[The Epoch Times, March 09, 2023]New York City Council Speaker Adrienne Adams delivered her second State of the City address since taking office in the Bronx on March 8, putting forward three key points and reaffirming her opposition to Rikers Island Prison Postpone closing.
Odess delivered a speech at the Justice Sonia Sotomayor Houses and Community Center (Justice Sonia Sotomayor Houses and Community Center) basketball arena in the Bronx Government Building that day, and New York city leaders including Mayor Adams were present to listen. Odyssey outlined a vision of “putting people first,” with three main priorities: economic upliftment, fair housing, and healthier and safer communities.
In terms of economic improvement, she criticized the New York City government’s downsizing policy, resulting in insufficient manpower to provide key services to citizens. She asked the city’s main agencies to increase budgets for front-line positions and accelerate recruitment to fill vacancies. And relax the eligibility restrictions for civil servant positions, so that more people can apply. Prioritize industrial development that can increase employment, manufacturing and green energy.
In terms of fair housing, Odyss proposed to use the existing vacant land of New York City government buildings to build additional housing. At the same time, he suggested that New York State relax restrictions on urban land use, increase development density, and add more affordable housing for low-income people.
In terms of healthier and safer communities, Odess proposed: expand the half-price subway card program for low-income people, $5 million for the guaranteed income program for vulnerable people, improve 3-K and early childhood education programs, and provide 100,000 dollars to each congressional district Dollars go to community safety and victim services programs, among other things.
Notably, Odess reiterated her commitment to closing Rikers Island as scheduled.
Mayor Adams has publicly stated that it is very difficult to achieve the goal of closing Rikers Island Prison in 2027, calling for a “Plan B” instead. While not proposing new solutions, Odyssey said she would focus on increasing the use of alternatives to incarceration and providing more supportive housing to accommodate ex-prisoners to reduce recidivism.
Responsible editor: Chen Wenqi
