The Buzz
FOILED ON MOYNIHAN, FOR NOW: We’re not always happy to report being scooped, but we give credit where it’s due, especially when our competitors have gone to the trouble of filing a Freedom of Information Law (FOIL) request and have gotten results. But this time, the result obtained by the New York Observer from the Empire State Development Corporation, was, quite literally, a blank. In response to a FOIL request for e-mails between ESDC and the developers for Moynihan Station, Related Companies and Vornado, ESDC apparently blacked out all content, according to the Observer. One of the newspaper’s Real Estate blogs posted one such redacted exchange, between Patrick Foye, downstate chairman of the ESDC; Vishaan Chakrabarti, former city planner and president of Moynihan Station Venture; Steve Roth, chairman of Vornado; and Stephen Ross, chairman of Related, reporting: “Other than the occasional ‘Hey Pat,’ ‘Thanks,’ and ‘Call me on my cell,’ the state has deemed that the contents of the e-mails could ‘impair present or imminent contract awards’ and thus are exempted from the Freedom of Information Law.”
When asked about all this, ESDC spokesman Warner Johnston declined to Comment, saying only: “We’d like to refer you to the New York Observer for comment on why their FOIL was redacted.” That language about “imminent contract awards” sounded familiar to Chelsea Now. So, we checked in with Joel Kupferman of the Environmental Justice Law Project, who beat back identical claims by the Hudson River Park Trust in 2005 and obtained those “economically harmful” environmental reports on Pier 57, where 2004 Republican National Convention protesters were held in inhospitable conditions. “They should file an appeal right away,” said Kupferman. “They can say it’s just too blatant. And then they should involve Bob Freeman, at the watchdog group Committee on Responsible Government.” We suspect that our savvy competitor paper is already doing both: Then maybe the latter can tell them if “imminent contract awards” are exempt from the First Amendment.
EVERYTHING IS INTER-RELATED: Just as Crain’s New York Business reported that the MTA appears to have narrowed their choice down to mega-developers Tishman Speyer, Related and Durst/Vornado to develop Hudson Yards, we were reminded by the Wall Street Journal about the roots of one of the top three bidders, Steven Ross of the Related Companies. According to Tuesday’s WSJ.com, Ross founded Related in the early 1970s “to build and finance government-subsidized affordable housing, which is still a part of its business.” Most of his company’s current involvement in affordable housing is from the state’s 80/20 tax abatement program; in 1997 Ross, described by the NY Times as a “pioneer” of the program, said that “I enjoy the idea of doing something beneficial to society and, at the same time, making a profit.’’ The Journal mentioned Ross’ past while reporting that Related had just secured a new capital infusion worth a combined $1.4 billion from Hudson Yards partner Goldman Sachs, Michael Dell’s MSD Capital, and Persian Gulf firms Mubadala Development Co. and the Olayan Group. Chelsea Now couldn’t help wondering what all the new investors think of the demands at last week’s Hudson Guild Forum, led by Community Board 4’s J.D. Noland and Anna Hayes Levin, for a new state-subsidized affordable housing program at Hudson Yards, and whether Ross would jump or recoil at the chance to use all of his affordable-housing experience in new ways.
URINE THE WRONG PLACE: Shopping for a new iPod but need to hit the head? If it’s at the new Apple Store in the Meatpacking District, you’ll find no such relief. One miffed patron who took a recent visit to the just-opened location on West 14th Street and Ninth Avenue complained the new Apple Store doesn’t provide restrooms for its patrons even though it’s the largest in New York City and second-biggest in the country. “How uncivilized is that?&Mac226;” asked Toni Dalton, a Westbeth resident and Apple devotee. “The Soho store is a work of art. This one is a piece of sh—t.” Dalton claimed that when she inquired about washrooms to an Apple Store employee, the staffer recommended she head two blocks north to use Chelsea Market’s facilities.” It’s enough to spend all that money,” she said, noting that other local shops like Apple dealer Tekserve offer consumer commodes. “Circuit City—even they have a bathroom. “Dalton also griped about the location’s uncomfortable wooden stools and reported that a woman recently fell down the three-story superstore’s main spiral staircase, bringing an ambulance to the scene. However, a spokesperson for Apple could not confirm the accident as of press time.
