Crain's New York Business by crains-new-york-business

HOMECOMING Next generation helps mom-and-pop shops survive pandemic challenges PAGE 3

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ASKED & ANSWERED Physician group CEO on keeping patient costs down PAGE 11

NOVEMBER 22, 2021

2021

Most Powerful

Women I N N E W YO R K

GETTY IMAGES, BUCK ENNIS, GOVERNOR’S OFFICE FLICKR

The latest edition of Crain’s ranking spotlights women who run the show in entertainment, finance, politics, tech and health care PAGE 17 CLOCKWISE FROM CENTER: Pat Wang, Kathy Hochul, Ellen West, Wendy Williams and Letitia James

POLITICS

Hochul uses purse strings to woo Big Apple voters Facing downstate rivals in the 2022 election, governor maintains a rapid-fire event schedule in the five boroughs BY BRIAN PASCUS

ov. Kathy Hochul seems to have found a second home in the City that Never Sleeps. New York’s first upstate governor since Franklin Delano Roosevelt has spent the better part of late October and early November putting her fingerprints upon the five boroughs. If she’s in Brooklyn one day, shooting

NEWSPAPER

VOL. 37, NO. 42

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$450M $20M

hoops with the Nets, then she’s following it the next by standing beside city bigwigs in TOURISM RELIEF Manhattan and declar- Includes 1-time, ing the time has come $2,750 payments for a new Penn Station. to individual workers “She’s been all over,” said Bruce Gyory, a Democratic political consultant in Albany. “She’s using a very aggres-

sive schedule to get known and has done it, so far, without slipping on the ice, so to speak.” CHINATOWN Since Oct. 29, Hochul Winner of a New visited Bensonhurst to York State economic development grant sign the Sleep Act, a law designed to regulate illegal car mufflers; held a news conference at the Barclays Center to partner with the

Brooklyn Nets on a Covid-19 vaccination campaign; announced Chinatown as the winner of $20 million in regional economic development funding; and unveiled a $450 million tourism recovery package at the Museum of Natural History, which includes onetime payments of $2,750 to New Yorkers who work in tourism such as hotel workers, See VOTERS on page 34

TECH SPOTLIGHT

WHO OWNS THE BLOCK

FIRM TOUTS MUSHROOMS AS THE FUTURE OF FOOD PAGE 35

NoHo tower gives neighborhood a new vibe PAGE 4

11/19/21 1:00 PM

POLITICS

Comptroller-elect Brad Lander announces he plans to end developers’ affordable housing tax loophole BY BRIAN PASCUS

LANDER intends to have a collaborative relationship with the new mayor.

BLOOMBERG

omptroller-elect Brad Lander last Wednesday declared his intention to use his power as the city’s chief fiscal officer to eliminate a property tax loophole that is intended to spur affordable housing construction but saves real estate developers nearly $2 billion a year. Lander also staked out his plans to differ from his predecessor, Comptroller Scott Stringer, by establishing greater transparency on how the city tracks federal aid and improving his relationship with the mayor’s office. Lander’s comments about 421-a echoed earlier criticisms he made during the campaign, when he characterized the program as a giveaway to wealthy real estate developers. “Let 421-a sunset this spring, and rather than trying to replace it with a slightly less bad system, let’s think really hard about property tax reform,” Lander said. “It’s a once-in-a-generation opportunity to fix something we know is not working.” He argued that the amount of affordable housing 421-a generates is not proportional to its cost and that “in this day and age, it cannot meaningfully be defended” as an affordable housing program. The abatement was renewed under former Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s direction in 2016, but Lander called for the incoming Eric Adams administration and Gov. Kathy Hochul to allow it to expire so that a

ment in a recession-era New York that experienced urban flight. Modifications to the abatement have been made over the decades. It has been allowed to expire on several occasions before being revived. In today’s iteration—known as Affordable New York—the tax breaks for developers occur during three years of construction, require 30% affordable housing and can extend up to 35 years after a project is completed, declining across various timelines until all the units go to market rate. The tax-exemption benefits vary, although they are usually based on land use, location and the amount of affordable housing included. Luxury housing developers are seen by progressives such as Lander as benefiting disproportionately from the abatement. But those developers who specialize in affordable housing construction argue that ending 421-a would cut off an important avenue to both capital and construction for their part of the industry.

“BOTTOM LINE, WE NEED TO FIND WHAT THE RIGHT SUCCESSOR TO 421-A IS” broader, more inclusive property tax plan could be drafted by new leadership. The program will expire in June if the state Legislature doesn’t take any action.

‘Grand challenge’ Lander made his comments during a breakfast forum at the Yale Club with Andrew Rein, president of the Citizens Budget Commission, a nonpartisan fiscal watchdog. Rein referred to Lander’s call to end 421-a as “the grand challenge” and noted the difficulties ending the abatement would cause for the real estate community in New York City. “The bottom line is, we need to find what the right successor to 421-a is in order to ensure we develop more affordable housing and multifamily rental housing throughout the city,” Rein said. The abatement first passed in 1971 to spur multifamily develop-

Necessary program? Developers in both the luxury and affordable realms have repeatedly defended the program, with some going so far as to argue that it is “absolutely impossible” to build rental units in the city without tax abatements such as 421-a. Rein asked Lander if he had any concern about the effect that ending the program next year would have on new and existing developments—especially without a new

BY THE NUMBERS

property tax reform proAct, an emergency federposal in place. al stimulus package, and Lander replied there is the money it will pull out “probably a three-year of President Joe Biden’s overhang” on projects $1.2 trillion infrastructhat will be registered for ture package. construction before the “I’m really eager to dig YEAR the 421-a June 15 deadline, and into that federal infraabatement first passed to spur those should be enough structure money,” he multifamily for the industry to sustain said. “We lack a clear housing itself. strategic plan and, in development The comptroller-elect New York City, we don’t argued that the lack of a have a thoughtful pronew property tax plan in cess of tracking those inplace gives city and state vestments.” leaders the impetus to Lander promised he AMOUNT the push through reform would set up a “100 Days loophole is quickly so as not to disProject” to track where said to save rupt the industry any furfederal money is allocatdevelopers per ther. ed across city agencies year “Give ourselves a nextand how it is spent. June deadline,” he said. “We need a more “Let’s set the cliff up that gives us a thoughtful, strategic approach to year to get broader property tax re- where city resources are being form done.” used,” he added. “It’s absolutely By that time, he said, Adams will critical.” be a year into his mayoral term, and Lander touched on his relationeither a new governor or the in- ship with the incoming maycumbent will be in place following or-elect. He joked that while Adams the 2022 election. He predicted that likes going to nightclubs, he enjoys the city and the state would likely “breakfast conversations about fiscome to an agreement on reform in cal discipline.” 2023. But Lander noted that rather “I think there’ll be a chance for than being known as a foil who uses that type of governor–mayor part- his office to “audit the hell” out of nership, at least without toxic hos- city agencies and hold the Adams tility, to move property tax reform administration accountable, he forward,” he said. “Let’s imagine a told Adams in private that he would 2023 session where we really work like to form a collaborative relationhard to get it done.” ship. “I said … ‘Let’s think of working Federal funding together on implementation and Aside from property tax policy, think about how to improve perforLander said he would like to use his mance, not get headlines or fight office to track the $13 billion in fed- through the media,’ ” Lander said. eral aid the city received from the “We’re trying to think what a reset $1.9 trillion American Rescue Plan looks like.” ■

1971 $2B

WEBCAST CALLOUT

DEC. 15 A FAIR ROLLOUT FOR RECREATIONAL MARIJUANA With New York’s legalization of adultuse marijuana expected to be up and running by late 2022, the industry could generate north of $4 billion in overall sales. This translates to $350 million in tax revenue. How can the state ensure that communities that historically had been criminalized by marijuana laws have an opportunity to do business in the emerging industry?

VIRTUAL EVENT Time: 4 to 5 p.m. CrainsNewYork.com/ DecBizForum

CORRECTION ■ Raffaele Piarulli is the executive vice president of Eataly North America. His title was incorrect in Asked & Answered, published Nov. 15.

Vol. 37, No. 42, November 22, 2021—Crain’s New York Business (ISSN 8756-789X) is published weekly,except for a combined issue on 1/4/21 and 1/11/21, 6/28/21 and 7/5/21, 7/12/21 and 7/19/21, 7/26/21 and 8/2/21, 8/9/21 and 8/16/21 and the last issue in December. Crain Communications Inc., 685 Third Ave., New York, NY 10017. Periodicals postage paid at New York, NY, and additional mailing offices. Postmaster: Send address changes to: Crain’s New York Business, Circulation Department, PO Box 433279, Palm Coast, FL 32143-9681. For subscriber service: call 877-824-9379; fax 313-446-6777. $140.00 per year. (GST No. 13676-0444-RT) ©Entire contents copyright 2021 by Crain Communications Inc. All rights reserved.

2 | CRAIN’S NEW YORK BUSINESS | NOVEMBER 22, 2021

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SMALL BUSINESS

BUCK ENNIS

HUANG originally thought up Pecking House as a way to help his uncle.

Pandemic inspires second generation to revamp family businesses Offspring shoulder more decision-making power as mom-and-pop shops look to endure BY CARA EISENPRESS

ric Huang had cooked at Café Boulud, Gramercy Tavern and Eleven Madison Park for a decade when he got serious about launching his own fine-dining spot in January 2020. But when the city and the state closed restaurant dining rooms in March 2020 to try to stop Covid-19 from spreading, he put his plans on hold; his family’s two restaurants needed help. He became a dim sum chef for his mom and then came up with a novel business plan to keep his uncle’s restaurant afloat Huang is one of a wave of second-generation offspring who returned to a family business to help during a tough year and a half. The younger generation brought new digital and marketing ideas, and in some cases they found their input newly welcome. “A crisis hit and the world changed,” said Howard Hoff, a partner at accounting firm Marks Paneth who specializes in advising multigenerational family-owned businesses. “The older generation let the kids try new things, and it made the companies better.” For Huang, that meant helping in the kitchen at his mom’s spot, Pearl East, in Manhasset, Long Island. She had found that her customers were eager to order lots of takeout, but it was hard to get staff. With just three or four cooks, he kept the kitchen running. By the summer the business had steadied, and he headed back to Queens to see if he could

help his uncle’s Fresh Meadows spot, Peking House, survive. A pivot to takeout had not worked, and the restaurant had been closed since the beginning of the pandemic. Huang surveyed the empty kitchen’s equipment. His eye landed on the deep fryer, and he proposed chili-seasoned fried chicken meals with gourmet sides, renaming the delivery-only pop-up Pecking House. Through word-of-mouth and Instagram posts, Huang began selling 15 meals a week, each priced at $35. After some press, orders swelled. He now has a team of cooks and drivers, who make and deliver 500 orders a week. There is a wait list to order on the website. “The goal was to make enough to keep the lights on,” he said. “But it took off.”

saster loan applications, said Joanne Kwong, president of the retail chain Pearl River Mart, which she runs with her own in-laws. “The second generation stepped up to fill in that translation gap,” Kwong said at an event about Asian American businesses, held by the Center for an Urban Future. “Small businesses led by the first generation gave up because the paperwork was too hard. “I used to be an attorney. Paperwork is my thing, and it was hard for me!” she added. A number of people swooped in with tech, financing, fundraising and w eb s i t e - bu i l d i ng skills to help their family firms in 2020. No one mentioned seeing a sweeping trend of children joining the family business permanently during the crisis. But the dynamics within businesses did sometimes change. “The kids who were there got a bigger role,” Hoff said. “Their ideas were taken more seriously, and they got the chance to try out tech platforms or sell goods online, avenues that eventually expanded their businesses.” At Fresh Goods Grading in Long Island City, for example, Joe Boo built his father, Tai, the direct-to-consumer e-commerce platform asian-veggies.com to save his Long Island City–based wholesale produce business, Fresh Goods Trading. “I told my dad that he could have expanded the retail operation

