Mayor Eric Adams announced a significant 28% reduction in crime along Roosevelt Avenue in Queens, the result of eight months of targeted enforcement under “Operation Restore Roosevelt,” part of the city’s broader “Community Link” initiative. Spearheaded by interagency collaboration and strategic outreach, the effort has led to steep drops in burglaries, assaults, robberies, and other offenses, while addressing entrenched quality-of-life issues such as prostitution, illegal vending, and gang activity. With over 2,500 arrests, nearly 28,000 summonses, and major gang indictments, officials say the initiative reflects a long-term commitment to neighborhood safety and public trust. Mayor Adams emphasized the city’s focus on restoring order without compromising compassion, stating, “We listened, we acted, and now Roosevelt Avenue is safer, cleaner, and on a better path forward.”
Mayor Adams Announces Major Crime Reductions Along Roosevelt Avenue in Queens Following Targeted Enforcement and Outreach
Eight Months of “Operation Restore Roosevelt” Has Resulted in Double-Digit Crime Reductions,
Overall Crime Down 28 Percent in Corridor Year-to-Date
Adams Administration’s Focus on Interagency Collaboration and Targeted
Public Safety Efforts Has Continued
Part of Mayor Adams’ “Community Link” Initiative, Intensive Government Response Effort That
Has Already Responded to Over 1,600 Complaints and Conducted Over 1,760 Operations
– New York City Mayor Eric Adams today announced a major public safety milestone along Roosevelt Avenue in Queens: an over 28 percent drop in crime from the start of the year through mid-June, driven by nine months of a sustained multi-agency enforcement initiative known as “Operation Restore Roosevelt.” The initiative — part of the Adams administration’s larger “Community Link” initiative — has combined strategic enforcement, targeted outreach, and critical services to address long-standing issues in the area, including prostitution, illegal brothels, unlicensed vendors and food carts, retail theft and the sale of stolen goods, and other quality-of-life offenses.
“Every New Yorker deserves to live in a neighborhood that is safe from gun violence, with clean streets and free from illegal activity — and that’s exactly what we’re delivering on Roosevelt Avenue,” said Mayor Adams. “This administration wasn’t going to tolerate an atmosphere of anything goes. We listened to the community and took action — launching ‘Operation Restore Roosevelt’ as one of our signature ‘Community Link’ initiatives. Eight months later, the results are clear: crime is down more than 28 percent, with double-digit drops in burglaries, assaults, robberies, and more. That’s not an accident — it’s the result of our clear and continuing focus on public safety and quality of life. Whether it’s sweeping out illegal brothels, shutting down ghost vehicles, or taking down violent gangs, we are using every tool at our disposal to improve life for New Yorkers. Through this work, we are ensuring that New York City remains the safest big city in America, the best place to raise a family, and a place where you know your city is looking out for you — on the streets, in parks, in the subways, and on the sidewalks.”
“For too long, Roosevelt Avenue was overwhelmed by illegal activity — from prostitution and unlicensed vendors to violent gangs operating in plain sight,” said New York City Police Department (NYPD) Commissioner Jessica S. Tisch. “Since the start of ‘Operation Restore Roosevelt,’ the NYPD and our city partners have led a sustained effort to take this corridor back. We’ve cracked down on crime, restored a sense of order, and delivered the kind of enforcement that makes a real difference in people’s lives. This isn’t about quick fixes — it’s about long-term commitment. And the results speak for themselves. I want to thank Mayor Adams and our agency partners for making this progress possible.”
“For years, the people of Queens were led to believe that accepting dirty conditions and criminal activity along Roosevelt Avenue was just part of living in New York,” said New York City Department of Sanitation Acting Commissioner Javier Lojan. “But that misguided narrative was wrong, and these numbers are proof that we can improve quality of life for our neighbors across the city by removing bureaucratic roadblocks and working together to do what needs to be done. Queens is cleaner and safer because of this effort.”
“The dramatic decrease in crime on Roosevelt Avenue is proof that when government responds to a community in a united effort it can succeed,” said New York City Councilmember Francisco Moya. “With cleaner and safer streets comes more opportunities for us to celebrate all that our diverse community has to offer. I thank Mayor Adams for supporting me and my neighbors and giving us the resources we deserve to feel as safe as any affluent neighborhood in New York City. We will continue to fight for every New Yorker to not just live but thrive.”
Across the corridor, 177 fewer major crimes were committed compared to the same period last year. The area has seen double-digit declines in several key crime categories: burglaries are down 48 percent, grand larcenies are down 29.4 percent, felony assaults are down 28.2 percent, and robberies are down 26.6 percent.
Additionally, complaints of petit larceny are down by 28 percent, and reported sex crimes have plummeted by 52.5 percent. At the same time, prostitution-related arrests have risen nearly fivefold — an increase of 477.8 percent compared to the same period last year — reflecting intensified enforcement against illegal activity and sex trafficking.
