February 18, 2013
"I congratulate Mayor Bloomberg on both his final 'State of the City' address and his promise to not only rebuild those communities that were devastated by Superstorm Sandy but to do so in a matter consistent with his 12-year commitment to making all of New York City cleaner, greener and more sustainable.
"I also thank Mayor Bloomberg for his continued push for federal gun and immigration reform, bold environmental initiatives and his commitment to continue to work with my office on the responsible redevelopment of the Kingsbridge Armory.
"I agree with the mayor's echo of President Obama's call for greater technology education opportunities in our City, and I urge that one of these new tech schools be opened right here in the Bronx. I am also happy to hear that the mayor has proposed a new health careers high school in the South Bronx. The children of the Bronx need access to lucrative career training, and this high school is a great first step towards that goal.
"However, the mayor's insistence that the police department's 'stop and frisk' program is perfect and needs no reform is unfortunate. As I have stated in the past, I believe that the NYPD's 'stop and frisk' program, as it is currently constituted, needs considerable reform, so that the police can keep our streets safe while also respecting the constitutional rights of our citizens.
"We must return to the 'stop, question and frisk' policy of years past, and I remain prepared to work with the police department and this administration on meaningful reform of these policies, provided they are ready to do that work as well," said Bronx Borough President Ruben Diaz Jr.
