Trump and Mamdani meet at Gracie Mansion, agree to advance Sunnyside Yard housing talks
President Donald Trump met with New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani on Monday, September 21, 2026, at Gracie Mansion to discuss cost of living and housing issues. Following the meeting, Trump told reporters he wants Mamdani "to be a great mayor" and said the mayor has "great potential," while the two announced they agreed to bring discussions about the long-stalled Sunnyside Yard housing project "to a new level."
Two sources · Thin corroboration
The Monday meeting at Gracie Mansion marked Trump's third sit-down with Mamdani since the latter won election last year as the first socialist and first Muslim mayor of New York City. Trump patted Mamdani on the back as the two addressed reporters, and the White House did not respond to Fox News requests for comment on the political fallout from the encounter.
The centerpiece policy announcement was renewed momentum on the Sunnyside Yard project — a proposal to construct a platform over a Queens rail yard and build approximately 12,000 housing units atop it. The two leaders said their housing policy teams would initiate technical talks, though Politico reported there are no funding commitments on the table and the project would require years-long review and permitting processes before construction could begin. A version of the plan was first proposed by Mayor Bill de Blasio in 2015 but stalled due to the COVID pandemic and local opposition.
Local elected officials in Queens expressed concern about being excluded from the discussions. Council member Julie Won, who represents the Sunnyside area, said in a statement that there is still no federal, state, or city bill allocating funding, no timeline, and that community members "were not part of yesterday's conversation." Won's chief of staff said Mamdani's team had committed in February to keep Won's office informed of developments but had not contacted them since. A Mamdani spokesperson declined to respond to those comments. Queens Borough President Donovan Richards said he was skeptical Trump would follow through, adding: "Anything you deal with the Trump administration on has to be show and tell." At a press conference Tuesday, Mamdani reiterated the merits of the project without directly addressing Won's or Richards's concerns.