NYC should learn from Istanbul and accept their rodent cleaners.
The biggest issue is that NYC rats, the non-native species that have evolved in urban environments, have evolved with cats as a predator for a long period of time and are better than native birds/small mammals at evading cats. Cats eat the native population at a higher rate, which means the invasive and hated 'NYC rats' have less competition from native populations.
That cat was an amazing cat in so many ways.