The new Midtown Task Force, co-chaired by a Hell's Kitchen resident, brings together New York City agencies to address quality of life issues in the area from West 34th Street to West 45th Street, between Seventh and Ninth Avenues.
On Tuesday, Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg and Mayor Eric Adams announced the launch of the Midtown Community Improvement Coalition, which will coordinate more than 20 city agencies, social service providers and community partners.
The coalition's goal is to address issues that fall under the jurisdiction of multiple agencies, including retail theft, drug use, mental health crises, beautification, illegal scaffolding and closing illegal marijuana stores.
The initiative is co-chaired by Hell's Kitchen resident and president of the Midtown South NYPD Precinct Community Council Brian Weber, Times Square Alliance president Tom Harris and Garment District Alliance president Barbara Blair.
Weber told W42ST that city agencies and community partners have been working together over the past six weeks to form the coalition, and they plan to meet twice a month.
While the agencies already communicate frequently with each other, this is a “great opportunity to get everyone in the same room,” Weber said.
“We're really looking for solutions within the tools and resources of these agencies,” he added. “We want to come up with practical solutions to address the situation on our streets today.”
The coalition is modeled on a similar effort in Harlem, the 125th Street Business Improvement District Interagency Hub, and builds on Community Link, an effort linking agencies that predates the Adams administration, and DA Bragg’s Neighborhood Navigator program.
Navigators from the nonprofit organization The Bridge have been making regular rounds in Midtown since January, building relationships with people who are homeless or struggling with substance abuse and connecting them to services.
Weber said the coalition chooses the issues it tackles based on input from the public, including feedback from NYPD Precinct Council meetings and response data from 911 and 311.
In mid-April, W42ST conducted a reader survey in which the majority (79%) of respondents said they believe there is more crime in Hell's Kitchen than there was five years ago, with 51% of survey respondents saying they “don't have much confidence” in crime-related statistics.
“I'm optimistic that we can make some progress, but it's not a quick fix,” Weber said. “It's going to take time, because the more we look into these situations, the more we see that a lot of them are not going to be easily fixed.”
For example, the coalition is investigating illegal drug use that often occurs under construction sheds on sidewalks, creating a “connection” where illegal activity occurs, Weber said.
“The NYPD and Department of Social Services approach this area on a regular basis, and one of the things that has emerged from the conversations is that the netting in the staging area provides a visual near-refuge from this activity,” Weber said.
Improving visibility under the sheds required collaboration between representatives from the Department of Buildings and the Department of Transportation. “It hasn't completely solved the problem of illegal activity, but it's been very helpful,” Weber added.
The coalition's work has already impressed small business owners. Tom Daly, owner of Break Bar (9th Ave bw W35/36th St), said he's seen an overall “5 to 10 percent improvement” in street conditions over the past few weeks. “But there's still a lot that can be done,” he stressed. “It was a lot worse than it was, but there are some things that are a lot better.”
This is “exactly the strategy we need to firmly address the issues facing the Garment District and Hell's Kitchen,” City Council Member Eric Bottcher said in the announcement. “For New York City to thrive, Midtown must thrive, and this is an important step in the right direction.”
Times Square Alliance president Tom Harris said in a statement he was “thrilled” that the coalition was “balancing the needs of those suffering on our streets with the needs of our local residents and visitors.”
