Former New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo called to rebuild the Rikers Island jail complex, reversing his previous position to go forward with closing it entirely.

Cuomo is running for mayor of New York City against socialist Democrat Zohran Mamdani and Republican Curtis Sliwa.

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He wants to “rebuild new, state-of-the-art jails on Rikers Island” instead of tearing down the facility and building four new borough-based jails. In a statement shared with the Washington Examiner, Cuomo said he wants to “close Rikers as we know it, and rebuild it the right way.”

The city is legally mandated to close the jail by August 2027 and replace it with four jails.

“The Rikers closure plan is a continuation of the legacy of the failed de Blasio administration: Ideology over competence,” he said. “The deadlines have already slipped years past, costs have doubled, and neighborhoods are being forced to shoulder the burden of government at its worst. Now is the time to admit the mistake before we dig any deeper.

He called the jail a “human rights violation” but believes the four new borough jails aren’t a solution. Cuomo thinks those plans constitute a “$16 billion boondoggle” that doesn’t do the job without harming the local communities.

The former governor says the four proposed jail sites should instead be used for affordable housing.

“Instead of building four massive jails in the middle of residential blocks, we can partner with local communities to reimagine those sites for affordable housing, mixed-use development, and neighborhood renewal,” he said.

“This is about common sense and competence,” Cuomo added. “We need a mayor who can manage complex projects and deliver for New Yorkers — not chase slogans or make false promises. I will get this done, just as I’ve gotten many other seemingly impossible and intractable infrastructure projects done – on time and on budget.” 

He sees a possible reconstruction of Rikers Island as akin to his rebuilding of LaGuardia Airport, a project that keeps operations going while construction proceeds on each facility on the island one at a time. Cuomo believes his plan will save the city billions.

Rikers has faced extensive criticism for overcrowding, degrading infrastructure, and a lack of jail personnel. A 2021 New York Times report said the jail has doors that don’t lock properly, aging cells that can no longer hold prisoners, and crumbling objects like radiators that can be fashioned into weapons.

A federal judge ruled in May to strip the city of its control over the facility and handed it over to a third party.

There’s been doubt over whether the plan to close Rikers Island will work because the facility’s population is too high for the four proposed jails. Rikers currently holds around 7,000 people, with the new plan only holding up to around 4,000. The four-jail plan requires fewer people to be in the custody of the New York City jail system.

Mamdani supports closing the Rikers facility by 2027, though he said he will meet with residents about the new jails.

“Part of closing Rikers Island is following through on the contractual obligations that the city has with the construction of these new jails,” he said to reporters earlier this month. “That doesn’t preclude me from meeting with New Yorkers who have immense concerns about them, but it does ensure that the focus has to be on following that law.”

Sliwa slammed Cuomo for his “flip-flop” on the Rikers Island closure in a statement to the Washington Examiner.

“New Yorkers are watching a Cuomo that is so desperate for personal redemption that he will say whatever is convenient,” Sliwa said.

“Andrew Cuomo puts Andrew Cuomo first,” Sliwa added, “While the ‘C’ in Curtis Sliwa stands for consistency, the ‘C’ in Andrew Cuomo stands for chaos.”

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Mamdani is favored to win the mayoral race, but Cuomo has gained some momentum after Mayor Eric Adams’s departure from the race.

New Yorkers will go to the polls to decide who their next mayor will be on Nov. 4.