Category Archives: Mitchell Silver

Let 1 Million Trees Bloom (Updated)



Million TreesNYC 11-20-15It was smiles and praise as the 108th and 109th mayors of New York City appeared together this morning in the Bronx.  Michael Bloomberg and Bill de Blasio spoke at a ceremony marking the planting of more than 1 million trees in the City under the “MillionTreesNYC initiative.”  The program was launched during the Bloomberg administration, with inspiration and significant involvement by Bette Midler.

Bloomberg and de Blasio have rarely appeared together since de Blasio took office.  They recently crossed paths at the Al Smith Dinner, where Bloomberg delivered a funny, but stinging, “tribute” to the current mayor.  They previously shared a stage at de Blasio’s inauguration, which featured some biting critiques of the Bloomberg years.  Among those critiques was a speaker who referred to Bloomberg-era New York City as a “plantation.”  Today, however, they spoke of plantings, not plantations.

Bette Midler, Council Speaker Melissa Mark-Viverito, Bronx Borough President Ruben Diaz Jr., Council Member Mark Levine, Parks Commissioner Mitchell Silver and  Executive Director of New York Restoration Project Deborah Marton also joined the ceremony, held at Joyce Kilmer Park in the Bronx.

Here are a few of our photos – our full photo gallery is available here.

Million TreesNYC 11-20-15

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de Blasio Press Q&A: The Unisphere Edition



de Blasio FMCP 11-16-15Mayor Bill de Blasio today announced the creation of the Flushing Meadows Corona Park (FMCP) Alliance, formed with the goal of supporting and promoting the park.  Located in Northeast Queens, FMCP is approximately 900 acres and includes within it Citi Field and the National Tennis Center.  The Alliance is composed of a mix of government and commercial businesses, with some civic groups and labor.

de Blasio spoke outside the Queens Museum, also located within the FMCP, with the 1964 Worlds Fair Unisphere behind him.

Joined by Council member Julissa Ferreras-Copeland and Parks Commissioner Mitchell Silver, de Blasio fielded both on topic and off topic questions.  He demurred on answering security-related questions, noting that he had a second press conference scheduled for this afternoon with Police Commissioner William Bratton and stating that he would address such questions at that later press conference.

Photo Gallery:

Our press conference photo gallery is here.

de Blasio Visits Rockaway, Brings Money, Gets Applause



IMG_2285Mayor Bill de Blasio visited Rockaway Friday afternoon, joining the annual beach opening celebration and holding a press conference.  During his visit de Blasio announced that any surplus federal funding from the ongoing boardwalk rebuilding will be applied to other Rockaway projects.  de Blasio was well-received, with elected officials offering praise and attendees providing applause.  Elected officials joining de Blasio included Senators Joe Addabbo and James Sanders, Assembly Members Phil Goldfeder and Michele Titus, Queens Borough President Melinda Katz and Council Members Donovan Richards and Eric Ulrich.  Parks Commissioner Mitchell Silver and EDC President Kyle Kimball also joined de Blasio.  Our photo gallery is here.

de Blasio has had a bumpy relationship with many in Rockaway, particularly in the western areas of Belle Harbor and Breezy Point.  Those hard feelings were set aside Friday, however, with the combination of the festive summer beach opening and notable progress on boardwalk rebuilding.  The audience of several hundred people applauded de Blasio’s boardwalk rebuilding and funding comments, although they sat silently as de Blasio praised FEMA.  They responded to Queens Borough President Melinda Katz’s request for “a round of applause for Mayor de Blasio”, prompting a smiling mayor to reply “that just shows the generosity of Queens.”IMG_2289

Continue reading de Blasio Visits Rockaway, Brings Money, Gets Applause