NYC Mayor Adams addresses migrants, crime and political future
NEW YORK (PIX11) -- Mayor Eric Adams had a wide-ranging press conference Monday discussing everything from closing down migrant shelters, to subway safety, to his tough reelection battle.
The mayor is closing dozens of shelters, eliminating roughly 10,000 shelter beds in the next few months, but is also opening one big shelter on Bruckner Boulevard in the Bronx. It will hold 2,200 single adult men.
Large men's migrant shelters, especially the soon-to-be-closed Randall's Island tent encampment, are the type of shelter where there's been violence. PIX11 News pressed the mayor about why do this now with the effort winding down.
"It's indoors, not outdoors," Adams explained, saying there are key differences between the new facility and Randall's. "We want to move away from that, and we'll continue to decrease the [migrant] population based on policies we put in place."
Adams went on to defend the safety record of Randall's despite issues that resulted in at least two NYPD sweeps and said he would keep the Bronx neighborhood safe with the opening of the new shelter.
Separately the mayor went on to express optimism about Gov. Kathy Hochul's State of the State address planned for Tuesday. He said the governor and leaders in the state legislature that he is speaking with are interesting in changing state law to make it easier to involuntarily commit the mentally ill -- and in changing discovery laws to counter the repeat offender problem.
The mayor was also peppered with questions about his political future, specifically about a poll that shows former Gov. Andrew Cuomo would do very well in a Democratic primary for mayor against him later this year.
The Hart Research Poll found Cuomo way out ahead with 32% of the first votes. The poll also showed he would easily win a ranked choice Democratic Primary. Adams was way down at 6% in the same poll.
Adams was clearly prepared for the question and brought with him an old poll that showed Andrew Yang with a big early lead in the race for mayor four years ago.
"And you know what, we don't say Mayor Yang, we say Mayor Adams," the mayor boasted. "So polls don't make mayors, people do."
Cuomo has yet to declare for mayor, but there are signs he may be preparing to join the already crowded field.