Trump This

You have to give him credit. He keeps on coming.

Despite tremendous opposition to Donald Trump's attempt to develop the Spring and Varick Street parcel into a 45 story Hotel/Condo his people attended the recent Zoning Committee hearing of Community Board #2.

Of course, the Donald hasn't yet met Andrew Berman. Through the Greenwich Village Society for Historic Preservation (GVSHP), Executive Director Berman has managed to move his focus from Gansevoort to the West Village and now onto SoHo in his mission to downzone and preserve downtown communities. Few landlords would place him high on their list of favorites. In zoning circles, he is as well known as Trump is himself.

Berman describes the Trump development as a Trojan Horse Hotel, and just as illegal as 848 Washington Street was before the Hi-line became a fact of life. His concern is that allowing an as-of-right development disguised as a "Hotel condo" - would set a precedent for further residential development in this area without having to pass through the review process normally required of such a variance application. In Berman's words it would "strip away" zoning protection in areas like NoHo, SoHo, the Meatpacking District and the Far West Village. Berman calls this development plan an "illegal circumvention of the law."

Key, of course, is taking action to prevent any kind of proposed development of this magnitude.

Substantially more than 100 residents came out to express their opposition to the plan and as a result a resolution was passed denying the application at the Community Board's Zoning Committee.

There is a long and growing list of elected officials downtown that are opposing the plan and thus far the City has not issued any permits. It looks like they might have a very big stampede if they were to do so. Opposing Andrew Berman is like fooling with Mother Nature when it comes to zoning issues.


Diether's new role as the Chair of the Zoning Committee is like Yogi Berra's "deja vu all over again." After David Reck was fired by Board Chair Maria Derr for opposing her in last month's election contest, the only Board Member left who could claim to have the knowledge of how to run the Zoning Committee was Doris Diether. Reck was unquestionably the most knowledgable and competent person on what is described as "wacky Board 2."

As a white-haired survivor of the Community Board wars, Doris Deither (at 86) is not someone to be trifled with. Like a cat dropped from dizzying heights she always seems to land on her feet. The only trouble is that she has a Conflict of Interest and no amount of sympathy for the octagenerian changes that fact. Gentle little white haired old ladies can also be wily foxes that cut corners. The most recent ruling on her private consulting work which she does for landlords and developers - whether they come in front of Community Board #2 or not - was ruled on by Borough President Virginia Fields a few years back. During the 80's Diether had been told that as long as clients did not appear in front of any Board Committee of which she was Chair (the most likely being Zoning), it would fly. However, that was changed by Fields a few years ago.

The current ruling, made by Fields, prohibits any Chair of the Zoning Committee from engaging in a business relationship with landlords or developers that go before any Community Board.


The race between Maria Derr and David Reck was widely viewed by downtown as a loss to the Nightlife people, but the lopsided rejection of several liquor license applicants shows us that isn't the case.

In fact, what was suspected by some and now appears likely is that there was a well-coordinated smear campaign that started several months before the election itself that was later augmented by a fear campaign. This secret agenda, organized with the help of political operatives like Allen Roskoff of the Durham Group - a close personal friend of Maria Derr - and supported by the Nightlife contingent on the Board (Roscia Sanz, Phil Mouquinho, Bob Rinaolo and supporters like John Maggio and John Diaz), was part of a coordinated campaign of fear and intimidation. Some members on the Board were threatened where it hurts - in the pocketbook. Particular Board members are dependent upon referrals from political connections friendly to Derr. Ray Cline of VRDC, for example, has made it known in the past that Judges dole out patronage assignments (foreclosures, probate, etc) and control purse strings in the political arena - and Board members not voting correctly would not be smiled upon if Derr did not win. Others were threatened with expulsion to the archipelagos of the Board like the Youth Committee or the LBT Committee. Still others Board members did not want to risk the wrath of a vindictive and vengeful Chair despite the Kennedyesque fiction and much-hyped aura claimed by the Passanante-Derr connection. Between the fear, the intimidation (some Board members were told to vote for Derr, Sanz, Maggio, and Diaz), the financial threat and the threat of expulsion to a political Siberia - worked.

Election speeches and articles about Community Board #2 as corrupt body were drowned out and not welcome. For the last year, and now for another year, it will be business as usual. The Chamber of Commerce and Nightlife Association will continue to run Board #2.


The Borough President's office has stepped in and commented upon the selection process for District Manager of Community Board #2 . Up to this point, the process has suffered from a lack of Sunlight. Even a flashlight would have been helpful. Maria Derr is handling the confidential legal work for the Estate of Arty Strickler (the now dearly departed District Manager), yet the selection committee seems to be suffering from the same level of privacy. The BP's office has commented that the level of disclosure emanating from the Personnel Committee which was configured to select a new District Manager -- having conducted 7 meetings and 14 interviews without reporting anything to the Board membership -- is a violation of the By-laws. All requests for a peek at the CV's was either ignored or given lip-service. Board members didn't even know who the candidates were until this past week and the vote will be held on Wednesday. It is a mockery of Democratic process and is insulting to the membership of the entire Board.

The Personnel Committee, controlled by Derr supporters (Derr, Schwartz, Sanz, Yankay) should be disbanded, the election should be cancelled and the process should begin anew -- observing the "Sunlight laws." All of the Board members, with comment from the community (which has contact with the District Manager on a day to day basis), should have access to resumes and all of the proceedings. Arty Strickler was sometimes perceived as heavy-handed and sometimes insulting to community members who wanted information. That should not be the face of the new Community Board #2.

New Beginnings

During a recent interview with Assembly member Deborah Glick, there came the unsettling realization that defending the community from encroachment on all sides is a daunting task. The path for any activist as well as a community-oriented politician (as is Deborah Glick), is risky and incredibly difficult - full of barbs and punji traps.

We spoke about a few issues that affect residents in the most basic of ways.

Housing - shelter -- is one of those most essential needs that affects all of us so fundamentally. And, anyone who depends upon the stock of rent-stabilized or rent-controlled apartments - especially in Manhattan - are especially prone to becoming targets of changes, attacks, scams, legal decisions (or indecisions), and bureaucratic ineptness, all of which can effect tenancy. Landlords are always looking for novel ways to take that rent-regulated apartment away from a tenant. Or, at the very least, multiply the rent many-fold.

Glick discussed two of the more recent attempts to deprive tenants of a place to live. One is the recently revised notion of "demolition." The accepted fact is that if a building needs to be torn down, tenants have to leave. But the most recent variation on this theme has the landlord doing a "partial" demolition for which the express purpose is evicting tenants with the help of the DHCR. Often, the current ploy of partial demolition is really a cosmetic matter that hardly meets the criteria of demolishment in any language - in Togo it might come closer to the word for Fraud. But, so far, City government is playing ball with developers. Glick feels that demolishment should be re-defined in legal terms as the total razing of a building so that this does not become a rampant new means whereby developers legally evict tenants.

Similarly, the cute little moniker "landlord recapture" has been another soon to be abused concept. Recently, a 14 family apartment building was purchased by an individual who proceeded to begin evictions against all of the tenants in the building. This Lower East Side landlord claimed that he needed space for his growing family. This novel approach, if it weren't so ludicrous, is currently being tested in the courts and could have a potentially devastating effect upon the lower and middle class housing stock in Manhattan.

Deborah Glick is running for re-election and should be vigorously supported - few of our elected officials and even fewer of our Community Board representatives have bothered to make these issues known. The City and State have done a miserable job in protecting our rent-regulated housing stock and have pandered to the development of luxury coops and condominiums. It is a short-sighted view which destroys the vibrancy, diversity, and artistic creativity of our communities.

For those architecture lovers out there, Doris Diether has put the Victorian Society's proposed expansion of the Soho-Cast Iron Historic District on the Community Board #2 agenda. The Landmarks Committee will be meeting next Wednesday, July 5th and the Zoning Committee will also be reviewing this issue. Shawn Brennan, the vice president of the Victorian Society, will be presenting the proposal which was described here a few weeks ago. For those of you who have any interest in the possible changes, here is a first-hand opportunity to see what may be in store for SoHo.

The dust has settled, the axes have been buried, and the invectives have all been hurled at Community Board #2. The election between sitting Board Chair Maria Derr and Zoning Committee Chair David Reck was widely anticipated and closely watched by residents, Board members and several politicians for a number of reasons.

For one thing, Derr has been closely associated with the takeover of Community Board #2 by the Chamber of Commerce and Nightlife pro-business, pro-bar faction on the Board. Derr was their successful representative to which she added the Passanante name. While her uncle Bill was liked by many old-timers in the Village, he meant nothing to residents of SoHo or Hudson Square and apparently Derr was rumored to be not all that close to him either - until it became politically helpful.

Maria Passanante Derr, as she is now apparently known, won the election handily. And, while there were dirty tricks (is this not politics?), she gave a great speech and handled herself with composure and even-handedness throughout the election evening.

