Tuesday, December 6, 2016

Council to strengthen certain deed restrictions

From the NY Times:

The New York City Council is expected to pass legislation on Tuesday that would require mayors to personally approve any alteration to or removal of a city-imposed deed restriction, and would create an online database to track existing deed restrictions and changes to them.

The bill, which aides to Mayor Bill de Blasio said he would sign into law, represents the latest effort by city officials to prevent the circumstances that allowed a protected Manhattan nursing home, known as Rivington House, to be sold to luxury condominium developers this year.

The proposed law creates new standards for the agency that handles deed restriction changes, the Department of Citywide Administrative Services, which approved the removal of the restriction on Rivington House in 2015 in exchange for $16.15 million. That action allowed a for-profit nursing home company, the Allure Group, to sell the property to a developer for a roughly $72 million profit early this year, after it had paid $28 million for the property several months earlier.

The transactions prompted overlapping investigations by the city comptroller, Scott M. Stringer, and the Department of Investigation, which found no criminal wrongdoing but highlighted breakdowns in communication between city agencies, and a lack of attention within the de Blasio administration. The New York State attorney general is investigating the matter.

12 comments:

(sarc) said...

As long as the correct people receive the appropriate amount of moneys...

Anonymous said...

Are they still trying to sell this deal as a 'mistake'? As greedy developers? As chicanery by the Allure group?

Call it what it is: government corruption. The DeBlasio administration was paid to change that deed restriction. They knew what was going to happen. They got their check and did what they were paid to do.

Saying now they were hoodwinked is ridiculous.

Anonymous said...

Then you'd be interested in nycdep311.com for DEP senior official deeds

Anonymous said...

As long as the rigged system continues to reinforce all corruption, graft and greed, then nothing changes. It's the 'Illusion of Change,' then, where even the illusion isn't fooling anyone anymore. But, that never stopped any City Hall administration from trying——least of all THIS crooked-and-corrupt administation that now devalues all honesty itself——to pathologically high treasonous, traitorous and tyrannical effect!

Men have been hanged for less!

Anonymous said...

Sadly, the REAL corruption is not so much born of illegal crime and mob rule, but rather LEGALLY organized crime from government bought henchmen, and the corporate elite who own these voracious thieves, as well as the media outlets of total corporate fascism.

And, until this crime ring trio is finally busted up, then nothing will ever change to any real standard of public trust, ethics, integrity, accountability and transparency——exactly the way all hyper-corrupt politicians (not public servants), demand and SO ORDER it to be!

And, the public be damned!

Anonymous said...

"The whole system is rigged" Donald Trump

Anonymous said...

Anon no. 4. Name the men who have been changed for less.

Anonymous said...

To last Anonymous, who is relying upon MY research skills in lieu of your own research ad homework. Frankly, if you have to ask for a list of men who have been (literally and figuratively) 'hanged for less,' then you obviously haven't lived in Queens County for very long, much less the City and State of New York!

So, for starters, just work your way forward to 2016 from corrupt Borough President Donald Manes (remember him?)?——He chose to commit suicide in order to escape his punishment (for which every taxpayer was left to pay the price)! (Too bad he didn't have the criminal insight of Sheldon Silver and Dean Skelos, both of whom haven't seen a day in jail since they were both found guilty over a year ago!)

But, here's a partial list for you, over which to ponder and mediate: Dennis Gallagher, Brian McLaughlin, Shirley Huntley, Dan Halloran, Vince Tabone, Malcolm Smith, William Boyland, William Scarborough (St. Albans), Alan Hevesi, Pedro Espada, Eliot Spitzer, Vito Fosella, Anthony Seminerio (who died in prison), Vito Lopez, Sheldon Silver, Dean Skelos (and son, Adam), Gregory Meeks and Floyd Flake (two public service impostors and Jamaica gangsters),and more recently, disgraced former Congressman (and admitted sexting addict), Anthony Weiner.

And, let's not forget the greatest hustler of them all, Boss Tweed and Tammany Hall!

The Last Anonymous said...

Anon No. 8: I don't need your supposed researching skills to name the same names that you named. Ivery lived my entire life in this city, and can probably name a few more as well. They've gone to jail, not to the gallows.

You said that people have been hung for less, and not for the first time here. I asked you to name them. Name them or move on to a different expression.

Anonymous said...

Listen, Anonymous, whatever your personality deficiences may be, they are YOUR problem, not mine! I don't answer to you personally, or anyone else on this threat for that matter, and if you don't like my posts, then don't read them.

Stop wasting everyone's time over the pettiness of semantics—unless you yourself are one of those crooked politicians that I speak of who are already in jail (with online privileges), or soon to be jailed—and, maybe even on their way to be publicly lynched and hanged by mob rule!

One could only hope!

The Last Anonymous said...

Anon No. 10:

Nope. Not one of those guys. Just someone likes rational discourse, not overwrought, bloodthirsty rhetoric.

Anonymous said...

To last Anonymous: No overwrought, bloodthirsty rhetoric here, or maybe you should simply return to your Twitter feed (and 140 characters or less), to solve all of the systemic corruption, graft and greed that you and every other taxpaying sucker continues to pay a soul-crushing price.

Either way, it shows you to be a petty, paper tiger (reactionary), with no real heft except to criticize a community activist like me who actually challenges authority and talks truth to power without airbrushing reality. So, what have YOU personally done for your community lately? Nothing? Didn't think so!