“THE OLDER GENERATION LET THE KIDS TRY NEW THINGS”

‘Translation gap’ For other families, help from the children came in the form of paperwork assistance. Emergency relief funding applications were often set up to be first come, first served, which benefited larger companies with banking relationships or accountants on retainer. First-generation immigrants who own businesses encountered language barriers, especially when trying to complete Paycheck Protection Program or Economic Injury Di-

much wider if we had a website or social media page where his clients could have an interface,” the younger Boo said. It turned out to be a success, drumming up a solid level of individual orders after restaurant clients paused their sales. Asian-veggies .com now has 1,000 items and runs out of a warehouse near the senior Boo’s business, which is now seeing double-digit growth and is in the midst of an expansion outside New York, the younger Boo said. For Huang, helping his family turned into a long-term project, and he is looking for a permanent location for Pecking House in Brooklyn so he can focus on serving guests inhouse rather than staying delivery-only. “It’s not fine dining, but it’s interesting,” he said. “This is what I do now: fried chicken.” In Jamaica, Queens, customs broker JW Hampton Jr. & Co., changed because the older generation did not feel safe coming into the office for a long time, said Michael Schoule, a vice president. “My brother and I joke, though, that had we known that all it would take was one week of a pandemic to accomplish what him and I had been trying to do for 20-plus years—get Mom, Dad and Aunt Susan out of the office—we would have hoped for this years ago,” he said. More seriously, the crisis gave him and his brother—among the fourth generation to work at the firm—decision-making and hiring power. His dad, he said, “trusts us a lot more.” ■

NOVEMBER 22, 2021 | CRAIN’S NEW YORK BUSINESS | 3

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WHO OWNS THE BLOCK

40 BLEECKER ST.

Newly sold out 12-story condo tower in NoHo signals new vibe for a famed anti-capitalist hub Even with high-end condos, street has ‘a real New York feeling’ BY C. J. HUGHES

33 BLEECKER ST. Businesses dealing with furs, sewing machines and twine once occupied the six floors of this 1884 building, although No. 33 has been a residence since going co-op in 1980. Values seem to be holding up. A two-bedroom apartment with herringbone-patterned wood floors, No. 4B, sold for nearly $2.7 million during the summer. That was its original list price, records show. Although the building may be rooted in late 19th-century New York, its land enjoys even deeper ties. The building stands on the site of author Herman Melville’s childhood home, said David Favale, the Compass agent who marketed No. 4B.

26 BLEECKER ST. For years, this seven-story brick-and-terracotta building, like many in this corner of NoHo, served commercial purposes, which meant storing clothes, furs and envelopes. But that changed in 1989, when Planned Parenthood opened a clinic there. The organization, originally a tenant, later exercised an option in its lease and purchased the 1901 building for about $5 million in 2003, property records show. The seller was the Etna Tool and Die Corp, a metal fabricator that was based on nearby Bond Street from World War II to 2017. Today the corner at Mott Street is named Margaret Sanger Square, for the birth-control activist.

9 BLEECKER ST. This modest three-story building has played an outsized role in the neighborhood’s colorful countercultural history. From 1973 into the early 21st century, it was the headquarters of the Youth International Party, or Yippies, an anti-capitalistic group known for outrageous antics such as running a pig for President. The Yippies, co-founded in 1967 by Abbie Hoffman and Jerry Rubin, planned many pot parades at No. 9. In the early 2000s a legal fight erupted over ownership of the property when its landlord decided to sell it. The Yippies bought the 19th-century building for $1.8 million in 2004. City officials soon filed liens for unpaid taxes, and then No. 9 went into foreclosure. After years of court challenges, Bradley H. Gordon bought the site for $3.1 million in 2019. Gordon has since taken out a $2.7 million mortgage against the property, although building permits have not yet been filed.

36 BLEECKER ST. In a neighborhood that once hummed with paper-based businesses, No. 36, a brick building from 1885, was the site of a lithograph plant. Envelopes were stockpiled there afterward, although in recent years the seven-story structure was a warehouse for Globe Storage and Moving, a firm that bought the building for $990,000 in 1984. With the neighborhood established as an upscale address, Globe sold the site to Stillman Development International for $45 million in 2012. CEO Ray Stillman then borrowed $85 million from Deutsche Bank to develop a 19-unit condo called the Schumacher, for Schumacher and Ettlinger, the building’s original owners, according to city records. White paint was stripped from the façade, and Stillman exhumed retail storefronts hidden behind metal panels. The building, in a historic district, began closings in 2015 and is now in resales mode. In September a three-bedroom unit with a brick barrel-vaulted ceiling, last listed at $5.45 million, had a signed contract after 10 months of marketing, according to StreetEasy.

BUCK ENNIS, GOOGLE MAPS

or the past year developers in SoHo and NoHo have felt squeezed from several sides. The pandemic, of course, has hurt construction timelines and sales. And a proposal to rezone 337 LAFAYETTE ST. dozens of blocks to allow more than 3,000 apartments, a quarter For decades, this low-slung commercial of which would be for lower-inbuilding was a hub of activism. The buffcome households, has some in brick structure, officially known as the A. J. the historic and affluent enclave Muste Memorial Institute, and nicknamed worried that property values “the Peace Pentagon,” housed groups such could drop. as the Granny Peace Brigade, the Socialist It may come as a relief, then, to Party and the War Resisters League, in addifinally push a project across the tion to retail tenants. Another occupant was finish line, as is the case with 40 the Committee for Nonviolent Action (forBleecker, a 12-story, 61-unit conmerly of 325 Lafayette), which for a time was do tower that signed its final conled by A. J. Muste, a Christian pacifist who tract on Nov. 12, seven years after died in 1967, a few weeks after meeting with Broad Street Development purHo Chi Minh to try to end to the Vietnam War. chased its site. Developer Aby Rosen bought the Peace “I feel like I got very lucky,” said Pentagon for about $21 million in 2015. Raymond Chalmé, Broad Street’s After a renovation, the three-level space bechief executive. “But this one over came home to an outpost of Kith, a sneaker time has really made its mark.” store, in 2017. The project, which razed a seven-story, 83-unit apartment building in one of the few corners of the neighborhood not protected as a landmark, may have more to do with the future of the neighborhood than its past. But Broad Street, which teamed with equity partner Crow 325 LAFAYETTE ST. Holdings on the project, seems to have created a building with a Although mostly a grid, Manhattan does have more compatible look than what slashing streets that turn lots into trapezoids, such preceded it. The windows at 40 as where Lafayette Street collides with Mulberry Bleecker, detailed with metal, Street. To fit at those junctions, structures usually have a vertical orientation that have to be tapered like clothes irons or “flatirons.” echoes nearby commercial An example is this seven-story beige-brick Italibuildings. The windows in the anate former office building, which in the mid-20th previous building, 304 Mulberry century was home to the Committee for Nonviolent St., a 1960s structure, looked Action, an antiwar group focused on nuclear weapmore like rectangles placed on ons. In 1979 the upstairs floors were converted their sides. to a six-unit residential co-op, where turnover is Although the creation of 40 rare. The last unit to trade, a two-bedroom, went Bleecker essentially reduced the in 2014 for $3.15 million, property records show. amount of housing at the site, Four small stores line No. 325’s base. Chalmé said that no rent-regulated tenants were displaced. In addition, as part of the acquisition, Broad Street bought a 12-story, 99-unit rental property next door to secure its air rights. But that building, 298 Mulberry St., remains, and houses some former tenants from 304 Mulberry, he said. Prices at 40 Bleecker aver40 BLEECKER ST. aged $3,000 per square foot, Broad Street said. In contrast, Number 40, just outside NoHo’s historic district, has a the average sales price for new 61-unit condo that opened about a year ago and sold condos in Manhattan is $2,200 its last unit this month, said Broad Street Development, per foot, according to a third which built it. The site, which formerly contained a 1960 quarter report from the brokerrental building, was purchased along with a next-door age the Corcoran Group. rental from the firm GID for $180 million in 2014. FiThose prices suggest dramatnancing at 40 Bleecker, which broke ground in 2017, ic change has already come to came from Blackstone Group in the form of $44 million this part of NoHo, which for in land-loan financing. Bank OZK and Brookfield Properyears was an anti-capitalistic ties Group kicked in an additional $130 million for develhub. Indeed, Socialists, pro-pot opment. The project, which developers say the pandemic forces and pacifists regularly delayed by four months, expects a $325 million sellout. gathered at places such as 9 Bleecker and 337 Lafayette St. to plan protests. “The street has a real New York feeling to it,” Chalmé said. ■ 4 | CRAIN’S NEW YORK BUSINESS | NOVEMBER 22, 2021

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Partnering to help create opportunities Last year, Bank of America committed $1.25 billion over five years to advance racial equality and economic opportunity. To date, we’ve directly funded or invested one-third of this amount on top of long-standing efforts to make an impact in our communities and address society’s greatest challenges. Here are some of the ways we’re working to make a difference: • Investing $300 million in 100 minority-owned and minority-led equity funds, including Harlem Capital and Zeal Capital Partners. This will help diverse entrepreneurs and small business owners create more jobs, financial stability and growth. • Investing $36 million in 21 Minority Depository Institutions (MDIs) and Community Development Financial Institution (CDFI) banks, such as Ponce Bank, that support minority-owned businesses. This is in addition to approximately $100 million in deposits to MDIs and our existing CDFI portfolio of more than $2 billion, which helps build pathways to economic vitality in local markets. • Providing funding and support through innovative programs and partnerships with community colleges, universities and nonprofits, including Baruch College, that offer training and credentialing programs connecting more people to high-wage, in-demand careers. We’re doing this work in collaboration with community partners, business leaders, experts and academics across the public and private sectors to ensure that our investments are directed where they’re needed most. Together, we can help drive sustainable progress in New York City. What would you like the power to do? ®

José Tavarez President, Bank of America New York City

Learn more at bankofamerica.com/metroNY

Bank of America, N.A. Member FDIC. Equal Housing Lender

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IN THE MARKETS

Top venture capitalist Wilson says valuations for early-stage startups have become ‘delusional’

Union Square Ventures co-founder, an early backer of Twitter and Etsy, says investors are setting the bar too high

THE DREAM IN VC INVESTING IS THAT A $100 MILLION VALUATION TURNS INTO A $100 BILLION COMPANY

WILSON

BLOOMBERG

Aluations for early-stage to exchange went public. startups have reached “delusional” levels, one of A big jump the city’s leading startup His warning comes as the averinvestors says. age valuation of early-stage startFred Wilson, co-founder of ups has jumped by 50% in the past Union Square Ventures, year, according to Pitchwarned that disappointbook, and big venture capital firms flock to this ment awaits those who particular hunting invest in companies with ground. a cool idea but no sustainAndreessen Horowitz able business plan, a field said half of new investknown as seed funding. ments since 2020 have “I think they are being been in seed-stage comdelusional,” he said of panies, and in August the seed investors, “comfortVC firm unveiled a new ed by the likelihood that AARON ELSTEIN $400 million fund. Greysomeone will come along lock Partners allocated and pay a higher price in $500 million to seed-stage funding the next round.” Over the years Wilson has backed last quarter. “This competition has put upTwitter and Etsy. In 2013 his company led a $5 million investment in ward pressure on deal sizes and Coinbase, and its stake was worth valuations, something we believe more than $5 billion after the cryp- will continue for the foreseeable fu-

ture,” Pitchbook said in a report two weeks ago. In his blog, Wilson said that because most seed-stage companies

