Mayor Adams Hosts First-Ever New York City Public Safety Promotion Ceremony, Announces new Unified Public Safety Training Facility to be Built

May 31, 2024

Training Facility Delivers on Mayor Adams’ Efforts to Maintain Fiscal Responsibility,
Increase Efficiency and Collaboration Between Public Safety Agencies

NEW YORK — New York City Mayor Eric Adams today held New York City’s first-ever public safety promotion ceremony and announced plans for the city to build a unified training facility for all of its public safety agencies. The historic event and proposed training facility underscore Mayor Adams’ continued dedication to enhancing public safety through increased efficiency and collaboration between all of the city agencies involved in New York City’s public safety efforts. The training facility also further represents Mayor Adams’ commitment to fiscal responsibility by building a shared, consolidated space to accommodate the city’s myriad public safety training needs.

“New York City remains the safest big city in America thanks to the tireless work of our frontline heroes, and, today, we are promoting 79 heroes from 15 different agencies during the first-ever public safety promotion ceremony,” said Mayor Adams. “Over the last two years, we’ve broken down silos, better connected all our city’s public safety agencies, and given them the tools and resources needed to continue to keep our city safe. This is the best public safety team in the nation, and we’re going to build on that good work by providing them the best training facilities possible. Today’s announcement to build New York City’s first-ever public safety academy campus will not only meet the needs of every agency that helps deliver on our promise of public safety, but also enhance our ability to protect all New Yorkers and visitors to our city.”

“This is a new era of collaboration between our public safety agencies,” said Deputy Mayor for Public Safety Philip Banks III. “This is why the mayor created the Office of Public Safety — to make sure law enforcement is working seamlessly together with each other and with New Yorkers to effectively serve this city. Our message to New Yorkers today is that we are united and committed to our mission to keep our great city safe.”

“Maintaining public safety is up to all of us — the men and women in blue, but also our building inspectors and parks enforcement patrol, sanitation and environmental protection — all of the hardworking civil servants in uniform,” said Deputy Mayor for Operations Meera Joshi. “With this effort, civil servants across our city agencies tasked with keeping the peace will get more and better training to interact with the public in a way that is respectful, safe, and efficient.”

A total of 79 city employees, representing 15 different agencies, were promoted today at the first-of-its-kind public safety promotion ceremony, held at the New York City Police Department (NYPD) Academy in College Point, Queens. The promotion ceremony highlighted public safety professionals from the New York City Administration for Children’s Services (ACS) Police; New York City Department of Citywide Administrative Services (DCAS) Police; New York City Department of Correction (DOC); New York City Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) Police; New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene (DOHMH) Police; New York City Department of Homeless Services Police; New York City Department of Parks and Recreation (NYC Parks) Enforcement Patrol; New York City Department of Probation (DOP); New York City Emergency Management (NYCEM); Fire Department of the City of New York (FDNY); NYC Health + Hospitals (H+H) Police; New York City Human Resources Administration Police; NYPD; New York City Sheriff’s Office; and New York City Taxi & Limousine Commission (TLC) Police.

Two years ago, Mayor Adams created the position of the deputy mayor for public safety to break down silos, better connect the city’s public safety agencies, and give them the tools and resources needed to continue to keep New York City safe. As the next step in the city’s efforts to keep New Yorkers safe, during the ceremony, Mayor Adams also announced that the city is planning to build an additional state-of-the-art training facility building on the current NYPD Academy campus that will become part of a shared training space for the city’s public safety agencies. This shared training space — that will expand the existing training facilities — will enhance an already robust public safety apparatus by breaking down silos, fostering interagency cooperation, and improving training through information sharing.

Construction of the new Public Safety Academy facility is expected to begin in early 2026 with a completion date expected for early 2030. The facility includes space identified in a survey, conducted in 2022, by the Office of Public Safety and the Mayor’s Office of Operations to assess the city’s existing public safety and law enforcement training capacity and needs. The survey found that a unified public safety training center would better allocate resources and reduce redundancies in the city’s training spaces. Funding for the new facility will include $225 million approved in 2021 to build a new training facility for the DOC on the NYPD Academy campus. The new Public Safety Academy will accommodate both the specialty spaces required for DOC, as well as flexible training spaces to allow for 16 agencies — including the New York City Department of Sanitation (DSNY) Police — to train on the new Public Safety Campus.

“Coordinating training under one roof will boost our collective ability to deliver a safer New York City and enhance the close working relationships the NYPD already enjoys with our sister agencies,” said NYPD Commissioner Edward A. Caban. “I commend and thank Mayor Adams for his vision and his sustained commitment to our shared public safety mission.”

“Today’s ceremony is creating a new history in the New York City Sheriff’s Office and in New York City,” said Sheriff Anthony Miranda. “Promotions create opportunities to recognize people who are the future leaders within the agency. Thank you, Mayor Adams, for recognizing the crucial role we have in effecting positive change in the city. Congratulations to everyone being promoted today.”

“New York City is proud of all the public safety officers being promoted, including my colleagues at ACS who were promoted to sergeants of the ACS Police to help keep youth, families, and staff safe,” said ACS Commissioner Jess Dannhauser. “Their commitment to the children and families of New York City is in line with the mayor’s vision for a better New York. I am confident that, with today’s announcement of a new training facility for all public safety agencies, New York City will continue to be the safest big city in the country.”

