Subject: POLITICO New York Playbook, presented by Nuclear Matters: DE BLASIO’s defenses -- CUOMO’s lobbyist link -- SELF-STORAGE boom
From: "Azi Paybarah, Jimmy Vielkind and Mike Allen" <[email-masked]>
To: [email-masked]
Date: Mon, 9 May 2016 05:51:43 -0600

05/09/2016 07:49 AM EDT

By Azi Paybarah in Manhattan, Jimmy Vielkind in Albany, and Mike Allen in D.C., with Daniel Lippman

LOBBYIST STEERED SUBPOENAED COMPANIES TO CAMPAIGN - POLITICO New York's Jimmy Vielkind: On the Cuomo campaign, Todd Howe had a desk in Joe Percoco's office. The pair of longtime friends usually worked in tandem at the midtown office tower that housed the Democratic governor's re-election effort, laying out rallies, reaching out to allies and scripting events to the last detail. While Howe - a lobbyist now at the center of a federal investigation - was never paid by the campaign, two of its former workers described him as a frequent presence in the office, acting as a "troubleshooter" and completing tasks that Percoco, the longtime Cuomo operative and loyalist, would not have trusted to
 anyone else. Howe also helped raise money.

According to public records, campaign documents and sources, Howe helped steer contributions to Cuomo's re-election from several development and energy companies he was advising, all of whom had business before the state. State and federal investigators have subpoenaed many of the companies, seeking information about consulting payments that three of them - CHA Consulting, an Albany-based engineering firm, COR Development of Syracuse and Competitive Power Ventures, which is developing a power plant in Orange County - made directly or indirectly to Percoco and his wife. And some of Howe's fundraising occurred at the same time he was working for SUNY Polytechnic Institute, a university built
 on research partnerships with major tech companies, as well as COR, CHA and other developers that SUNY Poly hired to build multi-million dollar facilities in Buffalo, Albany and suburban Syracuse. http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=6a13b93ede26dc8fb06d7f653d0f8f2849d238d0d2f417d4844b119cfa245338 

DE BLASIO BLAMES 'VOICES OF THE STATUS QUO' AT SHARPTON RALLY - POLITICO New York's Azi Paybarah: "Mayor Bill de Blasio told a mostly black crowd in Harlem on Saturday that "voices of the status quo" would "find many many ways to undermine progress, to stand in the way of progress." The remarks at the Rev. Al Sharpton's weekly gathering came amid at least five investigations into the mayor's administration and his fundraising activities. De Blasio referred generally to an "opposition" that can be expected "when you make change."

His appearance in Harlem was the latest effort by de Blasio to speak directly to black and Latino New Yorkers, who have remained his strongest base of support during his three years as mayor.Sharpton echoed the mayor's defense, telling the audience at his National Action Network that the investigations into de Blasio have "nothing to do with servicing the people of the city. He is delivering on that. We have to keep on delivering on that. Let those things take care of themselves." "Do not try and charge the people with politics while we ought to be dealing with continuing the education of our children and bringing crime down and servicing the people of our city," said Sharpton, who added
 that he did not know the "particulars" of the investigations. "I've known Bill de Blasio for 25 years and he's operated with integrity," Sharpton said. "We are not going to stop the progressive agenda in the midst of all of this."http://politi.co/1q7QJXx

-- Evolving excuse - POLITICO New York's Laura Nahmias: Over the last two months, as incremental news about the investigations into Mayor Bill de Blasio's administration has accreted into something that looks increasingly like an existential threat, the mayor's public defense of his actions has undergone a sort of evolution. He has moved from a defiantly moralistic defense, based on the ideas that he's working on behalf of the people against an unfair structural disadvantage and that the questions are an attempt to sabotage his agenda, to a more legalistic one. In the process, de Blasio has effectively conceded that his administration and allies pushed up against the line of what's allowed
 by law, contending only that they didn't clearly cross it. http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=6a13b93ede26dc8ffeadb3f38591f7bdd1f5cc205c856bce3c015beac9803193

-- "De Blasio's Depressing Defense" - Harry Siegel for the New York Daily News: http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=6a13b93ede26dc8fc63becf121f5cba7016a3f3e85d5e8f46b04e02febf46bb4

