What New Yorkers Told Us They Want Mayor Mamdani To Do

Clean sidewalks. More afterschool programs. A much-anticipated rent freeze. For months, City Limits has been talking with New Yorkers about what they want the new mayor to prioritize. Here’s what we heard.

Some of the New Yorkers who spoke to City Limits about their hopes for the newest mayor. (Adi Talwar/City Limits)

Clean sidewalks. More afterschool programs. A much-anticipated rent freeze.

For months, City Limits has been talking with New Yorkers about what they want the new mayor to prioritize. In a city of more than 8 million people, the wishlist is long.

“Be aggressive about making New York City as climate resilient and climate change mitigating a city as possible,” Manhattan resident Elenna Dunham told us. Stephanie Woodbine, a domestic violence survivor and advocate, said she wants the city to better support mothers leaving abusive relationships—a leading cause of homelessness in the city. “If the moms are not okay, the kids won’t be okay,” she said.

On Jan. 1, Zohran Mamdani was sworn in to lead the five boroughs for the next four years. Time will tell if he’ll deliver on his campaign’s ambitious promises—a rent freeze for regulated apartments and free bus service among them.

But what the new mayor has made clear early on: he’s interested in hearing directly from his constituents about their issues, and what they want from City Hall. Before his inauguration, Mamdani met one-on-one with more than a hundred New Yorkers during a 12-hour “listening” session in Queens. And this week, he announced plans to hold a series of “rental ripoff” hearings in every borough, where residents—specifically renters—are being asked to share their housing woes with the new administration.

“I want New Yorkers who have long been ignored by their landlords to finally be heard by our city government,” Mamdani said.

In the vein of helping more New Yorkers be heard, City Limits presents below some of the residents—among them tenants, NYCHA residents, seniors, and people who’ve experienced homelessness—who shared their mayoral wishlists and their hopes for the city over the next four years.

To reach the reporter behind this story, contact Adi@citylimits.org. To reach the editor, contact Jeanmarie@citylimits.org

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