Ed Koch

Koch took over a New York that had nearly gone bankrupt in 1975 and restored the city's credit by the early 1980s, then launched a ten-year housing plan in 1986 that rebuilt or created over 150,000 units, largely from abandoned city-owned buildings in the Bronx and Harlem. That housing programme is widely seen as his most lasting achievement. His third term was mired in corruption scandals among borough allies, and his handling of the AIDS crisis and race relations drew heavy criticism.