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April 2, 2007
BREAKING NEWS: State money funded $100G job for Yonkers GOP chief
The Journal News
Here's the latest in the political controversy that's brewing in Yonkers, which, many believe, may lead back to Forest City Ratner's controversial Ridge Hill project.
Ridge Hill amazingly received final approval from the Yonkers City Council after one councilmember switched her vote. This councilmember is a cousin of the Yonkers Republican Party Leader who appears to be the subject of a federal investigation.
Yonkers' embattled Republican chairman got a $100,000 consulting contract with the city's Chamber of Commerce as part of a state grant arranged by his political patron and former employer, then-state Sen. Nicholas Spano.
The deal marked the most lucrative job GOP chief Zehy Jereis has held during a career of taxpayer-funded work provided by powerful Westchester Republicans.
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The money for Jereis' one-year contract came from a $175,000 "member item" - the legislative term for pork-barrel spending - secured by Spano, officials said.Spano, who was ousted by voters last year, said he had nothing to do with Jereis' contract, which expires tomorrow and is not being renewed.
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The probe involves the council's handling of the controversial Ridge Hill development plan for a $600 million "mini-city" along the New York State Thruway, a source told The Journal News when the first subpoena became public.
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Jereis' contract made him one of the chamber's most highly paid workers, according to federal records.
NoLandGrab: Let's see if we can follow the connections here. Sources in Yonkers tell us that Nick Spano's brother Mike was working for the lobbying group of Patricia Lynch and Associates, who were lobbying for Bruce Ratner.
So Ratner hires Mike's firm, whose brother Nick gets a well-paid job for Zehy Jereis, who is the cousin of Councilmember Sandy Annabi, who reverses her vote on Ridge Hill, giving the Ratner project the votes it needs for approval.
It's too early to know if that has anything to do with the Federal investigation. Last month, a Ratner spokesperson felt compelled to point out, "We know that everything we did to advance Ridge Hill Village was done properly and legally and are not worried about what any investigation might turn up." (link).
Posted by lumi at April 2, 2007 7:54 AM