REAL ESTATE

fail, investing at a $100 million valuation is unlikely to generate a significant return. The dream in VC investing is that a $100 million valu-

ation eventually turns into a $100 billion company, but Wilson said that almost never happens. “In almost 20 years of producing some of the highest-performing VC funds in the business, [Union Square Ventures] has never had a portfolio company become worth over $100 billion,” he wrote. “That is a very high bar, too high to expect in your portfolio.” ■

HOSPITALITY

Permanent Gotham Organization lands outdoor dining $250M in loans for 47-story mixed-use tower on Far West Side in city advances BY CARA EISENPRESS

GOOGLE MAPS

he Gotham Organization has secured roughly $250 million in financing for the 47-story mixed-use tower it plans to build on Manhattan’s Far West Side. The developer and its partner, Goldman Sachs, closed on a $212 million construction loan from Wells Fargo and U.S. Bank and $35 million in mezzanine financing from Lionheart Strategic Management for its project at 550 10th Ave. between West 40th and West 41st streets. The development will span 430,000 square feet with 453 apartments, 316 of which will be market rate and 137 of which will be affordable. Amenities at the project will include a fitness center and a rooftop lounge on the 45th floor. It will also include 9,000 square feet of retail space and a roughly

the property from the organization for about $80 million. The firms have worked together to build a new 80,000-square-foot location for Covenant House at 460 W. 41st St., just east of 550 10th Ave. Gotham plans to start demolition at 550 10th shortly, now that work is done on the new Covenant House facility. “In the nearly 50year history of Covenant House in New York City, this is our first purpose-built facility,” said Sister Nancy Downing, the group’s executive director. “It is a stunning tribute to every youth who’s ever experienced homelessness and trauma and walked through our doors and a beautiful, safe, healing

THE PROJECT WILL INCLUDE SPACE FOR A GROUP THAT HELPS HOMELESS YOUTH 27,000-square-foot office condo for Covenant House, an organization focused on helping homeless youths. Covenant House is the former owner of the building; the Gotham Organization just closed on buying

place for the over 100 youth who will stay with us tonight and in the coming nights.” “Facilitating Covenant House’s move into its new home is an accomplishment we are incredibly proud of,” said David Picket, president of the Gotham Organization. “Working hand in hand with such an important social services organization has been a very rewarding experience.”

Other developments The Gotham Organization’s other projects include Gotham Point, a mixed-use development in Long Island City with 1,132 residential units, as well as Monitor Point, a mixed-use project with 900 residential units at 40 Quay St. in Greenpoint. ■

NEW YORK CITY TOOK a step toward a permanent outdoor dining program with the approval last Monday of a crucial zoning amendment by the City Planning Commission. The amendment increases the number of restaurants that can apply for outdoor seating areas when the program becomes permanent next year and was approved despite vocal objections from residents. Ten out of 11 members of the commission voted yes, with one commissioner recused, after a series of contentious meetings where residents of restaurant-heavy neighborhoods complained about multiplying rat populations, allnight noise and the fishbowl feeling of going about the intimate routine of daily life inches from a rotating cast of restaurant diners. Yet the City Planning Commission indicated that the chance to reconsider how the city uses its streets was too good to pass up. “The necessity of moving dining outdoors during an emergency gave New York City the rare opportunity to pilot a significant landuse change on a citywide scale, and in doing this, to recognize the incredible vibrancy outdoor dining can bring not just to Manhattan, but to all five boroughs if we enable it,” said the commission’s chair, Anita Laremont.

BUCK ENNIS

BY EDDIE SMALL

The commission did make one concession as a result of public concern. The text amendment will not take effect until the Department of Transportation’s outline for the design and regulations of a permanent program are completed. City residents and elected officials had expressed concern that they were passing the amendment before they had clarity on what the rules and compliance for the program would look like.

Heading to a vote The commission’s proposal now heads to the City Council for a public hearing and vote. “We look forward to working with the city to ensure that managed outdoor dining continues to support small businesses, crucial industry jobs and vibrant city streetscapes for years to come,” said Andrew Rigie, executive director of the NYC Hospitality Alliance. ■

6 | CRAIN’S NEW YORK BUSINESS | NOVEMBER 22, 2021

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Wednesday, December 15 | 4-5 p.m.

A FAIR ROLLOUT FOR RECREATIONAL MARIJUANA Featured Speakers:

With New York’s legalization of adult-use

Moderator:

marijuana expected to be up and running by late 2022, how can state officials ensure that communities historically criminalized by marijuana laws have an equitable opportunity to do business in this new industry? Join us for an exciting conversation on this emerging industry with experts in the field.

Melissa Moore Director, Civil Systems Reform Drug Policy Alliance

Khadijah Tribble VP of Corporate Social Responsibility Curaleaf

Tunisha W. Walker-Miller Principal Capalino

Shuan Sim Reporter Crain’s New York Business

RESERVE YOUR SPACE TODAY: CrainsNewYork.com/DecBizForum For event questions: Ana Jimenez | crainsevents@crainsnewyork.com

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chief executive officer K.C. Crain senior executive vice president Chris Crain group publisher Jim Kirk

EDITORIAL

publisher/executive editor

The next City Council speaker should focus on the city’s real labor dilemma

Frederick P. Gabriel Jr. EDITORIAL editor-in-chief Cory Schouten,

cory.schouten@crainsnewyork.com managing editor Telisha Bryan assistant managing editor Anne Michaud

deputy digital editor, audience & analytics

Jennifer Samuels art director Carolyn McClain photographer Buck Ennis data editor Amanda Glodowski senior reporters Cara Eisenpress,

Aaron Elstein, Eddie Small reporters Ryan Deffenbaugh, Maya Kaufman,

Brian Pascus, Natalie Sachmechi, Brandon Sanchez, Shuan Sim oped editor Jan Parr,

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to all workers in the city. Five of the six candidates at the forum supported the move. Another candidate, contacted later by Crain’s, also supported the move. (See story on Page 16) “We should move away from at-will employment and support just cause,” said City Council member Keith Powers, who represents Manhattan’s East Side. “We talk a lot about wages and benefits, but stability and ability to not lose a job for no reason is a tremendous part of opportunity in this city.” Anecdotal examples notwithstanding, there’s no evidence of widespread instances of employers across the city firing employees without cause. In fact, many city employers are begging for help and battling to retain the workers they THERE’S NO EVIDENCE have on the payroll. Only Councilman OF WIDESPREAD INSTANCES Justin Brannan hedged against OF EMPLOYERS FIRING upending at-will EMPLOYEES WITHOUT CAUSE employment, advocating instead for expanded protections for workers who are dismissed from essential workers. The other their positions are fired without notice, and asked the candidates if speaker candidates at the forum should aim for nuance as well, they supported extending “just balancing worker protections with cause” termination requirements everal candidates for City Council speaker said last week that they support passing legislation that would curtail at-will employment, suggesting an eagerness to upend a longstanding tenet of labor law. They’re making a boogeyman out of the “at-will” standard— which gives employers discretion over hiring and firing with some limits for employees in protected classes—and giving short shrift to the city’s real labor problem: a severe shortage of job candidates for some 400,000 open positions, many of them in the hospitality sector. A moderator at the forum, hosted by the Working Families Party, noted that most New York

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the need to keep New York City a competitive place to do business. As Randy Peers of the Brooklyn Chamber of Commerce told Crain’s, business owners should be allowed a say in which employees are right for them. “I don’t think any of the speaker candidates have run a small business themselves or have ever had to worry about payroll or taking out a second mortgage on their house to stay in business,” Peers said. “It’s actually a very naive call and to some degree

simply pandering.” “Are they out of their minds?” added Lisa Sorin of the Bronx chamber. “This is another nail in the coffin as to why businesses choose not to come to New York City.” The next City Council speaker— and all city labor leaders—should expend their energy on the problem at hand: getting people back to work. The City Council should not take steps that make it harder to do business here as the city gets back up and running. ■

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OP-ED

jessica.botos@crainsnewyork.com

Here’s a roadmap for an inclusive recovery to make New York a better place to live

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BY LINDA LIU AND MAURICE OBEID

ew York City appears to be recovering from the pandemic. Residents tell us they’re mostly optimistic. But packed restaurants, Broadway’s reopening and a hot residential real estate market obscure a painful truth: Entire neighborhoods and millions of residents could be left behind in the recovery. The city could become a less appealing place to live, work and visit unless we help low-income residents lift their families into prosperity. McKinsey's spring survey of more than 1,500 New Yorkers, part of a larger survey of more than 25,000 people across the country, shows that many people are struggling to get food, health care, transportation, internet access and jobs in the nation’s biggest metropolis, in many instances more than elsewhere. Racial and ethnic minorities,

immigrants, low-income residents, contract, temporary and freelance workers, women with child care responsibilities, and young people are especially vulnerable. Undocumented workers are at even more risk.

Reasons for optimism Despite these challenges, New Yorkers were the fifth-most optimistic overall among residents of the 17 large metro areas we studied, although the gaps between men and women and between racial and ethnic groups were wider than in many other cities. We think optimism is warranted. While some New Yorkers fled the city in 2020, the population reached a record 8.8 million, according to the 2020 census, and the city added almost 400,000 jobs between April 2020 and April of this year. According to McKinsey research, only 3.4% of residents are considering leaving the metropolitan area in the next 12 months.

Women and Black residents told us they are far less likely than those in many other cities to report discrimination in their job searches. The city’s seasonally adjusted unemployment rate was 9.8% in September of this year, down from a high of 20% in May 2020. While these overall trends are positive, unemployment in the city is still about double the national rate, and many are still struggling to meet basic needs. New York’s public, private and social sector leaders should work hand in hand with communities to advance economic inclusion. Our survey and research points to the need for significant improvements, including: • Food security and increasing access to affordable health care, including mental health care. (One in three reported cutting back on food and medical spending.) • Addressing a longstanding deficit of affordable housing. (One in three spend more than half of income on rent)

• Helping lower-income residents

afford child care. (Nearly half of residents with income under $50,000 can afford child care.) • Boosting digital and in-person accessibility. (Forty percent said a lack of robust internet access prevented remote working.) • Providing low- or no-cost training and coaching for 21st-century jobs. The pandemic exacerbated longstanding inequities. One-third of residents earning more than $100,000 reported an income increase while the same share of those earning less than $50,000 said their incomes had declined. We must come together to build a truly inclusive economic recovery that will actually benefit the city we love. Failing to include more New Yorkers in this effort will eventually make the city less vibrant, attractive and safe for everyone. ■

Simone Pryce media services manager Nicole Spell SUBSCRIPTION CUSTOMER SERVICE

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Maurice Obeid and Linda Liu are partners in McKinsey’s New York office.

8 | CRAIN’S NEW YORK BUSINESS | NOVEMBER 22, 2021

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OP-ED

Eric Adams can address New York City’s wildly high health care costs through price transparency

art of Mayor-elect Eric Adams’ mandate for improving New York City is addressing out-ofcontrol health care costs plaguing residents. By strengthening hospital price transparency, Adams and New York City legislators can empower local consumers to reduce their stratospheric health care costs through choice and competition. A new coalition of unions—including SEIU 32BJ, United Federation of Teachers, and the United Auto Workers—and patient advocates, including PatientRightsAdvocate. org, made this case at a recent New York City Council hearing.

Some New York City hospitals, including New York-Presbyterian, Staten Island University Hospital and NYU Langone, charge even higher multiples.

