Day: March 24, 2025

Mayor Eric Adams insisted on Monday that despite having a barely visible re-election bid in the 2025 NYC Mayor’s race, he is unofficially campaigning for another four years at City Hall through primarily official public events.

Hizzoner bristled at suggestions from reporters at his March 24 press conference that he had been seemingly absent from the campaign trail just three months before the June 24 Democratic primary.

The mayor has skipped out on nearly two dozen mayoral candidates’ forums attended by most of his competitors; has not held any campaign-specific events, and has not rolled out any new policy ideas he would introduce in a prospective second term.

He is also running his campaign with a skeleton crew; does not have a campaign manager; and only hired a spokesperson last week.

Still, Adams said Tuesday he is campaigning through events such as his semi-regular town halls with New Yorkers in different corners of the city and speaking at houses of worship.

“I’m curious about this; what’s campaigning?” Adams asked reporters. “Give me the definition of campaigning. Going to houses of worship? I do that. Going to town hall meetings? I do that. Going to the streets and shaking hands with people? I do that. Kiss babies? I do that.”

He also noted that he is still petitioning to get on the June 24 primary ballot.

Even so, Adams appeared to contradict his own statements from just a week prior when he said he would be hitting the campaign trail “soon and very soon.”

“You’re going to see me on the campaign trail,” Adams said last week, appearing to make the clear distinction between meeting with voters in his official capacity as mayor and as a candidate that he abandoned on Monday.

Some political observers have speculated that Adams is holding off on fully hitting the campaign trail until federal District Judge Dale Ho makes a final decision on whether to drop his federal corruption case. 

The mayor also disagreed that he is campaigning differently than he did in 2021 when he held campaign events around the city and participated in several mayoral forums. Yet he also said he does not have to campaign the same way because he is the incumbent.

“I’m out in the streets all the time talking to voters, so I’m going to continue,” Adams said. “I know what I’m doing. I ran for Senate and won. I ran for borough president and won. I ran for mayor and won.”

Nonetheless, Adams’ re-election hopes appear to be in dire straights.

He currently has a 20% approval rating, his campaign only raised $19,000 over the past two months, and many of his political allies have jumped ship to endorse former Gov. Andrew Cuomo instead of him.

The mayor’s troubles stem from his federal indictment, a slew of resignations among his top advisers amid their own corruption investigations, and the appearance that he made a deal with President Trump’s Justice Department to drop his federal case — which he denies.

While Adams insisted that he was still running as a Democrat, he once again did not deny that if he lost the June primary, he might run in the general election as an independent candidate.

“I’m going to be running as a Democrat,” he said. “I say this over and over again. And we will map out our plan when the time is fitting. But I’m running as a Democrat.”

THE PIER TWO ROLLER SKATING RINK in Brooklyn Bridge Park is set to kick off the warm-weather season with a family-friendly skate party.

The post BBP skate rink reopens this Friday appeared first on Brooklyn Eagle.

THE FDNY FOUNDATION IS BRINGING back its infamous “Calendar of Heroes” in 2026, the foundation announced on Monday.

The post FDNY Foundation to bring back calendar for 2026 appeared first on Brooklyn Eagle.

A 49-year-old Williamsburg man was hit and killed by an e-bike rider in Greenpoint on Friday.

Luis Cruz was crossing Franklin Street in the middle of the block between India and Java streets at about 7:40 p.m. on March 21 when a 26-year-old e-bike rider slammed into him, police said. The impact knocked him to the ground, and he suffered severe head trauma.

The e-bike rider, who has not been named, stopped and remained on the scene, per the NYPD. An ambulance transported Cruz to NYC Health+Hospitals/Bellevue, where he later died.

No arrests had been made as of Monday afternoon, and an investigation into the crash was ongoing. 

According to Gothamist, Cruz had just stepped out of his double-parked car when he was hit — and the e-bike rider had allegedly just run a stop sign. It was not immediately clear how fast the e-bike rider was traveling at the time of the crash. In New York City, certain e-bikes with a throttle and pedals are restricted to 20 mph, while others can travel up to 25 mph. Cops said the e-bike involved in Friday’s crash had pedals, but it was not clear if it would be required to travel at 20 or 25 mph. 

As e-bikes and scooters have become more popular in New York City, injuries and fatalities associated with the vehicles have skyrocketed. Between 2017 and 2023, injuries associated with “motorized two-wheel” vehicles jumped 350%, according to a report by the city’s Department of Transportation, and fatalities have risen 150%. In 2023, more than 200 pedestrians in New York City were struck by “motorized two-wheelers” including e-bikes, mopeds, and e-scooters, and about the same number were struck by riders on traditional, nonelectric bicycles. 

In a bid to regulate electric two-wheelers — many of which are not required to register with the state Department of Motor Vehicles — Queens Council Member Bob Holden last year introduced a bill that would require those vehicles and their drivers to register with and get licenses from the city’s Department of Transportation. Holden has said the legislation is “long overdue” and needed to rein in the “growing dangers posed by unregulated e-mobility devices.” 

But opponents say the bill would lead to increased targeting of immigrant delivery workers. 

In a statement, Ben Furnas, executive director of safe streets group Transportation Alternatives, said the group was “devastated” to learn of Cruz’s death, but opposes proposed e-bike licensing legislation. 

“There are some who may seek to capitalize on this man’s death to call for an expansive and poorly-targeted ‘licensing’ scheme,” he said. “This could entangle all bike riders in red tape, and won’t lead to real accountability or better conditions on the street. This delivery worker stayed at the scene. They complied with the police. They were not charged.”

Instead, Furnas urged the City Council to regulate delivery apps he said force drivers to work quickly or get fired — and emphasized the importance of street design to improve conditions for pedestrians, drivers, and cyclists.

“Franklin Street has no bike lane, and nowhere to ride safely when cars are double-parked, as they allegedly were on Saturday. Small street design changes like pinch points or chicanes can slow speeds, increase visibility, prevent double parking, and save lives,” he said. “New Yorkers are clamoring for comprehensive and effective solutions that professionalize delivery work and keep pedestrians and cyclists safe. It’s time for New York leaders to crack down on predatory delivery apps and accelerate building the safe streets infrastructure that help keep everyone safe.”

So far this year, 11 people have died in traffic incidents in Brooklyn, according to NYPD statistics, though the city’s Open Data portal recorded just eight fatalities — and did not include Cruz’s death as of March 24. Those statistics show that at least six pedestrians and three drivers have been killed in Kings County in the first three months of the year, including Cruz. Three people — two pedestrians and one driver — have died in the 94th Precinct, where Cruz was killed, including a pedestrian who was fatally struck by a dump truck on March 1.