How awful is this going to get?
Manhattan: Since July 2020, I have walked from my home on the Upper West Side to my office on Broadway and W. 30th St. and back. I daily witness the continuing dangerous downward spiral into which this majestic city is being thrown, not by the pandemic but by the inattention to public safety by the police and our elected officials. At first, the only souls in Times Square were me, the Naked Cowboy, Elmo and the rats. It felt eerie but not unsafe. After a time, Times Square came alive, not with tourists but with “street vendors” wearing furry coats, furry boots and camped out in armchairs on the west side of Broadway at 45th St. Fear caused me to veer east. It took the death by shooting of three people, including two innocent bystanders, before police moved into the area.
I have sadly watched the sidewalk of Broadway between 32nd St. and 33rd St. across from Greeley Square Park become a den of drug dealers. One recent morning, in front of the Chase bank at 32nd St., a pedicab driver exchanged a roll of cash for a bag of white powder not more than three feet from me. A public safety officer in the vicinity — who I only saw once — advised me that narcotics agents are aware of the drug activity but can do nothing until the next mayor comes into office. The security guard at Chase, expressed her frustration that daily complaints to the city were to no avail. Fear of the drug activity has caused me to change my path. Recently, as I walked home, there was a new group of drug dealers set up at the opposite corner on 33rd St. The spiral continues.