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March 9, 2006
Sheldon Silver Calls for Schools Chancellor Joel Klein's Removal
Downtown Express
By Ronda Kaysen
No doubt Forest City Ratner is keeping an eye on the mudslinging that's going on across the river in Lower Manhattan between Schools Chancellor Joel Klein and State Assembly Leader Sheldon Silver. Silver, who represents the district in Lower Manhattan, thought that he had a deal with the City to build a new public school at the Frank Gehry-designed Forest City Ratner project on Beekman Street.
The war of words has escalated between the Mayor and leaders in Albany, now that Mayor Bloomberg is holding up funding for the project in hopes of finally getting the State to pay out the full amount of money due to NYC Schools, as mandated by a State court.
The mayor has singled out Silver, Senate Majority Leader Joseph Bruno and Governor George Pataki in his attacks. The schools Bloomberg selected are in key legislative districts, with the two Downtown schools sitting squarely in Silver's district. A source in the mayor's office told Downtown Express that the Downtown schools were selected to get Silver's attention.
NoLandGrab: This public fight may affect more than the progress and composition of Ratner's project in Lower Manhattan. If positions harden and relationships sour between City Hall and leaders in Albany, approval of Atlantic Yards could end up being another pawn. Though in New York politics, you never know.
Posted by lumi at March 9, 2006 7:06 AM