If dominos fall in corruption case, could they reach Atlantic Yards? Forest City has one degree of separation from Malcolm Smith

No, developer Forest City Ratner is not now "between legal clouds," as New York Times columnist Michael Powell put it in January 2012, after the developer received significant mention (though no legal exposure) in two separate federal corruption cases, one involving the Ridge Hill project in Yonkers, the other involving then-state Sen. Carl Kruger.

But the charges this week against state Sen. Malcolm Smith, a powerbroker in southeast Queens, set up some speculation that surely crossed the mind of some at MetroTech: what does he know, and could any dominos fall?

After all, there's just one degree of separation between Smith and Forest City, as his ethically questionable former business partner--to whom CEO Bruce Ratner has steadfast loyalty--has long worked for Forest City on minority contracting. Another close associate has worked for Forest City as a lobbyist.

First, of course, Smith is presumed innocent, and professes innocence. Then again, the evidence, on first blush, seems pretty stark. Now, as the Daily News put it yesterday, Political World Watches To See If NY's Malcolm Smith Will Flip On Friends And Colleagues.

Smith's connections

So if Smith made a deal, his most obvious targets could be those closest to him are in southeast Queens, including former Rep. Floyd Flake, Rep. Gregory Meeks, and that former business partner, consultant Darryl Greene.

That's not to say Smith has dirt to deliver, just that such associates are the most obvious targets. As the
Daily News put it:

Top among them, sources say, is Democrat Gregory Meeks, the Queens congressman who is said to be under FBI investigation.
A charity tied to Smith and Meeks, New Direction, reportedly misused thousands of dollars raised for Hurricane Katrina victims.
The feds have also been looking into a secret $40,000 personal loan Meeks received from Queens businessman Ed Ahmad in 2007 to help pay off his $830,000 home.

Or, as noted by the Daily News, Smith could have information regarding some of the (mostly) Brooklyn politicians who participated in the ill-fated effort to award a "racino" to Aqueduct Entertainment Group (AEG), as cited in a state Inspector General's report. They include Senators John Sampson and Eric Adams (the likely next Brooklyn Borough President), as well as AEG lobbyist (and former Senator) Carl Andrews.

Also, Flake was involved in the Aqueduct plan, and Smith recently hired his son.

The Darryl Green connection

Greene offers a direct line to Forest City. Smith and Greene were once business partners in the company Greene now runs, The Darman Group, who helps manage minority contracting and hiring for Forest City Ratner.

Greene, who pleaded guilty in 1999 to a misdemeanor for participating in a mail fraud scheme, was such a hot potato that he had to be dropped from the AEG bid group.

As I wrote in December 2006, Smith may have cut his ties to Darman by the time, but Darman's Greene had made at least one contribution to Smith's campaigns, likely two. Since then, according to state records, Smith gained continued support: Greene gave more than $4500 to Smith's campaigns between April 2007 and April 2010.

Greene, as of 2006, had also contributed $500 to Andrews' unsuccessful Congressional campaign and nearly $6000 in the previous six years to the Meeks's candidacies. Since then, he's also given $675 to Adams's campaigns.

Greene & Ratner = loyalty

Greene has close ties to Bruce Ratner. As the Daily News reported 12/5/02:

A Queens lawyer who billed clients $500,000 for work he never did has been hired to bring contractors from minority groups to downtown Brooklyn's new cultural district. In 1999, Darryl Greene was sentenced in Brooklyn Federal Court to three years' probation and 240 hours of community service after pleading guilty to stealing public funds. He admitted charging clients - including government agencies - for work he and his employees did not perform and billing multiple clients for the same time periods. Greene was forced to pay restitution of $100,000 to the agencies he illegally billed from 1988 to 1994. The nonprofit Brooklyn Academy of Music Local Development Corp., which is overseeing development of the cultural district, has agreed to pay Greene $60,000 to lobby women, members of minority groups and local businesses to bid for contracting jobs at a new facility at 80 Hanson Place... 

Bruce Ratner, president and CEO of the real estate group Forest City Ratner, said he has worked with Greene for 15 years. "We stood by Darryl Greene during that time for a reason," Ratner said of Greene's trial days. "He is one of the finest, most honest people I know, and he just got tangled up in somebody's politics."
Ratner said he'll continue to do business with Greene "forever."

