Despite all the rain we have been getting recently, summer just unofficially began in New York City with Memorial Day. The days are getting longer and warmer, our beaches are open, and, for the first time in the city’s recorded history, there were no shootings on the Sunday before Memorial Day — further proof that our administration’s approach to keeping New York City the safest big city in America is working. Last week, we kicked off the “We Outside Summer,” a series of investments, announcements, and programming across the five boroughs to ensure New Yorkers have a safe and fun summer in our parks, playgrounds, and everywhere else outdoors. We’ll continue to roll out announcements throughout the summer, but here’s some of what we announced this past week as we continue to make New York City the best place to raise a family.
We know that as the weather warms, New Yorkers are eager for more outdoor space. But for too many families, green space is out of reach and too far from their neighborhoods and communities. This is exactly why we kicked off work last week to transform vacant, abandoned lots into parks and put more greenspace within walking distance of thousands of additional New Yorkers who don’t currently have access to them. We’re starting in East New York and Cypress Hill in Brooklyn, as well as Jackson Heights, East Elmhurst, and Corona in Queens, and we will expand from there.
