A Surprising Question from the New York Times for New York City’s Next Potential Mayor
The candidates (more than a dozen) vying to become the next mayor of New York City have held rallies, televised debates, and met with editorial boards. In advance of the June 24 primary, the New York Times asked leading Democratic candidates including: Andrew Cuomo, the former New York state governor; Adrienne Adams, the speaker of the New York City Council; and Zohran Mamdani, a state lawmaker from Queens; ten questions to help voters assess their positions, character, and qualifications. The first couple—“What’s the most important issue in the race: affordability, public safety, President Trump or something else?” and “Who was the best New York City mayor in your lifetime?”—allowed for broad interpretation by each candidate. Another, however, was a real surprise:
“Should the Elizabeth Street Garden in Manhattan be closed to build affordable housing?”
Longtime readers know that the idiosyncratic oasis north of Little Italy, home to an assortment of statuary and architectural relics and popular with tourists along with area residents, was designated a Landslide site in November 2018 because the city planned to redevelop the site for a mixed-use development called Haven Green that includes affordable housing. As has been detailed here over the years, there have been debates, City Council votes, lawsuits with mixed judicial rulings, on-site rallies featuring artist/musician Patti Smith, and support from actor Robert De Niro, and director Martin Scorsese. The site is city-owned land rented on a month-to-month basis and by Joseph Reiver, son of the late creator of the one-acre parcel, Allan Reiver. The current mayor, Eric Adams, favors building Haven Green and is trying to evict the occupants. However, this past April, Adams’ newly appointed deputy mayor, Randy Mastro, hit the pause button on the development (and several other projects), as .
The Elizabeth Street Garden’s prominence in the վ’ Q&A was surprising given the many major issues facing the city (and it should be noted that the Times did not ask several other mayoral candidates about the garden). The reality is affordable housing is significant problem in New York (and other city’s nationally), as is the lack of accessible green space per capita; in a of fifteen U.S. cities, New York City ranked last in that arena. Unfortunately, the վ’ question perpetuates a false (and divisive) choice between parks/gardens/open space and housing. One needn’t come at the expense of the other.
So given this debate, how did some of the candidates answer the question “Should the Elizabeth Street Garden in Manhattan be closed to build affordable housing?”:
- : “In general, I think it’s a mistake to close gardens and green spaces. You know, quality of life. Find a vacant site that is not a green space. A city-owned site that really is suitable for affordable housing.”
- : “I believe it should. This was a done deal. It should be happening right now. I thought the mayor was in favor of it. We’re talking about affordable housing for seniors. It’s something that should be done not just there, but across all five boroughs when we are prioritizing affordable housing.”
- : “Yes.”
As of this writing, Andrew Cuomo is leading in the and has recently received the endorsement of the city’s popular former mayor, Michael Bloomberg.
Say what you will about the three candidates: their positions are clear. The same cannot be said about the current administration. Despite his call for the development of the Haven Green project, in a , Mayor Adams “announced a new [$30 million] effort to transform vacant, abandoned lots into green space for New Yorkers.”
Wait, WHAT?
How about the one that already exists?
