The mayor's second day in Queens included stops to play bocce and to meet with small business owners. NY1's Grace Rauh filed the following report.
There was no need for a jacket or tie for Mayor Bill de Blasio. They would have been a tad too formal for his game of bocce at a park in Corona.
From there, it was a short walk to the famed Lemon Ice King of Corona for a cool treat.
Later, the mayor visited small businesses in Jamaica, stopping to chat with shop owners and New Yorkers along the way.
Photo ops like these are a staple for politicians running for office. But these events are not technically campaign stops for de Blasio, who is up for re-election this year. Instead, they are City Hall-sponsored events that often feel anything but.
And they are central to the mayor's "City Hall in Your Borough" initiative. This week, City Hall has set up shop in Queens with the mayor criss-crossing the borough. Tuesday afternoon, he was in Flushing.
"This is one of the most vibrant and extraordinary neighborhoods of New York City," de Blasio said.
A spokesman for the mayor said, "This is a silly story NY1 does every time we take city government into the boroughs and to people's neighborhoods. Thankfully for New Yorkers in need of city services, this story won't stop us from doing our job in Queens and across the city."
There is some official business on the mayor's agenda, but even that can feel like a stretch.
"We are celebrating that more people will be getting health care," de Blasio said.
De Blasio announced that a new $65 million health center will rise in Flushing. City Hall though, is contributing just $1 million to the project.