island – the same poll. So, the public got it. We want bad cops to be dealt with, and we want crime to be dealt with. I wish the media would get it. You know, it's like, you would think that Commissioner Bratton and I had a wrestling match in the Blue Room. He and I have some back-and-forths, but we worked together in L.A. As an officer in L.A., he and I did not get along when he was commissioner in New York. We got along in L.A. I was surprised at how he developed a community kind of rapport. The poll today really says it best – people want fairness, but people want to also see crime taken, and they don't want to be under siege from cops and robbers. 

Question: [inaudible] in New York City, broken windows is unfairly –

Reverend Sharpton: I agreed that, the day we met, there was data that had been printed on the front page of the New York Daily News, that I quoted to the commissioner. And I think that that data was the basis of my raising the unequal treatment – and the commissioner and the mayor said then, and the mayor just said now – that will not be tolerated. And that's what we're monitoring. Again, we are not trying to stop those criminal elements in any community – we just don't want targeting based on race, and that was the objection, which is why the poll you pulled – I don't even believe them polls. You know, I got up, I'm high on the poll – I don't even believe that. Because I've been low so long when I was high and now I won't believe you all when y'all say I was high, I don't believe none of you. But I believe that people are saying that we want equal protection under the law, and we want justice to be fair – but we want justice.

Mayor: Let me add to that. The fact is, people need to know that their problems are being addressed. You know, for a long time in this city – decades – a lot of times, people felt if they called on a problem, they wouldn't get a response. That really developed a sense of frustration in people. They need and deserve a good, strong police response, a respectful response, a response in partnership. By the way, when you think about the fact that at the high point of the stop and frisk program, there were 600,000 plus stops – almost 700 stops a year – 700,000 stops, excuse me, 700,000 stops a year. All that time and energy from our police officers went into stopping people, the paperwork, the time it took – all of that was directed, 90 percent, at innocent people, instead of at criminals. What Reverend Sharpton just said makes all the sense in the world – we want to go after criminals. This community and so many other communities are plagued by criminals. That's what our job is, not innocent people. We also need a partnership between police and community that still doesn't exist deeply enough, and all the changes we are making are to achieve that.
Melissa.

Question: Mayor, and also Reverend Sharpton [inaudible] mayor, could you give us your reactions to the reports that the [inaudible]?

Mayor: I think what Commissioner Bratton said is exactly right. He was receiving, basically, a set of proposals from the previous CCRB with a very different approach. We now have a new chair, Richard Emery, who is renowned as an independent thinker, and someone who has worked for years to try to address challenges in police-community relations. He's made clear, CCRB is going to move much more quickly to get to a just settlement, fair to both community residents and police alike, but fast, sure justice. And I think Commissioner Bratton's right, when we have a CCRB that's functioning properly, he's going to be able to work with it very differently. 

Question: [inaudible]

Mayor: Richard Emery.

Question: [inaudible] be more lenient –

Mayor: No, I'm not suggesting a prejudgment. He's – I think Richard Emery is a pretty renowned lawyer who's going to call them as he sees them, but he also has the board he works with. I'm saying, the rules now are going to be that every complaint is dealt with fairly, quickly. Richard said very clearly, he wants to do a lot more in the way of mediation, so we can resolve things quickly. But I think the commissioner's right. When you have a CCRB that's functioning – it has not functioned properly for 20 years! Ask people at the community level. They don't have a particularly great amount of faith in the Civilian Complaint Review Board to actually get to a resolution that could be meaningful. We've got to fix that, and then I think the commissioner's right – you'll be getting the kind of recommendations that he can have more faith in as well.
Rev, you want to?

Reverend Sharpton: Mayor, thank you. It's important that complaints be taken seriously. I think a lot of us that have advocated want the city – them dealt with seriously. The commissioner said that he would expedite it, and we are going to be watching that. I must say that when he first came to the city, he came – when he was appointed by this mayor – he came to our headquarters that Saturday and spoke, and what made – that was his first public appearance. And you know, we didn't speak at all when he was under Giuliani – uh, Mayor Giuliani, former Mayor Giuliani. And what was interesting to me is that when, a member [inaudible] National Action Network questioned this commissioner – when he stood up the night of Eric Garner and said, this appeared like a chokehold, a lot of people said, wait a minute, maybe he is being different and fair. And it is interesting that a lot of the media had forgotten that this commissioner stepped out there, with all this rhetoric from others, and took a position. And I think that that showed a difference. Does that mean we're getting married? No. But on that night, we could have gone to dinner. 

