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Presents city close up each week at this time to see more MC go interviews to city officials on their work and its relation to the will of the city's eight million people now here is a mystery. Gentlemen welcome to Sunday close up we're delighted to have as our guest unless a dozen or something close up they Democratic councilman at live from the bar of Queens councilman Seymour a boy. Is welcome to sort of close up very nice face. Generally is the father of the Red Rocks preservation. Or bit about that legislation. What do you think the results are going to buy I thank you for the characterization actually the genesis of the van came about sometime in one thousand nine hundred sixty one when a number of individuals who were concerned with the elimination from our. Public saying of outstanding landmarks and I thought that something should be done about it they presented him with the idea of trying to develop some form of commission to regulate the elimination of the structures and the mayor consider that as a. Time a something that should be undertaken and he appointed a temporary Landmark Preservation Commission to reckon to have them arise in other cities throughout the United States as well as in other countries and they did and they made a report to him. I was brought in and I said that together with the temporary members of the Landmark Preservation Commission and we laded a statute crop rotation with the corporation counsel's office. And that was presented to counsel sometime in October nine hundred sixty four. At that time we had a number of hearings first a public hearing where everybody who want to be heard on the subject could say this it was a very comprehensive and complicated piece of legislation at the time we completed the buffer presentation the ransom thirty three printed pages and it was of course something that had a very carefully studied in the valuated on any event after public hearing really in committee of the kind of station Committee which I happen to be chairman of. Separate meetings of the committee to consider number one all the testimony that we receive from the public on the various provisions within the bell on that have been. Some segments of our community that oppose it although I will say this piece of legislation received much mail from not organized groups but individuals who are concerned that there are city was beginning to lose too many of those so called Landmark structures and I guess I can agree with ninety who say that the growth of a city is really not measured in a month or or a day or week or year but it's the sum of its continuous progress and therefore ever we feel it's important to maintain the historical and cultural. Background for our children our traveling child and so that they can understand the link of the city from its original growth until today when there's this legislation unique or are there other cities or other localities in the country that have the equivalent good move legislation Well it's not unique I mean just imagine if you're We have Georgetown for example and you can Helen Boston neurology means they have Landmarks Preservation legislation but I will say this I think that the legislation which was ultimately voted on a report out by a committee and subsequently passed by the council is perhaps the most far reaching legislation that exists presently on the subject of Landmark Preservation the entire country because we tried to incorporate the best parts of the existing law and I was Cities and we went beyond that in trying to set up more stringent regulations that would at the same time not tie the hands of the building industry and the economy of the city where the systems are very briefly were wrapped very quickly. As a nation to measure which is going to consist of some eleven people and will be a permanent commission aware make a study of early structures that they deem will qualify for preservation at the time of the end of. Driver who owns a store and the adjacent property owners will be notified that this building is going to be considered for. A landmark and then there will be a public hearing by the Landmarks Preservation Commission all rows who either support or other or oppose the designation of the structure as a lamb lost and come in and testify before the commission after the commission receives all the testimony they can decide to designate the structure as a landmark but that's not the end of it they're after the individual or our group who still opposes it can have a hearing before the broad of estimate on the broad of estimate will have the final say as to whether to a part of a designation as a lamb on or to whatever criteria they use to determine if this birthing should not be a lamb and one says that it's made as a landmark then it comes within the framework of the legislation and I just want to make this very clear that the legislation is directed experience and that is it will confront experience and not the interiors of structures and therefore as an individual wishes to change the exterior of a building which has been designated as a lamb Ah he must not only make an application as he does now of the building the Brahman but he also must make an application to the Lamb lodge Preservation Commission and they can grant what we call the the race itself again P.S. puppet as that is they fear that the. Particular modification of the owner of the property you may want to bring about on the lamb are in no way will affect. The Landmark as a structure or as they feel it will they will not grant that we've got a problem or what we call certificate of reasonable. I'm sorry Breyer's What about. This year's budget. For ugly. You have to comment on it when I do of course as everybody now is a lot this budget. As. It runs somewhere near three and a half million dollars Our first price the same with a monumental