Transcript: Mayor Adams Participates in Reside Interview on NEWS12 and Takes Questions From New Yorker

July 22, 2025

Noelle Lilley: Good night, everybody. Thanks for becoming a member of us proper right here on News 12, the place Local Matters. I’m Noelle Lilly, that is Ask the Mayor. It’s a pleasure to be with you. Here for this subsequent half hour we’re providing you with the chance to talk on to New York City Mayor Eric Adams. Ask him your questions proper right here on air. The quantity to dial is 718-861-6800. It’ll be on the backside of your display all through this system for reference, so get dialing. 

And with that, we welcome again tonight, New York City Mayor Eric Adams. Mr. Mayor, thanks a lot in your time tonight.

Mayor Eric Adams: Thank you. Great to be right here with you.

Lilley: My first time sitting down with you one-on-one. Very excited. 

Mayor Adams: Good stuff. Good stuff. 

Lilley: So simply, mayor, out of the best way, we wish to begin off with one thing that, you realize, we now have to ask. The former commissioner, interim commissioner with the NYPD, Tom Donlon. We wish to simply get the lawsuit addressed immediately. 

You know, he’s saying, on this swimsuit, claiming that police executives, former and NYPD had operated a legal enterprise to profit prime officers. We wish to provide you with an opportunity, excellent off the highest, chatting with New Yorkers. What would you like them to learn about this?

Mayor Adams: Did you learn that lawsuit?

Lilley: We did, sure. It was an extended, lengthy lawsuit.

Mayor Adams: 200 and one thing pages, typos, grammatically incorrect. I imply, the push of getting it carried out, it’s baseless. When you hear the narrative, the story, that is, you realize, that is the political season. The coordination that appears to be occurring on the similar time. 

Listen, he was there as an interim. He didn’t reside as much as the job. And we now have the most effective police commissioners we may ever have in Commissioner Tisch. And the courts would determine. But clearly, the lawyer must be ashamed of himself to supply a product like that in entrance of the court docket. He did not even proofread it. So let the courts determine.

Lilley: Fair sufficient. And we’ll get to some hyperlocal tales and subjects now as effectively. We wish to zoom in on the Bronx. The hub is part of the South Bronx that has been spoken about by many native officers in addition to residents. You’ve been there earlier than. 

Recently, it was on our airways as we have been discussing cleansing up the hub. Folks involved about open drug use, crime. You guys have are available in and actually carried out a giant change in a single day. How do you consider long-term change and options for that space?

Mayor Adams: So essential. And what I’m going to have the group do all around the metropolis— you need to see these earlier than and after photographs. When we got here into workplace in 2022, the variety of encampments, folks sleeping in tents and bins. I visited a lot of them. I noticed spoiled meals, drug paraphernalia, human waste, schizophrenic conduct, bipolar conduct. And these places throughout our metropolis. 

And the Hub, we heard again and again from Councilman Salamanca how essential it was. When you take a look at a few of these photographs and photos, you do not see this throughout New York. Now, go Google different cities. Look at what’s occurring in different large cities. And it has been accepted. And we are saying no to that. 

And so what we’re seeing right here, we went in a number of months in the past, did an initiative and evaluation. And we needed to come back again to say that we’re not strolling away from this. We’re not strolling away from this. We’re not strolling away from this. 

And drug use is an actual downside, notably with regards to fentanyl. That’s one of many prime causes of overdose in our metropolis. But we now have to provide folks care, group, and permit them to get the companies they deserve. And we all know we will do it across the Hub. And we’re not strolling. It’s not a one and carried out.

Lilley: Yeah. So, are there plans to come back again to that space? And, like, extra of us can count on extra initiatives being carried out like what you are describing?

Mayor Adams: Yes, repeatedly. We have the Department of Health and Mental Hygiene that is there to help folks with drug use. We have outreach employees which can be coming to additionally take part. DOT is there to do every thing from taking down the picket chairs that have been positioned there. We have six-day outreach companies that is going to be there, cleansing the place to ensure we do a number of cleanups all through the day. 

So it is an actual centered consideration as a result of that is the Broadway of the Bronx. You know, a lot of these companies across the Hub have been negatively impacted by what we noticed play out on the Hub for years. And we stated no to that.

Lilley: That’s one thing we’ve heard from enterprise house owners as effectively. The challenges of working your corporation while you’re coping with a few of that. Speaking to, form of, the same concern we needed to speak to you a few viewer’s name that we’ve been getting from Bedford Park house constructing right here. We have a video that we needed to point out you within the house. Residents have been saying, there’s a daycare that operates within the constructing as effectively. But tenants have had challenges with loitering within the constructing, a person as you may see, exposing himself, drug use. Some of the same points we’ve seen within the Hub.