Freeing up funds New York City is projected to spend $6.9 billion in health insurance costs in 2022, most of which will go to hospitals. Lowering health care costs can free up some of this money for more productive uses such as increased public services that benefit all city residents. Price transparency can help the city overcome its health care cost burden. It can substantially reduce and converge health care costs by allowing consumers to identify quality, less-expensive care. Consider Local 32BJ of the Service Employees International Union. It used real hospital prices, analyzed through its claims data, to meaningfully lower health care costs for its 200,000 members and their familes. It dropped New York-Presbyterian from its health plan network because the hospital charged 358% more than Medicare for the same care.

ONE UNION LOWERED ITS HEALTH CARE COSTS BY ANALYZING PRICES New York City residents face some of the highest health care costs in the country. A Rand Corporation report from last year finds that New York state hospitals charge an average of 302% of the Medicare rate for the same services—well above the national average.

Federal law mandates that hospitals publish all their negotiated rates by payer and plan as well as their discounted cash prices. Yet a recent analysis by PatientRightsAdvocate.org shows 94.4% of American hospitals are noncompliant, including major New York City hospitals such as Lennox Hill, Memorial Sloan-Kettering, Mount Sinai Beth-Israel, Mount Sinai, New York-Presbyterian and NYU Langone. Strengthening price transparency will make it easier for New York health care consumers to follow 32BJ's lead and substantially save on their health care costs. This month, the Biden administration established a rule increasing fines up to $2 million for noncompliant hospitals, incentivizing them to remove their price veil. In July 2022 the federal transparency in coverage rule takes effect, requiring health insurers to post their complete rates, allowing consumers to access actual prices wherever they get care. The mayor-elect and other New York City officials can support this

BLOOMBERG

BY CYNTHIA A. FISHER

price transparency movement. The city can produce its claims data to determine how much it is actually spending on care at local hospitals and identify better-value alternatives. It can use its regulatory and purchasing power to demand hospitals comply with federal price transparency law. And it can enact even higher penalties. Price transparency creates necessary and sufficient reform to lower

runaway hospital costs plaguing the city. The mayor-elect has the opportunity to be a transformational leader if he can usher in actual, upfront prices and unleash a competitive health care market in the city. ■ Cynthia A. Fisher is a life-science entrepreneur, founder and chair of PatientRightsAdvocate.org, and founder and former CEO of ViaCord.

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

IF THE POLITICOS ONLY KNEW the extent of the growth of Manhattan’s development created by the Pennsylvania Railroad, nobody would have the nerve to discard the well-named title for its principal depot in New York (“Hochul unveils plan to fix—and rename—Penn Station” Crain’s Nov. 4). The Pennsy, (“Standard Railroad of the World”) enjoyed four track main lines from New York to Washington and from Philadelphia to Pittsburgh to move commerce and passengers efficiently. As the manufacturing base of the mid-Atlantic, Midwest and New England crashed in the 1950s, the Pennsy was caught up in the changing economy caused by the Marshall Plan's support of the postwar rebirth of Western Europe and Japan. Frankly, changing the name of Penn Station would be as disrespectful and asinine as changing the name of LaGuardia Airport. This country does not need another building or field named after a bank to facilitate forfeiting our memories of the past and history. M.E. SINGER Evanston, Illinois

BLOOMBERG

Not another Tappan Zee: Readers vote for keeping Penn Station’s name

AS A FORMER, NOW-RETIRED commuter, I found Penn Station was always a hellhole in the pits of New York City. And from the photo in the article, once again commuters have to deal with open ceilings and God knows what other detritus as this redo continues over the years. Yes, we need a renewed Penn Station, but please, let’s keep the name! It’s part of New York City! Let’s not forget the debacle of the Mario Cuomo bridge. No one now wants to call

anything a “Cuomo.” (A classic case of how a brand went south!) So everyone is calling it the Tappan Zee again! Please, as a born-and-bred New Yorker now living in New Jersey, I say let’s keep the name! And yes, millionaires and billionaires should be asked to donate. Give them a plaque near the train arrival-departure boards or something of their likeness at the entry points. LEONA SEUFERT Garwood, New Jersey

THINK WHAT NEW YORK CITY COULD be if we sell naming rights to streets and stations. I fondly remember our trip to New York City to see the U.S. Open. We took the train to the Penn Station (what’s-its-name-now?), got in a taxi that drove us out to the U.S. Open over the Triborough (-er what’s-its-name-now, RFK?) Bridge to the Stadium nom du jour. I cannot get behind the idea of naming rights for public places because every name would date you and your visit by the rotating names we would use. And let’s not forget the confusion of outdated maps and apps. There are signs approaching the RFK bridge saying formerly the Triborough Bridge. (See also the renamed Jackie Robinson Parkway.) Renaming once—much less rotating renaming—causes problems. And the Tappan Zee-Cuomo span will always be the Tappan Zee to me. Worse yet, while I understand Gov. Kathy Hochul’s idea to change Andrew Cuomo’s plans and put her own imprimatur on Penn Station, her scaled-back version is insane. This is the best time to expand Penn Station as much as possible.

For years I commuted on the Long Island Rail Road from Rockville Centre. The commute was a major reason why I left Long Island for Bergen County. We won’t get another chance at this during our lifetimes, and probably never with as much federal aid. Build back bigger and better and expand capacity as much as possible now. TODD STRASSBERG Fort Lee, New Jersey

Dental care for veterans The Crain’s article of Nov. 11, “NYU Dentistry partners with VA to provide veterans with no-cost dental care,” brought me a sense of faith in our public conscience. One of our country’s greatest failures is how we neglect those who have fought defending our well-being and suffered to protect us. This gesture by New York University is both heartening and optimistic about how we, as a society, will care about and for those who are the most needy and deserving. High praise NYU College of Dentistry. LUKE J. NASTA Rockefeller Institute of Government Fellow CEO, Camelot of Staten Island

Write us: Crain’s welcomes submissions to its opinion pages. Send letters to letters@CrainsNewYork.com. Send op-eds of 500 words or fewer to opinion@CrainsNewYork.com. Please include the writer’s name, company, address and telephone number. Crain’s reserves the right to edit submissions for clarity. NOVEMBER 22, 2021 | CRAIN’S NEW YORK BUSINESS | 9

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Kendra Kocovsky has been elected a partner at Latham & Watkins in New York, effective January 1, 2022. A member of the Banking Practice in the Finance Department, she represents private equity sponsors and borrowers in a variety of financing transactions, including term and revolving credit facilities, asset-based credit facilities, and mezzanine financings, and she has experience representing sponsors in mid-cap and largecap leveraged buyouts.

Kamal Steven Nesfield has been elected a partner at Latham & Watkins in New York, effective January 1, 2022. A member of the Banking Practice in the Finance Department, he represents financial institutions, borrowers, and issuers in a variety of leveraged finance transactions, with a particular focus on acquisition financings.

Brittany D. Ruiz has been elected a partner at Latham & Watkins in New York, effective January 1, 2022. A member of the Capital Markets Practice in the Corporate Department, she represents globally recognized companies, major investment banks, and private equity firms in complex, high-profile equity and debt offerings.

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Hugh Keenan Murtagh has been promoted to counsel at Latham & Watkins in New York, effective January 1, 2022. A member of the Restructuring & Special Situations Practice in the Finance Department, he represents debtors and creditors in all aspects of restructuring, both in and out of court, with a particular focus on bankruptcy litigation.

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ASKED & ANSWERED Physician Affiliate Group of New York INTERVIEW BY SHUAN SIM

r. Richard Becker became CEO of the nonprofit Physician Affiliate Group of New York in September, but his experience in making health care affordable and accessible for the underserved has been longstanding. He has worked in diverse aspects of the industry, including as president and chief executive of the Brooklyn Hospital Center and as the state deputy secretary for health. Such roles have helped him become familiar with what goes into health care costs and what hits patients’ wallets hard. What will keep health care affordable, especially for lower-income communities, he noted, is addressing the accessibility of primary care and prioritizing the social determinants of health, such as where people live and what they eat. What factors contribute to the inaffordability of health care services?

Health care costs can be a complicated thing, but for what matters most to patients, much of it can be tied to accessibility. Underserved communities have additional sets of challenges in social determinants of health that can make health care costly. For example, we know underserved communities have higher rates of chronic conditions, such as diabetes, that if uncontrolled can lead to needing more acute services that are more expensive.

All those challenges are real, but there are many steps that occur before their impact reaches the patient. Covid has exacerbated the labor situation, but a health system tends to absorb that in its operating margins. What eventually reaches patients is more affected by utilization. You can’t separate accessibility from affordability. The healthier we can keep our population, the more we can help them save on costs.

WHO HE IS CEO, the Physician Affiliate Group of New York AGE 61 BORN AND RAISED Norfolk, Virginia RESIDES Upper East Side EDUCATION Bachelor’s in chemistry and doctorate of medicine, University of Virginia; anesthesiology residency and critical care medicine fellowship, George Washington University; MBA, George Washington University

What are providers doing to help reduce prices for patients?

One innovation is the increased use of telehealth. Out of necessity, due to the pandemic, everything became telemedicine, but that’s a good thing, because it can be used for minor things that people might have avoided going to the doctor’s office for in the first place. Addressing these minor things prevents them from becoming major things.

FAMILY MAN Becker’s wife is a psychiatrist, and they have three kids. ON THE JOB PAGNY is one of the state’s largest multispecialty physician groups, an organization of over 4,000 providers. NYC Health + Hospitals is among its partners. VARIED INTERESTS In his free time, he enjoys cycling, playing the electric guitar and cooking. His signature dish is risotto.

Are there areas that need more work when it comes to controlling costs?

There are still inefficiencies. One example is what we call “leakage,” where a patient might be referred to a specialist within network but find the nearest availability date is months away and thus see an out-of-network provider instead. Or a patient declining to see a specialist because of perceived costs, leading to worse health outcomes. And there are certain specialties [that seem out of reach], such as finding a psychiatrist in New York City to accept insurance. I think all those things can be fixable, or at least worked around, though it might require some creativity. ■

SILVER LINING Becker said a bright spot of the pandemic was that he got to spend quality time with his family. “We would sit down together for dinner every night,” he said. “It’s helped me cherish the time I have with my kids.”

It’s easy to tell someone to eat a better diet, but if someone is in a food desert, how does one do that?

BUCK ENNIS

DR. RICHARD BECKER

Don’t rising drug, labor and supply costs affect patients too?

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TRANSPORTATION

BY BRANDON SANCHEZ

he Port Authority of New York and New Jersey has appointed a panel of experts to review mass transit options to and from LaGuardia Airport. The announcement last week came after Gov. Kathy Hochul paused former Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s $2.1 billion plan to build an elevated railway linking Midtown and the airport. Opponents have criticized the plan for its proposed route, which would divert Manhattan-bound passengers east, away from the borough, before heading west.

Department of Transportation; and Philip A. Washington, CEO of Denver International Airport and former CEO of Los Angeles Metro.

Bus, ferry and train options Among the options to be analyzed during the review are improved and expanded bus service, ferry service and elevated trains. The panel will consider cost, projected timelines and effects on the local community. “The final report will be completed as expeditiously as possible and will be made public upon completion,” the announcement said. Some stakeholders in the LaGuardia AirTrain debate expressed optimism about the appointments. “It’s a good development, because at the end of the day there definitely needs to be some type of high-end, permanent, structured transportation solution to LaGuardia Airport,” said Thomas Grech, president of the Queens Chamber of Commerce, who is in favor of building the AirTrain.