budget. Is growing each year and this is a fact the budget is growing each year and something must be done to try and contain it before it runs away from us however we do have these problems you have the requirement of providing the people with essential minuscule services there is always and I can tell you this as a council in a lot of planes there is an increasing demand from in a civil service and when you have an increasing demand and a need you must have a corroborative increase in your budget I think that this problem is one that unfortunately we attack each year piecemeal and I think there must be and many people have attempted to do this within government within the present in the next ration a long range as to where the number one we will derive our sources of revenue in order to meet growing expenditures and just to give you an idea why the expenditures grow each year we have certain mandated increases which in the budget that nobody can do anything about for example our debt service on our capital improvement program we have to build schools libraries. Records. And what we do we borrow on a long time investment for these capital improvements are essential necessary when we do that we have to pay the I am and as a sign on the capital Bahrain and in this year's expense. Five hundred fifty million dollars That's an increase from last year's expense budget on debt service alone of approximately one hundred million so you can see that this is something that we can't do a thing about this spiraling going back for some forty and fifty years for capital improvements with the city needed and that's. That's one area where we can do anything about mandated increase the other one of course is the fact that we employ approximately two hundred fifty thousand employees in the city of New York and as in any industry as an any business where you have an I rise in inflation you will not have a riot rise in the standard of living you might have a corralling of rise in salaries and people of course who. Are employed on the basis to have incentive naturally should be given an increase. We have as far as our social service program mandated salary increases are because increments and I know you are fully aware of us Mr Siegel and this of course is a an increase which is mandated and nobody can again do anything about these increases that are many others which are mandated within the budget which I. Don't want to go into now to take up the time but as a result we must come up. With some new revenue sources and a lot of to make the increases and then of course there are other areas of increase which we can anticipate for example this year we had unfortunately a. Crime in the streets of the subways which required dramatic action by the mayor the city and he did take it and hiring additional patrolmen and also at the same time increasing the hours of service of these patrolmen who perform in the streets of this course roughly about a matter of. A million half a month that's correct for the. Return. Still taking steps in the direction of running or waiting study. For them to serve the services yes I believe you know that. Over a year ago I thought request of the. COUNCIL ON act the legislation to. Actually create a temporary commission on the finances of the city of Najaf and this commission which is presently. Under the leadership of our shrouds one of our leading bankers in the city of New York and we have as its executive secretary. Demagoguery former dean of Queens College from the Comptroller of the sun also the former control of the city that's correct undertaking a long range study in order to see what the impact on our calmly with the various pipe measures fires revenue is concerned and also to make a very careful study and analysis of areas. Services within the city perhaps can be eliminated or perhaps whether it's duplications to make recommendations to see to it that they are removed and these we hope will create. A considerable amount of savings to the people of the city. We're going to represent as you do. How do you feel about the plans for the area now occupied by the World's Fair after the fair closes those for I have made a recommendation and submitted resolutions in the Council calling for a an inspection an examination of the structures that are present in the fast site time and as the rather not any of the structures can be converted economically inconveniently into prime minister options that might be used as a cultural and recreational center for the city and I think that this site. Would be an ideal site because there have been now a number of Henri's number of super highways which lead to this area in Flushing Meadows and the federal government principly is invested a great amount of money and trying to set up a not terrier program around the site of the World's Fair which makes it accessible to almost any part of the city in a relatively short period of time and I think it would be a shame if we didn't do anything in retaining this area as a card for one recreational center not only for the people of Queens but for the people of the entire city or what's the status of that legislation Presently the resolution has come up in committee it was laid over and I hope that it will come up with the next week or two before we retire from the. Before that is the first and at the same time I have recommended that sense we have a permanent museum there's a lot of sort of a lot of science technology at the Wells fast site and I sense already Bob Moses has indicated that he will recommend that the New York State ampitheater to remain as a prime in the structure I think we have the beginning of a nucleus upon which we can expand into a permanent cultural center for the city of New York and I think would be ideal. Well you were sort of spread to sort of the interest to air pollution records during July we're hearing for the air pollution committee control