In federal court in Brooklyn last week, an indictment was unsealed charging eight members and associates of the 18th Street gang — a violent transnational criminal organization — with racketeering conspiracy, narcotics and firearms trafficking, extortion, and assaults in aid of racketeering. The defendants are alleged to have relied on violence and intimidation to exert control over a busy commercial corridor along Roosevelt Avenue in the Jackson Heights neighborhood — including assaults on civilians and rival gang members, trafficking in fraudulent identification documents, and extracting “rent” from illicit businesses such as unregulated brothels. The NYPD and its federal partners were instrumental in the investigation, which marks a major step in dismantling a network that fueled violence and disorder in the area.
Since its launch in October 2024, Operation Restore Roosevelt has made a visible impact, supported by feedback from residents and business owners — a testament to the city’s sustained presence and commitment on the ground. The initiative has achieved the following results in its efforts to restore safety and order to the area, while delivering resources for those affected by the issues plaguing Roosevelt Avenue for decades:
- 2,501 arrests, including 397 prostitution-related offenses
- 27,821 summonses
- 877 confiscated vehicles, including 648 illegal two-wheeled vehicles and ATVs
- 303 building inspections, resulting in 18 vacate orders and two locations padlocked by the New York City Sheriff’s Office for illegal cannabis sales
- 909 vendor inspections, resulting in 94 propane tanks confiscated, more than 29,200 pounds of food donated, and more than 9,700 pounds of food composted
- 233 engagements with homeless New Yorkers
In addition to enforcement, the city has worked to connect impacted individuals with services, ensure retail spaces operate legally and safely, and improve overall neighborhood conditions — including cleaner streets, better lighting, and improved traffic flow. Targeted outreach to those experiencing homelessness or engaging in sex work has also resulted in multiple individuals accepting services, including housing, trauma counseling, and immigration or legal support.
The success of Operation Restore Roosevelt comes as part of the Adams administration’s larger Community Link initiative, a rapid governmental response initiative launched in May 2023 that identifies neighborhoods facing chronic and complex quality-of-life issues and organizes the right combination of agency, community, and external stakeholders to collaboratively address them. By taking a concentrated multi-agency approach and embedding them with community partners, Community Link works to address the root cause of pervasive issues and delivers the resources and services communities need to achieve meaningful progress. The central Community Link team coordinates with local police precincts and deploys multiple agencies into neighborhoods on a daily basis to address problems, such as illegal vending; illicit cannabis shops; abandoned property and encampments; unkempt parks and streets; derelict vehicles; illegal ghost cars, dirt bikes, ATVs, mopeds, and pedicabs; loitering and disorderly groups; noise complaints; sanitation issues; illegal substance use activity; and more.
Community Link performs quality-of-life operations all over the city, including seven “Community Improvement Coalitions” throughout the five boroughs. Focused on “hot spot” areas, in addition to on Roosevelt Avenue in Queens, Community Link is active at 125th Street, on the 110th Street Corridor, in Midtown West, and on East 14th Street in Manhattan and at “The Hub” in the South Bronx. Since its inception, Community Link has responded to 1,610 complaints and conducted 1,762 operations to address quality-of-life concerns raised by the communities they serve.
Today’s announcement further demonstrates the Adams administration’s emphasis on taking a community-driven approach to public safety concerns. In October 2024, Mayor Adams announced the “Every Block Counts” pilot program, a data-driven multi-agency and community partnership that aims to permanently transform the conditions and culture on residential blocks that have historically seen high levels of crime and quality-of-life issues. Efforts are informed by volunteer residents known as “Block CEOs” and include infrastructure improvements, such as repaving sidewalks and removing graffiti, as well as social services and resources for block residents.
In April 2025, Mayor Adams and NYPD Commissioner Jessica Tisch launched the NYPD’s new Quality of Life Division, which expanded citywide last week. The division brings together specially trained officers from existing NYPD community-oriented roles to address chronic quality-of-life issues and strengthen community trust.
The results on Roosevelt Avenue reflect a broader trend taking hold across the five boroughs. As a result of the Adams administration’s relentless focus on public safety — including concentrated efforts like Operation Restore Roosevelt and the collaborative multi-agency Community Link initiative — from January 2025 through May 2025, New York City experienced the lowest number of shootings and murders in recorded history after setting a record for the lowest number of shootings and murders for a month of May.
These targeted, community-centered strategies have proven instrumental in addressing the root causes of crime and disorder, and helped drive down major crime categories for the sixth consecutive quarter, with a 4.9 percent drop in May 2025 compared to the same time last year. Overall index crime across New York City is down 6.3 percent year-to-date — with reductions in homicides, robberies, burglaries, felony assaults, grand larcenies, vehicle theft, shootings, transit crime, housing crime, retail theft, and more. These significant declines resulted in 3,128 fewer victims of major crimes in New York City so far this year, compared to the same period last year. The record-low crime statistics build on the Adams administration’s work to remove more than 22,200 illegal guns from New York City streets since coming into office, including more than 2,500 illegal guns removed year-to-date.
June 24, 2025 NEW YORK
Sources: nyc.gov , bigny.com/mayor-adams-5/7274
