New York City Mayor Eric Adams and Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg have announced the formation of the Village Interagency Task Force, a coordinated effort bringing together more than 10 city agencies, law enforcement, business leaders, and community groups to address public safety, homelessness, drug use, and quality-of-life issues in and around Washington Square Park and the Greenwich Village neighborhood. As part of the city’s broader Community Link initiative, the task force will conduct regular neighborhood walkthroughs, host biweekly strategy meetings, and provide direct responses to community concerns, focusing on issues like retail theft, mental health outreach, park safety, and infrastructure upgrades. With crime in the area already down 23% year-to-date, city officials aim to build on that progress and create a cleaner, safer, and more welcoming environment for residents, businesses, and visitors.
Mayor Adams, DA Bragg Announce new Community Coalition to Enhance Quality of Life, Improve Safety Near Washington Square Park
– New York City Mayor Eric Adams and Manhattan District Attorney Alvin L. Bragg, Jr. today announced the launch of the “Village Interagency Task Force,” a new multi-agency quality-of-life improvement hub that will bring together law enforcement, elected officials, and community and business leaders to address public safety and quality-of-life issues in the Greenwich Village and West Village neighborhoods near Washington Square Park. The new task force is being launched as part of the Adams administration’s “Community Link” initiative – a collaborative, multi-agency response to chronic problems across the five boroughs.
“New Yorkers have a right to public order, safer streets, and cleaner parks, and this administration has fought for that right since day one, including in the Village,” said Mayor Adams. “Our ‘Community Link’ program has already made transformative improvements in neighborhoods around New York City, and the new ‘Village Interagency Task Force’ will, once again, bring together law enforcement, elected officials, and community and business leaders to effectively address public safety and quality-of-life issues in Greenwich Village and the surrounding area. We will continue to work to keep this neighborhood the dynamic and welcoming destination it deserves to be as we improve safety and quality of life across the five boroughs.”
“Public safety and community wellbeing takes all of us working hand-in-hand: law enforcement, city agencies, and community leaders,” said Manhattan DA Bragg. “That is the vision of our interdisciplinary hubs, which are improving the quality of life for the New Yorkers we serve. I am proud to help bring this vision to the Village with the new ‘Village Interagency Task Force.’ I thank our city partners as well as the hub’s dedicated co-chairs for their collaboration and hard work.”
“They say it takes a village, and that’s exactly what this partnership represents — everyone coming together with a shared commitment to making the Village safer and stronger,” said Deputy Mayor for Public Safety Chauncey Parker. “We are now all at one table, looking at the same map at the same time, and taking concrete steps together to address the community’s concerns in the most strategic and effective way possible. I want to thank our project manager, Jessica Cruz, for her leadership on this initiative, and thank you to all of our partners who have rolled up their sleeves to deliver real, lasting results for this neighborhood.”
“We deeply appreciate Mayor Adams and District Attorney Bragg for taking decisive action to address the substance-use, quality-of-life, and mental-health crisis that we and many other New York City neighborhoods are experiencing,” said Scott Hobbs, co-chair, Village Interagency Task Force, and executive director, Village Alliance; Brian Maloney, co-chair, Village Interagency Task Force, and president, Village Neighborhood Action Group; and Vanessa Warren, co-chair, Village Interagency Task Force, and president, Washington Place Block Association. “Our vibrant small business community is also feeling the effects of lawlessness and criminal activity in their stores, with rampant theft and staff harassment. They are eager for real solutions. The formation of the ‘Village Interagency Task Force’ is a crucial step toward restoring public safety, cleanliness, confidence, and vibrancy of our community. We’re already noticing some important changes and look forward to continued progress.”