committee. What are your views about what might be doing what I think regard to this I think the committee has done an excellent job and if nothing else dramatizing the problem of Appaloosas to the people of the city of New York we all know that as far as Appalachian the concern it comes principally from to an area from our chimneys and I smokestacks that is the burning of you. And all of the produce heat energy and last hour we have the other Colorado. Area from where it comes from and that is all of the Elves on our buses and we have approximately when the automobile I was in sixty seven hundred These are buses on the streets of the city. Every day and Vajra they have taken some steps to eliminate pollution that is to prevent crankcase missions at the same time nothing really has been done with reference to the tap pipe exhausts and this is indeed a very serious problem and increasing the pollution do you think this could be have a locally My own feeling is that. The overall problem cannot things satisfactorily handled on a local level. Rather. On a regional basis in order to really attack the principal sources of Appalachian. And this of course would require legislation from several states that is correct when I say now we presently have the interstate Sanitary Commission and they have their resources in some areas to study the problem of water pollution for example and also other problems that may concern the neighboring states and certainly I feel that this is one area where they should really their resources and out of the fact this very critical problem. As you also have been considerable or close to the ticks addiction with the control over the world tell us a little bit about what your plumes or killer actually were just like. Conex problem is probably one of the most serious problems not only facing the city of New York but every large municipality in the country and it has been stated by our mayor and also by a president that during the past year it has probably courts that is the incidence of narcotics has cost the city of New York someone billion dollars in the point of view of all the services that are necessary in order to handle the increasing problem traffic and one area specifically which in my opinion has increased and I don't think enough attention has been paid to what is the increase usage by teenagers specifically of the so-called pap errors and goofballs and by that I mean the amphetamines and the barbiturates and unfortunately the reason why there has been in my opinion a growing increase in the use is the fact that it's so. Cheap in the point of view of course the pill will cost anywhere from five to seven cents a pill and at the same time unfortunately it's readily accessible to these teenagers there has been no real controls. On the salary of the amphetamines and the goofballs. Plus the fact there are approximately and I have made a study of this area approximately eight billion pills produced a year out of which head go into illicit traffic or illegal traffic of the main the good. And sober the really would require. Prescriptions That is correct that is nevertheless there are. Others who. Look so well principled to make this available so courtroom. Underworld Yes under the table. Would you controllers Well I recommend and I have legislation pending before the council now that there should be the need by the manufacturer to put a code symbol on the pill and that at the same time the symbol the code symbol will be for each distributor that he will sour the pills to and in addition to that presently the manufacturer does not have to indicate the amounts that he sells and he said gently indicate the amounts now by having the code simple which by the way by the way can be readily applied to the pill it will help the police to enforce the regulation what would happen in lieu of a question as oppose the pill or ground up and the power. How would you identify. That's a difficult area you're probably could not identify it if it was ground up and the point is that if the pair of the NOT have the symbol which would be required on it was in the possession of someone and the police made an inspection they can readily Tallaght this came from an illegal. And therefore of course they can act accordingly they can follow through from whatever source Rosin and they have I think they. Connect the blank as to where this bill is come from how do you feel about proposals that have been made to permit doctors to prescribe narcotics. Route of cross the doctors presently can prescribe narcotics so they can prescribe drugs which contain all contacts Well it's a making your perfectly legal for users of conduct so you are the physician I guess you're referring to signal to the British system that's right where you have a control you so I caught it was reversed would take us out of the criminal area but of course as many individuals who have looked into this area and I know Senator Kennedy for example who has made a detailed study of this area and I cut X. is also indicated that it should be. Somewhat removed from the criminal area that he feels and others say the same thing that this is a medical problem and that perhaps the British system should be involved although I'm not saying that Senator Kennedy years in favor of the British system I'm not certain of his position on this particular system but there are a number of others who have made a careful study of the British system and they say although in its inception it worked out very route what has happened unfortunately is that the powers has not of the individual addict has not remained constant and by the introduction his tolerance has increased so that the dosage had to increase and this is the danger that many critics of the British system have invoked as far as introducing it in the city of New York but what are you going to physicians were in a position to provide those would loose