[Laughter]

Question: Mayor, I'm wondering if you have any updates on the investigation into the death of Cardell Williamson, the toddler? And then a follow up – back in April, you announced the Children's Cabinet, after the death of Myles Dobson. Has it met? What is it doing, and will it consider this –

Mayor: The Williamson case is a real painful tragedy. And, you know, there's a whole investigation going underway, and it's never right to prejudge. If what's alleged happened, again, we have to remember – I don't know what causes a human being to harm a child. I have never found that acceptable in any way, shape, or form, no matter how much struggle people are going through, no matter what their troubles may be, there's no reason on earth to harm a defenseless child. But we're going to have to do a full investigation before we can explain exactly what happened. Yes, the Children Cabinet – the Children's Cabinet has been meeting. It is leading an effort to reform a lot of our approaches. A lot of what we want to do is convince every agency to work in tandem to protect children – aggressively, proactively. We also need the public. We don't know the facts of this case yet. We don't know if people saw warning signs. We do know from tragedies like Nixsmary Brown, that many times there were visible warning signs. So, it is our job in government to get this right, and that every agency be together to protect children. But I also want to emphasize to all New Yorkers – if you think a child might be in danger, pick up that phone. Call 3-1-1. They will give the hotline for child abuse. You can't – and I say this to every single one of us, I happen to be a parent, it's very personal for me, but I don't care if you're a parent or not – just think about the children in your life, think about the children you see every day, if a child might be in danger – don't hesitate, don't second guess, pick up the phone and report it. And you may save a life. 
Jillian.

Question: Mr. Mayor, yesterday's Quinnipiac poll showed a drop in Commissioner Bill Bratton's approval rating. You were often a critic of policies under Commissioner Ray Kelly, but the poll yesterday showed that Mr. Bratton's ranking was, you know, below anything that Mr. Kelly had had while he polled during 12 years in office. I'm wondering why you think that is, and what maybe is not getting through to New Yorkers, or….

Mayor: Well, I think it's going to be a process here, over the coming months and years, to create the kind of relationship between police and community that the community deserves, and the police deserve. It has to be a two-way street. It's going to take real work to do that. When that work is done, I've been looking forward to what the poll results are then. Take a look, as Reverend Sharpton said, about the experiences that Commissioner Bratton had in Los Angeles. The relationship between police and community in Los Angeles, when he went into office, was at an all-time low – not long after the tragedy of the Rodney King incident. The police approach to community in L.A. was positively wrong and negative. Commissioner Bratton went in, and in seven years, turned that upside-down. You may have seen the article over the weekend about the way the LAPD now reaches out to community members immediately if there's ever a problem – brings them in, works with them as a team. It's a whole different approach. And Commissioner Bratton is – deserves the praise, deserves the credit for what was achieved in L.A., and he's already doing the same things here. So, one thing is, we'll judge when it's all over. The second answer is that Commissioner Bratton received an unfortunate set of circumstances, where the relationship between police and community had become more troubled because of the overuse of stop and frisk, among other factors. But the number one to me was the overuse of stop and frisk. And so, Commissioner Bratton has had to clean up a problem left to him, and I think he's been very purposeful in doing that.
Melissa.

Question: Mayor, the question [inaudible] they felt that Build it Back –

Mayor: They felt that –?

Question: They felt that Build it Back program has gotten worse, there's [inaudible]? 

Mayor: Well, I think it's working, and we're going to keep making it work better, because people deserve the relief. They've been waiting a long time. They got no relief as of December 31st of last year. Now, we have – over 500 reimbursement checks have been sent, more are being sent out as we speak; we have 500 or so construction starts, that'll be ready just in the coming days, we'll get to that goal. But there's a lot more to do. So, the bottom line is, the process is continuing, and it will be improved, because people deserve that. Thank you, everyone.