“By unifying our training efforts with the new public safety academy, this administration is taking a groundbreaking step toward a safer and more efficient New York City,” said DCAS Commissioner Dawn M. Pinnock. “Beyond fostering stronger collaboration among various public safety agencies, this new facility will help to ensure that all our dedicated public safety civil servants, including our very own DCAS Police, receive the highest quality training possible. I could not be more proud of this new facility and initiative, embodying our commitment to public safety and streamlining our ability to train staff across the city.”

“This administration recognizes the essential role of interagency collaboration to ensure we are reaching vulnerable New Yorkers and connecting them to critical lifelines in safe, supportive, and trauma-informed settings,” said New York City Department of Social Services Commissioner Molly Wasow Park. “We are proud of our incredible peace officers and security personnel who ensure the safety of our clients and frontline staff every day. Strengthening the city’s collaborative and holistic training efforts, which draw from the wealth of expertise across agencies, will help enhance our overall efforts to strengthen public safety for all New Yorkers.”

“Protecting New York City’s water supply is one of the most important jobs in the city, and DEP congratulates the four members of our police department on their promotions today,” said DEP Commissioner Rohit T. Aggarwala. “We also celebrate all of the other public safety professionals who are being recognized. We thank the mayor for his continued efforts to improve the safety of New Yorkers, and we look forward to strengthening our collaboration with our fellow public safety agencies.”

“On behalf of the entire DOC, I congratulate Bureau Chief and Chief of Staff Sherrie Ann Rembert, Assistant Chief Charlton Lemon, and Associate Commissioner Ayinde Williams on their new roles,” said DOC Commissioner Lynelle Maginley-Liddie. “I am confident they will continue to serve the department with the expertise, dedication, and resourcefulness they have embodied throughout their government careers.”

“We are one city with one mission — to improve the lives of the people we serve,” said DOHMH Commissioner Dr. Ashwin Vasan. “Sharing resources, such as training facilities, matches the collaborative spirit that our agencies demonstrate in our daily operations.”

“We are thrilled to be part of this historic initiative,” said DOP Commissioner Juanita Holmes. “The unified public safety ceremony promotion and the planned new training facility underscore the importance of collaboration among all public safety agencies. This new facility will provide a state-of-the-art environment for training and development, enhancing our ability to serve and protect New Yorkers more effectively. The DOP is committed to revolutionizing training practices and integrating innovative techniques and advanced technologies to ensure our officers are well-prepared to drive a safer city. Our deepest gratitude goes to Mayor Adams and Deputy Mayor for Public Safety Philip Banks III for their visionary leadership and unwavering support. Their dedication to public safety and community well-being has made this transformative project possible.”

“New York is the safest big city in America, thanks in no small part to the selfless, round-the-clock work of the courageous individuals who proudly serve our public safety agencies,” said DSNY Commissioner Jessica Tisch. “From swiftly responding to emergencies to enforcing commonsense regulations to improve the quality of life for our residents, every city agency plays an important role in protecting New Yorkers. The city’s new joint public safety training academy will strengthen the already strong collaboration between our public safety agency partners and will help make New York City stronger and safer for all New Yorkers.”

“Keeping our city safe requires a coordinated effort between all of our agency partners. Training together is a smart way to ensure cohesion, partnership, and relationship building,” said FDNY Commissioner Laura Kavanagh. “We are grateful to Mayor Adams for building a new facility that will promote those interests, and the FDNY is excited to work together in this important mission.”

“Our hospital police play a critical role in keeping our staff, patients, and visitors safe every day,” said H+H Senior Vice President and Chief Quality Officer Eric Wei. “We thank Mayor Adams and the NYPD for this opportunity to celebrate our hospital police and give them the recognition they deserve.”

“Congratulations and thank you to the dedicated public servants recognized today who work tirelessly to keep New Yorkers safe,” said NYCEM Commissioner Zachary Iscol. “These men and women have dedicated their time, energy, and talent to keeping you, me, and the rest of this city prepared and safe. They serve us in our darkest hours and care for our city when we need it most. Most days they do so without recognition, so it is an honor to applaud their commitment and acknowledge their sacrifice today. New York City is forever indebted to our heroic public safety workforce exemplified by the folks celebrated today.”

“Our brave and dedicated parks enforcement patrol officers work hard every day to protect our city’s greenspaces and educate the public,” said NYC Parks Commissioner Sue Donoghue. “We’re grateful to Mayor Adams for celebrating the promotion of our officers and the other safety officers across 15 city agencies that ensure the safety of all New Yorkers. In addition, the construction of a new, integrated training facility will bolster efficiency and inspire interagency collaboration, reinforcing this administration’s commitment to keeping New York City the safest big city in America.”

“The public safety professionals we promote today fill me with pride, and I offer them my heartfelt congratulations,” said TLC Commissioner David Do. “They come from diverse backgrounds and agencies and carry different shields, but what they have in common inside transcends any regimental distinction: a selfless commitment to protecting our city, a higher purpose, and a willingness to put the needs of the public above their own. It only makes sense that New Yorkers dedicated to these ideals should learn under the same roof, and I thank Mayor Adams for making this commitment. Our city will reap the safety benefits of cross-training and cooperation for generations to come.”

 ###