a limb and. The leader were so silly for. Petty crimes to be committed so that the thirty to thirty five dollars a day which has been said to be the minimum required to keep an addict stock. To get this right to help it may very well as I say if I can be assured. I'm sure other legislators will feel the same way that this can be controlled so that the tolerance of the individual who was receiving this control dosage would not increase that you have to continue to increase the dosage then I think it should be a system that should be considered very seriously for implementation by all means. Good record in connection with the use of public property for commercial purposes. Particularly the Port Authority use proposal for example to build really the World Trade Center he would tell us a bit about your views of the loose Yes I have been a strong critic frankly of the not specifically the World Trade Center because my criticism of began long before the World Trade Center was implemented are very any of the a fire users who were created for the sole purpose of establishing. A public service to the citizen really have either the city or the state and receiving as a result tax exempt status for release purposes I feel that's perfectly fine but I say that when the a fire which is granted this tax exempt status violates the purposes for which the exemption work was originally granted then I say that there should be a hard left as to whether or not that exemption should be continued and I as an example I think in terms of. Their parole which is now the Kennedy Airport you have a tax exempt status of other property they're owned by the Port Authority and you have a hotel you have a bank you have a cup of factory and I say that where the party and is the market place for tenants on a commercial basis then they are on the same status as any other OWN of looking for tenants. And that they should not have any competitive advantage and I feel that in these instances these properties are being used for commercial purposes in violation of the public purpose and public policy behind the statutory exemption they should eliminate the exemption or at the same time not so through not allow them to have these properties for commercial use and I mean the same for the presence of that category in recent years to. Education for every wrestler institutions that have tax exemption such as universities going to such things as spaghetti factories or so as you well know and if I may be at liberty to mention one of our famous university had a macaroni factory which originally had a tax exempt status but a pond study of the situation it was recognize that. Property is being used for a commercial benefit no longer have a tax exempt status and it was removed in this case. As we mentioned universities where brings up the whole topic of education. How do you feel really. Good with us last year the field of education compares with previous activities. And I'm talking now not only for myself but I think I can speak for my colleagues we are vitally concerned with the education of higher. Concern and we are attempting to appropriate as much money within the limits of our budget to Reggie case as we possibly can because we think for the future it's probably the most important vestment that we can make and racially as in our we appropriated money to allow the Board of Education to expand their program so that youngsters. Be introduced to the educational system I don't naturally age and this of course is most important in those areas of the city where the youngsters come from socially deprived or socially deprived areas so that their educational disadvantage can perhaps be improved at an early age so that they can there's a little bit of Project Head Start I'm really worried about is probably that is correct yes and I'm going to. Suppose those we did like to request we didn't know to what extent the Economic Opportunities Act will apply to this area but we were delighted to see that we were able to get additional funds that were not and I contemplation initially but we thought that in any event this type of program should be implemented and we did get a head start on the program called Operation Head Start which was ultimately implemented as part of a property program. Do you through with attempts or loosely last year has begun to make full use of the powers come for it by the charter Well I think we have made a step in the right direction. I believe that the council during the past four years. Has shown and and improvement and of course that has come about by virtue of the change in the charter of one nine hundred sixty one which expanded our powers I also feel how I would like to see it and I feel certain that. It will be implemented a greater expansion into those powers which we do have as far as looking into areas which heretofore I may have been deemed sacrosanct you're talking about the investigatory powers that is a right that is correct I think that there have been some very important Vesta geishas by the council to mention one I remember not too many years ago on the water hot I was presently a Supreme Court justice of the state of New York were at the heart of was a council and at that time headed a a an investigation into discrimination in medical schools and I think that the work of that committee was. Excellent and at the same had a really started to really affect very salutary effect by on me where unfortunately the second within the sped away was but a great purpose to have you here is I guess my pleasure and I hope that you'll come and visit with us many many times in the future. Will see you all again next week by. Any. Student who saw the series of interviews in which you seem or even see good news people in the municipal government today Mr Siegel's glanced was a senior boiler. Democratic counsel of lurch from the barrel of me. Sitting close up was directed by John Baird.