New York City Mayor Eric Adams dodged questions about the recent FBI raid on the homes of a top advisor, and emphasized the need for more police visibility in the subway, during his weekly City Hall press conference Tuesday.
Winne Greco, the director of Asian Affairs, had two of her Bronx homes inspected by the FBI on Feb. 29. The raid comes amid an investigation into Greco's alleged misconduct regarding the misuse of her position to get perks.
“I say allow the inquiry to run its course, and that's the best that I can say,” Adams said as he responded to a question about his confidence in his staff's ability to follow the law following the raid.
The mayor was also questioned about Greco’s addition to the city’s “substantial policy discretion list,” which allows certain city employees influence over policy. Greco's name was added to the list a day before the raid, the City reported. A city staffer qualifies for the list when “he or she has major responsibilities and exercises independent judgment in connection with determining important agency matters.”
When asked about why Greco was added to the list, Adams said that there are 3,000 people on the list, but did not specify why Greco was included.
Adams continued to emphasize the need of police officer “omnipresence” across subway stations to make riders feel safer. The mayor said the random bag checks could return as soon as next week, but he would have to confirm that with the NYPD’s Chief of Transit, Michael Kemper.
“When I'm on the subway system, I speak with riders, they say, ‘Eric, nothing makes us feel safer than seeing that officer at the token booth, walking through the system, walking through the trains,’ and that is what we want our officers to do,” said Adams.
Adams noted subway crime was down in February, with NYPD noting a crime decrease by 13.2% compared to last year. The mayor also spoke on “promising technology” that can be used to identify weapons in the system, when asked about the use of metal detectors.
“I think that if we don't get it now, we're definitely on the pathway of coming up with some new technology that's going to help us identify weapons as well as guns,” said Adams.
Governor Kathy Hochul on Wednesday said she will dispatch 1,000 state personnel to aid the NYPD with bag check and subway security.
Meanwhile, Deputy Mayor Anne Williams-Isom said the city is anticipating a “spring surge” of migrants coming to New York. Williams-Isom said this is based on trends from the last two years of migrant patterns.
“But we want to be prepared, and I just don't think that we have to just throw our hands up and act like there's nothing that we can do,” said Williams-Isom, noting that 180,000 asylum seekers have entered New York since 2022.
Like Adams, Williams-Isom called for relief from the federal government to better mitigate migrant arrivals.
The mayor on Tuesday also announced a new permanent outdoor dining program just weeks ahead of the spring season. This program will allow restaurants to apply for lightweight and compact dining cafes, and provides instructions on how to set up cafes on either the sidewalk or street. It builds off of the temporary Open Restaurants program introduced during the pandemic.
“With this program, our streets will be bustling and our neighborhoods will be vibrant,” said Adams. “The days of abandoned sheds are over.”