She even permitted a second vote on an issue due to the fact that some Board members were in a hall outside the voting chamber -- which turned out to negatively affect a liquor license issue. Unusual for her previous behavior. Was it a good show, or was it a new beginning?

Despite the fact the old Bill Passanante was considered a bag of wind by some; a little suspect by others; a prescient crusader for gay rights by others still -- and despite the fact that Carmine DeSapio was also a relative and a politician but was not mentioned - Maria did well. She now stands on her own. She no longer needs old Bill or Carmine and she should dispense with that questionable baggage.

So, what does this mean for SoHo, which counts for nearly a third of Community Board #2 -- but is represented by less than half of that in voting privileges?

Not much.

An political insider has speculated that the vote was indicative of a core group of bar-owners wishing to hold on to control of the Board and also those who owe fealty or who are afraid of them; then there are the Greenwich Village historicals (not to be confused with GVSHP), and those who mistakenly believe that Passanante equals Kennedy and Camelot.

And, then there were those who just liked Maria Derr better than David Reck.

Reck is a fighter who has been aggressive and passionate. He delivered a strong, sobering message - that the Board has lost its direction and that those outside of the Board speak disparagingly of the way the business of the community is being handled.

Derr's message was smoothe and conciliatory. She spoke of change and spoke of the need to move on and put negativity and divisiveness behind. She cited what she believed to be changes on the Board that had already been made in favor of the community.

Neither of them could hold a candle to Lewis Black, but then again, this isn't supposed to be stand-up comedy even if appears to be. And, there wasn't a funny comment all evening - until Phil Mouquinho joked about losing all three of the contentious licenses coming in front of his committee.

Unfortunately, that was the one funny remark that wasn't funny.

The message gotten from this election was not that many Board members are afraid to vote any way but the way they are told (for Derr), on pain of losing their financial connections and Board status;

It was not that the Board membership can now sit back for another year and wait for Brad Hoylman to bring some balance back to Community Board #2;

It was not that the Nightlife contingent on the Board managed to threaten, smear, or distort their way into buying another year of control.

It WAS that the activists on the Board, along with newly appointed members, have forged a new alliance. There is now a new bloc of voters on the Board who see issues first and foremost from the perspective of the Community. It was a portentous change that augurs well for all of us. And, it was apparent as well in the spirit of change evident at the Quality of Life forum held at the Puffin Room this past week. Zella Jones of the NoHo Neighborhood Association, Sean Sweeney of the SoHo Alliance, the new Commissioners of the SLA, the police brass and numerous elected officials and their representatives were all in attendance. Significantly, there were representatives of 26 community organizations from lower Manhattan at this "Summit."

There is a new working alliance forged between members of Community Board #2,the community organizations and the political structure of City government to effectively deal with Quality of Life issues.

The new S.L.A (State Liquor Authority) had two of its three members at the Forum, Daniel Boyle who is the Chairman and Noreen Healey -- a new member and resident of Brooklyn Heights, is both a former prosecutor and a Democrat. It's nice to have another woman in power as well.

Boyle is a former prosecutor who helped clean up the police corruption in Schenectady and is expected to clean out the cobwebs and anti-community sentiment at the S.L.A.
State Senator Marty Connor, who is our SoHo representative, is credited with having been instrumental in helping us get the new Democratic representative to the S.L.A. -- recommended by Governor Pataki and confirmed by the Senate. Connor's influence and friendship with Pataki has apparently paid off for Downtown. Remember that when you think about the fact that of the last ten contested 500-foot-rule hearings, seven were denied by the newly reconfigured S.L.A. Connor is facing re-election and we should support a candidate who produces for the community. We need people like Marty, especially in our fight against oversaturation of bars and support for quality of life issues.

The Forum was congenial and respectful and there appears to be a clear path towards a working relationship on the quality of our lives -- including problems with bar oversaturation, pollution and traffic. Could illegal sign enforcement be far away?

And, as for the new beginning promised in her campaign speech at the Community Board election --after being elected Maria Derr proceeded to remove her opponent David Reck as Chair of the Zoning Committee.

Some might just see that as retaliation, not a new beginning.

Elemental Democracy

It's never been said that politics is easy or always particularly honest. The long history of sub rosa deals, chicanery, dirty tricks and even murder in some cases, is the stuff of novels as well as election lore. From the Borgias to the Kennedys, from Julius Caesar to George Bush, it is a trail of misdeeds and subterfuge that is enjoyable to read about.

It's a tough business and the stakes are big. Big money, big egos and most often big power.

But, aside from the fact that almost any kind words or actions are covered under a cloak of immunity, the rules covering Community Board conduct are fairly transparent. Or, at least, they are supposed to be. As an advisory body, there is not much real power in and of its role as the representation of the will of the community. And, it is the body that represents the community - which means the residents, institutions and businesses in its area or territory.

The power on Community Board #2, which is about to have its second election in two years, is not currently vested with the community. It is centered upon a few people who are connected to the Chamber of Commerce and have ties with the Nightlife Association.

While these organizations provide valuable representation to their members, they do not represent the residents of the community in which they operate. They exist to further their own interests.

As a result, neighborhoods experience pressures from organized entities and their paid representatives who lobby for bar proliferation, expansion of institutions and development pressures that can and do overwhelm residents and activists alike. It takes a lot of hard work to thwart the investment of big money.

That is why the Community Board is so important. The will of the community can stand in the way of high pressure efforts to push aside the will of the people.

In the recent past, the groundswell of support for a more community-oriented Community Board #2 has unleashed some serious players who don't give a damn about what residents want. They are paid consultants to push a business and sometimes self-serving agenda (which is not interested in the wishes of the residents first). Members on the Board who have allied themselves with this anti-community/pro-business agenda, like Rick Panson, Bob Rinaolo, Phil Mouquinho, Roscia Sanz, John Maggio, John Diaz and until recently Mark Rosenwasser - have coordinated efforts to control the Board sometimes for self-interest. Using whatever means necessary.

While this is not surprising, the methods used certainly have been. After all, this is not supposed to be the Spanish Inquisition.

But an "anonymous" letter was circulated to smear those who opposed the wishes of community-unfriendly members. It was partially crafted to punish those who used methods of "managing" an election win - and discussed it openly. The letter was unsigned and shortly after discredited - in part due to the balanced reporting which appeared in The Villager and written by Lincoln Anderson.

Then more recently, a series of letters were circulated by Arthur Schwartz and Rick Panson - ostensibly to support the waning credibility of Maria Derr, the current Chair.

The Panson letters attacked Larry Goldberg for seeking the Board financial statement and, foolishly, attacking Councilmember Alan Gerson.

However, it turns out, that it was not just a letter by Rick Panson. At the very least, it was a combined effort by Maria Derr and Rick Panson - possibly with the help of others in that ruling clique.

Derr has admitted to this and it is now public knowledge after having been exposed previously in this blog.

Shades of the "Anonymous" letter? Don't you think?

The involvement of a close personal friend of Maria Derr's, Alan Roskoff, who has been linked to the release of the "anonymous" letter, and who is a PR character seeking to gain Nightlife Association accounts for his PR firm, the Durham Group - presents all of us with a serious issue to ponder.

Having admitted to the fact that she was involved in creating the letter attacking Alan Gerson, having been personally closely connected to Alan Roskoff, and having been closely aligned with and supported by the Nightlife contingent on the Board - is there any doubt as to how and why all of these attacks were coordinated?

This is NOT just business as usual. This rises to the level of serious unprofessional conduct, at the very least. We are all, then, subject to the wrath of outside groups controlling the Board. That cannot be permitted to continue.

Between Bob Rinaolo with his inside deals and Machiavelli fetish, Phil Mouquinho with his Conflict of Interest as Chair of Sidewalks, Derr and her complicit involvement with various letters, Panson's phony high dudgeon over Gerson's criticism of Derr, and the obsequious behavior of "Dr." Maggio - we have a cast of characters who do not have the community first in mind.

The question becomes this: do residents want a Community Board that is ruled by power-seeking group that caters to business forces - to the exclusion of the residents. And, do representatives appointed to the Board want a Community Board that silences opposition with the threat of retaliation and character assassination - by any means necessary?

It should be clear to all that these personal attacks have been orchestrated to silence opposition and that they are originated by or sanctioned by the current group of bar owners, Chamber of Commerce groupies and their PR operatives.

Borough President Scott Stringer, Speaker Christine Quinn, Councilmember Alan Gerson, Assembly member Deborah Glick are all watching this election - and have all counseled fair play and perspective. They want Community Board #2 to move forward - to an era of cooperation and fairness AND Democracy.

Let's give them what they want.

Letters,... We Get Letters.....