The task force includes community partners from New York University (NYU), New York City Community Board 2, the Washington Square Park Conservancy, and the New York City Police Department (NYPD) 6th Precinct Community Council. The Office of the Deputy Mayor for Public Safety will oversee and coordinate task force operations with participating agencies and partners, including:
- Fire Department of the City of New York
- Mayor’s Office of Community Mental Health
- Mayor’s Office to End Domestic and Gender-Based Violence
- New York City Department of Buildings
- New York City Department of Environmental Protection
- New York City Department of Homeless Services (DHS)
- New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene (DOHMH)
- New York City Department of Parks and Recreation
- New York City Department of Sanitation
- New York City Department of Small Business Services
- New York City Department of Social Services
- New York City Department of Transportation
- New York City Special Narcotics Prosecutor’s Office
- NYPD
- Manhattan District Attorney’s Office
- Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA)
In May 2024, the city first began coordinating and delivering services in Washington Square Park to address the persistent public drug use, homelessness, and quality-of-life concerns in the area. In October 2024, Mayor Adams, the NYPD’s 6th Precinct, and local community members engaged in a walking tour of Greenwich Village, including Washington Square Park and nearby streets, to examine conditions, which has continued to be a focus of the NYPD and all agencies operating in Community Link.
The task force’s initial area of focus will be an expanded area from West 3rd Street through West 9th Street between Washington Square Park and 6th Avenue, including the area surrounding the West 4th Washington Square Park subway station. Members of the task force will work to address a range of issues, including the use and sales of controlled substances, retail theft, necessary infrastructure upgrades, the mental health crisis, prohibited behavior in parks, and more. The coalition will meet twice each month to coordinate direct responses to these concerns and will deploy teams to conduct walkthroughs to observe issues in real time and speak with local community members on the ground. Since January 1, 2025, overall major crime in the 6th Precinct is down 23 percent, led by double digit declines in robbery, felony assault, burglary, grand larceny, and grand larceny auto.
“The NYPD is focused on addressing quality-of-life issues because they contribute to the sense of disorder that make New Yorkers feel unsafe,” said NYPD Commissioner Jessica S. Tisch. “But we understand that enforcement is only part of the solution — we need the expertise of city agencies and community leaders to tackle these issues from every angle. The Community Link initiative has been an effective program in areas across the city, and now, will help us make Greenwich Village look and feel safer for all.”
“Improving quality of life and addressing public safety concerns requires strong collaboration between agencies, and this announcement reinforces our multi-agency commitment to making the city more vibrant, livable, and thriving for all New Yorkers,” said DHS Administrator Joslyn Carter. “Since May, DHS outreach teams have been working alongside NYPD officers in a Community Link operation at Washington Square Park, engaging with individuals experiencing homelessness and achieving meaningful results by connecting them to critical services and support. We look forward to continuing this vital work and strengthening our partnerships to ensure our most vulnerable neighbors can regain stability and lead fulfilling lives.”
“NYU is thankful for the grassroots organizing efforts of the West Village and Greenwich Village communities in the establishment of a ‘Village Interagency Task Force’ to address chronic and complex quality of life concerns in the Park and its surroundings,” said Linda Mills, president, NYU. “This interagency hub — composed of mayoral and city agency leaders, the Manhattan district attorney, social services groups, and local stakeholders — is a promising model for a coordinated effort to understand and address the needs in the area, and to deliver tangible improvements. As a neighbor and major stakeholder in the success of this effort, we stand ready to partner with and provide effective and sustainable resources to improve quality of life for our community.”
“Washington Square Park is a true cultural icon of New York City with a rich history of arts and activism, and is a meeting point for all New Yorkers and tourists from all over the world,” said New York City Councilmember Carlina Rivera. “As a microcosm of the city, it is also a flash point for some the city’s current struggles, including housing insecurity, substance abuse, and mental health. The Village Interagency Task Force is a community-centered and collaborative approach that will improve quality of life and public safety in the Greenwich Village neighborhood. I am proud to be part of this task force and commend Brian Maloney, Vanessa Warren, and Scott Hobbs for volunteering their time and efforts to improve our community. Thank you to District Attorney Alvin Bragg, Mayor Eric Adams, and Deputy Mayor Chauncey Parker for organizing this important initiative.”
