Posted on October 11, 2018 by Ginia Bellafante in The New York Times The New York Times, By Ginia Bellafante Since the beginning of his mayoralty, Bill de Blasio has continued the routine of going to a gym in Brooklyn most weekday mornings — and by morning we do not mean an hour at which titans get on their Peloton bikes, but rather at a time iron welders might label early afternoon — 11 miles from his home in Gracie Mansion. The practice, which involves getting to the gym via S.U.V. as the mayor has called for New Yorkers to curtail their own environmentally insidious habits, has brought him repeated criticism, which he consistently dismisses as nonsensical, which in turn only confirms the underlying charge of arrogance. Seizing on the Park Slope Y.M.C.A as his vulnerable place, protesters often come to air grievances just outside. But one day last week, an activist approached Mr. de Blasio on an exercise mat as he was stretching his adductors, to ask him why there were not more apartments allotted for the homeless as part of the city’s affordable housing plan.
