Quality-of-life teams coming to parts of midtown Manhattan

Quality-of-life teams staffed by more than a dozen municipal agencies and local organizations are being deployed in midtown Manhattan to identify public disorder, including drug use, mental breakdowns, shoplifting, illegal scaffolding and unlicensed cannabis shops.

The announcement comes amid complaints that parts of Times Square, the theater and garment districts and other stretches of midtown have devolved into a disorderly mix of open drug use, troubled people in the throes of mental and narcotic-addled extremis and high-profile bursts of violence that frighten other New Yorkers, tourists and office workers.

Speaking on Tuesday at his weekly news conference, Mayor Eric Adams said his administration was looking at ways to address the problem within the confines of the law.

“Those who are loitering and dealing with the real drug issue that we have in the city — as you know those issues take a lot of care,” he said, adding: “You can’t just pick someone up because they are nodding, because they are high on narcotics — you just can’t arrest them.”

Called the Midtown Community Improvement Coalition, the teams will focus on 34th to 45th streets, between Seventh and Ninth avenues, as well as 34th to 37th streets on Eighth Avenue, the offices said.

Among the groups involved: the Times Square Alliance, and the city departments of buildings, health and mental hygiene, homeless services, sanitation, transportation and police.

A news release said the teams would query people and businesses in the area.

“They will also identify specific individuals in the area who may need connections to services, such as housing or medical care, and make referrals to the appropriate city agency or service provider,” the release said.

Adams said he did a walk through of the area last week. He said the findings of the teams would help determine how the problems could be solved.

“We’re dealing with traffic congestion there. We’re dealing with uncleanliness that’s in the area. We’re dealing with the overuse of mopeds and bikes that are everywhere and parked in disarray. We’re dealing with the proper movement of people, we’re dealing with those who are under the influence of what appears to be drugs, that are just loitering in the area. We’re dealing with those with severe mental health issues in the area. We’re dealing with Mickey and Spiderman, not staying in the right area they’re supposed to be. I think the Naked Cowboy was out there also,” Adams said.

Adams conceded that cleanups of certain areas tend to send the disorder into other neighborhoods. He said his solutions would aim to avoid that from happening this time.

“You have to stay on top of it,” Adams said. “It’s not about displacing your problem to another area.”

By Matthew Chayes

matthew.chayes@newsday.comchayesmatthew

Matthew Chayes, a Newsday reporter since 2007, covers New York City.