“WE MIGHT GET SOME NEARTERM IMPROVEMENTS RECOMMENDED” The panel includes three experts: Mike Brown, former commissioner of transport for London and former managing director of Heathrow Airport; Janette Sadik-Khan, former commissioner of the New York City

“As we all know,” Grech continued, “every other major airport in our country has a rail connection. I think that this review will continue to shed light on all the hard work that was done for the last 18 to 24 months, and I’m looking forward to the result from the three subject-matter experts that were brought on board to re-review the work of the [Federal Aviation Administration].” Jon Orcutt, a former director of policy at the city Transportation Department, opposes the LaGuardia AirTrain. He is now the director of advocacy at Bike New York, a free bicycling education program. “It seems really promising,” he said of the panel. “Janette Sadik-Khan created the city’s select bus program. To us, that’s a signal that we might get some near-term improvements recommended.” In September, Orcutt and government watchdog Reinvent Albany stated in a report that the LaGuardia AirTrain project would draw only 6,000 new daily riders at

GOVERNOR’S OFFICE/FLICKR

Panel of three transportation experts to review, publish alternatives to the LaGuardia AirTrain

a cost of $350,000 per rider. The Port Authority has argued that the actual per-rider cost of the project should be calculated by dividing $2.1 billion by the 6 million to 10 million riders expected to use the service in the next 50 years. “Both of the out-of-towners on the [review] committee ran systems that go directly from downtown into airport terminals,” Orcutt said.

“Heathrow Airport has had the underground in some of the terminals there since the 1970s. Washington ran the Denver transit system where the A line goes straight into the main airport building.” He predicted that the panel review would be a “much less fragmented or balkanized thing than the Port Authority would come up with on its own.” ■

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SPONSORED CONTENT FOR CRAIN'S NEW YORK BUSINESS | S1

NAVIGATING THE POST-PANDEMIC PRIVATE EQUITY LANDSCAPE Private-equity firms face intense competition for deals in today’s business environment, but that’s not all that’s keeping them on their toes. They must also stay on top of new initiatives, such as President Joe Biden’s infrastructure spending bill, proposed tax changes in the Build Back Better framework, and the challenges of taking companies public in an environment where it is not easy to accurately assess the effects of the pandemic. For insight into the complex issues the industry faces, Crain’s Content Studio spoke with Jeffrey Kranzel, CPA, a managing director in the New York office of the business advisory firm Riveron; Allison Sherrier, a corporate associate in the New York office of the law firm Goulston & Storrs; and Morris DeFeo Jr., a partner and chair of the corporate department at the law firm Herrick, Feinstein LLP. CRAIN’S: How has Covid affected private-equity firms’ investment and liquidity objectives? JEFFREY KRANZEL: In some cases, liquidity objectives have had to be reset and potential sales processes delayed, as portfolio companies in specific industries have had to work through a number of extraordinary impacts negatively affecting performance such as depressed foot traffic, higher costs for property plant and equipment (PPE), labor shortages, supply chain constraints, or rising energy costs. That said, many PE firms and portfolio companies now face unique buying opportunities and can make acquisitions at attractive pricing, given that deal pricing was more inflated prior to the pandemic. ALLISON SHERRIER: Privateequity firms leverage their portfolio companies with fairly high levels of debt, which means they always expect a certain level of liquidity risk. These firms typically assess the liquidity risk when investing. Before the pandemic, however, they were not accounting for the increased liquidity risks and challenges in their ability to make interest payments and avoid defaults that ultimately came with the pandemic’s economic slowdown and customers’ inability to make payments. Undoubtedly, private-equity firms are now taking potential future pandemics, endemics, and similar disruptions into account. This will likely result in more conservative cash-flow forecasting as part of their risk assessments.

MORRIS DEFEO: Covid has caused a lot of disruption in every component of the global economy, but it has also created opportunities for private-equity firms that have the resources and disposition to be nimble. The shift to remote working and greater reliance on tech and an accelerated focus on health care will likely continue to shift investment focus and perhaps cause a reassessment of traditional sectors that may experience slower growth. An example is the transition by many PE firms to longer-term investment strategies and in some cases a more measured approach to making investments. CRAIN’S: We hear about lots of dry powder and a reduced supply of “quality” deals. Is the short supply caused by underperforming targets, businesses that did not effectively prepare for sale or some other reason? SHERRIER: While some target businesses certainly suffered as a result of the pandemic and, therefore, were underperforming, the main driver of the short supply is the intense competition for the most desirable targets. Simply speaking, the large amount of uninvested capital, or dry powder, held by private-equity investors is creating a lot of competition in the market, and the most desirable targets can get a premium price for their business. If private-equity investors do not want to pay a premium, then they are left with less desirable targets. This was already true before the pandemic, however. The underperformance of certain businesses in the past 18

“GOING PUBLIC REQUIRES COMPANIES TO INVEST A LARGE AMOUNT OF TIME AND MONEY UPFRONT, AND A COMPANY MUST BE FINANCIALLY READY TO WEATHER THIS INITIAL COST AND A POTENTIAL DOWNTURN IF THE IPO IS NOT IMMEDIATELY SUCCESSFUL.” — ALLISON SHERRIER, CORPORATE ASSOCIATE, GOULSTON & STORRS

P013_015_CN_20211122.indd 13

MORRIS F. DEFEO, JR.

ALLISON SHERRIER

JEFFREY KRANZEL

Partner; Chair, Corporate Department Herrick, Feinstein LLP 212.592.1463 mdefeo@herrick.com

months has exacerbated the situation by decreasing the number of highquality targets.

Managing Director, New York Riveron 646.585.9051 jeffrey.kranzel@riveron.com

Associate Goulston & Storrs 212.878.5164 asherrier@goulstonstorrs.com

KRANZEL: The short supply of quality deals is a result of a combination of factors. Businesses have rushed to put themselves up

for sale to get ahead of the proposed capital gains legislation that would take eff e ct in 2022—resulting in cases where buyers are dealing with

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NAVIGATING THE POST-PANDEMIC PRIVATE EQUITY LANDSCAPE targets that haven’t been properly prepared for a sale process. A lack of preparedness requires additional diligence and, sometmes, prediligence to get the target’s financials and other data into a format that is ready for due diligence. In addition, some sectors have underperformed because of the continued effects of the pandemic, the acute labor shortage, rising energy costs, and the supply chain disruptions affecting a range of industries, and some companies have fared better than others by getting ahead of the curve and managing through the uncertainty. DEFEO: The market for quality deals has been tightening for some time. The enormous amount of available funding has resulted in more resources chasing fewer deals. The emergence and explosive growth of special-purpose acquisition companies has made the mergersand- acquisitions market even more competitive. Higher valuations have encouraged a growing number of sellers to join in. Just because there are more potential buyers, however, doesn’t mean there are more quality sellers. Current conditions may actually put less attractive companies into play.

CRAIN’S: What terms do you see being negotiated that were not negotiated as much before the pandemic? KRANZEL: PE firms are paying close attention to the impact of Covid on targets’ performance, and most deals consider unique or nonrecurring Covid impacts. Some items are straightforward, such as the impact of Paycheck Protection Program loans, purchases of PPE or related office improvements, and Covid-related furloughs and redundancies. Other items are more nuanced, such as determining the near-term impact of labor and supply chain disruptions in setting net working capital targets. In addition, reps and warranties insurance has become a fairly standard requirement on most deals within the past year. SHERRIER: In the past 18 months, several areas have seen increased scrutiny in negotiations that account for the effects of the pandemic, including remote working, government mandates, and other challenges. Specifically, there are changes to the definition of “material adverse effect” and the representations and covenants targets are willing to make about the absence of material changes to their business. In addition, PPP loans and the Cares Act have created entirely new issues to be negotiated and

dealt with in transactions. Among the most contentious of these is the treatment of PPP loans that are pending forgiveness and, often, the need to set up an escrow to cover the amount of the PPP loan in case it is not forgiven. DEFEO: We have seen—and on behalf of our buy-side clients have urged—greater emphasis on legal and other diligence, including sensitivity to supply chain issues and

KRANZEL: Definitions have been revised in sales and purchase agreements to include adjustments for any atypical fluctuations related to the pandemic, both in determining earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) for setting the purchase

permanent changes to everything, including how businesses operate and are financed. Covid has been both a cause and a catalyst for changes in the global economy. These changes have in turn affected investing. Firms will no doubt review their portfolios to assess whether the sectors in which they are concentrating their investments need to be rebalanced to account for the likely long-term effects of Covid and the opportunities presented.

“COVID HAS CAUSED A LOT OF DISRUPTION IN EVERY COMPONENT OF THE GLOBAL ECONOMY, BUT IT HAS ALSO CREATED OPPORTUNITIES FOR PRIVATE-EQUITY FIRMS THAT HAVE THE RESOURCES AND DISPOSITION TO BE NIMBLE.” — MORRIS F. DEFEO, JR. , PARTNER AND CHAIR, CORPORATE DEPARTMENT HERRICK, FEINSTEIN LLP stability of the work force. Current conditions have also affected how both buyers and sellers approach and negotiate the definition of “material adverse effect,” materiality qualifiers and closing conditions, and led to a greater focus on deferred consideration structures. More buyers have now taken a twostage approach by first making an investment with options and then using other mechanisms to acquire the remaining equity in a target.

Your unimagined potential. Realized.™ Riveron partners with deal teams, operating partners, and portfolio companies to elevate performance and expand possibilities across the investment lifecycle.

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CRAIN’S: How has the pandemic been factored into deal pricing and payment?

price and determining earnouts due to sellers. In addition, net working capital definitions also specifically identify and exclude the impact of Covid on short-term assets and liabilities such as inflated or depressed inventory levels, supplier deposits, new tax liabilities, and outstanding debt related to CARES Act provisions. DEFEO: We have seen a greater emphasis on earn-outs, longer earn-out durations and tighter performance metrics. Buyers and sellers are factoring in the effects of Covid and such considerations as the impact of government funding in doing period-overperiod comparisons that affect both valuation adjustments and earn-out calculations. Moreover, the lingering uncertainty of Covid has also affected both pricing and payment terms. CRAIN’S: Once the global economy emerges from Covid, will PE firms change their investment strategies? KRANZEL: PE firms will likely look to broaden their investment strategy to leverage prevailing legislation (such as the Build Back Better bill) and market trends (such as the shift toward renewables and carbon footprint reduction). As a result, distressed investments will come into focus as PE firms look for value creation opportunities, including out-of-favor sectors and targets with strong underlying fundamentals that the pandemic has adversely affected. Infrastructure investments (both direct and targets that play a supporting role) will come into focus as governments across the globe look to invest heavily in this area to jump-start economic growth. DEFEO: While many aspects of doing business will revert in large part to their pre-Covid days, Covid will certainly result in long-term or

CRAIN’S: With 2022 an election year and current legislative initiatives on infrastructure and other spending on the table, how will PE firms adjust to seize opportunities and sidestep risk? KRANZEL: PE firms will see the proposed legislation as a huge opportunity for significant cash-flow returns by supporting the various components of the proposed bill that is being considered. Public-private partnerships will largely be the realm of the largest, infrastructure-focused players willing to take on bigger and unique bets. There will be plenty of opportunities for smaller players, however, to invest in targets providing infrastructure-related products and ancillary services, such as engineering services, building materials, and more. The nature of each deal may require holding periods to be adjusted, with smaller infrastructure deal hold periods often less than five years compared to the five to seven years that is a typical hold period for PE firms. CRAIN’S: How will proposed changes to U.S. taxes affect PE firms? KRANZEL: The Build Back Better framework threatens to impose several key tax reforms. The latest framework now excludes many proposed changes to corporate tax and capital gains rates and certain pass-through deductions that had been the focus of conversations within private-equity markets, but the framework still includes many provisions targeting large corporations, high-income taxpayers and foreign-based entities. Most notably, a proposed corporate profits minimum tax would impose a 15% alternative minimum tax on the adjusted financial statement income (AFSI) of corporations with a three-

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and large amount of dry powder available make this a viable and attractive alternative to going public.

