Economy
The Mayor Fighting Poverty in an Expensive NYC Suburb
Mount Vernon piloted guaranteed income as one solution in a town where the cost of living is high but the wages are not.
Mount Vernon Mayor Shawyn Patterson-Howard (left) has sought out anti-poverty programs like guaranteed income to boost opportunities in the Westchester city.
Source: Office of Mayor Shawyn Patterson-Howard
This story is part of a Bloomberg CityLab series of conversations with mayors about how they’re making their cities more livable. Read the previous stories here, about boosting birth rates in Nagareyama, Japan, and ending traffic deaths in Hoboken, New Jersey.
Mount Vernon, New York, doesn’t boast the same wealth as its surrounding Westchester County towns, though its proximity to New York City makes housing expensive.