Friday, September 25, 2015

Does Karl McNamara actually exist?

Karl McNamara Facebook photo
From the Times Ledger:

Karl McNamara failed to attend a public meeting he requested at the Greater Astoria Historical Society Monday. McNamara wanted to discuss his plans for the Steinway Conservatory, a music school for disadvantaged youth he planned to establish at the historic Steinway Mansion, which he claimed he had purchased.

At the lightly attended meeting, the executive director of the Greater Astoria Historical Society, Bob Singleton, read from a prepared statement.

“Part of our program this evening was to include a presentation from Karl McNamara, who contacted us stating that he had purchased the Steinway Mansion and was going to start the Steinway Conservato­ry,” Singleton said. “He asked if he could have part of our evening to share his plans with the community and to speak for a few minutes at the end of the program. As you may have read in the newspapers, the current owner claims he has not sold the mansion. We reached out to Mr. McNamara but have not heard back from him. I do not have any more information on this. Our only concern is for the Steinway Mansion.”

“Lies are always short-lived and I am elated to hear that the truth has quickly surfaced,” [Owner Philip] Loria said. “Councilman Constantinides, Senator Gianaris, and Queens Borough President Melinda Katz have and continue to work tirelessly in an effort to find a suitable venue for the Steinway Mansion.”


Hmmm...Well I don't know what the deal is with McNamara, but it looks like Costa, Mike and Melinda are in cahoots with the owner.

24 comments:

georgetheatheist said...

“Councilman Constantinides, Senator Gianaris, and Queens Borough President Melinda Katz have and continue to work tirelessly in an effort to find a suitable venue for the Steinway Mansion.”

A "venue" for the Mansion? They're going to move it? Tons of granite and all? In one piece?

They have and are continuing to work "tirelessly"? That must be some shvitzing.

Anonymous said...

"Does Karl McNamara actually exist?"
_______________________________________________

Does Bob Singleton know his ass from his elbow?

Anonymous said...

Mystery deepens:

http://www.qgazette.com/news/2015-09-23/Features/Steinway_Mansion_Becoming_Music_School_Stay_Tuned.html?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=twitter

Anonymous said...

Ya lookin fur McNamara, lad? 'Ere 'e is mate:

http://scarincihollenbeck.com/attorneys/patrick-j-mcnamara/

(sarc) said...

They can put it in boxes next to St Saviors...

Anonymous said...

1. Does Bob Singleton know his ass from his elbow?

Sure, he blew the whistle by reaching out to the press. He is not involved in discussions on the mansion.


2. Does Steinway & Sons know their ass from their elbow?

There is no reason to involve them. They are not involved in discussions on the mansion.


3. Does Mike Gianaris and Costa Constantiates know their asses from their elbows?

Mike Gianaris: I hope that whoever made this purchase has an appreciation for the Steinway Mansion’s importance to the community and bearing that in mind, finds a way to allow public access to the neighborhood landmark.”

Costa Constatiades: They are not doing anything indecent to the community. [The buyers are] open to working with us. They share our vision.

Costa and Mikey Gee are involved in discussions on the mansion. And their credentials are … ?


4. Does Queens know its ass from its elbow?

Professor Jeff Kroessler, author and historian, asks why no one in politics stepped in to protect the landmark. “I have reached out to many political leaders, but none of them seem to have any other ideas for the mansion other than these warehouses and have turned their backs on the matter,” he said.

When asked by the Chronicle to confirm they have been contacted about the situation, Katz and Nolan were the only elected officials who did not respond.

Melinda Katz is involved in discussions on the Mansion. And her credentials are … ?


http://georgetheatheist.blogspot.com/search?updated-max=2015-09-07T22:29:00-07:00&max-results=7


Lies are always short-lived and I am elated to hear that the truth has quickly surfaced,” Loria said. “Councilman Constantinides, Senator Gianaris, and Queens Borough President Melinda Katz have and continue to work tirelessly in an effort to find a suitable venue for the Steinway Mansion.”


Again, we ask, does Queens know its ass from its elbow?

Anonymous said...

The evening was a packed house with people from the Steinway community, Steinway employees, Friends of Steinway Mansion, the historical society and the community at large.

https://www.facebook.com/steinwaymansion/photos/pb.428186860598307.-2207520000.1443182791./885084461575209/?type=3&theater

Mcnamara issue was hardly noticed.

Jerry Rotondi said...

Yawn....fantasies and empty promises. Lip service... lip service...lip service!
That's what borough hall has set a record for in the past.....lying....or delivering quarter measures!
Why should it be any different with Katz, who's in the pocket of developers?

And, can you trust any of the local politicians to do any better?

I think not, based upon my past experiences which date back to 1968.
That was the year that the notorious criminal developer ,
Tommy Huang, purchased the historic RKO Keith's Flushing Theatre.

Then borough president, Claire Shulman, didn't raise a "shvitz"
caring about what happened to the Keith's. She only pretended because it was a hot button with her constituents.

It's always so nice to see all of Queens clubhouse pols going through their motions
to to fool the public that Queens history really matters to them.

Over developing Queens comes first, with kickbacks from developers in their pockets,
In the form of campaign contributions.

Good luck Steinway! Good luck GAHS!

It's up to the voters to put our crooked pols on a short leash.
Otherwise they will run loose and crap where they aren't supposed to.
Curb your dog. Curb your pol's!

Anonymous said...

If anything this ploy has shown our electeds are collaborating to do absolutely nothing for the Steinway mansion.

If Bob was behind that kind of ploy, I'd be a little surprised, but respect him more.

Anonymous said...