DEFEO: There are tax changes in the Build Back Better Act that could have a significant impact on privateequity firms. Among these are changes to the carried interest rules and the business interest deduction limitation.

KRANZEL: Most of the biggest challenges center on the theme of maturing the finance function so that the company is ready to operate as a public company. There are several big challenges companies face when preparing to become public, and often these include building out the financial planning and analysis function, implementing an enterprise resource management system, accelerating the financial close process, or preparing a internal controls program that is compliant with the Sarbanes-Oxley Act.

CRAIN’S: What issues are slowing private equity in taking assets public? KRANZEL: The effort required for a private company to become public can elongate the initial public offering timeline. Challenges include accelerating financial close and reporting timelines and hiring key personnel, such as a chief financial officer with public-company experience, a director of Securities and Exchange Commission reporting, or a new head of financial planning and analysis. Filling these roles can take significant time, especially in today’s highly disrupted labor market. DEFEO: The process of going public remains formidable. The scope and magnitude of required disclosures, the review process by the SEC, and the necessary diligence to effect a public offering all take considerable time and resources. This is why the SPAC avenue to going public has been so attractive. In addition, the issues caused by Covid are creating significant uncertainty as to valuations and projected financial performance. CRAIN’S: What are the biggest challenges middlemarket companies have had in preparing for initial public offerings? SHERRIER: Middle-market companies face an uphill battle to successfully complete an initial public offering. Chief among these is the sheer cost and effort of setting up the business to ensure it complies with, and will continuously comply with, the stringent regulations and reporting obligations required by the SEC. Going public requires companies to invest a large amount of time and money upfront, and a company must be financially ready to weather this initial cost and a potential downturn if the IPO is not immediately successful. Because of this, many middle-market companies may prefer to stay private, and the robust private-equity market

DEFEO: Many middle-market companies underestimate the impact, required resources, time and costs of going and being public. Infrastructure, internal controls, accounting and legal capabilities, management resources and bandwidth all need to be considered carefully before a company commits to go public. In addition, certain structural or other issues that may have occupied a lower priority may become elevated as the company goes through the rigorous diligence and SEC process. Moreover, the need to identify and attract qualified board members, particularly those meeting independence standards, can take considerable time. CRAIN’S: What are the biggest challenges for newly public companies in the current environment? SHERRIER: Arguably, the biggest challenge for newly public companies is being able to present accurate disclosures to their investors regarding the effect of the pandemic on their business and what they anticipate the business will look like going forward. With so much uncertainty, this is a challenge for all public companies, but the issue is multiplied for new companies with limited track records. Beyond the difficulty of describing and predicting the effects of the pandemic, the SEC has made it clear that it expects companies to provide their investors with robust disclosures and public companies to be as transparent as possible in all investor communications.

ABOUT THE PANELISTS MORRIS F. DEFEO, JR. is a partner and chair of Herrick’s Corporate Department. He specializes in U.S. and cross-border offerings of equity and debt securities and other capital market transactions, all aspects of private equity and venture capital fund transactions, offerings and investments, corporate finance, M&A transactions and corporate governance and compliance counseling. His clients include public and private companies, private equity, venture capital and hedge funds, REITs and other business entities.

JEFFREY KRANZEL brings a wealth of industry and public accounting experience advising financial services clients on new accounting standard implementations, GAAP conversions, deal structuring, and other transaction accounting matters. He is a subject matter resource on accounting change and technical accounting issues related to revenue recognition, leasing, consolidation, financial instruments, transfers of financial assets, and more. Prior to joining Riveron, Jeff was the head of accounting policy for Mizuho Americas and director in KPMG’s Accounting Advisory practice in New York.

ALLISON SHERRIER is a corporate attorney at Goulston & Storrs. She represents public and private companies in business unit divestitures, acquisitions, and corporate restructuring transactions. Additionally, Allison has significant experience advising clients regarding the formation of private equity funds and on general corporate governance matters.

address continuing SEC reporting, enhanced internal and disclosure control requirements, required financial statements, more stringent audits, and the transparency required by SEC rules and demanded by investors. In addition, adjusting to investor expectations relating to

the magnitude and timing of growth and liquidity can be very difficult for management and may compel significant changes in operational, growth and financial strategies. KRANZEL: Continuing to build out the finance organization and remediate

material weaknesses in internal control are big challenges. Companies oftentimes become public before fully implementing their IPO readiness plans and continuing to implement those plans can be very challenging with the rigors of operating as a public company.

Boston | New York | Washington, D.C.

DEFEO: It can be daunting to transition from being a private, often closely held, company with limited legal and regulatory burdens to a public company compelled to

“PE FIRMS WILL LIKELY LOOK TO BROADEN THEIR INVESTMENT STRATEGY TO LEVERAGE PREVAILING LEGISLATION AND MARKET TRENDS. AS A RESULT, DISTRESSED INVESTMENTS WILL COME INTO FOCUS AS PE FIRMS LOOK FOR VALUE CREATION OPPORTUNITIES.”

goulstonstorrs.com

— JEFFREY KRANZEL, CPA, MANAGING DIRECTOR, RIVERON

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POLITICS

6 of 7 City Council speaker candidates call for end to at-will employment, raising hackles BY BRIAN PASCUS

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just cause when it comes to firing.” Councilwoman Carlina Rivera, who is seen as a leading moderate candidate, pointed to the stress the threat of unjust termination poses. “Getting fired without just cause should not be something any New Yorker deserves to be afraid of,” she said. “I support legislation to end this.” Only Councilman Justin Brannan, who won a close re-election battle for his seat in Bay Ridge, hedged against upending at-will employment. Brannan, a self-styled moderate, instead advocated for expanding protections for essential workers. “I’m ready to take just cause up to cover all of our essential workers,” he said. “It’s something I want to do, and if our members want to do it, I’d support it.”

“IT’S ACTUALLY A VERY NAIVE CALL AND TO SOME DEGREE SIMPLY PANDERING” to him because of the impact a sudden job loss can have on employees with families. “In certain jobs, workers can be fired for taking the day off or for bringing their kid to the doctor,” he said. “We need to work much closer with our brothers and sisters in labor to make sure that the workers throughout this city are protected and are given the legal standard of

Two laws on the books Brannan noted that the City Council already enacted two laws

BREWER last year aimed at fast-food workers, amending wrongful discharge and employee layoffs. Council members who supported those December 2020 measures argued at the time that they offered much-needed protections for workers whose labor rights have been traditionally overlooked. But critics of last year’s laws, such as Randy Peers at the Brooklyn Chamber of Commerce, warned at the time that the council would eventually move to end at-will employment. On Nov. 16, Peers echoed those concerns and said only business owners should be allowed to make decisions about who the right employees are for them. “I don’t think any of the speaker candidates have run a small business themselves or have ever had to worry about payroll or taking out a second mortgage on their house to stay in business,” he said. “It’s actually a very naive call and to some degree simply pandering.” Other Chamber of Commerce leaders were even more outraged. Tom Grech, from the Queens

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ix of the seven candidates for the speaker’s chair in the City Council say employers should be required to show just cause to fire someone, and they support passing legislation to that effect in the coming year. Comments made at a Nov. 15 forum by five candidates seeking to succeed Corey Johnson as speaker, and later by Councilwoman Adrienne Adams, set the stage for a potential upheaval in labor law from the standard of at-will employment in New York and drew swift condemnation from business leaders. The at-will standard gives employers broad discretion over hiring and firing, with some limits for employees in protected classes. At the forum, hosted by the Working Families Party, one moderator noted that most New York workers are fired without notice, adding that workers of color are disproportionately harmed because many of them have lower household savings to weather a sudden job loss. The moderator asked the candidates if they supported moving legislation in 2022 to protect all New York City workers from being terminated without just cause. “It’s a complicated issue, but you shouldn’t be able to fire someone without just cause,” said Manhattan Borough President Gale Brewer, who was elected to the 6th Council District in Upper Manhattan. Brewer’s comments were echoed by the other speaker candidates. Councilwoman Diana Ayala of the Bronx said “it was a shame” that atwill employment is the standard practice and added that it “impacts primarily” communities of color. Councilman Keith Powers said he would work to enact laws to strengthen worker protection. “We should move away from atwill employment and support just cause,” said Powers, who represents Manhattan’s East Side. “We talk a lot about wages and benefits, but stability and ability to not lose a job for no reason is a tremendous part of opportunity in this city.” Councilman Francisco Moya, who represents Queens in the 21st District, said the issue is important

POWERS

Chamber, said he was “dismayed at the comments denigrating at-will employment,” while Lisa Sorin from the Bronx Chamber of Commerce asked, “Are they out of their minds?” “This is another nail in the coffin as to why businesses choose not to come to New York City,” she said. “It makes me sick to my stomach to think toward the end of an administration, the new individuals coming in think it’s OK to hurt businesses in another way.”

Lander: Council can end it It is unclear what legal standing the City Council has to upend labor laws to such a degree. Councilman Brad Lander, who sponsored the December 2020 worker protection legislation, told Crain’s last year that the City Council has the power to pass legislation ending at-will employment, just as it had the power to grant paid sick leave and a fair workweek. Some employment attorneys note that the broad use of justcause employment is uncommon in the United States. Just-cause em-

RIVERA ployment is typically featured in collective-bargaining-agreement contracts among specific unions or in executive employment agreements to trigger a severance provision, explained Bryn Goodman, a partner at Fox Rothschild. “The United States does not normally see just cause as a provision for terminating someone,” Goodman said. “New York is broadly an at-will employment state, and generally the United States has at-will employment in most states.” Just cause is a requirement for termination in some European countries, Goodman noted. “It would upend over 200 years of New York common law,” said Glenn S. Grindlinger, a partner at Fox Rothschild, who added that the rationale espoused by the City Council speaker candidates “does not make sense.” “There are also a myriad of other laws that protect employees from arbitrary termination, including anti-discrimination laws, whistleblower protection laws, and paid and unpaid leave laws,” Grindlinger said. ■

16 | CRAIN’S NEW YORK BUSINESS | NOVEMBER 22, 2021

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—Telisha Bryan, Managing Editor

MARK YOUR CALENDAR JOIN US MARCH 3, 2022, to celebrate the honorees! Register at CrainsNewYork.com/ MPW2022.

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50 MOST POWERFUL WOMEN IN NEW YORK

HIS YEAR NEW YORK STATE saw the first woman in its history ascend to the governor’s seat. And the attorney general, also a woman, helped pave the way for her by holding the previous governor to account for his alleged misdeeds. These are just two examples of the ways women in this state have made history and grabbed headlines since Crain’s last 50 Most Powerful Women ranking. Women across industries, from politics to fashion, health care to real estate, in the past two years have helped to set the agenda for how New York rebuilds post-pandemic. To compile the 2021 version of the list, Crain’s editors picked the women making the biggest waves in their respective fields. We invested hours of thought into building an inclusive list and making room for newcomers. As a result, the 2021 ranking is ambitious and diverse, encompassing women of all ages and ethnicities, and there are quite a few new names on the list. Read on and prepare to be inspired by the impressive women on the following pages.

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Attorney general, New York state FY21 BUDGET $272 million IMPACT James’ office collected $994 million in judgments on behalf of the state in 2020.

