by Erin Duncan for The New York Daily News
October 9, 2017
Thousands of senior citizens, NYCHA residents, teachers and church parishioners turned out in the pouring rain Monday to call out Mayor de Blasio for falling short on his pledge to make housing in the city affordable to New Yorkers.
Congregants from churches around the city, organized by the Metro Industrial Areas Foundation, packed the block outside City Hall to push the mayor to get behind their own plan — which includes building 15,000 apartments for seniors on vacant NYCHA land.
"We will be confrontational with the mayor. We will be wherever he shows up," said Rev. Daryl Bloodsaw of the First Baptist Church of Crown Heights.
De Blasio was invited to the rally, but was marching at the time in the Columbus Day parade — where he was met by boos from parade goers over his refusal to rule out removing a statue of Christopher Columbus at Columbus Circle.
"We're here to save the soul of our city, but the mayor's not here today," said Rev. David Brawley, a Metro IAF leader and pastor of St. Paul Community Baptist Church.
Organizers recently met with de Blasio at Gracie Mansion to pitch their plan, but got a noncommittal response.