Donald Trump is coming. Or, it seems that he plans to do so in the near future. Apparently, the hotel condominium proposed at 246 Spring Street, is running up against some opposition fairly quickly. The 45-story building would dwarf anything nearby and would violate current zoning since it would not be a transient hotel, but would instead be a condo residence with hotel style accommodations. Hotels are "as of right" in a manufacturing zone where this would be built, but residential developments require a variance. Hotels with the ability to sell or lease the units are not permitted at all.

Andrew Berman, the Executive Director of the Greenwich Village Society for Historic Preservation has entered the fray already. The Trump development is similar to the 848 Washington Street proposal that was defeated nearly two years ago and has prompted GVSHP to take a position. Letters have been sent to community leaders and the elected officials in preparation to what appears to be a looming battle.

Community Board #2's Zoning Committee is expected to hear the application as soon as this month.

Speaking of letters, recent controversies at Community Board #2 prompted Councilmember Alan Gerson to send a letter that was critical of the level of animosity on Board #2. He made mention of a number of incidences that were unpleasant reminders of the friction. The fact that its Chair, Maria Derr, invited new appointees and specifically did not invite opposition members to a "Community Board" meet and greet - was the source of some of Gerson's irritation. A political event was disguised as Board meeting.

In response to Gerson's letter, Rick Panson, Chair of the Environmental Committee, former owner of the Duplex bar, candidate for District Manager, and newly appointed Voice of the nightlife faction on Community Board #2, wrote a scathing letter attacking Alan Gerson for his "outrageous" assertions.

Alan is an institution downtown. He's a lawyer and Columbia graduate, past Chair of Community Board #2 - and just a nice guy. It was no doubt hard for Alan to send a letter that is critical in the first place. Negativity and criticism are not Alan's forte. But, since some of his appointees on the Board were among the disinvitees, he felt he had to speak. Alan was also upset over the "anonymous" letter that slandered a few activist Board members.

However, attacking Alan is generally not tolerated well Downtown. And, since Panson himself has been criticized for playing adolescent pranks at Board meetings (using spitballs on fellow Board members, for example), it's hard to understand how he became the new self-appointed "conscience" of Board #2.


But, the fun doesn't stop there.

In yet another round of letters, Panson developed another new friend, attorney-activist Larry Goldberg.

Goldberg's criticism of Chair Maria Derr's administration has come to a head over his demand for the Board's 2006 financial report, which has never been proffered by Treasurer Roscia Sanz. Goldberg had to "foil" the information in order to get it. The interchange between Panson and Goldberg is reminiscent of the old days when Board members were treated to the verbal ping-pong game between Ed Gold and Arty Strickler.

Except for one big difference.

Goldberg has been asking for a financial statement and Panson has been sitting on his high horse saying -- well, you now have it. Except, that's not quite true. What Sanz and Derr produced is a projection for 2007. No financial statement, as you may know it, for 2005/2006 has been produced so far. So, why the smoke screen?

What's missing?

Was it the fact that Arty Strickler, the now dearly departed District Manager, was pulling down $76,000 a year. And, that no one seems to remember the Board ever having approved that. Despite the questions, however, former Chair Jim Smith advised us that at least $70,000 was supported by the Board.

Or, was it that the Board leadership didn't think anyone was entitled to the information? Or, even worse, that Sanz didn't really know how to produce it?

There is no doubt in some people's minds that Strickler "worked for" certain Board members like Bob Rinaolo and those whom he supported - and others in the current mood of distraction. Those whom Arty did not like, got no cooperation or inside information - or guidance about how to handle Board matters. He was also invaluable in helping to manipulate election campaigns. And, apparently, he was well paid for this. He knew a lot of people -- on, and under the radar screen.

People like Allen Roskoff -- who has recently been linked to newly circulating negative comments about David Reck, who is challenging Maria Derr in an unprecedented challenge for Chair of Board #2. Roskoff is also a nightlife operative with a small PR outfit called the Durham Group and who is a close friend of Maria Derr. The current "dirty tricks" campaign, or rumors, attributed to Roskoff revolve around David's supposed negativity towards women (something that David's wife finds ludicrous and insulting). Of course, it is insulting. That's the point of false rumors. To insult and to undermine.
Board members have been receiving anonymous calls on the eve of a very close election -- and this campaign is starting to smell like the PR placed in the media which linked Roskoff to the "anonymous" letter at Board #2.

It also doesn't help that Panson, in his zeal to help Maria Derr's campaign -- seems to have originated his attack on Alan Gerson using a computer whose signature bears Maria Derr's name. A nasty slip-up.

It certainly links all of the players in this Nightlife V. Community election.


This Thursday, June 22nd, Board #2 gets to choose whether the nightlife people will continue to run things under Maria Derr -- or, whether the community-oriented member, David Reck, will change the course of the Board. Stay tuned rangers.

The Garden Party was a rousing success. At Pier 54, despite the threat of rain, there were at least a few thousand people. They ate the food, shook the hands of politicians like Christine Quinn, Andrew Cuomo, Alan Gerson and Mark Green, and danced. There were lots of kids, ice cream, and some "fabulous" attendees such as Empress Demi Tasse and James, who vogued for the cameras. This LGBT function has arrived politically and draws the elected officials from downtown. It's not to be missed.
Even Melissa Sklarz stopped to chat at the SoHo Journal sponsor table. She's doing well and misses Board #2 already. Well, maybe not until after the current election.

A Matter of Principle

On a recent walk through SoHo, an activist lamented that she has been devoting a decent part of her life to the fight between the community and the liquor applicant known as LoLa - a bar restaurant bistro that has been insistent upon opening in SoHo at 15 Watts Street.

The history of this case, now at the Appellate Division court - after being denied a license by the Community Board, granted a license by the S.L.A., denied a license by the State Supreme Court, and now on appeal - is a long and annoying one.

What is new about this case is not the case law. And, it's pretty clear that the community has been fighting to eliminate the proliferation of bars in SoHo. No, what is new here, are the extremes to which the applicant has been willing to go to win the case.

As described by the activist, among other tactics, private investigators have been hired to track down neighbors in an attempt to intimidate her and other activists. This, of course, comes on top of the $30,000 cost for legal fees to fight the case. And, that's the cost for fighting only one bar, mind you.

This is a wake-up call for all downtown activists and politicians -- that the nightlife people are desperate to eliminate any objection to new bars in our neighborhoods, and is an indication as to how serious the issue of limiting liquor licenses has become.

It's no news that the Nightlife Association and its allies have been working overtime to discredit activists and anyone else perceived to be an enemy of "all bars all the time." Foolishly, their thinking is that unless you can accept wall-to-wall bars in your community, you must therefore oppose any bars or restaurants. Of course, nothing could be further from the truth.

Sources have recently revealed that through a paid public relations consulting entity operating under the name of the Durham Group, Allen Roskoff, has now been linked to the notorious "Anonymous Letter" which mysteriously appeared and circulated Downtown this spring. The unsigned letter, which was a coordinated effort by bar-owner members and their employees on Community Board #2, was part of a smear campaign to attack those who sought to limit the spread of liquor licenses in SoHo. It was also an attempt to strike back for an expose which appeared in the SoHo Journal. Apparently Roskoff, a P.R./political insider who prefers to work under the radar was reportedly working his contacts just as the letter surfaced. Could Roskoff have had advance notice of the fact that the letter was being written? The P.R. effort seems to have been launched for the purposes of helping to place the fraudulent letter in order to give it legs -- and, in order to satisfy existing or hoped for nightlife clients. Not to mention his friends on Community Board #2. Nasty stuff for activists to have to put up with. Roskoff is a behind-the-scenes operator who is a close personal friend Maria Derr, Chair of Community Board #2, and has contacts in several political circles.

We clearly need laws that protect our residents - or, we need enforcement of existing laws - that make it a crime to harass people with "legal" techniques such as private investigators and pressure tactics similar to debt collectors that try to embarrass. This is an issue that needs to be addressed in the upcoming "summit" with the City. For updates and information on this, contact Zella Jones at the NoHo Neighborhood Association. A follow-up to the previous Town Hall-style meeting with several community groups and the elected officials will be held on June 26th at the Puffin Room. It will be a Quality of Life Forum and should not be missed. Please note that it is by invitation only, so please make arrangements in advance.


Larry Goldberg has not been a happy camper. First he gets a letter from disgruntled Board #2 member and former Waterfront committee and HRPT Advisory adversary Arthur Schwartz, saying some not nice things about his community work, then the Villager has been less than supportive towards him, and to round things out, Maria Derr has treated him in an off-hand way after he requested a copy of the Board #2 financial statement. Larry had had enough, considering all of the hard work he's done.

As reported last week, at the last Full Board meeting, Larry asked to see a copy of the Treasurer's report and was told by the Chair that it would be available at the Board office. However, since that was not the case, Larry requested it again - and got only a list of deposits and checks. Not a financial statement.