WHAT CAN BE SAID about an individual who not only holds power but also holds power to account? For Letitia James, New York’s 67th attorney general—and the first woman and first person of color to be 2019 elected to the office—making sure state RANK: 10 law is strictly enforced to the letter has been the guiding focus of her time in office. As a result, she has ushered in one of the most active attorney general terms in recent memory. She looked into former President Donald Trump’s private business—while he was still in office—as well as the alleged role of the powerful Sackler family in the opioid crisis. She also examined Covid-19 product fraud and worked to prevent unlawful border protection arrests in the state. That’s nothing to say of her bombshell report on allegations of sexual misconduct by former Gov. Andrew Cuomo—which ultimately led to his resignation in August. “Fighting for justice and speaking truth to power will always be my priority because I am the people’s lawyer,” James told Crain’s. “I do not hesitate to hold power to account, because that is what the people elected me to do.” James has worked in tandem with her fellow attorneys general across the country on lawsuits and investigations to ensure massive corporations and organizations do not engage in unlawful behavior. Last year she spearheaded a bipartisan, multistate antitrust lawsuit against Google and Facebook. The numbers back up James’ successes. Last year alone, her office collected nearly $1 billion on behalf of the state, including $99 million in negotiated settlements and judgments, $20 million in restitution and $55 million in unpaid debts. In the realm of politics, James’ investigation into the financial dealings of Trump’s firm, family and business associates could determine whether he runs for president again in 2024. And her lawsuit against the National Rifle Association could end with the dissolution of the organization in connection with allegations of long-term fraud and abuse. “I learned from an early age that power does not simply mean wealth, influence and privilege,” James said. “There is immense power that every individual has: the power of using their voice, their activism and their vote to create the type of change that communities can see and feel every single day.” Next up for James? The attorney general recently announced that she is running for governor. — BRIAN PASCUS

“I DO NOT HESITATE TO HOLD POWER TO ACCOUNT, BECAUSE THAT IS WHAT THE PEOPLE ELECTED ME TO DO”

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50 MOST POWERFUL WOMEN IN NEW YORK

LETITIA JAMES

POWER

FACTS

18 WOMEN serve in the state Senate.

55 WOMEN serve in the Assembly.

SOURCE: Center for American Women and Politics

18 | CRAIN’S NEW YORK BUSINESS | NOVEMBER 22, 2021

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Strategic. Focused. Inspiring. Ellen R. Alemany Chairwoman and CEO, CIT Group

Congratulations to Ellen Alemany and the 2021 50 Most Powerful Women in NYC honorees. Your achievements motivate us all.

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POLLY TROTTENBERG

Majority leader and president pro tempore, New York state Senate BUDGET Stewart-Cousins was the principal architect in negotiating a $212 billion budget for the state. IMPACT She helped to push through a $2.1 billion fund that provides benefits to undocumented workers and their families.

FY2021 BUDGET $89 billion IMPACT Trottenberg was New York City’s transportation commissioner for seven years.

GIVEN THAT Andrea StewartCousins used her role as majority leader of the state 2019 RANK: 4 Senate to steer Democrats into a veto-proof supermajority during the 2020 election and pass the most progressive budget in a generation during the spring, it could be an understatement to call her the most powerful Democrat in New York. Stewart-Cousins was among the first to call for the resignation of former Gov. Andrew Cuomo following the news of sexual harassment allegations against him. During the legislative session, she forced a chastened Cuomo to fall back from his opposition to raising taxes on the wealthy and pushed through a $212 billion budget full of progressive measures such as tax increases on corporations, legalized recreational marijuana and a $2.1 billion fund that provides benefits to undocumented workers and their families. During this year’s legislative session, she saw 479 bills signed into law, with only nine vetoes from the governor. She also oversaw legislation that rolled back Cuomo’s Covid-19 pandemic emergency powers. — B.P.

KATHY HOCHUL Governor, New York FY21 STATE BUDGET $212 billion IMPACT Hochul served as lieutenant governor from 2015 to this year. She appointed the members of the Office of Cannabis Management, which will oversee the implementation of the recreational marijuana market, projected to drum up about $115 million in tax revenue for the state in 2022–2023.

KATHY HOCHUL, the first woman to serve as New York’s governor, largely flew under the radar during her six years as lieutenant governor. That changed when accusations of sexual harassment surfaced against NEW Gov. Andrew Cuomo and ultimately led to his resignation in August. Hochul, former Erie County clerk, was the surprise winner of a 2011 special election for Congress representing Western New York—and the loser in her re-election bid 18 months later. After a short spell in the private sector, she was picked by Cuomo for his 2014 ticket—over the objections of some liberal legislators. Hochul went on to become a tireless promoter of job-creation programs and led campaigns to combat opioid use and sexual assault on college campuses. Ultimately to her benefit, Cuomo always kept her at a distance. He reportedly gave her no management role during the Covid-19 crisis, and she was generally absent from his daily news briefings. As a result, she remained untouched by the scandal over how his administration and staff handled the reporting of Covid-related nursing home deaths— which mired the tenure of other officials such as Dr. Howard Zucker, the former health commissioner. As governor, Hochul has extended an evictions ban and made appointments to the Office of Cannabis Management, which will oversee the launch of the recreational marijuana industry in the state. The effort had appeared to stall under her predecessor. She issued an executive order to safeguard staffing at hospitals in the event of a threatened mass exodus of health care workers opposed to the vaccination mandate. The mass exodus never materialized. Hochul’s philanthropic work has centered on the founding, with her mother, of the Kathleen Mary House, a transitional home near Buffalo for domestic violence victims. — MATTHEW FLAMM

JANE FRASER Chief executive, Citigroup CORPORATE ASSETS $2.3 trillion IMPACT Under her leadership, Citi swung to a $4 billion profit in the first half from a $1.5 billion loss.

JANE FRASER took on the hardest job in banking, if not all of business, NEW when she became Citigroup’s chief executive in March. Her all-male predecessors left behind plenty of work, and she didn’t waste any time, announcing that the bank would sell its branches in 13 countries. More change is to come. “We want to achieve fundamental transformation,” she said during her first conference call as CEO. And investors are pleased. “Fraser brings a sense of urgency,” said Wells Fargo analyst Mike Mayo, a longtime Citi watcher. “Change is afoot.” Citi was the greatest brand in banking before it was beset by 20 years of turmoil in the management suite and frequent shifts in strategy. Today the bank remains a formidable corporate lender, but it has a baffling propensity for stepping on rakes. Fraser, a native of Scotland, has worked at most every level of Citi since joining in 2004. She has made several changes, starting with telling staffers to take the Friday before Memorial Day as a holiday. She also appointed a chief diversity and inclusion officer. — AARON ELSTEIN

POWER

FACTS

MAKING THE LEAP from local back to federal government this year, Polly NEW Trottenberg was nominated to be deputy secretary at the federal Transportation Department in the Biden administration, serving under Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg. She was confirmed by the Senate on April 13 and sworn in the next day. Trottenberg has worked in the public sector for more than 25 years, including as assistant secretary and undersecretary for policy in the Obama administration’s Transportation Department. She has worked for Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer and former Sen. Daniel Patrick Moynihan. During her time as commissioner of the city Department of Transportation, she led almost 6,000 employees and oversaw the city’s Open Streets program during the pandemic. She also expanded bike and bus lanes in the city and managed the mayor’s Vision Zero initiative, which focuses on reducing traffic deaths. Trottenberg faced criticism during her time as commissioner, particularly over the city’s increasing rate of cycling deaths. She stepped down from her position in the de Blasio administration in December. Trottenberg pledged during a confirmation hearing that the proposed Gateway tunnel between New York and New Jersey would be a priority and described it as “a project of national significance.” Work on the project stalled during the Trump administration, but it has moved forward more steadily under the Biden administration, which approved its environmental impact statement in May. — EDDIE SMALL

34% OF THE state Legislature is female. 9 WOMEN are governors nationwide.

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Deputy secretary, U.S. Department of Transportation

AP PHOTO

50 MOST POWERFUL WOMEN IN NEW YORK

ANDREA STEWARTCOUSINS

GALE BREWER Borough president, Manhattan FY2021 OFFICE BUDGET $5.3 million IMPACT This year Brewer’s office has given $11.2 million in capital funding to nonprofits and $8.7 million in capital awards to schools.

GALE BREWER may have been term-limited as borough president, but NEW she is prepared to continue influencing life and policy in the city. Brewer, a 12-year member of the City Council before she was elected to her current post in 2014, will be back on the council Jan. 1, having won the District 6 seat in the most recent election. In her previous stint, she succeeded in passing legislation on sick leave for hourly employees, the online publication of city data and protections for domestic workers. As borough president, she has appointed community board members and been influential in determining land-use and development opportunities. She has focused on high-impact issues, among them affordable housing and supporting and sustaining small businesses—which has been a major theme throughout her term. She issued a Roadmap for Recovery, an initiative that lays out ways for government to help small businesses devastated by the pandemic and, with Councilwoman Helen Rosenthal, introduced the Storefront Business Bill of Rights, legislation that would allow storefront tenants throughout the city with leases extending more than one month the right to renew. In 2018 Brewer was chairwoman of the Large Cities Council of the National League of Cities, an effort to share ideas and strategies that have proved successful in metropolises around the nation. — JUDY MESSINA

SOURCE: Center for American Women and Politics

20 | CRAIN’S NEW YORK BUSINESS | NOVEMBER 22, 2021

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Congratulations,

KELLY COFFEY

2021 Most Powerful Women in New York honoree. Your exceptional leadership, dedication and passion inspire us every day.

Kelly Coffey Chief Executive Officer

Proud to be one of America’s best employers for women.* Discover The Way Up® at cnb.com.

*Forbes listed City National Bank as one of America’s Best Employers for Women in 2021 for the second year in a row. City National Bank, Member FDIC. City National Bank is a subsidiary of Royal Bank of Canada. ©2021 City National Bank. All Rights Reserved.

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KATHRYN WYLDE

Executive director, Tech:NYC

President and chief executive, Partnership for New York City

FY21 BUDGET $1.5 million IMPACT Samuels is a board member of NYForever, the Chamber of Progress and Engine.

2020 BUDGET $17 million IMPACT Wylde is a board member of the Fund for Public Schools, Invest Puerto Rico, the Manhattan Institute for Policy Research, NYC & Company, Women.nyc, the city Economic Development Corp. and One NYC. She is on the NYU Langone Brooklyn advisory board.

Representative, 14th District, U.S. House of Representatives 2021 BUDGET $1.5 million IMPACT Ocasio-Cortez is a member of the Pro-Choice, Democratic Women’s, Congressional Hispanic, Congressional Progressive, LGBT Equality, Quiet Skies and Congressional Bangladesh caucuses. She represents 650,000 people in parts of the Bronx and Queens.