Indeed, Ratner has done so, and Greene is surely reciprocally loyal. But if he had to make a deal--and again, this is a couple of steps down the line of speculation--would he have anything to say about Forest City?

And, by the way, how does fraudulent billing equal "just got tangled up in somebody's politics"?

The Andrews connection

Andrews worked for Forest City as a lobbyist for several years, earning $24,000 in 2009, $36,000 in 2010, and $15,000 in 2011, according to state records.

Family ties, and other Forest City connections

Greene's daughter Yvette Dennis works for The Darman Group on Atlantic Yards.

Meeks's sister Janella Meeks works as  Deputy Director, Government & Public Affairs for Brooklyn Sports & Entertainment. She has a history in Brooklyn politics, working as chief of staff for Council Member Letitia James (until she left in April 2006), and previously for Assemblyman Roger Green (for whom James worked).

As for Green, his son Khalid works as a scout for the Nets, thanks in part on an introduction from the Assemblyman (who was succeeded in 2006 by Hakeem Jeffries).

Darryl Greene contributions

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Campaign contributions: Forest City bundles for Thompson, de Blasio, Squadron, even gets Republican subcontractor in Virginia to pony up

So, does developer Forest City Ratner support any candidates in the 2013 election?

Campaign finance reports suggest significant support via bundling for mayoral candidates Public Advocate Bill de Blasio and former Comptroller Bill Thompson, as well as some support for Council Speaker Christine Quinn.

Notably, a prominent Republican executive in Virginia, whose steel company produces key components for both the arena and the first modular tower, has contributed $1,000 to Democrats Thompson and Quinn, in one case through an FCR intermediary. (Do the candidates know his company is non-union?)

Comptroller John Liu, probably (and perceivedly) the main candidate most critical of Atlantic Yards and development, has received no FCR-related contributions. (His campaign also has some ethical question marks.)

In the race for Public Advocate, where anti-Atlantic Yards Council Member Letitia James is one of three candidates, Forest City-related contributions clearly favor fundraising leader state Sen. Daniel Squadron, who's pretty much sat out the AY debate and is close with project supporter Sen. Chuck Schumer.

Contributions to de Blasio

In June 2011, Bruce Ratner hosted a birthday party/fund-raiser for de Blasio. In February 2012, the New York Post reported that there were two snags in FCR-related contributions to de Blasio. First, $4,500 of $8,500 total were not listed as coming through an FCR intermediary.

Second, the intermediary was listed as FCR construction chief Bob Sanna, though, as the Post's David Seifman wrote, "There’s no way Sanna would do any of this without direction from Ratner, who has made no secret of his support for de Blasio." (That doesn't prevent Sanna from being the formal conduit, however.)

Sanna as intermediary has now raised a total of $13,600 for de Blasio, or $5,100 since last year's filing. Most of the individuals have some piece of the Atlantic Yards project as subcontractors.

Note that Forest City executive Ashley Cotton, who left the New York City Economic Development Corporation in early 2012, is mistakenly listed for this 2013 contribution in her old job.

Contributions for Thompson

Forest City has a long history of helping Thompson. As I reported in September 2006, in 2001, Michele de Milly, whose firm has long done p.r. for FCR, organized five contributions of $4500--for a total of $22,500--to Thompson's campaign for city comptroller.

The donors were Bruce Ratner's brother Michael, Michael's wife Karen Ranucci, Ratner's companion (and now wife) Pamela Lipkin,  Ratner's daughter Rebecca Ratner, and his sister Ellen Ratner.

As shown in the graphic below, Sanna in recent months bundled $4,000 for Thompson, significantly from Atlantic Yards subcontractors.

The largest donor, at $1,000, is Don Banker of Lynchburg, VA, CEO of Banker Steel, which has major contracts for the arena and first tower.  (In 2009 Banker lent his plane to the three-member state Republican ticket, along with Mitt Romney, former Massachusetts governor and presidential candidate, according to the Washington Post.)

Also, Bruce Ratner bundled $8,900 in the form of two maximum $4,950 contributions for Thompson,  from Arthur and Selma Rabin.