So, after all of the shuffling and scraping and no financial statement, Larry did the only thing that a serious activist-attorney could do - he sent Derr a FOIL request.

Yes, folks, in order to get the information which the Board is required to make available to its members - Larry Goldberg has had to FOIL Community Board #2 for the information. Hopefully, there will be compliance and we can find out if the accounts have been handled well under Treasurer Roscia Sanz' management.

The Conflict of Interest matter involving Chair of Sidewalks Committee Phil Mouquinho has been bandied about by several Board members and is misunderstood by some.

The COIB has ruled, as it did with Bob Rinaolo when he was Chair of Business, that one may not be an owner of a business (bar/restaurant) and also Chair a committee which approves or renews a license for that business. Essentially, it has nothing to do with how good (or bad) a job the person is doing on the committee. It also makes no difference whether or not the person recuses himself, as Mouquinho has. Prior to taking that position, as Chair, he was advised that if he were to bring his own application in front of the committee - he could not be Chair.

This is a matter of Board policy, a matter of record, and a matter of prior rulings by the COIB.

Of course, the rules may only apply to some of us.

SoHo Flux

Real estate is still healthy in SoHo, so much so that Ian Schrager is buying what was supposed to be a 13-story condo. Instead we will have yet another hotel at 350 West Broadway. Besito's, the location where a contentious "Latino" bar/restaurant fought for a liquor license -- which seems to have been responsible for the still lingering divisiveness at Community Board #2, -- was recently the scene of several fistfights between owners and relatives and now has a "For Lease" sign on its front door. The former condo, now to be a hotel, is across the street from the former Besito's and is down the block from two other recently closed bars. Felix is still in operation down the block and still drags furniture out onto the street and allows patrons to drink on the sidewalk. But, what's a little carousing on the sidewalk among friends.

Until, the hotel opens.

Then, West Broadway might be the focus of a little cleaning up. Time to get the drunks off the street and make sure that the perennial flooding at Grand and West Broadway gets some long-awaited City attention. Funny, how big money starts to bring community concerns into focus. Too bad the artists didn't get more of that attention.


Which brings us to the point about real estate. Apparently, some people have awakened to the fact that only one side of West Broadway has achieved Landmark status. The east side of West Broadway and all of its cast-iron buildings have been protected for years (one of the reasons why there are no billboards on that side of the street) - but now there is a move afoot to landmark many of the buildings which do not have such protection. Several buildings along the west side of West Broadway are now being considered for a new thrust at landmarking them. We'll keep you posted.

And, in case you have been wondering, West Broadway has few restaurants with outdoor cafes. Paris likes them. SoHo doesn't. That's partly because of the fact that no meaningful action has yet to be taken to control the vendors that gobble up sidewalk space - so residents have consistently come down against allowing tables for diners on the sidewalks. The theory behind this is that pedestrians might want to be able to use the sidewalk once in a while. While there are several restaurants that do have outside tables, such as Barolo or Cipriani's, they are essentially not permitted.

Speaking of sidewalk cafes, much ado was made awhile back when Bob Rinaolo was Chair of the Business Committee on Community Board #2 and it was pointed out that for a bar owner to be passing judgment on other applicants for a liquor license - should be viewed as a potential conflict of interest. Especially, when Rinaolo's own licenses would come up for renewal while he was Chair of that committee. It clearly would have appeared to be a conflict.

The issue became quite heated at times and after about a year of waffling on the part of the then Borough President Virginia Fields, it was decided that Rinaolo had to go. Of course, he only moved to a different slot on the committee - but at least it didn't smell as bad when all of the other liquor license holders were calling the shots - as they still do today - under the guise of independence, with Diaz as Chair. The Chamber of Commerce and Nightlife people still firmly control the committee and Diaz steps to the music when it becomes necessary. It's just not all as obvious.

However, one must question whether the Sidewalks Committee of Community Board #2 whose Chair is Phil Mouquinho does not suffer from a similar potential for conflict of interest. Considering the additional business that a restaurant can enjoy at the expense of City real estate, is it proper for a liquor license holder who is seeking to add a sidewalk cafe to his own business - be Chair of a committee that approves such a sidewalk permit? Even if the Chair recuses himself from voting, should the members of a committee who are chosen by its Chair (yes, folks, the Committee Chair and the Board Chair agree upon who is on the committee) - should those committee members be expected to objectively make an independent decision in voting upon such a permit? This particular permit is not in question here - the real or imagined conflict is.

The Nominating Committee of Community Board #2 has made its decision as to which they feel is the best candidate for the next Board Chair and other positions. Seven members were selected by the Board to handle the delicate task of reporting their findings to the rest of the Community Board.

Now bear in mind that the Nominating Committee is a vestigial body - its real function is usually to warn the rest of the Board that they had better vote as suggested if they want to keep their committee assignments. This year's Nominating Committee was elected with the help of the colorful floor antics of Rick Panson, former owner of the Duplex and current hopeful for District Manager. He is a vociferous campaigner for Maria Derr and Company and is a jovial court jester who roots for the bar owners and their supporters. His suggestions for the Nominating Committee were well taken and all of his candidates were duly elected. Will Wieder, an activist and respected member of Community Board #2 became the Chair of that august committee. The committee did its work and reported to the Board that it recommended Maria Derr as the best-qualified candidate for Chair. No surprises here.

But, when Wieder was asked whether any other candidates were interviewed - since David Reck is also a candidate for Chair of the Board - he answered that no one else was interviewed. Why? Because the By-Laws do not require it. Require, is the operative word. With a straight face, augmented by vocal support from Shirley Smith, Wieder told the Full Board that there was no need to interview any other candidates. No pretense of Democracy here on this Board and not even any embarrassment over the fact that it's missing.

So, one would ask, who wrote the By-Laws, Joseph Stalin?

Lastly, don't expect a full accounting of Community Board #2 finances anytime soon. There's been a bit of waffling on that score. Seems that Chair Maria Derr promised that a financial statement for Board #2 was available at the Board office. As it turns out, though, after Board Member and attorney Larry Goldberg had questioned its very existence, what has been prepared and disseminated by Treasurer Roscia Sanz is a lot less than one would have desired or expected. While it seems unlikely that anything untoward has transpired, the evasiveness about what's been going on with the money is troubling.

Joseph Kennedy's contemporary Joe Kane once said "In politics you have no friends, only co-conspirators."
And Harry Truman said, "If you need a friend in Washington, buy a dog."
Machiavelli, that adolescent politician from the Renaissance, would have learned a few things at Community Board #2.

The Community Board and Democracy

As we all deal with the Imperial Presidency, supported only by roughly 31% of the populace, many of us have come to cherish Downtown institutions that have historically been democratic and humanistic in their political views. However, there are political trends that would have us veering off in the direction of the conservative GOP mindset. At several levels of community politics, there is a real danger that closet Republicans among downtown politicos are trying to have their way with us.

Take Community Board politics, for example, which has a mandate to serve the community and is subject to "sunlight laws." This loosely refers to the principle that everything should be on the table, not under the table -- and that Board business should not be firmly in the grip of an elitist clique. However, recent Board #2 policy announcements have begun to sound suspiciously more like orders. Statements by Maria Derr, Board #2 Chair, have also clearly begun to sound downright dictatorial - especially those statements which direct members of the Board not to be privately meeting with and talking to community groups.

The reasoning behind this prohibition? That community board members might try to claim that they can control how the full board votes and ergo -- imply that they can influence the vote on certain important issues. Of course, anyone who believes that Community Board #2 could be subtly influenced or forced to vote any way on an issue, hasn't attended any recent shouting matches.

While it is not impossible that an errant Community Board member might foolishly believe that he or she could control a Full Board vote, one would have to assume that a neighborhood association or group of community activists could be duped by promises to steer things a certain way. Activists are not stupid people - and they certainly know how Community Board #2 functions.

So, what would be lost in prohibiting any Board member from talking to and discussing any potential agenda issue with members of the community, speaks to the very essence of Democracy. Community Board members must be free to discuss any issue -- after clearly and simply explaining that they do not represent the Full Board when expressing an opinion. But, they must be free to discuss any issue. At a Full Board vote, any member who has been in contact with community members and groups should simply state that they have had such meetings. Before the vote takes place.

With regard to people who have recently become Community Board members, a prohibition against freely talking with other members of the community is no different from telling members of Congress that they cannot discuss political issues with their constituents. That's nonsense.

The real danger here is the cloak of secrecy beginning to shroud Community Board #2 matters. The Imperial Presidency seems to have cloned an Imperial Chair and control seems to be the order of the day. Community politics is robust and contentious theater which allows for the confluence of ideas and opinions to play out on the stage. It is not something to be stifled or controlled and a Community Board is about the focusing of many ideas - not the pronouncement of the Controller of a Board's reins.