You can see kids being walked into the constructing, making an attempt to be dropped off to daycare. Folks are telling us that they’ve gotten no response from their administration. What ought to tenants do once they’re reaching out, they’re reporting to 311, they’re calling their native precinct and so they really feel like they’re not getting a response?

Mayor Adams: What I’m going to do, that’s 2850, seems to be like Grand Concourse. That’s not acceptable. We’re going to get the constructing proprietor to provide us the authorization to do what we name verticals, to stroll although the placement periodically. Whatever sector that it’s in, I’m going to guarantee that they stroll by means of. We’ve carried out this earlier than, actually in NYCHA in amenities. But we’re going to zero in on it.

Those infants mustn’t need to stroll by means of situations like that. So my group goes to talk with the commanding officer. This particular person seems to be like they’re smoking crack, cocaine, there. So I’m going to talk with the commanding officer after I depart right here tonight. And we will do walk-throughs on this constructing. This shouldn’t be acceptable.

Lilley: Yeah. This is certainly one thing we have heard from residents that they are involved about, as you talked about, kids having to see that. As we have been out and about within the communities throughout the Bronx and Brooklyn, we have been chatting with of us on the road, getting them an opportunity to ask you a query straight. We wish to get to a type of questions now. 

Question: What’s happening with this congestion, and all this pricing, and all this ticketing? That’s what I’d prefer to know. The cameras, 35 miles an hour, you may’t go. You hit 35, you are getting a ticket.

Lilley: Okay, appears like of us are asking about congestion, visitors. Congestion pricing has had lots of backwards and forwards.

Mayor Adams: Yeah, what folks do not perceive about congestion pricing is that that is Albany. The mayor has no management over the MTA. The MTA is managed by Albany. Whenever there’s one thing within the metropolis, folks take a look at the mayor, however we do not have management of it. Are there issues we might have carried out otherwise? Yes, however the actuality is that the MTA is in command of congestion costs. 

Now, he was speaking about dashing and tickets. We need to decelerate. The variety of fatalities and deaths have decreased within the metropolis due to what Commissioner Rodriguez has carried out. We do not wish to be judged by reducing fatalities to guage how protected our streets are. 

Public security means additionally automobile crashes, so we now have to decelerate. We decreased the velocity restrict on mopeds and two-wheelers to fifteen miles an hour as a result of individuals are involved about quick driving and reckless driving on this metropolis, and we should transfer at a slower tempo.

Lilley: Is {that a} problem, making an attempt to strike that stability of taking care of, in fact, pedestrians, of us who depend on public transit, as we all know many New Yorkers do, but in addition drivers who really feel like they want parking areas, they should get to and from the place they are going as effectively.

Mayor Adams: And discovering that candy spot is essential. This is a metropolis of 8.5 million folks, 35 million opinions, belief me, and we now have been ready to do this, just like the Bedford Avenue bike lane in Brooklyn. It was harmful for pedestrians and kids. We modified the form of it to guarantee that we did not undergo a group that might affect the youngsters of that group, and the identical up right here. We weigh these selections.

When the residents are vociferous round, that is going to affect our high quality of life, how we exist in our communities. We hear them. We don’t simply power it down their throats. But, when it comes right down to dashing, that’s a significant concern. Too many accidents, too many individuals harm and the advocates, for years, have been speaking concerning the dashing within the metropolis.

Lilley: Yeah, and we’re going to get to extra on that. Specifically, there’s an intersection that we wish to speak to you about. In Brooklyn, really, there’s a particular intersection the place two kids, below the age of 12, have each been hit by a automotive. One baby, sadly, that eight yr previous on June twenty eighth being hit and killed on the intersection of Albany Avenue and Eastern Parkway. 

So chatting with a few of these points and, simply as we speak, a ten yr previous in important situation, being hit at that intersection. And as you discuss, you realize, needing drivers to decelerate, are there different issues, probably, that you just suppose could possibly be helpful? More speedbumps? More visitors enforcement? 

Mayor Adams: Yes, and we now have redesigned a big variety of avenue corners as a result of, oftentimes, you may have the left and proper turns the place harmless individuals are struck– of slowing down, velocity bumps, visitors calmings round faculties, having the ability to go the laws to get velocity cameras in these places. So there are a bunch of issues that we’re doing to essentially calm our streets and guarantee that folks know they’ll stroll the streets in a protected method. 