TABS -- Post: "PRIEST SHOT IN DRIVEBY: Tried to stop a drug deal in Queens" -- Daily News: "$2M IN PEDI CASH! After abuse crackdown, gov orders nail salons to fork over back pay for bilked workers" -- SEE THEM: http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=6a13b93ede26dc8fd7272b2b9b40230e80b6134586746d180c3d978e4e0f74ee 

-- amNY: "CRUNCH TIME: TechChrunch expo invades B'klyn this week" -- Metro: "DON'T FORGET ME: NYC agencies shine light on dementia and other mental health issues in Hispanic communities" -- SEE THEM: http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=6a13b93ede26dc8f02a2e813501296b86f43799dc0261a3e0cdadaf4d59a58a1 

-- Newsday: "L.I. CONGRESS RACES: HIGH COST OF LOSING" -- Hamodia: "De Blasio's Press Secretary To Resign" -- El Diario [translated]: Many gaps in school security guards

MAGAZINES -- New Yorker: "On the Go" -- Sunday NYT: "Should Prostitution Be a Crime?" -- SEE IT: http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=6a13b93ede26dc8f0ae27839a3a94f6fef0883a1c6aa4fa67600f23dd34bb401 

FRONT PAGES -- NYT, 1-col., above the fold: "SPARRING IN G.O.P. RISES OVER PLANS FOR CONVENTION: TRUMP ISSUES WARNING: Candidate Continues to Spurn Leaders of Republican Party" -- WSJNY, 2-col., above the fold: "De Blasio Goes All Out to Woo Staten Island" -- SEE THEM: http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=6a13b93ede26dc8fa348085ca28fcb5fe502be2f74e95b2ad197e86e7bb8feda 

** A Message from Nuclear Matters: Providing 61 percent of the state's carbon-free electricity, New York's nuclear energy plants are a necessary and valuable part of the state's energy mix, and deserve the support of state lawmakers for their role in providing New York with reliable electricity while protecting the environment. Learn more: NuclearMatters.com. **

QUOTE OF THE DAY: "Call it de Blasio's rule: Just because they're out to get you doesn't mean you're not guilty. ... [I]t's hard for the mayor to cry politics when the U.S. attorney and the state attorney general and the district attorney and the city controller - all Democrats - are probing real estate scandals, fundraising schemes, hookers and diamond bribes to police chiefs and on and on, with much of the smoke hovering above City Hall." -- Harry Siegel in the Daily News: http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=6a13b93ede26dc8ffd21649c64c86c95bac346e544e85c54be633a9694e25e37 

BONUS QUOTE OF THE DAY: "I was very unlikely to run for mayor, and if anything the chances have decreased in recent weeks." -- Rep. Hakeem Jeffries, vis WSJ: http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=6a13b93ede26dc8f6d75871f28ae49bbeda741971c1b7ea3f7951ba4f8e1e549 

SCHEDULING NOTE OF THE DAY: "The Mayor will be taking off-topic questions on Tuesday."

BIRTHDAYS: Steven Richman, general counsel for NYC's Board of Elections ... Olya Moskalenko, AVP of biz-dev at Rubenstein PR (h/t Chris Falls) ... Councilmember Antonio Reynoso of Brooklyn ... actor and Ben Carson supporter Rosario Dawson of the Lower East Side ... musicians Billy Joel of Long Island and Ghostface Killah of Staten Island ... and the late journalist, Mike Wallace.

BELATED BIRTHDAY: Mayor Bill de Blasio turned 55 yesterday [h/t WNYC's Alec Hamilton]

COMICS! There is a "Comics and Comic Art Signature Auction" on May 13 and 14. The Full preview is Thursday at Heritage Auctions, on the 15th floor of 445 Park Avenue, in Manhattan. Among the featured items: Playboy #1, from 1953, with Marilyn Monroe (current bid, $3,000); a Charles Schulz Peanuts comic strip with Snoopy and Lucy, also from 1953 (current bid: $3,000); Marvel's Fantastic Four, $45, from 1965 (current bid: $6,000), a Todd McFarlane Amazing Spider-Man original cover art, from 1988 (current bid: $9,000) and DC's Wonder Woman #1, from 1942 (current bid: $15,000). DETAILS: http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=6a13b93ede26dc8f46742e62b78ee6addf9a85084a39661e759fd4aac7a4376e 

