Mayor Adams creates ‘rat mitigation’ office as he approaches end of term

Mayor Adams announced a new “Mayor’s Office of Rodent Mitigation” on Tuesday, just two weeks before his term ends.

Adams, who will leave office Dec. 31, has made his “war on rats” a hallmark issue of his administration, leading efforts to containerize trash and hiring — with much fanfare — the city’s first director of rodent mitigation, Kathleen Corradi.

“New Yorkers know there is nothing I dislike more than rats, and that’s why we have made it our mission to significantly address this intractable problem that has plagued New Yorkers for decades,” Adams said in a statement. “With this new executive order establishing the Office of Rodent Mitigation, we are ensuring our ‘War on Rats,’ and the smart policies we put in place to coordinate across city agencies, has a permanent home.”

The Rats Office is only currently budgeted for a “rat czar,” according to Fabien Levy, a spokesperson for the mayor — though that role is sitting empty. Corradi quietly left the administration in September after two years in the role, and has not been replaced.

The office, done by executive order on Monday, is also a parting gift from Adams to Mayor-elect Mamdani, who will be the one to decide whether to staff or keep the office.

A spokesperson for Mamdani did not immediately respond to a request for comment on whether the mayor-elect plans to hire a rat czar.

Under Adams, the city’s sanitation department mandated businesses and small residential buildings put out their trash in bins, which were followed by a drop in rat complaints.

Adams has expressed his ill-will for the rodents frequently over his four-year term.

“Everyone that knows me, they know one thing. I hate rats…,” he said at a press conference on trash in 2022. “Some of the same folks are criticizing us now called me a murderer because I was killing rats. Well, you know what? We’re going to kill rats.”