We hear it from our aged on a regular basis, our older adults, they discuss not feeling protected once they cross the streets, notably across the giant use of mopeds that you just see usually on our streets. This is a heavy focus for us and the commissioner, Commissioner Rodriguez has been extraordinarily centered on this. 

Lilley: For of us simply becoming a member of us, a reminder you could dial proper now to Ask the Mayor your query. We’re going to, once more, take these calls from you. We’re speaking every thing you wish to know from Mayor Adams. This is your probability to tune in so dial in any second now and we’ll be proper again after a fast break.

[Commercial Break.]

Lilley: Welcome again. You’re watching Ask the Mayor on News 12. I’m Noelle Lilley, joined by the one and solely Mayor Eric Adams. Now we do have callers standing by ready to talk on to the mayor. So ensure you get in line so that you get an opportunity to ask him your query. First up, we now have Carl from Brownsville wanting to speak about NYCHA buildings. Carl, are you able to hear us?

Question: Yes, I’m right here.

Lilley: Hi, Carl. Can you ask the mayor your query? Go forward.

Question: Oh, my query is, Mr. Mayor, the way you doing, sir? Last month while you was on there, I requested you concerning the scenario the place I used to be lacking– I did not have a range for nearly two months. So now I used to be watching a report on News 12 final week the place a senior citizen did not have a range or scorching water of their buildings now. 

So I simply wish to be certain that, you realize, really, can you discover someone to essentially get entangled with this to assist these folks that reside within the residence in NYCHA with stoves and water? 

Mayor Adams: Did you get your range, Carl? 

Question: I imply, not you, however are you able to simply please assist these folks? 

Mayor Adams: Yeah. Did you get your range… from the issue? 

Question: I did. I spoke to you two days later. They did come and produce me a range. 

Mayor Adams: Okay. I wish to be certain that. When I reached out, they informed me they have been going to resolve it. NYCHA has a hotline to cope with issues like this. You know what many individuals do not perceive? NYCHA is below a particular monitor. And the direct energy that I want, I wish to be held accountable for it. Like we noticed what occurred in Riis Houses. I could not hearth the folks that have been accountable. They stated, wait a minute, you do not have the authority to take action. 

We want to provide the authority straight again to the mayor in order that he may be held accountable and ensure the folks which can be there are doing the job that they are alleged to do. Now, we now have an important head there that is conscientious, that understands what we’d like. But while you take a look at, NYCHA has an over $80 billion capital downside. The federal authorities for years have deserted NYCHA.

The state has walked away from NYCHA and never funded it the best way it is alleged to. And we now have carried out all types of how of getting the funding, such because the land belief. We have been in a position to get that handed in Albany. We’re doing the RAD packages. We need to lastly perceive that NYCHA shouldn’t be residing on this situation. But I feel one of many beginning factors is popping again over to the mayors. Let them be held accountable for working NYCHA.

Lilley: Shifting that management may assist.

Mayor Adams: Yes, sure. Because proper now you do not know who to level to. You do not know who to say, how can we get this carried out? When there’s an issue in our faculty as a result of we now have mayoral management, folks may come on to me and say, mayor, you are accountable for this. And, you realize, you are taking a look at our youngsters are outpacing the state in studying and math and a few of the issues that we’re doing round Summer Rising and different issues as a result of we now have the management with the panel to make these selections. That’s the identical with NYCHA. NYCHA has been below the particular monitor for years and nothing is getting carried out to cope with the systemic downside.

Lilley: And you talked about the doable challenges with funding to NYCHA as effectively. Are these stuff you anticipate may proceed being an issue going ahead?

Mayor Adams: Yes. You cannot have an $80 billion capital downside and you are not placing the cash in. Now, below this administration we put $25 billion into our housing and $5 billion to NYCHA. First time NYCHA has been included within the housing plan. No different administration has carried out that. We have been zero centered on NYCHA and ensuring that we will use what we now have to help them. But there’s going to be a necessity for actual federal assist and actual state assist to get NYCHA on its proper footing.

Lilley: Thank you to Carl for that query. We do have one other caller, Tony from Morrisania dialing in. Tony, go forward, ask the mayor your query.

Question: Hi, Mr. Mayor. 

Mayor Adams: How are you, Tony?

Question: I’m a just lately retired Child Protective Services from ACS. And it is a two-part query. First, I wish to thanks for cracking down on the ghost plates. The subsequent factor is, crime has gone down in each different borough besides the Bronx. And what are we going to do to alter that statistic? And the second a part of the query is, how can I assist your marketing campaign? 