Arthur Rabin, as the screenshot at right suggests, is a longtime Nets investor and member of the board that runs the team and has majority ownership in the arena.

More Thompson connections

Ratner's sister Ellen Ratner has also given the maximum to Thompson and to Squadron, as the screenshot below shows.



So too has Ratner's wife Pamela Lipkin.



Squadron contributions

Beyond the two max Squadron contributions noted above, Bruce Ratner bundled two max contributions from the Rabins. That's total of four contributions worth $17,800.

Forest City's Ashley Cotton also has given Squadron $400.



Other FCR-related contributions

The list below of most (but not all) contributions from people reporting Forest City Ratner as an employer doesn't provide much of a pattern--and, of course, not every contribution is driven by corporate interests.

Most of the smaller contributions, which come at different times, seem unrelated, though there are two simultaneous $175 contributions to Thompson, which may have come at a single fundraiser.

Note that FCR Executive VP Maryanne Gilmartin, Ratner's heir apparent, contributed $1,000 to Quinn in 2007, before both Quinn and incumbent Mayor Mike Bloomberg got their third terms.



More from Banker

Virginia-based steel executive Banker gave $1,000 not only to Thompson, as noted above, but also, as the screenshot below shows, to Quinn. He also contributed $250 to Manhattan Borough President candidate Council Member Jessica Lappin.

Why Lappin? Hard to tell, though Gilmartin a few months later gave Lappin $320.

Forest City does more work in Brooklyn than Manhattan, but may be bidding soon on a big Lower East Side project.

A contribution to Suajani

Ratner's daughter Rebecca (assuming it's not another person with her name) gave the max contribution to the third Public Advocate candidate, Reshma Saujani, likely for reasons unrelated to any development issues.

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Cuomo supports legalization of mixed martial arts; that's good news for Barclays Center

The Albany Times Union reports today, in Cuomo sees MMA benefits: Governor say he backs "economic activity" of mixed martial arts fights:

ALBANY — Gov. Andrew Cuomo said he has no problem with legalizing professional mixed martial arts fights — as long as its economic benefits can be demonstrated.
"We're looking for economic activity wherever we can find it, right? Mixed martial arts is a possible place for economic activity," said Cuomo. "We have a big viewership for MMA now. I understand the flip side, but I think it's something that should be pursued, definitely."
The governor said he hopes to address the issue before the end of the session in June; the topic hasn't come up in his budget negotiations with legislative leaders.

Since when have developers not been able to produce reports that demonstrate economic benefits?

That's got to please Barclays Center developer Forest City Ratner, which has been lobbying since at least 2011 for legalization of MMA. Forest City CEO Bruce Ratner and his wife have given generously to Cuomo, a total of $25,000 in 2009 and 2010.

The CEO of Ultimate Fighting Championship said his company would hold at least four events per year for the first three years, with more than half in economically struggling upstate cities. That leaves the rest... in New York City, most likely.

Part of the plan

In a 9/21/11 interview with Big League Sports, Yormark was asked:

BLS: You have college hockey coming to Barclays Center, so it can be converted into a hockey arena. Any interest in having the New York Islanders move in?
BY: Let me just say that we can convert it to a hockey venue and have a great destination for professional hockey. And although it is not legalized in New York State, we can handle MMA when and if it is legalized.

Even though the Barclays Center was not designed for major league (rather than professional) hockey, it will become the home of the Islanders. And, given that Yormark brought up MMA without being asked, you know it's on their radar.

Up from ignominy?

According to a 1/27/13 Times article: 

A decade earlier Senator John McCain had derided it as “human cockfighting,” [see link] but by 2006 it was a bigger television draw than boxing. In 2008 the sport’s premier governing body, Ultimate Fighting Championship, known as the U.F.C., was valued at more than $1 billion.

According to a 5/10/12 article in Connecticut's The Day, that state and New York are the only ones not to have legalized MMA. Beyond issues of safety, state labor unions have opposed the UFC, which includes co-owners that own casinos accused of unfair labor practices.

Rough crowd? Two fights last Saturday

While crowds at most Barclays Center events are orderly (if sometimes 420-friendly), boxing can attract a rougher crowd, and presumably MMA could share that profile, at least if they give away lots of tickets to fill seats.

