President Donald Trump and New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani met at Gracie Mansion on Monday afternoon, as the President is in the Big Apple for the United Nations General Assembly this week.
In a press conference afterward, Mamdani and the president explained that they discussed housing and immigration, among other topics.
“So hopefully you’re gonna be a great one […] and you’re off to a start,” Trump said, thanking Mamdani for the invite.
One of the main topics of the discussion was the Sunnyside Yard project in the city, as Mamdani said the talks progressed toward a more “technical” discussion.
“Everybody's wanted to do something with Sunnyside Yards […] I would say that was a very federal oriented job. You're gonna need a lot of federal approvals and probably some federal money to do it, but, it's always been a great location […] So maybe they have a shot at doing it.” Trump, a New Yorker himself, said.
President Trump says @NYCMayor Mamdani (D) has "great potential" to be a great mayor. pic.twitter.com/L9Y4CkNJoc
— CSPAN (@cspan) September 21, 2026
He is the first President to make a formal visit to Gracie Mansion since 1981, when then-President Ronald Reagan visited, according to PIX 11.
Mamdani also said that he was pointed in his criticism the temporary protected status program for some migrants.
“I said this in my opening remarks that I committed over the course of the campaign as well as while being in office that I would meet with anyone, work with anyone that could deliver for New Yorkers,” Mamdani said. “And in the previous meetings I've had with President Trump, we've been able to secure the release of a New York City college student who had been detained by ICE.”
Mamdani talking TPS and Sunnyside Yard with Trump highlights how much NYC relies on federal cooperation. Can this brand of local-federal pragmatism actually deliver results? pic.twitter.com/xYYhbMFJdL
— The World Eye (@TheWorldEye_) September 21, 2026
Mamdani and Trump met last year in the Oval Office before he was sworn in as mayor, and the president has since been staunchly critical of certain policies from the Democrat, including the pied-à-terre tax.
“I am looking to see if the Federal Government has any legal right to avert this disaster, before it is too late, for the millions of people who cherish New York and want to see it thrive, as opposed to becoming a filthy, crime ridden, decrepit place of mockery and scorn," Trump posted to Truth Social in August.
.@POTUS on New York City's Sunnyside Yard project: "Sunnyside's a big job. I've been watching that for 35 years; everybody's wanted to do something... They've been talking about developing that for 50 years, so maybe they have a shot at doing it." pic.twitter.com/sFeCdBX9wb
— Rapid Response 47 (@RapidResponse47) September 21, 2026
The president is also meeting with French President Emmanuel Macron on Monday. On Tuesday, he will be addressing the UNGA and meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, Venezuelan Interim President Delcy Rodriguez and Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi.
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