“Time and again, we’ve seen that a multi-agency approach is the most effective for neighborhood public safety and quality-of-life improvements, said Manhattan Borough President Mark Levine. “Working across agencies and with local partners consistently delivers the best results. I’m hopeful that the ‘Village Interagency Task Force’ will resolve chronic issues near Washington Square Park, and I’m grateful to DA Bragg and Mayor Adams for taking action on these longstanding concerns.”
DOHMH has been working closely with community partners and service providers to engage New Yorkers in the area who are struggling with substance use disorder, by connecting them to care and resources to lead a healthy life. Additionally, DHS outreach teams have participated in a joint Community Link operation with NYPD officers in Washington Square Park since May of 2024, engaging daily with individuals experiencing homelessness. In that time, outreach efforts have resulted in 2,692 engagements and 81 individuals placed in DHS beds. In late January 2025, the joint Community Link outreach operation was expanded to additional locations in the West Village Hub outside of Washington Square Park, which resulted in 19 engagements and four homeless individuals placed in DHS beds. DHS non-profit contract provider Manhattan Outreach Consortium operates in the West Village neighborhood daily, ensuring there is sustained outreach by DHS.
Today’s announcement adds the Village Interagency Task Force to Mayor Adams’ Community Link initiative — launched in 2023 to bring together various city departments and agencies to collaborate with local communities and business leaders as they address complex and often chronic community complaints that require a multi-agency response. Since its inception, Community Link has already convened five community improvement coalitions throughout the five boroughs. Focused on “hot spot” areas, Community Link is active at 125th Street, on the 110th Street Corridor, in Midtown West, and on East 14th Street in Manhattan; on Roosevelt Avenue in Queens; and in “The Hub” in the South Bronx. Over the last 19 months, Community Link has responded to over 1,200 complaints and conducted over 1,200 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. Under the leadership of volunteer residents known as “Block CEOs,” the partnership resolved over 100 community concerns in its first 30 days, from repaving sidewalks to removing graffiti, to create safer, cleaner streets.
Mayor Adams has also made supporting New York City’s most vulnerable, including those experiencing serious mental illness and homelessness, a top priority. The Adams administration recently announced unprecedented action to curb homelessness and support people experiencing severe mental illness with a $650 million investment in outreach, safe haven and runaway homeless youth beds, and more. The announcement — which was first unveiled as part of Mayor Adams’ 2025 State of the City — also includes the creation of ‘Bridge to Home,’ a first-of-its-kind model that will provide a supportive, home-like environment to patients with serious mental illness who are ready for discharge from the hospital but do not have a place to go. The Adams administration has made the largest investment in New York City history in creating specialized shelter beds to address street homelessness. The city has opened 1,400 Safe Haven and stabilization beds since the start of the administration and doubled the number of street outreach teams.
Additionally, today’s announcement builds on recent achievements in seizing guns and reducing crime across New York City. In 2024, New York City concluded with a nearly 3 percent reduction in overall index crime. Crime continues to trend downward as there was a 14.5 decrease in February 2025 in major crime citywide — the third consecutive month of double-digit decreases in crime, following a 15.5 decrease in crime in December in 2024 and a 16.8 decrease in crime in January 2025, the largest one-month decrease since before Mayor Adams came into office. In January 2025, the Adams administration also announced the NYPD had removed more than 20,000 illegal firearms from New York City streets since the beginning of the administration — approximately 3,000 more guns off city streets than the previous three-year period from 2019 to 2021. Because of the Adams administration’s steadfast focus on eradicating gun violence, homicides and shootings have consistently declined over the last three years — with homicides decreasing a total of 22.7 percent and shootings decreasing 42.2 percent since Mayor Adams was sworn in on January 1, 2022. Last year marked the fourth lowest year in recorded history for shooting incidents citywide. Additionally, year-to-date shootings in 2025 are at their lowest level in recorded history.
March 6, 2025 Manhattan, New York
Sources: NYC.gov, Midtown Tribune
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