Will Leitch reported that he luvved seeing boxing last Saturday at the Barclays Center (free seats didn't hurt), but:

All that face-punching is contagious. I've been to Barclays Center more than a dozen times, and there hasn't been a single incident in the stands; it's just not that sort of crowd. But during the Hopkins-Cloud fight alone, there were two separate scuffles in the crowd, including one between some guys in a skybox and some other guys below them, helpfully dramatizing scenes from the class struggle in the year 2013.

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Times Real Estate page interviews McKissack CEO on Atlantic Yards, more; her campaign contributions show she plays both sides of aisle

From a New York Times Real Estate page "30-minute interview"--as is typical, quite gentle--with Cheryl McKissack Daniel:

Ms. McKissack Daniel, 51, is president and chief executive of McKissack & McKissack, a New York company involved in several infrastructure projects, including Atlantic Yards in Brooklyn, the World Trade Center and Columbia University’s expansion....
Q. Let’s talk about your involvement in some of these projects, starting with Atlantic Yards.
A. We handle all of the infrastructure. The arena is built on top of what used to be the storage area for trains during the day. And so we had to move all those tracks and put them in a temporary location, which is where the trains are being stored now. It involved moving the Carlton Avenue Bridge. In January 2014 we start building the permanent yard. We’re the prime contractor for the work that we’re doing.

That's a tad superficial. The arena is built only in part on top of what used to be a storage area. At least half of the arena block was city streets, public and private property, etc.

The process of "moving the Carlton Avenue Bridge" was supposed to take two years. It took nearly five years. The permanent yard is also going more slowly than promised.

A leg up?

Here's another exchange that deserves unpacking:

Q. Have the minority- and female-owned company designations helped the business?
A. They help getting a business off the ground in a new location. We get a new client as a subcontractor, and then convert that into a prime relationship.

They sure do help. Remember how, in 2005, the Brooklyn Eagle reported that then-Forest City Ratner executive Jim Stuckey "didn’t know whether McKissack was chosen by a bidding process, but stressed that his firm has known of McKissack’s rail experience for quite some time."

Connections

Let's not forget Ms. McKissack's campaign contribution to Brooklyn Borough President Marty Markowitz and her role on the board of Bertha Lewis's organization, The Black Institute.

And, in fact, under her birth name and previous name (Cheryl McKissack Felder), she's made numerous campaign contributions, from both sides of the aisle. 

Notable: in 2006, she gave $11,000 to the Spitzer/Paterson campaign for Governor, while she gave $5,000 to Brooklyn Republican state Senator Martin Golden. 

Golden, of course, has been a champion of Atlantic Yards.

She's also given to the campaigns of Bill de Blasio, Letitia James, and William Thompson.

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Campaign contributions: Ratner gave to AG Schneiderman (after BUILD closed), Kings County Democrats

There wasn't a lot Atlantic Yards-related, actually, in the latest six-month campaign disclosures filed this week by candidates in New York city and state.

But a search of the database brought one contribution from the latest period and two I didn't notice last year. On 11/18/12, developer Bruce Ratner gave $5000 to Attorney General Eric  Schneiderman's 2014 re-election campaign.

That happened to be just a few weeks after the closing of Community Benefits Agreement signatory BUILD (Brooklyn United for Innovative Local Development), which had been the subject of a complaint to the Attorney General. (There's been no reported action on the complaint.)

Was there a connection? Who knows--Ratner was already giving to the AG. In May 2012, the developer also gave $5000 to Schneiderman's 2014 re-election campaign.

Earlier, in October 2010, Ratner gave $12,500 to Schneiderman's campaign that year. (Did that have any impact on the AG's unwillingness to pursue--or even talk about--an investigation of the Downtown Brooklyn Partnership?)

Giving to Lopez

And in June 2012, Ratner gave $4000 to the Kings County Democratic County Committee, then headed by County Chair Vito Lopez. He was succeeded in September by Frank Seddio, after harassment charges surfaced against Lopez.

Another relation

Ratner's wife Pamela Lipkin, who has sometimes contributed on behalf of her husband's interests, gave $4950 to Democrat Bill Thompson's mayoral campaign. Is she truly a fan of Thompson? Dunno.

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