NEW YORK (WCBS 880) — Mayor Bill de Blasio and Lt. Gov. Kathy Hochul had a “productive” first meeting together Tuesday, they said in a joint statement.
The two met in New York City as Hochul prepares to take over for Gov. Andrew Cuomo, who announced his resignation under a cloud of sexual harassment allegations last week.
Top meeting items included school reopenings, fighting the delta variant and public safety.
“We had a productive conversation today discussing issues that are important to New Yorkers, from fighting the Delta variant to getting our kids back to school safely this fall to keeping our communities safe,” de Blasio and Hochul said. “We look forward to working with each other to continue New York City's recovery and end the fight against COVID.”
Lt. Gov. Kathy Hochul is scheduled to take office on Tuesday, Aug. 24, at midnight. Cuomo's term will officially end at 11:59 p.m. on Monday, Aug. 23.
De Blasio, who had a notoriously fraught relationship with Cuomo, had made it clear earlier in the day that he had hoped to speak with Hochul about his support for the state’s delayed congestion pricing program to fund mass transit — though it’s unclear if the topic came up.
“If our subways and our buses aren't working not only is New York City, not working the entire metropolitan region is not working,” de Blasio said at a news conference earlier in the day. “So, I'm always thinking about our comeback, our recovery. We have got to get congestion pricing in place to do that.”
The mayor's office didn't respond to a request for comment.
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