Ex-Gov. David Paterson outlines reasons NYC could be headed for ‘70s-style doom — migrant crisis at ‘tipping point’
Former Gov. David Paterson warned Sunday that New York City could revert to the crime- and debt-riddled days of the 1970s if government doesn’t ease up on developers — adding the Big Apple’s migrant crisis is at its “tipping point,” too.
“Look what happened at the hotels where the hotels were filled up,” the former governor told host John Catsimatidis on “Cat’s Roundtable” on WABC-77 radio, referring to the city’s desperate attempt to house the flood of recent asylum-seekers from the US’ southern border.
“The excess migrants, mostly males … chose to sleep on the street rather than go to another facility,” Paterson, 69, said.
“I think it’s a tipping point,” he said of the crisis.
Paterson, 69, also warned that higher taxes, particularly on the real-estate industry, will cause more people and businesses to leave New York.
Albany lawmakers “seem to almost treat certain members of the population as if they were expendable. And they’re not expendable,” Paterson said. “We need them to be here. We need affordable and luxury housing.
“[The real estate industry] really is the backbone of the city. You’ll really find out how bad it can be if they do move away. Or you have situations like you had in the ’70s where you had the proliferation of crime and the un-affordability of housing… created a really squalid condition around the city.”
Paterson credited New York City Mayor Eric Adams with “bravely” standing up to the White House to demand federal dollars to help ease at least one dire situation — the migrant pressure on the five boroughs.
“Adams bravely has taken on the [Biden] administration and talked to them about the problems of sending all these migrants [to New York] but not sending any significant resources to help house them,” the former governor said.
He said this weekend marked one year since Texas Gov. Greg Abbott sent the first busload of asylum-seekers to the Big Apple from the US border with Mexico.
More than 54,000 have since been dumped in New York City, straining local services and finances.
He said fed-up New York City Public Advocate Jumaane Williams also spoke out last week about the issue.
“He had a press conference warning President Biden that he might not get the votes out of New York that he thinks he would get if he doesn’t do something about this migrant crisis,” said Paterson, who as with Williams and Biden is a Democrat.
“Now, I don’t think that that would really happen, but it was certainly an element of frustration that the public advocate was fomenting that everyone else feels,” Paterson said.
The former governor added that things for the city will only get worse if government doesn’t wise up on how it treats developers.
He called the city development community “essential” and “the backbone of the city’s revenue” while recalling a recent chat with business leaders.
“What they raised is that the Albany politicians, as they put it, have no understanding of real estate development or business, have a total resentment against people who do it and that it is causing them to make their lives more miserable,” Paterson said.
“[The industry has] really picked up on that kind of resentment. It’s part of an overall problem… we’re having these days: We look at people. We find out what they do. And we have an immediate judgment against them without … spending any time trying to understand them,” Paterson said.