As an example of the misguided secrecy, there is the issue of the Board Manager position. After the death of Arty Strickler, a colorful figure who ruled from the District Manager position for many years, a vacancy has opened up for that position. So far, however, the process of selecting a replacement for that pivotal job has been anything but transparent. According to sources, there have been at least 50 applications for a job that will reportedly pay roughly $60,000 a year. But only 3 of the 50 applicants have been reported out of the selection committee and none have been identified. The selection process of who is being considered is murky, at best. The lone high profile applicant who is closest to the ruling clique on Board #2 is former bar owner and part-time court jester, Rick Panson. He certainly doesn't need the money after selling the Duplex, but in the political game it is who you serve and who serves you that matters. District Managers often surreptitiously control how the Board functions. His control of the Board #2 office would officially hand control of all Board functions, on a long term basis, to Business interests inside and outside of the Board.

There also seems to be a redundancy of members among the Nominating Committee for the upcoming election, the Committee handling the selection of candidates for District Manager, and the preponderance of Executive Committee members who now run the Board. In other words, a handful of people like Bob Rinaolo, Roscia Sanz and Chair Maria Derr are running the show and making the decisions - for everyone. Currently, they are the controllers. And secrecy is becoming more and more the norm. The Sun is definitely not shining on Board #2.

David Reck, the community-oriented candidate for Chair of Community Board #2 reports that there were some unhappy faces at a recent Executive Committee meeting - among those who were beginning to feel a little uncomfortable over the Imperial quality of answers to questions - none of which gave you that open and informative, democratic feeling.

The race between David Reck and Maria Derr for Chair of Community Board #2 should be interesting.

Recent rumors have it that Bob Rinaolo is removing himself from his position as Secretary, and Carol Yankay is leaving as 2nd Vice Chair. John Diaz, currently Chair of the Business Committee and appointee of Rinaolo and Derr will run for the 2nd Vice Chair position, Roscio Sanz, bar/restaurant owner and real estate mogul will remain as Treasurer, John Maggio, the eager Nightlife and Maria Derr supporter will run for Asst. Secretary and Arthur Schwartz will run for 1st Vice Chair.

Yes, folks, this will round out the Chamber of Commerce/Nightlife slate.

Derr and Rinaolo approved of Schwartz's running against Hoylman and Derr shares a law office with Schwartz. Enough said.

Schwartz is rumored to be dropping out of the ill-advised State Committee race which is planned with Lisa Cannistracci (although Schwartz denies this) - and will be challenging Brad Hoylman for 1st Vice Chair. The Deborah Glick, Larry Moss, Rachel Levine ticket is clearly unbeatable and Schwartz has realized this in time. But, one would imagine that Brad is less than thrilled over this turn of events. Schwartz has hit the ground running and has issued a letter attacking Larry Goldberg and tangentially David Reck, as well. This is a follow-up to the Anonymous letter that infected the Board a few months ago. Schwartz has become the policy arm of the Nightlife crew on Board #2, seeking a political stance after being summarily dropped from other, more visible political positions. Is he planning on attempting a run for Board Chair next? That's the usual intention for the 1st Vice Chair.

The jury is out on Schwartz's handling of the newly merged Parks and Waterfront Committee. There is considerable talk about splitting it again into two committees. And, the handling of that committee has been the subject of various levels of criticism. Recently, much of it has been focused on the Christopher Street Pier, local residents and the "Fierce" gang. Borough President Stringer has reportedly been weighing a move to step in and try to resolve the enmity himself, as a result of the drifting effort.

Holyman has been positioning himself to run for Chair within the next couple of years, putting him in line for a City Council race - and part of his neutral image (straddling the fence between the Community and Nightlife forces on the Board) has backfired. Schwartz's running for 1st Vice Chair is a slap in Holyman's face with the approval of Derr and Rinaolo. Schwartz had been dumped by Quinn and Duane in favor of Hoylman as District Leader - and it is also a rejection of Brad by the Derr, Rinaolo, Sanz, Maggio, Mouquinho group who offered him the 1st Vice Chair slot (positioning him for his own Chair run in two years). Between Holyman and Schwartz, it's now blood sport. And, blood sport is more of a Schwartz "no-holds-barred" political vendetta than Holyman is familiar with. The $64 question though, is whether the Community Board members should have to put up with more personality contests. It obscures the business of making decisions for the community's welfare.

Hoylman has done a good job as Chair of Traffic and Transportation Committee and has held his nose judiciously, while dealing with the anti-Community people still in power, and this is his reward. It is a good indication of how well you can trust the people who are "controlling" Board #2 right now. Stay tuned. The election nominations come this week (May 18th) and the election is held in June. Oh, and the fact that Rinaolo is not running for the Executive Committee is likely a ploy to continue to control the Board from behind the scenes. He advertises his affection for Machiavelli and has maneuvered the Board membership well with the help of the previous Borough President Fields, the Chamber of Commerce, the Nightlife association and an assortment of other bar owners that have packed the Board. The Anonymous Letter, which was circulated to defame certain opposition activist Board members, as well the recent attack by Arthur Schwartz attempting to smear Larry Goldberg (a Trust Board member and activist lawyer who supports David Reck's candidacy) - could not have happened without Rinaolo's tacit approval and consent as well as a green light from Derr. Rinaolo is de facto Chair of Board #2 and Derr is his political mouthpiece.

So, stay tuned rangers - we shall soon see whether the Community or Nightlife Association runs Community Board #2.


The Trust Board of the Hudson River Park is considered an honorable political appointment. There are 13 members -- 5 appointed by Pataki, 5 by Bloomberg, and 3 by Stringer. Clearly the Trust is overwhelmingly Republican and clearly it is controlled by a conservative agenda. The HRPT has accomplished some amazing things along our waterfront and where there were derelict piers, there are now places for children to play and for adults to exercise and entertain.

Recently, however, there has been a proposal among the Trust Board members to limit the information that is "leaked" to the community. It is a little too reminiscent of what we have all come to know as a "gag order." In a bid to create a new ethics code, Trust Board members are being asked to vote on rules that would prohibit discussing HRPT business with the community. The proposed terminology reads:

"Trust Directors shall avoid any unauthorized ex parte communications concerning a pending matter and avoid comment about such a matter outside the Trust Director's
official duties."

It's the wrong message to give the community and we should express our unhappiness about implementing such a rule among the Trust members. The Community has a right to know what is being discussed and what the Trust has in store for us. The so-called conflict of interest in discussing HRPT business plans with the public, is window-dressing for another veil of secrecy that takes community comment further away from discussion about the issues.

Beware the Imperial Presidency, the Controlling Community Board Chair, and a Secretive Trust. It's not simply a matter of civil rights, it is a matter of our right to know and approve or disapprove of how are lives are to be lived.

Downtown Political Contests

There has been some gnashing of teeth Downtown over the upcoming contest for State Committee slots. Usually, there isn't much to talk about since State Committee is more important in appearance than in substance. Not so this year. Voting on the part of this year's State Committee members will result in deciding who gets on the ballot this fall, an important election in which Democrats, so far, are expected to turn a lot of Republicans out of office.

Arthur Schwartz, Chairman of the Parks and Waterfront Committee of Community Board #2 is running on a slate with Lisa Cannistraci, a new Board #2 member and owner of the Chick Inn. The opposition is incumbent Larry Moss, current Democratic State Committeeman and Human Rights Watch lawyer, and Rachel Levine, an outspoken advocate of same sex marriage and other progressive issues.

Behind the curtains, of course, is where the fun is.

Cannistraci is a relative newcomer to politics Downtown, has just recently joined the Community Board and is a close friend of the new Chair of Board #2. Arthur Schwartz, a union lawyer who was deposed from the Waterfront Committee on Board #2 by Aubrey Lees and then was placed back in that slot with its expansion to include Parks by Maria Derr. However, while he has been riding a bucking political pony at the Community Board, the local electeds, Tom Duane and Chris Quinn -- gave Schwartz the heave-ho as District Leader - preferring the company of Brad Hoylman instead.

Larry Moss, on the other hand has had his own problems with the support of the Downtown clubs. While the Village Independent Democrats are likely to support Moss and Rachel Levine, it is not clear which way the Downtown Independent Democrats will line up. There have been "difficulties" between Moss and D.I.D. President Sean Sweeney and it is unclear as well if David Reck (District Leader) is thinking more positively towards him these days. It is doubtful that D.I.D. would support Schwartz/Canistraci.

And, it is unclear which way Village Reform Democrats are leaning in this race.

It seems likely, regardless of how the clubs line up, that Duane, Quinn and Glick will be supporting Larry Moss and Rachel Levine. Thus far, the major support given to Schwartz and Canistraci is from Maria Derr, Chair of Community Board #2. With that kind of political support lined up, it seems clear which candidates have the best odds.


The Community Board #2 election is no longer a forgone conclusion. Usually, in the second year of a two year run, the Chair of the Board gets a free ride. At this Board, of course, anything is possible. So, this June, we get to watch it all again.

