“In my 67-year lifetime, the five boroughs have never been so full: Our population is soaring toward 9 million; most parts of town bustle with energy and investment; and crime has fallen to historic lows. I marvel over the blossoming. I can walk down the Hull Street block where I grew up without fearing for my life — which wasn’t the case 25 years ago when it was strewn with empty lots and menace lurked behind every parked car.”