De Blasio: 'New York City Is Coming Back Strong' Despite Criticism From Cuomo, Bratton

NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) – From Gov. Andrew Cuomo to former Police Commissioner Bill Bratton, criticism is mounting about the city's descent into the bad old days of the '70s and '80s.

What does Mayor Bill de Blasio have to say about  it?

As CBS2's political reporter Marcia Kramer reported, to many, New York City in the summer of 2020 is a picture of decline. Homeless encampments abound. Neighborhoods all over the city have homeless sitting on benches or asking for money, and graffiti is popping up in all five boroughs.

It's so bad that Bill Bratton, de Blasio's first police commissioner, is speaking out. Bratton, the proponent of "broken windows" policing, took to Twitter.

"At the rate City Hall is'breaking windows' there won't be any left as NYC continues its downward spiral. The decline is accelerating. City Hall pols  never learn apparently. You can't have public safety without a focus on both serious crime AND disorder," Bratton wrote.

WATCH: Mayor De Blasio's Daily Briefing In New York City 

Gun violence is surging. Serious crimes abound. In the last few days, disturbing videos of a homeless man attacking a grocery store manager with a hammer and a group of teens attacking a 12-year-old. His mother, Valerie Prince, says he has "pain to his head and shoulders from being hit with the crate and he was kicked and hit with soda cans and punched in his face repeatedly."

LINK: Tracking NYC Shootings

Another wild video shows a 22-year-old attacked in a Washington Heights deli.

"I got hit in my face, my head, my neck. They broke a bottle," the victim said.

Cuomo warned the mayor that the combination of increased gun violence, more homeless on the streets and the surge in graffiti are factors people consider in deciding whether to move back to the city from the places where they taken refuge from COVID-19.

"People need to see that progress. They certainly don't need to see deterioration," Cuomo said.

The mayor was asked what he would say to people who are considering leaving for the suburbs or more rural areas.

"I think what you're going to see is, quickly as we come back, many, many people will sense opportunity," he said. "What you're going to see is some people will stand back, other people will surge forward. We saw it after every crisis we've had.

"Again, people had left us for dead after the '60s and '70s, after 9/11, after the Great Recession," he continued. "Consistent pattern – the strength of New York City and the appeal of New York City comes to the fore, and people start investing, people start coming here."

Kramer asked de Blasio how he was going to fix things.

"What actions are you going to take to go after the homeless encampments, the increase in graffiti?" Kramer asked.

"Gotcha, Marcia. I'll just be really clear, New York City is coming back New York City is coming back strong," de Blasio said."We are going to fight back the challenges. But given that this city was hit harder than any place in the country, you can already seen our strength coming back... . So there's no question we'll deal with these issues, as we have before."

While the mayor formulates a plan, however long that takes, the homeless on the streets and the graffiti continue to multiply, Kramer reported.

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• Andrew Cuomo
• Bill de Blasio
• New York