Most recently, Derr ran and won with the support and campaign management of Bob Rinaolo, someone who had considered running for Chair but was compromised with a conflict of interest scenario involving the Business Committee. Plus, there is the pregnant issue of bar owners running community boards -- still a hot, unresolved issue. Rinaolo, a bar owner, supported Derr, who has made good use of the Passanante name and managed a lot of support from Virginia Fields when she was Borough President. They gave good fundraisers.

This year, however, in the middle of Derr's two year run, she is being challenged by architect David Reck, Chair of the Zoning Committee of Community Board #2. The split on Board #2 has been especially rancorous due to the Bar Business vs. Community issue. Reck is an activist that has supported and established community groups to fight bars, lounges and nightclubs which have wreaked havoc in SoHo, NoHo, Greenwich Village and Hudson Square neighborhoods.

His thrust in opposing Derr is that the Community Board representing these neighborhoods is basically off course. While some would say Board #2 is mired in self-serving, self-interested, sub Rosa insider deals which has basically benefited the Chamber of Commerce/Nightlife takeover of the Board at the expense of the Community - Reck has simply used the ship off course analogy. Others would say that Board #2 is more like a hospital ship that's on fire, soon to sleep with the fishes . Derr has been busy, along with her mentor Bob Rinaolo in hurriedly interviewing the new appointees to the Board in an effort to read them the riot act about the upcoming election. No doubt they are getting the new party line about how community-friendly the current slate of bar owners and associates have become. And, oh, by the way, which committee would you like best?

Reck has promised that he will take his candidacy to a vote regardless of how difficult or contentious the campaign gets. There is no doubt that his is a difficult task. Reforming Community Board #2, with its deeply rooted penchant for attacking and defaming opponents, is a tough road for any activist to travel.

While the Chair of any Board has little real political power, Derr has the machinery to operate in trying to hold on to her seat. The appearance of power is sometimes enough to sway new Board members in their voting.

Even if it's against their best interests. Or against the best interests of the community.

The Downtown Wars

Borough President Scott Stringer has started to reshape the Community Boards by introducing new members and discarding others. The new members know that becoming a member is an honor, and the existing members know that remaining on the Board depends upon service to the community. Those who have not been reappointed know that the community comes first and special interests come second, or not at all.

However, not everyone gets the message or likes hearing it.

While the Boards are elemental groups of citizens involved in community work for no compensation, it is also a body where all of the positive and negative currency of Democracy is always in full bloom. There are businesses vying for permission to operate (such a liquor licenses or sidewalk cafes), there are builders seeking to change the use of a parcel (changing from manufacturing to residential condos), and there are organizations seeking to expand their area of management (as with Business Improvement Districts).

Then, we come to the personalities and members who seek to improve their own standing in the community by creating power cliques within the Board. This could be a restaurant owner who fought the community over obtaining a liquor license in the past and rose through the ranks of the Chamber of Commerce. It could be a local landowner who wants to usher through developments by being involved in the process. Or, it could be a City worker who is branching out and starting a consulting firm - who wishes to collect clients based upon his "inside contacts" at the Board.

Fortunately, most people join the Community Board simply to improve the quality of life in their area of the community. And, most remain dedicated to membership for that reason alone, even though it is inevitable that they get caught up in the political crosswinds.

As John F. Kennedy once said, "Politics is the only game for adults." And, that is just as true at the Community Board as it is on the national scene. Only the players and the objectives are different. For Board members, there is another saying that resonates, "It's better to be a big shit in a little town than to be a little shit in a big town." Communities are microcosms in New York City and each Board is a little fiefdom that takes care of its own. It's possible to be a relatively important person in a community while having no importance at all with the general public. Many residents of SoHo, for example, have no idea who the Board members are from their area.

That's one reason why more entrenched Community Board members take membership on the Board very seriously. So seriously, in fact, that they are willing to resort to any number of tactics to maintain their little clique and to maintain their power base. For some, this power base translates into homage paid by prospective applicants for licenses, developers wishing to build multi-million dollar condos, and existing business owners wishing to expand their operations.

In some cases, the reason is more direct. It may clearly advance the individual member's personal business plans and favorable decisions can be worth millions. It can also be about personal or politcal favors.

The war that has already begun is focused on Community Board #2 - and is continuing with this year's election contest. David Reck, a respected architect and Chair of the Zoning Committee, will be challenging Maria Derr, the current Chair of that Board.

It is not a war between Reck and Derr. But it is a war being waged between the residents of the communities of SoHo, Greenwich Village, NoHo, Hudson Square and Little Italy -- and political as well as business interests that do not value the quality of their lives. The citizens are tired of all night bars and lounges that interfere with their families, the traffic that pollutes their air and prevents them from safely crossing the street, the illegal billboards that display half-naked models or booze, and the developers who want to cut off their light and air to build bigger condominiums.

And, the residents are also pissed off that they, the community, don't come first - after the interest of businesses and special interests.

David Reck wants the Community Board to move in the direction of the Community, to support the needs of the community associations that want to improve quality of life for residents. Maria Derr was elected by the strong connection to Virginia Fields and support of the nightlife members on the Board who supported Fields' campaign for Mayor. Her reign is not about the community, but about sustaining the business clique and thier power on the Board.

The new Board members are welcome and it appears that Scott Stringer has added nearly 15 new community-oriented people to Board #2. They are a cross-section of what is needed on a community board. Independent individuals who are capable of considering the needs of the community first.

Those who remain on the Board and who are not happy about the changes fall into two categories. Those who think that more people should have been dropped from the board in order to reform it, and those who are doing whatever they can to discredit their opponents.

If you have followed the recent issues of the SoHo Journal, you know that the nightlife industry to some degree is represented by Board members like Bob Rinaolo, Roscia Sanz, Phil Mouquinho and Rick Panson. Maria Derr ran for Chair with their support and connections - as well as the connection to the former Borough President. Mouquinho has represented himself well and has appeared to be sensitive to the needs of the community - a community that he has lived in all of his life.

However, the clique that represents the nightlife community has started to resort to highly unethical maneuvers. Not just to maintain the power base but to denigrate community people and activists who support them.

"Anonymous" letters have started to surface once again. This seems to be a historical method used almost exclusively in Board #2 to discredit others that are political enemies. It is a testament to the rancor and petty vendettas drawn from a medieval characters like Machiavelli. With all due respect to our dearly departed, it was widely believed that the former District Manager at Board #2 had some information on using that particular ploy. And, he was directly responsible for allowing such letters to appear in everyone's mailbox.

The "Reform" group, among which are people like Sean Sweeney of the SoHo Alliance and off-Board activists like Zella Jones of the NoHo Neighborhood Association, have started to experience personal attacks for all of their community efforts.

Jones has been the victim of a "slap suit" for her involvement in a recent Town Hall meeting seeking to deal with traffic, development AND liquor license issues. She and other activists have successfully blocked bars in NoHo that are supported by the Nightlife people on Community Board #2.

Sweeney, a vocal and sometimes curmudgeonly activist who tirelessly works for the benefit of Downtown Democrats and the SoHo community - has been the object of many of these personal attacks. He was jettisoned from important committees by Derr as soon as she became Chair.

According to Sweeney, "The real scandal is that leadership of Community Board 2 is using anonymous letters, lies and sleaze tactics to silence opponents."

In fact, rather than investigate an unsigned letter that blatantly attempts to get community activist members off the Board, Maria Derr (the Chair), simply comments that the people who are attacked should be investigated.

That is clearly the party line of the Nightlife power clique - and not the voice of a Board Chair who is outraged by unethical behavior by Board members in circulating missives written by character assassins.

While Derr wants victims investigated to satisfy her nightlife political allies on the Board, she should begin investigating the misdeeds of Board members who seek to circulate lies. Unless, of course, she knows more that we know about its origin.

We do know, though, that the letter was penned by Community Board #2 member or members. That is a fact that has been confirmed by a news source.

We have a new Deep Throat - only this time he or she is coughing up fabrications.

Let the Games Begin.