THE NEXT SHOE? - Times Union's Chris Bragg and Casey Seiler: "The federal subpoena received by Cuomo's administration in late April seeks information about any actions taken by certain Executive Chamber officials that might have benefited several major developers in New York, according to a person with knowledge of the subpoena. The companies include Conifer Realty of Rochester, COR Development of the Syracuse area and Norstar Development, a company based in Ontario, Canada, that has significant operations in Buffalo. Several other companies were identified in the subpoena, which was issued by the office of U.S. Attorney for the Southern District Preet Bharara. ... The three developers that
 are among the subjects of the subpoena all have received lucrative affordable housing grants or tax breaks from the state's affordable housing agency, the Department of Homes and Community Renewal - including some for projects that HCR staff initially scored lower than those of competitors." http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=6a13b93ede26dc8fcd71c0311bbaf4ed14f25e92fbe52bc486d1a838937e113a 

INEQUALITY IN BUFFALO - Buffalo News' David Robinson: "Since the darkest days of the recession, most households in Erie County have struggled with incomes that have barely budged. But not the wealthy. Their incomes have grown handsomely, according to an analysis of tax return data from the state Department of Taxation and Finance. What the data shows is that most of the growth in local incomes has been centered almost exclusively among the county's highest earners - those with household incomes of $100,000 and up. Those households - which make up about 12 percent of all tax filers in Erie County - saw their average annual incomes rise by more than 25 percent from 2008 to 2013. It's an
 entirely different story for the other 88 percent. Their total incomes rose less than 1 percent during that same period." http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=6a13b93ede26dc8f1c39894ce01c23eebc8a611da0005aacee15ea0a64bfcb76 

SPOTTED: Joe and Mika taking in "Hamilton" on Saturday night at the Richard Rodgers Theatre in the 4th row center

FUTURE OF NEWS -- "The Cover of The New Yorker's Innovators Issue Comes to Life in an Augmented-Reality Experience": "The New Yorker's annual Innovators Issue d&eacute;buts today with an augmented-reality experience triggered by the front and back covers of the print edition-a first for the magazine-and various advertising elements throughout the issue. This special initiative is supported exclusively by Qualcomm Incorporated. The covers, designed by Christoph Niemann, bring a bustling subway car and city skyline to life. ... The AR experience is available via Uncovr, an augmented-reality app that transforms the printed page into an interactive experience that readers can explore. Niemann
 has embedded hidden surprises within the cityscape that are discoverable by moving and tilting one's device." http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=6a13b93ede26dc8fead5158f42fc6a712e6a6cf86154914fcbcc3eb80f321c0f ...  http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=6a13b93ede26dc8fd4c760f739a8710da771b8f8c15c9c13427271b731fa5b25 ... Uncovr app  http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=6a13b93ede26dc8fde71996da1645dff44d8895dea8abd0617804004a7fc451b

WELCOME TO THE WORLD -- Maia Isabel Orszag was born on Sunday at 12:49 a.m. (Mother's Day!) weighing 6 lbs. 4.4 oz. This is the second child for Citi's Peter Orszag and Yahoo News and Finance Anchor Bianna Golodryga, who just presented at Yahoo's NewFront presentation this past Wednesday. Golodrgya was previously the co-anchor of ABC's "Good Morning America" Weekend. Pic  http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=6a13b93ede26dc8fa207d248d51d10490adfbcdc43e9bfc97f693a917eec73a7

REAL ESTATE -"Self-Storage Thrives in Cramped New York City," by Wall Street Journal's Keiko Morris: "Decluttering may be what New Yorkers talk about, but what they really do is rent more space. And self-storage companies and real-estate investors are ready and waiting to fill the demand. Charles Z. Alvarez is an example of the dream tenant. The 33-year-old asset manager rented a storage space a few years ago when he was preparing to sell his 600-square-foot apartment in Brooklyn's Park Slope neighborhood. Today, Mr. Alvarez lives in a larger space farther north, in Williamsburg, but still rents the storage space. ... Mayor Bill de Blasio and City Council Speaker Melissa Mark-Viverito want
 to limit self-storage development in industrial districts because of the small number of jobs that these operations create. The Department of Planning could present specifics to the public by October. ... There is about 2 million to 3 million square feet in the self-storage pipeline, said Marc Nakleh, a senior director at real estate services firm Cushman & Wakefield." http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=6a13b93ede26dc8fdb78093c383f2bf948b04b40a66c90af50ff0a5d5489b658