Mayor Adams: Thank you. That’s very nice of you. Number one, eliminating these ghost plates have been a part of the issue. Those unlawful scooters, these unlawful ghost plates, they have been committing crimes, fleeing the scene, and we weren’t in a position to monitor them till we do many chases and apprehend them. 

The actual downside we’re having is a small variety of people who find themselves repeated offenders, notably right here within the Bronx. The quantity of people that even participated within the snatch and seize of the jewellery you noticed, virtually 42 % of them have been repeated offenders. And I’m not speaking about one time. I’m speaking about three, 4, 5 occasions. One particular person was arrested virtually 30 occasions. 

And so the best way we get it carried out is by telling our lawmakers that we can not have repeated offenders committing these crimes again and again. So you are proper. Getting the ghost plates off. The cause crime shootings have dropped is as a result of we eliminated 22,000 unlawful weapons off our streets. That’s essential. And we now have been focusing right here within the Bronx, as a result of various shootings are actually being pushed by gang conduct. 

Too a lot of our younger individuals are collaborating in gang conduct. A whole lot of the music movies that they’re having retaliatory shootings is admittedly problematic. We made a giant mistake with Raise the Age. This was a invoice that was handed below Andrew’s administration. Where we’re now seeing youthful shooters and youthful victims. That’s an issue. 

Our purpose is primary, to seek out alternate options for our younger folks, our Summer Youth Employment, our Summer Rising packages. This is all yr spherical for our youngsters and faculty system. We have a number of different packages, CRED, for justice concerned younger folks. So it will take a proactive and a reactive power to ensure we convey down these crime numbers. But I’m zero centered on the Bronx and the group up right here, the electeds have been superb.

Lilley: And you talked about these chain snatching incidents. We had a lot of these within the Bronx, repeat incidents. We will proceed to speak about that and all these different subjects and questions coming straight from you. Remember, name in now whilst you have an opportunity to ask the mayor your query. We’ll be proper again after a fast break.

[Commercial Break.]

Lilley: Thanks for becoming a member of us tonight on Ask the Mayor on News 12. We’ve bought the one and solely Mayor Eric Adams becoming a member of us tonight to reply all of your questions straight from you. We wish to communicate to [Joanne] from Throggs Neck. She has dialed in asking a few query lots of of us in our group have been tuned in and being attentive to. The Bally’s Casino Throggs Neck. Joanne.

Question: Yes, Mr. Mayor. I want to know, are you in favor of Kristy Marmorato pulling down the Bally’s venture?

Mayor Adams: Well, I feel that the Bally’s venture, the one in Queens, the one in Brooklyn, the one in Manhattan, all of them ought to have a good potential to have the ability to state that permit’s put it in entrance of the committee so that everybody may have a good shot. And I do not suppose it ought to have been prematurely eliminated by the City Council. I feel it was the fallacious factor to do. Why ought to the Bronx be handled any otherwise? 

I feel it is unfair to the Bronx to not have a possibility to place their finest foot ahead and so, it ought to have gone by means of the method. To use one council particular person or to make use of some sort of motion by the City Council to not permit the Bronx to have their honest alternative, I do not suppose it is the suitable factor to do– and I’m not leaning in direction of one venture or one other. I simply need it in New York. I feel it is… I used to be the previous chair of Racing and Gaming and I do know that casinos can convey jobs, union jobs, tourism, improvement can come round it, so I feel it is unfair if the Bronx didn’t have a possibility to get their fair proportion of manufacturing the product that they needed.

Lilley: For of us who aren’t acquainted with the most recent on this the City Council simply voted towards rezoning plans that Bally’s would wish to convey the on line casino to the Throggs Neck  space of the Bronx after which the controversy has usually been the financial advantages as you talked about. 

We’ve heard from some residents who’ve considerations over possibly added congestion over probably altering the tradition of the neighborhood. How do you’re feeling that we have to weigh these two issues because the residents considerations?

Mayor Adams: Great query. We know this, you realize we put some huge cash into Hunts Point to develop. We take away the barge from the world in order that the Bronx wouldn’t be handled in a method to dump every thing unhealthy within the Bronx. But to wherever within the metropolis to have a significant on line casino that can convey jobs will convey housing, and produce different alternatives. It actually is one thing that everybody ought to have a fair proportion to have it voted on. That’s what we’re saying.

Lilley: And we’re virtually out of time. You do have veto energy over that City Council vote.

Mayor Adams: And that is what the group is taking a look at, how we’re gonna transfer ahead.

Lilley: Okay, thanks for becoming a member of us for Ask the Mayor with Mayor Eric Adams.

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