5 Questions For Mayoral Candidate Zellnor Myrie

You’ve represented parts of Brooklyn for years. But Brooklyn isn’t just Park Slope or PLG. What would you say to voters in Canarsie, Midwood, or Bay Ridge who don’t see themselves in your coalition? What would your mayoralty mean for Brooklyn’s working-class families—especially those who feel let down by both progressives and City Hall?

I am the proud son of two Costa-Rican immigrants, who came to New York City to work in factories. I was raised in a rent-stabilized apartment, and there were times when my mom did not have enough money to pay the electricity bill and our lights were off. I ride the train everyday, still have student loans, and cannot afford to buy a home in my neighborhood despite having a good job.

I am not only speaking to working and middle-class families as an elected official; I am also speaking with them as someone who is facing the same struggles they are. I decided to run for Mayor to ensure that City Hall is delivering for families like mine who have been overlooked for far too long.

That’s why as Mayor, I’ll deliver 1 million homes as well as free universal, Afterschool for All and full day 3-K and Pre-K until 6:00 PM to lower the cost of living and make our city an affordable place for working and middle-class families to raise a family. 

Brooklyn has been the epicenter of both tenant activism and homeowner anxiety. You’ve talked about building a million homes citywide—where would they go in Brooklyn, and how will you avoid deepening Brooklyn’s neighborhood tensions?

For decades, the city has taken a piecemeal approach to housing, which has led to inequitable growth and the cost of living crisis we are in today. A citywide problem requires a citywide solution.

In order to lower the cost of housing, we must increase the supply of housing   across the city. Addressing this crisis will require innovation such as creating new neighborhoods, as well as leveraging underutilized land and buildings. If we keep acting like the housing crisis is someone else’s problem, soon no one will be able to afford to live in New York City. 

Would your mayoralty change the city’s approach to public safety in neighborhoods like East Flatbush or Sunset Park?

As a native New Yorker, I know firsthand that our public spaces feel unsafe and chaotic in a way we haven’t seen for a decade. Our city was the safest it has ever been before the pandemic, so as Mayor I will restore the NYPD to its 2018 headcount and promote 2,000 detectives to rebuild the detective’s bureau to its new strength.

This will not only help reduce overtime costs, but also give our officers the resources and staffing necessary to solve and deter crimes. One of my signature initiatives will be Clear 100, which will leverage the fully staffed detective bureau and new technology to solve every shooting and improve our clearance rates. 

We must also invest in proven crime prevention measures and give our kids the opportunities and spaces they need to be safe and thrive. That’s why as Mayor, I’ll provide free, universal Afterschool for All  to keep kids off the street, as well as add 50,000 new Summer Youth Employment seats so that every kid who wants to work can find a job. I’ll also triple the scope of the Every Block Counts Program to provide more wraparound services for the neighborhoods that see the most violence. 

What do you think Eric Adams got right? What would you keep—and what would you leave behind?

Literacy is a critical skill and indicator of how a student will fare in school and beyond. I applaud Mayor Adams for creating NYC Reads, and working to improve literacy rates in Brooklyn and across the city. As Mayor, I will continue and expand this initiative and provide educators with the support and flexibility they need to best teach the curriculum to all grades.

While I applaud the NYC Reads initiative, this should not take away from the fact that Eric Adams has tremendously undermined New Yorkers’ faith in government through his politics of cronyism. A Myrie Administration would break from this pattern by promoting transparency and accountability. Within my first hundred days, we will conduct and publish an audit of all no-bid contracts to root out any corruption from the onset. 

Why should Brooklyn’s voters vote for you?

I am a proud son of Central Brooklyn – born and raised. My story wouldn’t be possible without our city. My parents came here from Costa Rica nearly 50 years ago to build a better life. I was raised in a rent stabilized apartment, where my mother still lives today. Because of my incredible teachers at P.S. 161 in Crown Heights and mentors at the Crown Heights Youth Collective afterschool program, I was able to go Brooklyn Tech, Fordham and Cornell Law School. But even though I am a State Senator, I cannot afford to buy a home in the neighborhood I grew up in. 

I got in this race because the opportunities I had growing up are slipping away for far too many New Yorkers. As Mayor, I’ll deliver 1 million homes, build free, universal Afterschool for All and full day Pre-K and 3-K until 6:00 PM, and solve every shooting to make our city a safe and affordable place for working and middle class families like mine to build a life.