No One Gets Out Alive

The untimely and unexpected death of Community Board #2's District Manager last week is another reminder of the old adage that, “Nobody gets out of this alive.” Arty Strickler was a wily, not-so-old fox who was a survivor from what is arguably the most contentious community board of them all. Certainly, in recent times, it has not been a place where you would want to dip your toe into the political waters to check the temperature – unless you don’t want to keep that particular foot. Arty knew everyone and nearly everything that was important to know. He had himself been Chair of Board #2 and survived numerous attempts to remove him and remained in power despite the displeasure of several board members as well as board chairs. J. Edgar Hoover had nothing on Arty. He could tell you who had the votes in an election and commented about the most recent election that, “A paper bag could win as Chair of this Board” because of his vote count as to who was “on our side.” He was usually right. He wasn’t prescient; he just worked at getting the best intelligence. Sometimes he moved things along.
And, while his pants were too tight, he had a curious sense of humor that seemed to fit well with his interpretation of the job. He was also a master of the “anonymous letter,” – a form of character assassination used by those who want to besmirch those whom they determine are their adversaries. It was (and apparently still is) a tool of some Board members with weak egos and underwear that’s pulled too tight.
District Manager of Community Board #2 is not an easy job.
Arty was a close personal friend of a few Board members like Bob Rinaolo (de facto Chair of Community Board #2) and less so of Maria Derr, the current Chair, and he had famous, public, running disputes with a few Board members such as Ed Gold, a personal friend of former Mayor Koch. Arty was opinionated and dictatorial at times; – but in the end, with his curious brand of ethics, he sometimes tried to reach out to people, even adversaries, to try to heal wounds in his own imitable way. Despite his sometimes-brusque manner, he really wanted people to like him and get along with each other. He kept repeating that the split on Board #2 was just for the moment and “soon everyone would be friends again.” Arty, at least, had common sense – he did not know how deep the division had become and how intransigent and rancorous the polarity was. We can thank C. Virginia Fields for dangling the carrot of money and control of the business agenda for that.
Filling his sneakers will not be an easy task and one, which, it is hoped, will be less political, and more quieting, given the current state of disaffection on Board #2.


The jockeying for Strickler’s job has already begun and a few names including Florence from the Board office have been mentioned. As of this writing, Florence had not indicated that she was ready for the position. She is a warm and intelligent young woman who is both engaging and savvy.

It has been learned, however, that the nightlife contingent which now runs the Board, operating as the Personnel Committee but is a disguised form of the Executive committee, plan on deciding who they are going to place in the District Manager position – for their benefit. Bob Rinaolo, de facto Chair, Maria Derr, acting Chair, Mark Rosenwasser, Phil Mouquinho, Brad Hoylman (Vice Chair), and Carol Yankay – are arranging to replace Arty Strickler with a Manager to do their bidding.
The Board may not like being told what to do. The new District Manager needs to be a bi-partisan selection that goes beyond politics and personal agendas or the healing process will never begin. It will then remain for
Scott Stringer to rely heavily on the knife to rectify the situation.


Arthur Schwartz’s fortunes are once again on the upswing. It appears that he will finally Chair the Advisory to the Hudson River Park Trust. The deep and murky decision-making of Maria Derr, which is now the skirt behind the Rinaolo throne at Community Board #2, has apparently decided that Schwartz should handle that assignment after personally trying her hand at it briefly. Schwartz is familiar with HRPT matters, having chaired the Waterfront committee and he has sued the Trust on a few occasions. During the mishandled Pier 40 debacle, for example, Schwartz and others, including several electeds -- were so pissed off that the opportunity to develop the pier was lost that a lawsuit ensued. It went nowhere. But, at least we have the $5 million dollar investment in playing fields to be thankful for, compliments of the now defunct Waterfront Committee that survived Schwartz.
Schwartz is also reportedly planning on challenging Larry Moss for the position of Democratic State Committeeman. If he does run against Moss, there will be some strange new bedfellows downtown and possibly some soul-searching among the political clubs.
Moss is a favorite among some electeds like Deborah Glick and Tom Duane in favor of Brad Hoylman essentially ousted Schwartz from his District Leader’s position. However, there WAS no love lost for Moss among some of the downtown political clubs—there’s no telling where that’s at right now. Moss may be back in favor.
It may actually turn out to be a contest, after all – depending upon who else decides to run. Pete Gleason seems to be opting out for the moment.

Activists Downtown have a new friend in the Development Wars.
Andrew Berman is looking more and more like a friend of SoHo, not to mention his already having conquered the hearts and minds of Greenwich Villagers. The Tunnel Garage is finally coming to its last days before demolition starts and Berman’s GVSHP has been the only organization outside of the SoHo Alliance, which has taken an active role in pushing to get some of the historical buildings in SoHo landmarked. Berman has had a crystallizing effect upon Villagers and there has been genuine progress is slowing down, and zoning down sections of downtown. Manning the barricades did not go out of vogue with student protestors – Berman’s success in getting people out to demonstrate, as he has at the Tunnel Garage – bodes well for a resurgence in genuine community activism.
While this may not be the battle where a line is drawn in the sand, it is clear that the hearts and minds of people in the community are with Berman and the GVSHP.

Fallout over The Falls has been much more lamented by the Nightlife people in lower Manhattan than would have been anticipated. It has drawn attention to a smarmy business.
There has been so much nasty publicity and so much negative press as a result of The Falls’ management having lied to the police over the rape and murder of a young female customer – that other bars throughout the city are wringing their hands over the bad rap this has generated. Not to mention heavier surveillance and investigations into personnel practices with regard to bar employees and security workers—at other locations.
Demonstrations, picket lines, media trucks, satellite dishes and police brass are not conducive to business as usual in some of our “watering holes” downtown.
However, a little more scrutiny might provide the community with a silver lining – like providing the kind of police presence at downtown bars that eliminates drugs and reduces noise and the kind of antisocial behavior that has created a lower Manhattan that is antagonistic to family life. This has occurred in the name of enticing tourists to drink until stupid and endlessly bar hop at the expense of our community’s quality of life.

Community Board #2’s Business Committee, Chaired by Martin Diaz did an unusual thing. It denied a liquor license to the old Verushka location on Broome Street – across the street from the site of a new condo development (Tunnel Garage) and below a condo building itself on the ground floor and basement level. The applicant wanted the lower level to be open until 4 a.m., a strange request for the so-called white tablecloth restaurant that was being proposed.
The Business committee is not known for its sensitivity to SoHo’s needs, which is what makes this denial all the more perplexing.
Makes you wonder what’s afoot.

Stay tuned.

Downtown Gets Hot

Special Assistant to D.A. Bob Morgenthau, Eben Bronfman, has been a busy guy. Between the Page Six comments referring to his recent marital conflagration and time spent with his current main squeeze Kathy, you’d think business would suffer. Not so.

He’s off to China on a mission to promote Human Dignity and Policing, a program which the Chinese leadership is eager to implement. Considering the negative press that the police in China have been exposed to, it is understandable that they wish to correct that. Or, at least make a serious attempt to mitigate the damaging perceptions. Eben and his associates will be spending several weeks consulting with the Chinese leadership on this matter and presumably he will avoid controversy in the process of straightening out the police.



Scott Stringer is off to a great start with his appointments. He’s chosen attorney/activist Lawrence Goldberg to fill one of the Hudson River Park Trust Board (HRPT) slots. While there has been a lot of jockeying by some Downtown hopefuls, Goldberg seemed the obvious choice. He’s a community person, heading the Friends of LaGuardia Place, formerly Chair of the Advisory to the HRPT, a previous member of Board #2’s Waterfront Committee, and a staunch supporter of Mr. Stringer’s campaign.

Fortunately, for residents, Goldberg is a family man and has the interests of parents and children in mind – and has several ideas for Park uses that will benefit the young children of our community. Too few activists, fewer politicians and virtually no one on Community Board #2 gives enough consideration to the kids in our community – not to mention the parents, who must provide not only education but access to safe outdoor activities. Scott Stringer used judgment and consideration in appointing Lawrence Goldberg and it augurs well for his promise of reform for the Community Boards that he chose a community-oriented person of character and experience.

Julie Nadel, an important person in the Downtown political scene, will be re-appointed to the Trust Board, as will Franz Leichter. Madelyn Wils will not.


Which is a reminder of another position from which Wils has recently become dearly departed. Apparently, chess allows for more than two Queens in a game. Not so, the Tribeca Film Institute. The staff reportedly seems to have felt that there was just a little too much attitude in the air and Jane Rosenthal (DeNiro’s partner in the Film Festival) was less than thrilled with the quality of the competition. It also should not be lost on anyone that Wils, no longer Chair of Board #1 is out of a job less than 6 months after being ousted as Chair by Virginia Fields. Things are a whole lot less “fluid” now -- a lot less juice and a lot more acid to go around. Oh, well, at least DeNiro got his hotel in time.

The management of Board #2 continues to flounder.

A persistent problem that has begun to fester relates to the Pier 45 congregation of gay youth that populate the waterfront late in the evenings primarily during the summer. When the pier closes at midnight, the kids leave the Park and noisily make their way up Christopher Street, at least as far as the PATH station near Hudson Street. Neighbors cannot sleep and have complained bitterly. For years.

The Parks and Waterfront Committee, headed by Arthur Schwartz, with Board Chair Maria Derr in attendance, attempted to pass a resolution this past week that would call on HRPT to open Pier 54 as Pier 45 closed during the summer – allowing the groups of kids to move on to another location for a few hours more after the Christopher Street pier closed (Pier 45) at midnight. The plan was to provide portable toilets as well as some food and other amenities, to be located at Pier 54, and that would ameliorate the yelling and screaming up Christopher Street (Pier 54 would remain open until 2 a.m.).

