Profitable leases OK’d by the town’s prime actual property official reek of “corruption,” raged a prime Metropolis Council lawmaker Tuesday – as Mayor Eric Adams stated the offers in query will likely be reviewed.
Jesse Hamilton — a former state senator and longtime good friend of Adams — was a no-show at a listening to referred to as by Councilman Lincoln Restler over his administration of the town’s $1.5 billion leasing portfolio, which can also be beneath scrutiny by the Manhattan District Legal professional’s workplace.
As a substitute, freshly-minted Division of Citywide Administrative Providers Commissioner Louis Molina confronted an intense grilling by Restler, who questioned why Hamilton yanked a lease for the town’s Division of Getting old and as a substitute handed it to a different constructing at 14 Wall St., which is owned by a billionaire donor to the mayor.
“Sadly, it seems as if DCAS is as soon as once more dealing with a major corruption scandal,” Restler charged.
Molina informed Restler that there have been no plans to overview the deal – an assertion shortly undercut by Adams, who stated throughout a near-simultaneous information convention at Metropolis Corridor that Deputy Mayor Maria Torres-Springer will look into the offers.
“She’s going to do an total overview and are available out with a few of these adjustments that we have to do,” the mayor stated.
The contentious Council listening to adopted a report by Politico final week that Hamilton, the DCAS’ deputy commissioner for actual property, overruled a proper bidding course of that had awarded a contract for relocating the Division of Getting old to 250 Broadway, throughout from Metropolis Corridor.
Hamilton as a substitute directed the contract to 14 Wall St., a constructing owned by actual property investor and Adams donor Alexander Rovt, in line with the report.
The lease switcheroo disclosure added to questions swirling round Hamilton, who not too long ago had his telephone seized by brokers for the Manhattan DA after getting back from a visit to Japan with the mayor’s advisor, Ingrid Lewis-Martin.
Hamilton and Lewis-Martin have been joined on the journey by a dealer for actual property agency Cushman & Wakefield who handles its dealings with DCAS.
Restler, as he opened the listening to, raised a litany of questions on Hamilton’s function and actions
“Why did the mayor put a very unqualified political ally within the job with the facility to direct the town’s $1.5 billion leasing portfolio?” he stated. “Why did Mr. Hamilton undermine the contracting course of showing to punish a professional bidder and reward a mayoral marketing campaign donor? And why did Mr. Hamilton go on trip to Japan with Ingrid Lewis-Martin and an actual property govt who advantages from DCAS actual property offers?”
Molina, when requested why Hamilton didn’t attend the listening to, stated the duty for the company fell to him. He has been on the job for roughly 90 days, beforehand serving as Division of Correction commissioner.
He insisted Hamilton obtained a greater deal for taxpayers on the Division of Getting old deal.
“On the finish of the day, 14 Wall St. was over $31 million {dollars} cheaper,” Molina testified.
Restler referred to as for a overview of Hamilton’s dealings.
“The truth that we now have no complete overview of Deputy Commissioner Hamilton’s selections, no guardrails imposed, no modified obligation is regarding,” he stated.
Supply hyperlink