-"CWCapital presses to dismiss Bill Ackman's 'offensive' Stuy Town lawsuit," by The Real Deal's Konrad Putzier: "The legal spat between Bill Ackman's hedge fund Pershing Square Capital Management and special servicer CWCapital over the $5.3 billion sale of Stuyvesant Town-Peter Cooper Village is going into the next round. In a letter supporting its motion to dismiss Pershing Square and Winthrop Realty Trust's $500 million lawsuit, CWCapital's attorneys called the suit 'offensive,' 'entirely out of bounds' and 'glaring with legal deficiencies.' CWCapital also filed a motion on Thursday to recover its legal costs and 'impose sanctions' on the plaintiffs and their attorney, Stephen Meister of
 Meister, Seelig and Fein. Meister, in turn, dismissed the accusations." http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=6a13b93ede26dc8fd803c474df886f3d56d1156244b00ea69ce3b954f9e2e15c

-"Apthorp units sold to Joseph Sitt for $120M," by Post's Lois Weiss: "A group of 71 sponsor units at the celebrated Apthorp at 390 West End Ave. are being sold to Joseph Sitt for $120 million. The luxurious, 1908-era full-block building surrounds a central courtyard. It sits between 78th and 79th streets and also borders on Broadway. The former rental was purchased for $426 million in early 2007 just as the market tanked - leaving its converters pouring money into old mechanicals in a stalled market. At one point, NY Attorney General Eric Schneiderman halted sales over shady filings. Later, lenders took over and stabilized the property - and sales picked up." 
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=6a13b93ede26dc8f7371c987df7e7ea31aedb1b6588c2086ba2683b69e2fb409

THE HOME TEAMS -- POLITICO New York's Howard Megdal: Mets 4, Padres 3: Matt Harvey struck out ten and the Mets took sole possession of first place.

-- Red Sox 5, Yankees 1: David Ortiz hit another two home runs at Yankee Stadium.

-- NYCFC 2, DC United 0: David Villa scored again, and now has seven goals over his past ten games.

-- The day ahead: the Mets are out west to face the Dodgers. The Yankees host the Royals.

COFFEE BREAK -- "Big art auctions open in NYC [this] week," by AP's Ula Ilnytzky: "A sculpture of a kneeling Hitler and two rare Fauve period paintings are among the offerings at the impressionist, modern and contemporary evening art auctions in New York [this] week. Many of the works are fresh to the market, like a group of Alexander Calder sculptures at Christie's and a Francis Bacon diptych at Sotheby's. ... At a press preview last week, Sotheby's paired impressionist and modern works alongside contemporary pieces - like an Auguste Rodin sculpture next to an Andy Warhol self-portrait - to better reflect how collectors live with their art." http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=6a13b93ede26dc8f8acd547114611ef21aefd026589ddcb852696b8e744f8738

#UpstateAmerica: Cooperstown's Brewery Ommegang won big at the 2016 World Beer Cup. http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=6a13b93ede26dc8f745fc62e927b4d918f80bc5244e927e2fa59a05a76cb0d49 

** A Message from Nuclear Matters: New York's existing nuclear energy plants provide 61 percent of the state's carbon-free electricity and play a vital role in achieving our clean-energy and carbon-reduction goals. Additional premature retirements of safe, reliable nuclear energy plants mean New Yorkers would pay more for electricity, the economy would suffer and we would face substantially higher carbon emissions.

New York has taken an essential step forward to address the premature closures of our nuclear energy plants. The proposed development of a Clean Energy Standard by the Public Service Commission would, for the first time, ensure that existing nuclear plants are valued for their carbon-free attributes.

We urge the state to include all of New York's existing nuclear energy plants, regardless of their geography in the state, in the proposed Clean Energy Standard. All nuclear energy facilities bring significant reliability and clean-air benefits to New York. Learn more: NuclearMatters.com. **

FOR MORE political and policy news from New York, check out Politico New York's home page: http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=6a13b93ede26dc8fdb00ffeb55ef8c132cd0555a8f25e871d1d743a8135a7969 

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