Unfortunately, Schwartz’s reso spoke of this plan but went on to mention that the kids were primarily Black and Hispanic and as a result, basically, the shit hit the fan. Since the kids have a PR-type guy who calls their group “Fierce,” the cries of Homophobia as well as Racism rang out. The committee, along with Schwartz and Derr, wilted. The big losers in this fracas were the residents and members of the Christopher Street Block Association who gained no help from the Board or the police – who do not treat yelling and screaming after midnight a criminal offense. It’s also a sticky problem that the police would rather avoid.

So, while many Village residents, especially those on Christopher Street where there is a long history of diversity and acceptance (gay, straight, bi, Trans, black, white, Asian, Hispanic – or even Republican), which essentially blows the homophobic and racist label to hell – the kids have made the adult politicians extraordinarily defensive. Not to mention useless. Only Melissa Sklarz and Lisa Canistracci, Board #2 members, spoke with some rationality on this issue. The fact that Sklarz and Canistracci are LGBT (Lesbian,Gay,Bisexual,Transgender) members and familiar with sexual orientation issues as well as the community issues, connected with both groups.


But, Village residents on Christopher Street will still get no sleep.

The issue will come to a head at the Full Board meeting on Thursday the 23rd of March. Expect a few sparks if you attend.


It should also not be lost on us that Schwartz and Derr are not exactly seeing eye to eye these days. Derr is trying to distance herself from the Rinaolo/Sanz/Panson liquor license/Chamber of Commerce/real estate group that took control of Board #2 in order to further their personal business agenda. Schwartz helped Derr in her election bid but there is now no love lost between them – as witnessed by her taking the helm of the Advisory to the Hudson River Park Trust. This is an honor that typically goes to the Chair of the Waterfront Committee, which was recently merged into Parks and Waterfront, making Schwartz a bigwig at Board #2. Unfortunately for Schwartz, since he would normally be entitled to Chair the Advisory as Waterfront Chair – Derr decided to assume the position herself. The fact that Schwartz has been denied this coveted position does not speak well for the cooperation between them, nor does it reward his support for her election.


There are a lot of pissed off people now on Board #2 who were either sidelined by the Rinaolo putsch in electing Derr, or who, like Schwartz, were sabotaged by the burgeoning ego of Derr and the Machiavellian aspirations of Rinaolo – who is still the de facto Chair of Board #2.


Questions:

What Downtown Community Board politico has been the subject of harassment by his/her landlord and has been dealing with a totally untenable living situation for years?


Which members of Community Board #1 and #2 are about to bite the dust with the reform sweep about to hit the decks?


What are the electeds proposing to do about the “Demolition clause” that landlords are using with the help of DHCR to “evict” rent controlled and stabilized tenants Downtown?

Is the rumor of a 50 story Trump Hotel "near the Holland Tunnel" real and going to be built on the 596 block at West, Spring and Washington Streets?

Milestones:

Congratulations to Noreen Doyle, Vice President of the HRPT. She just gave birth to a healthy baby girl named Kenna. A lovely young lady for a lovely young lady.

We were advised of the passing of Arty Strickler, District Manager of Community Board #2's office. He suffered a fatal heart attack and died on Sunday, March 12th. He was a knowldegable person, who had served as Chair many years ago and knew the Board and all of its members well. He will be remembered.

Stay tuned rangers.

The Community Speaks

This week there was an impressive joint meeting held by Zella Jones and the NoHo Neighborhood Association, Sean Sweeney and the SoHo Alliance and Rob Hollander and LESA, the Lower East Side Alliance. In part, it was sponsored by the Greenwich Village Society for Historic Preservation (GVSHP) and the SoHo Journal. The forum was very well attended by a crowd of several hundred residents and many downtown pols -- including Tom Duane, Martin Connor and Scott Stringer, as well as representatives from Deborah Glick's office, Alan Gerson's office, Rosie Mendez' office, Sheldon Silver's office and the Mayor's office.
Manhattan Borough D.O.T. Commissioner Margaret Forgione, Parks Department's Bill Castro, and the Police Brass were in attendance as well.
In other words, folks, it was a meeting that should not have been missed and NBC as well as NY1 were on hand to hear what was being said.

In a well organized agenda, speeches were made by Zella Jones, Sean Sweeney and Claudia Flanagan of LESA, and the gist of it was this: stop the proliferation of bars that are ruining our communities -- start paying attention to the fact that we can't cross the streets unmolested by cars and trucks -- and start talking to us about the out of control zoning in our neighborhoods.

Claudia Flanagan made a compelling case for the neglect of our communities by the S.L.A., for example, as she cited the fact that 4500 liquor licenses have been approved Downtown in the 10003, 10012, and 10013 zip codes alone.

Zella Jones made a case that the more bars that are allowed to open downtown, the higher the commercial rents go for retail space -- making it impossible for small shops, food stores and service establishments to afford the rent. And, therefore, this bar saturation is depriving our neighborhoods of other necessary services.

We have become the open bar and late night game room for the Tri-state area. Times Square, High Noon at the OK Corral, and Coney Island -- all rolled into one big party-time for our families to endure.

As Claudia Flanagan told the packed audience, including the politicians and media that were present, "The community is putting you on notice" and we are going to make our voices heard.

Some of the politicians did hear the message and some took it to heart even before the meeting.

Deborah Glick's office announced that she has introduced two new bills to afford oversight and greater community involvement in the S.L.A. approval process.
Scott Stringer suggested that residents attend the Borough Board meeting for the purposes of having input on zoning matters, S.L.A. enforcement matters and Traffic problems.

Sheldon Silver's office announced that he will be holding hearings in May and specifically asked the community to send representatives. He wants to modify the Padavan Law, known as the 500 foot rule -- so that this is more rigorously observed and enforced.
Deputy Mayor Dennis Walcott pledged a meeting with Deputy Mayor Ed Skyler who is in charge of Operations (Police) in 6 weeks, to follow up on the needs of the community. He also directed all of the NYC Commissioners to remain until the end of the meeting.

As an interesting side note, Besito Restaurant in SoHo, the focus of much bad blood at Community Board #2, has seen some management changes. Even with a liquor license, business has reportedly been slow. Rumors of a possible late night club scene and "hot" music have been bandied about. Then the unthinkable happened.
A robbery was reported this week. All of the liquor, the cash register and even the phone was stolen. On West Broadway?
Well, at least it wasn't a fire. Right?

Rumors abound about what actions will be taken by the new Borough President, Scott Stringer, with regard to changes on the Community Boards. Among these, is a rumor that Community Board Chair Maria Derr has been read the riot act about straightening out the mess at Board #2. Especially, with regard to the "anonymous" letters and attempts at character assassination which once again has reared its ugly heads at that Board. This traditional method of spreading around the cheer at Board #2 (which would never be tolerated at any other Board) has happened a number of times in the past and actually resulted in the passing of a resolution.
Only Board #2 has developed this rancorous reputation for trying to tarnish reputations with fraudulent, unsigned missives.

Seems that David McWater, Chair of Community Board #3, former Vice President of the New York Nightlife Association is divesting himself of bars as fast as he can. Between a just announced investigation by Eliot Spitzer involving the S.L.A., liquor companies and some bars, and the sweeps being conducted by Deputy Chief Steven Paragallo, the pressure is on. McWater reportedly owned as many as nine bars in his own Community Board turf but has dropped a couple of them.

Apparently, there are some involved at the Community Board level of politics who see no conflict running businesses that are counter to the wishes of large segments of the community -- like David McWater of Community Board #3 and Robert Rinaolo or Roscio Sanz of Community Board #2 -- and who feel compelled to force their views down the throats of many activists.

For people like these to have gained control over any community board is a testament to the power of campaign contributions. Virginia Fields packed the Boards with bar owners because the money kept flowing into her campaign coffers. The Nightlife people wrote checks as fast as they could.

Oh, and don't be fooled by those divesting themselves of bars. Rinaolo may have "sold" one of his bars, as McWater has -- but whether these are truly arms-length transactions or a ruse to permit future political moves -- given the antipathy shown by the community -- is a matter of opinion. McWater wants to run for City Council and Rinaolo has wanted to be Community Board #2 Chair for quite some time. Shills (even to run bars) are a favorite ploy among those with big egos.

But, the days of maintaining control over the community through intimidation, fear, political favors or character assassination, are over. The cat is out of the bag. The bird has flown the coop. The ship has sailed. And, the Fat Lady has definitely sung.

And, contrary to Yogi Berra's famous remark, sometimes it is over when it's over. Especially when, as Joe Mantegna says in The House of Games, if everyone is in on "the Tell."

The entire community now knows how the Nightlife people pulled this off. So, the politicians now must realign their allegiance, or leave the stage.