Zohran Mamdani, the Mayor-Elect of New York City, has decided to live in the Gracie Mansion. The mansion located in Manhattan was the home of several previous mayors, dating back to 1799 when it was constructed.
Mamdani announced his decision to relocate to the mansion on social media with the following statement: “This decision came down to our family’s safety and the importance of dedicating all of my focus on enacting the affordability agenda New Yorkers voted for,” he continues, “We will miss it all – the endless Adeni chai, the spirited conversations in Spanish, Arabic and every language in between, the aromas of seafood and shawarma drifting down the block.”
Not every mayor of New York City has lived in the mansion. Michael Bloomberg, a billionaire entrepreneur and founder of the eponymous financial and media company, decided not to live in the mansion during his three terms as the mayor of New York City.
Bloomberg has said that he believes Gracie Mansion should be renovated to become a space for public city functions. In 2012, he gave the following statement regarding the mansion: “If a mayor’s family is living there, then most of that house – a good half of it – is just not available,” he continues, “If a mayor lives there, then what they’re doing is costing this city a lot more money and depriving the rest of the city of one of the great facilities any city has.”
Mamdani has stated that he and his family plan to move into the Gracie Mansion around the time of his inauguration on January 1st.
