This segment of What’s Ahead points out that the rot eating away at the Big Apple was underway before Covid-19 hit. People and enterprises were already pulling up stakes because of a serious decline in the quality of life:
• Rising crime, a result of an emasculated police department
• Deteriorating infrastructure
• Terrible schools
• An epidemic of homeless
• Never-ending rules and regulations suffocating small businesses
• Sky-high taxes
The pandemic also delivered a devastating blow to the real estate industry, a critical part of the city’s economy, as companies learned the virtues of flexible work arrangements.
What needs to be done is clear, starting with restoring safety to the streets and subways by supporting the police department instead of trashing it.
Serious deregulation, tax reductions and school choice are also crucial.
With municipal elections this year we’ll learn if the city has the will to vote in the leadership needed to reverse a very reversible decline.