More Charges Stemming From Alleged Developer Bribery
What You Need To Know
Two former New York Fire Department chiefs were arrested last week on accusations that they accepted bribes in exchange for expediting large developments through the fire safety approval process, The New York Times reported.
Brian Cordasco and Anthony Saccavino allegedly greenlit 30 projects between 2021 and 2023 that would otherwise have been held up in bureaucratic procedures. They earned more than $190K in the scheme that spanned a variety of developments, from a Manhattan restaurant to a Brooklyn multifamily building and two Queens hotels, prosecutors said.?
“They allegedly created a VIP lane for faster service that could only be accessed with bribes,” U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York Damian Williams said at a news conference. “That’s classic pay-to-play corruption.”
Surely, the arrests are a headache for City Hall, but this isn’t the only ongoing federal investigation into developer bribes that allegedly made their way to the highest levels of city government.
Last year, Gothamist obtained an internal spreadsheet shared between FDNY and City Hall that showed how the Adams administration prioritized projects to fast-track. The list allegedly includes Related and Oxford Property Group’s 50 Hudson Yards and the Durst Organization’s 71-story Long Island City residential tower.
That list became part of several federal probes into Mayor Eric Adams' administration, which are growing by the day and now resulting in calls for Adams to resign. As part of an investigation into Adams’ 2021 campaign fundraising efforts, Adams was served with a subpoena, the Times reported last month. That came less than a year after FBI agents seized his cell phones. His police commissioner also resigned this month in connection to a seemingly unrelated federal investigation.
Oh, and by the way, I would love to know what other projects made it onto that fast track — and how.
— Sasha Jones?
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What I Want To Know
At Bisnow’s Northeast Industrial and Logistics event Thursday, Rockefeller Group Senior Managing Director Mark Shearer and The Stro Cos. Managing Director Albert Fitch both said that they target highly contaminated sites for warehouse development.
It sounds counterintuitive. Cleanup is labor intensive and requires specialized workers. However, as the panelists and others at the event told me, if you have the workforce, then the rest falls into place quite easily. The land is cheap, economic incentives are sometimes available and the development brings back areas of communities that would otherwise rot.
“Sometimes a blighted property can be an opportunity more than a risk,” Michael Wilson, legacy site services lead at RPS, told me.?
I’m interested in how many other developers specialize in building on highly contaminated land. How do you see beyond the toxic ooze? Send me a note!
First Look
The Interborough Express, a 14-mile light rail that would connect Brooklyn and Queens via 19 stations, is one step closer to reality after the Metropolitan Transportation Authority released its five-year construction plan Wednesday.
领英推荐
The MTA has proposed to spend $2.75B on the project, which experts say will only cover roughly half of the total. It could take until 2030 or after to get more funding, according to Gothamist.?
Known as IBX, the project was proposed by Gov. Kathy Hochul as a way to address postpandemic traveling habits. An influx of New Yorkers moved to the outer boroughs following the onset of Covid-19, and many no longer commute into the city due to remote work capabilities.
Beyond that, it would speed up travel. End-to-end rides are expected to take 40 minutes. As someone who lives in Ridgewood, it takes approximately an hour for me to visit friends in Sunset Park or Astoria, largely because it requires transferring trains in Manhattan to do so.
Can I Give You My Number?
50
The number of basis points the Federal Reserve dropped interest rates Wednesday. Real estate immediately rejoiced, as my colleague Ryan Wangman reported. Brokers told me they are already strategizing their next moves in this new post-rate cut world.
They Said What??
“Every landlord in town wanted Bloomberg,” Piper Sandler real estate analyst Alexander Goldfarb told Crain’s New York. A report by Goldfarb estimates that Vornado Realty Trust spent $300M to extend Bloomberg’s nearly 1M SF lease at 731 Lexington Ave.
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Drop The Hot Goss
The Slice is produced by Bisnow Senior New York City Reporter Sasha Jones and is edited by Deputy Managing Editor Ethan Rothstein. Got an answer to my questions or info that you think I’d be interested in? I’m always happy to chat, on or off the record. Reach me at [email protected] or @SashaJones.06 on Signal, an encrypted messaging app.