Bloomberg Dishes With Media At Queens Diner

Mayor Michael Bloomberg staunchly defended his smoking ban and gave the 411 on 311, during a recent roudntable with local Queens journalists at the Blue Bay Diner.
The coffee talk session with the mayor was one of the less touted stops on his campaign-like tour of Queens last week; the highlights including schmoozing with business leaders at Shaheen Sweets and Cuisine in Jackson Heights and strolling down Main Street in Flushing with Councilman John Liu.
"Its the summer, the budget is done…things have slowed down in City Hall," said Bloomberg, about his day-long visit to Queens. He was quick to point out that his less-than-stellar approval ratings, which dipped to 31% in the most recent Quinnipiac University poll, had nothing to do with his tour. He also said that hes visited Queens very frequentlyalmost every other week in the past.
The new 311 hotline, which New Yorkers can call to report everything from potholes to broken windows in schools, was praised by Bloomberg. The hotline handles around 18,000 calls per day. Online reports outlining the results of 311 calls and actions taken, will be posted on the mayors office website soon, said Bloomberg.
As for how the smoking ban is bringing more people onto the streets and creating extra noise, Bloomberg said that anyone who has complaints can call 311 and that complaining about smokers loitering outdoors is trivial, as compared to curbing harmful smoke indoors: "There is no bar or restaurant where waiters and waitresses dont say to me, Thank you, for saving my life."