THE PASSING PARADE: While Adams enjoyed the Queens County St. Patrick’s Day parade on Saturday — during which he took a shot of Jameson and twinned with senior adviser Eric Ulrich in Aran sweaters — he declined to shut down the Staten Island St. Patrick’s Day parade for refusing to allow LGBTQ marchers. “The permit is not based on who’s permitted to march or not,” Adams said on 1010 WINS Monday morning when asked if he’d revoke the permit for the event that has courted controversy for banning the groups. “We’re following the procedures that have always been in place in the city. We’re going to continue to do so and hope that the Staten Island St. Patrick’s Day parade understands that they should open it up to everyone to participate.” — Julia Marsh SAY GOOD NIGHT, GRACIE: Asked on Fox 5 if he's settled at Gracie Mansion, where he lives alone, Adams said, "I have one room that I'm using. I don't need a lot. All I need is one space, a nice shower, and a bathroom, an exercise bike, and a place to make my smoothies and I'm just a happy camper." The mayor's official Manhattan residence boasts five bedrooms, a ballroom and two reception areas. While Adams' direct predecessor Bill de Blasio nearly filled up Gracie with his wife and two children, former Mayor Michael Bloomberg chose to stay at his Upper East Side townhouse instead of moving into the mansion. — Julia Marsh MAKING PROGRESS, MAYOR SAYS: Adams said today that his plan to remove homeless individuals sheltering in the city’s subway system is making steady progress, amid concerns about whether people sleeping in trains will accept placements in shelters or other services. “We’re building trust,” Adams said on NY1. “Now, the homeless are seeing the presence of people in the system who are saying, this is no longer normal, we’re not going to accept it.” He said in the first week of the effort , there were more than 500 end-of-the-line engagements with people who are homeless, 18,000 inspections by police officers, and almost 150 contacts a day. In the coming weeks, he continued, “you’re going to see a complete removal of the encampments, you’re going to see that those touches are going to be familiar with the homeless people, and they’re going to start taking us up on the offer.” Still, he said he wants to “send a clear message, zero tolerance for any situation that’s a danger to people and others, we’re not accepting it and that’s what my officers are doing.” — Janaki Chadha STRUGGLES OF SMALL BUSINESS: New York City’s Small Business Services (SBS), which oversees the largest network of business improvement districts in the country, failed to provide mom and pop shops with proper funds to survive throughout the pandemic, Council Member Julie Menin, small business committee chair, said at a virtual hearing today. Under de Blasio, SBS had an ”Employee Retention Grant” that was created for local storefronts. Yet legal offices, physicians, and dentists received most of the funding, Menin said. She said that SBS’s Small Business Continuity Loan failed to disperse money to seven Council districts, five of which were in the city’s neediest borough — the Bronx. Since the programs were designed as first-come, first-served and lacked language assistance, many potential applicants never applied, Menin said. At the hearing, SBS Commissioner Kevin Kim acknowledged that there were flaws under the previous administration when it came to fund distribution. According to Kim, his agency is now focused on ensuring more community engagement and increased outreach to ensure more equity in the funding process. — Deanna Garcia SEE NO CUOMO: Adams said he “had nothing to do” with a speech by ex-Gov. Andrew Cuomo Sunday at a Brooklyn church run by an Adams ally. “Did Gov. Cuomo speak in Brooklyn yesterday? I was not aware of it. I was busy moving around the city, enjoying all aspects of the city,” Adams said. In his first public appearance since resigning over sexual harassment allegations, Cuomo spoke at God’s Battalion of Prayer, where he was welcomed by the Rev. Alfred Cockfield II, a major supporter of Adams who launched a super PAC last year aimed at boosting “moderate” Democrats. “One thing I’ve learned — you do not control pastors. They make their own minds and do what they believe is right. I had nothing to do with him speaking there at all, and I don’t even know what church he spoke at. So I had no contribution to him coming into Brooklyn,” said Adams, who recently dined with Cuomo. “I said that the governor should have resigned. He did so. And I’m ready to move forward.” — Erin Durkin — Cuomo’s Twitter account appeared to accept an invitation from The Rev. Ruben Diaz Sr. to reprise his Brooklyn speech with a sermon in the Bronx. | 
