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De Blasio: "The Bottom Line Is: We Got Lucky"
By
Christopher Robbins
Published Jan 27, 2015
Modified Jan 27, 2015
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By
Christopher Robbins
Published Jan 27, 2015
Modified Jan 27, 2015
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Bare streets and shelves, empty trains and classrooms, for what? Was our unslakable thirst for excitement exploited by public officials, overeager to avoid political fiasco? "You can't be a Monday morning quarterback on something like the weather," Mayor de Blasio told a group of skeptical reporters this afternoon. "The bottom line is: we got lucky. We were prepared. The City responded."
The mayor said he learned of Governor Cuomo's decision to shut down the subway system "just as it was being announced," but noted that "based on the information all of us had, it was right to take extraordinary precautions." Two feet of snow "would have paralyzed some of the subway lines above ground, certainly," the mayor said. "I'm sure there will be a full review to see what we can learn from this."
NYPD Chief of Department James O'Neill said that no summonses or arrests were made in relation to the travel ban, and both he and Sanitation Commissioner Kathryn Garcia stressed that the ban on nonessential vehicles past 11 p.m. made it easier for emergency vehicles to respond to calls and for plows to clear roads.
The schools will be open tomorrow, though alternate side parking is still suspended, as is recycling and garbage pickup.
One reporter asked if New York City had gone soft.
"As a child, I did walk barefoot in the snow so I share some of that concern," the mayor said dryly. "I think it's not softness to respond to extreme weather. I think there is a problem of people wanting everything to be convenient and this stuff is never going to be convenient….We are going to be very forceful in our messages to people when we sense danger."
The mayor also reminded reporters that Long Island and parts of Queens fared much worse. "This storm was real, and as big as it was projected to be, but it moved eastward."
Tagged
blizzard 2015
it was fun while it lasted
snowmageddon 2015
original
Christopher Robbins
Christopher Robbins is a New York City reporter covering transportation, affordable housing, local politics, and criminal justice. His work has also appeared in New York Magazine, The Village Voice and The New York Times. Chris is a graduate of Patrick Henry High School in Roanoke, Virginia, and enjoys biking to Fort Tilden in the summertime.
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Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
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