Mayor Bloomberg scoffed at an effort in the City Council to do away with the Design Commission, which reviews public architecture and landscape projects.

“They’ve been trying to do that for years — it’s ridiculous,” Bloomberg said at a news conference in Brooklyn.

He went on to defend the commission — whose members are voluntary and which has a four-person paid staff — for helping beautify the city and, in turn, elevate its global profile.

Leading the effort in the council is Lew Fidler (D-Brooklyn), who claims the panel makes arbitrary decisions that delay projects and waste funds.