Mayor-elect De Blasio debates staying in Brooklyn
Mayor-elect Bill de Blasio draws much of his populist identity from his Brooklyn neighborhood of Park Slope, a bastion of outer-borough liberalism where the tree-lined streets and charming brownstones are a far cry from Manhattan’s steel-and-glass canyons.
Now de Blasio faces a crucial early decision in his transition, one fraught with political symbolism: Should he keep living in Park Slope when he takes office Jan. 1 or move to the mayor’s official residence — stately Gracie Mansion, on Manhattan’s Upper East Side?
For now, de Blasio has delayed that choice, saying he will make the decision with his family over Thanksgiving. But most of his neighbors in Park Slope, proud of his rise and skeptical that he could be happy anywhere else, believe that he should stay in the area he’s long called home.
“It’s been neat; his signs are everywhere,” said Clara Hungr, 30, a student who lives a block from de Blasio. “Everyone around seems to be really excited. People feel like it’s our moment.”