Without real community and real political support,
what is GAHS supposed to do, pull a rabbit out of a hat?
Astoria's politicians have screwed you all!
Melinda Katz will also screw you.
There are no miracles....no messiah. There is only you!
You, the people, must kick your lazy shady polls in the ass until they bleed.
They will either represent you instead of the developers or lose their seats.
Unfortunately, Queens voters appear to be the dumbest lot in NYC.

Anonymous said...

If the politicians let something happen there to tarnish the Steinway name, and it seems drifting in that direction, Steinway will do something to make their back teeth rattle.

You do not f*ck with that brand.

As dumb as the Queens pols are, even they understand that if it is made clear to them.

And believe me, Steinway is watching what they are doing very very carefully.

Anonymous said...

Still think it was more than a simple hoax.

No matter what you might say about McNamara, he has the best game in town. I think he did not expect the Queens sleaze to trip him up.

Perhaps it wasn't the 'entertainment' Loria's cohorts wanted for the area, if you know what I mean.

It just might still be on the table. The Queens pols are great at crushing the small, the clueless, the stupid, the ignorant, but like a typical bully if someone has a little juice they crumble like the straw dogs they all are.

Anonymous said...

Why aren't Steinway and the Friends part of the discussion? They have the most to offer - 10 fold more than the others combined.

With their resources they could take over and restore the place and make it a major tourist stop.

Makes not God damn sense at all. The politicians are wasting everyone's time and money and needlessly putting our community at risk. People around here are getting more than a little miffed at them.

Anonymous said...

Rumor has it that there are pictures and comments from McNamara that are out there after he got a tour of the mansion from you know who.

Anonymous said...

The first thing that Katz' committee should do is to announce safety measures to protect that building.

George took pictures of a building in total darkness looking all but abandoned.

The Friends blog show a building full of books - a fire hazard that has undoubtedly seen by 100s if not 1000s of people by now.

All the trees are cut down by some greedy moron exposing that tower to lighting strikes.

A wall of crumbly gavel and sand is only a few feet from the foundation.

The roof leaks and the foundation has water damage.

Lets not even talk about the electrical system.

Did a burst pipe cause water to cascade down the wall in the library?

Start with 24 hour security guards and a public announcement about what they are doing to protect the building.

There. Its public. Now lets see that they will do about it.

Anonymous said...

Without real community and real political support?

there is real community support with hundreds of names on the petition and hundreds of likes on the Facebook. There is real political support from, just one example, Marg Markey.

The problem are the Vallone 'influenced?' Astoria politicians, community board, and civics. Just a few dozen people.

Anonymous said...

Interesting news:

http://abcnews.go.com/International/fbi-arrests-chinese-millionaire-tied-clinton-scandal/story?id=33990683

Private jets, millions in cash, what for?

Bribery? All cash paid for real estate? Occupy Queens?

Anonymous said...

This guy is a dickhead.

Anonymous said...

A new dog park will soon be coming to Astoria! Today I stood with Queens Borough President Melinda Katz, Queens Parks Commissioner Dorothy Lewandowski, Senator Michael Gianaris, Astoria Dog Owners Association, Astoria Park Alliance, Old Astoria Neighborhood Association, and others to announce $1 Million in funding for this upcoming park. Borough President Katz allocated $500,000 from her FY '16 discretionary budget to go with last year's $500,000 Participatory Budgeting in New York City winning project. Triborough Playground Lot C will be a designated place where dogs can play safely and share full enjoyment with their owners. We're looking forward to seeing this park be implemented!

This is from Costa released the day his inept handling of the mansion fiasco became public. Why the hell Katz is still working with him and Gianaris with their records on that place speaks volumes on their opinion of you and me.

A million dollars for a dog run and not the time of day for the Steinway Mansion, an income generator of tourism and a teaching and learning center for the community's kids.

Yea, lots of dickheads ... and folks, having talked to people who served on it, the general consensus is that participatory budget process is bullshit.

Anonymous said...

Stop being catty people

Our borough president has the A Team behind her: the borough historian, Jack Eichenbaum, the Queens Preservation Council, Mitchel Grubler, the Director of Culture and Tourism, Nayelli Valencia, and the umbrella organization, Queens Historical Society.

With that brain trust you can be assured that perhaps not the 'best' solution will be found, but certainly the 'right' *wink of the eye* solution will be found.

No need to reach out to Steinway & Sons.

Anonymous said...

"Our borough president has the A Team behind her: the borough historian, Jack Eichenbaum, the Queens Preservation Council, Mitchel Grubler, the Director of Culture and Tourism, Nayelli Valencia, and the umbrella organization, Queens Historical Society."
_____________________________________________________________________________________________

You forgot the Mickey Mouse Club.

Anonymous said...

Start with 24 hour security guards and a public announcement about what they are doing to protect the building.

There. Its public. Now lets see that they will do about it.

ANYTHING HAPPENS WE WILL BLAME KATZ, COSTA AND GIANARIS - WITHOUT THEM LORIA WOULD NOT EVEN BE IN THE PICTURE.

A view from across the river said...

Eminent domain. That is all the politicians need to do.

They are lying to the community when they say 'its private property.'

Perhaps its a few thou in a campaign donation and all the benefits to the community that the Friends state can be shoved up to a place where the sun doesn't shine.

No one will pity Astoria or Queens. That's what you get when you shut your mouth and keep your head down.

And they will go the polls dutifully reelecting those people.

Anonymous said...

Karl or Patrick or whatever McNamara's name is - he seems to be the kind of guy you bring in if your are assembling an area for development. Sewage plant, toxic buildings, ... something big is going on there.

The neglect of the mansion? Intentional?