HER NICKNAME, AOC, though only three letters, packs a big punch. 2019 When she RANK: 14 took office at the age of 29, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez was the youngest woman ever elected to Congress. She represents the 14th District, which includes parts of the Bronx, Queens and Rikers Island. She’s been at the forefront of the country’s progressive and democratic socialist movements, pushing for Medicare for all, a Green New Deal, tuition-free college education and the end of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. Ocasio-Cortez has enormous social media clout. She has amassed nearly 13 million followers on Twitter, and her first speech on the congressional floor, in January 2019, became the most-watched Twitter video of any House member. She opposed Amazon’s plans to build its second headquarters near her congressional district, taking issue with the $3 billion in tax breaks the city was offering the retailer. With the dysfunction at Rikers Island part of the citywide conversation, she could influence how its closure is handled. — NATALIE SACHMECHI

POWER

FACTS

KATHRYN WYLDE, 75, who took over as chief executive 2019 of the RANK: 18 Partnership for New York City in 2000, has spearheaded its businessinvestment and neighborhood-revitalization programs ever since. Before that, she worked at the nonprofit from 1982 to 2000 and was in charge of creating and overseeing programs focused on affordable housing and economic development. She worked at Lutheran Medical Center in Sunset Park and the former Anchor Savings Bank before joining the partnership. The organization has been a major liaison between the public and private sectors during the pandemic. The group wrote a letter to Mayor Bill de Blasio in September 2020 criticizing his pandemic response and offering to help the city handle the challenges before it. Wylde described the letter as an effort to show that the organization wants to be a part of meeting challenges. She argues the political climate in the city has become too anti-development; she criticized the notion that people’s lives would be better if local development stopped as “ridiculous.” Last year the partnership published an analysis of the pandemic’s impact on the city. It has focused its recovery efforts on supporting small businesses. It launched the New York City Small Business Resource Center to give owners financial help as well as marketing and other assistance. — EDDIE SMALL

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ALEXANDRIA OCASIOCORTEZ

MARY CALLAHAN ERDOES

RACHEL GLASER Chief financial officer, Etsy 2020 REVENUE $1.7 billion IMPACT Glaser is a member of the New York Times Co. board of directors.

ETSY GREW FASTER than any S&P 500 company last year outside of Tesla, rising to a total market value of about $25 billion. The valuation cements the Dumbo-based firm’s place as a New York success story. NEW Helping guide that growth has been Rachel Glaser, the company’s second in command and chief financial officer. The crafts marketplace sold $600 million worth of masks in the six months following the onset of the pandemic. But Glaser was consistent in reminding investors and journalists alike that Etsy’s growth was driven by furniture and art, not face coverings alone. When Glaser arrived in August 2017, Etsy’s share price hovered around $15. Last year it peaked at $235. Glaser was born and raised in California. She launched her career at the Walt Disney Co., where she spent 20 years in various roles. Later she took a leadership role at Yahoo. She was hired away to Etsy from the same CFO role at the Leaf Group, which owns Society6, eHow and other websites. In 2018 she was elected to the board of the New York Times Co., helping oversee the newspaper. — R.D.

GLASER HAS HELPED ETSY GROW QUICKLY

6.5% OF VENTURE CAPITAL DEALS this year went to startups with female founders.

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UNDER JULIE SAMUELS’ watch, industry group Tech:NYC has grown in five 2019 RANK: 50 years from five member companies to more than 800. The growth represents how technology has become an increasingly vital cog in the city’s economy. As executive director of the group, Samuels balances the interests of tech giants, including Google and Facebook, with those of the city’s rising young startups. She announced during the summer that she would step away from the role, once a successor was in place, but remain on Tech:NYC’s board. That was after a year in which Samuels had helped organize and lead the local technology industry’s response to the Covid-19 pandemic. Tech companies helped deliver meals, connect first responders with housing and source personal protective equipment. Samuels and Tech:NYC also coordinated with the governor’s office to launch an app, based on technology from Google and Apple, that alerted New Yorkers of potential Covid-19 exposure. Samuels is a former senior attorney at the Electronic Frontier Foundation and executive director of tech advocacy nonprofit Engine, where she still serves on the board. She has not decided on her post-Tech:NYC move, though a Politico report placed her as a technology adviser in the Eric Adams administration. (Samuels declined to comment.) — RYAN DEFFENBAUGH BUCK ENNIS

50 MOST POWERFUL WOMEN IN NEW YORK

JULIE SAMUELS

CEO, asset and wealth management, JPMorgan Chase 2020 NET NEW ASSETS $276 billion IMPACT She is a board member for Robin Hood and the U.S. Fund for UNICEF and serves on the investor advisory committee on financial markets at the Federal Reserve Bank of New York.

MARY CALLAHAN ERDOES played a pivotal role in 2019 one of the RANK: 2 seminal business stories of our time: the dethronement of WeWork’s Adam Neumann. According to The Cult of We, Erdoes was the first executive to tell Neumann he needed to step aside after WeWork’s IPO filing showed how much money the CEO had stuffed into his pockets and how much control he intended to keep. Neumann was stunned by Erdoes’ suggestion and appealed to JPMorgan CEO Jamie Dimon, who backed his asset management chief. Erdoes’ fiefdom inside JPMorgan Chase would be a formidable Fortune 500 company on its own. Her asset and wealth management division has 21,000 employees and 2,500 advisers who serve investors, pension plans, sovereign wealth funds and central banks. It manages $2.7 trillion in client money. Her team lured in $276 billion in net new assets last year, $100 billion more than in 2019 and the 10th consecutive year of increases. That’s impressive in light of rivals such as BlackRock and Vanguard picking off billions of dollars’ worth of assets from rival firms in recent years. Since Erdoes took the job in 2009, pretax income has nearly doubled, and it hit $4.2 billion last year. The bank wants to do more business with the wealthy; having the best name in banking is sure to help. — AARON ELSTEIN

SOURCE: Pitchbook

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At Healthfirst, we work as a team with hospitals, physicians, providers, and communities to give millions of New Yorkers the care they need and the caring they want. Thank you, Pat, for leading New York’s leader in value-based care.

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LIS SMITH

Political consultant

Pres

Founder and CEO, Success Academy Charter Schools

IMPACT Smith raised $3.5 million for a PAC supporting Andrew Yang’s mayoral bid.

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2020 CAPITAL BUDGET $350 million IMPACT Moskowitz represented New York’s 4th district on the City Council from 1999 to 2005.

SHE KEPT KIDS LEARNING DURING THE CRISIS were equipped for remote learning. A former City Council member who has devoted her career to proving that children from any background can succeed in college and life, as the 47-school network’s mission statement says, her quick pivot paid off. As reports circulated about a clumsy rollout of remote learning at public schools, Moskowitz’s foresight to engage parents, provide laptops to students and maintain community as the world fractured showed remarkable foresight and has made her more influential than ever. — RICHARD MARTIN

POWER

FACTS

MARY BASSETT Incoming health commissioner, New York state FY2022 BUDGET $81 billion IMPACT She is a past commissioner of the city Department of Health and Mental Hygiene and a member of the National Academy of Medicine.

DR. MARY Bassett’s appointment as state health commissioner, NEW a role she officially assumes Dec. 1, marks her homecoming. The Washington Heights native led the city’s Health Department from 2014 to 2018, navigating both Ebola and Legionnaires’ disease. Bassett, director of the Bagnoud Center for Health and Human Rights at Harvard University, said she’s eager to turn her focus to her home state at what she calls a pivotal time. Seeing as New York was one of the hardest-hit states at the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic, she has her work cut out for her. “The pandemic underscored the importance of public health while also revealing inequities driven by structural racism,” Bassett said. “As we move to end the pandemic, we have a unique opportunity to create a state that is more equitable for all New Yorkers.” Underpinning her efforts is a lifelong commitment to undoing racism. She has published journal articles on the adverse health effects of discrimination on Black people and has spoken out against structural racism and health inequities. — SHUAN SIM

SMITH HAS WORKED ON 20 CAMPAIGNS

6% OF FORTUNE 500 CEOs are women.

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RUNNING New York state’s fifth-largest school district is challenging 2019 enough, but RANK: 32 the pandemic put Eva Moskowitz to the test. The founder and CEO of Success Academy, an organization with a $350 million operating and capital budget last year, emerged as an even more proactive leader than usual. The mother of three and New York City native is known for tackling tough education issues. Although that has led to controversy in the polarizing world of education reform, Moskowitz was poised to handle the confounding task of keeping kids learning at a time when pandemic social distancing upended the world. She shut down Success’ classrooms before Mayor Bill de Blasio closed the city’s schools, and she made sure all her students

LIS SMITH has been a talked-about figure in New York politics NEW ever since she helped Bill de Blasio win his first mayoral race—and simultaneously became tabloid fodder as former Gov. Eliot Spitzer’s girlfriend. But Smith, who has worked on 20 campaigns since graduating from Dartmouth in 2005, really became a star operative during the 2020 presidential race. That was when, as Politico announced at the top of a 4,000-word profile, she helped turn a littleknown former South Bend, Ind., mayor “into a national name.” Smith transformed Pete Buttigieg from a long shot into a contender, partly by making him ubiquitous across a splintered media landscape. It helped that she could leverage connections with reporters and media outlets she had built up working on campaigns for former President Barack Obama, former Maryland Gov. Martin O’Malley and former Gov. Andrew Cuomo during the previous decade. The West Village resident is a self-described liberal who continues to work the middle of the road of Democratic politics. She was a senior adviser to Corey Johnson’s campaign for city comptroller and ran a PAC supporting Andrew Yang’s bid for mayor. — MATTHEW FLAMM

BHAIRAVI DESAI Executive director, New York Taxi Workers Alliance BUDGET Desai’s medallion rescue proposal would cost the city $50 million over 20 years. IMPACT The organization represents $25,000 yellow cab, green car and black car drivers across the city.

AS THE representative of more 25,000 taxi drivers, Bhairavi Desai NEW knows what it means to stand up for the little guy. The executive director of the New York Taxi Workers Alliance has spent much of the past year fighting to protect yellowcab drivers from predatory loans and revise the financial agreements her drivers made when they purchased medallion permits—before the city’s transportation landscape changed. Desai has gone toe-totoe with financial behemoths including Marblegate Asset Management, the city’s largest holder of taxi medallion loans, and the city Taxi and Limousine Commission, which regulates the market. Desai devised a plan that served as the framework for an accepted agreement among city officials, drivers and lenders. The principal of all outstanding medallion loans is now $200,000—a total lowered to $170,000 after $30,000 grant payments from the city are received. The city also agreed to guarantee the principal and interest on the loan—Desai’s prime request. With some individual drivers owing up to $500,000, Desai’s plan can reduce their financial burden while ensuring yellow cabs have a future on New York’s streets. — BRIAN PASCUS

BUCK ENNIS

50 MOST POWERFUL WOMEN IN NEW YORK

EVA MOSKOWITZ

ELLEN WEST Vice president of engagement within the office of the chief financial officer, Alphabet 2020 REVENUE $182 billion IMPACT West was executive lead of Google’s North American Covid-19 response outside the Bay Area.

GOOGLE NOW EMPLOYS more than 10,000 New Yorkers, located largely in Chelsea office buildings. The search giant has become so ingrained in the neighborhood that it has been dubbed NEW Googleopolis and Googletown. Whatever the name, it is not far off to call Ellen West the mayor. She is co-head of Google’s New York offices and vice president of engagement within the office of the chief financial officer of Alphabet, Google’s parent company. West has spent the past 14 years at Google. In that time she has overseen a steady local expansion while skillfully avoiding the kind of backlash that greeted Amazon’s attempt to build a Long Island City headquarters. That expansion encompasses the revitalization of Pier 57, which includes Google office space and a 24,000-square-foot community education site run by the Hudson River Park Trust. She has fostered a partnership with Cornell Tech to help connect New Yorkers with Google jobs. West’s first job was at a McDonald’s in her hometown of Orlando, Fla., where she learned the value of detailed processes, as she described in a company blog post. Her corporate career started on the mergers-and-acquisitions team at Goldman Sachs. — RYAN DEFFENBAUGH

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SOURCE: Catalyst

24 | CRAIN’S NEW YORK BUSINESS | NOVEMBER 22, 2021

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President, ABC News

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2020 ABC EVENING NEWS VIEWERSHIP 7.6 million

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THE THROUGH LINE of the story of Kimberly Godwin’s rise to president of ABC News, a position she began in May, is an unflagging devotion to her craft. Godwin studied at Florida A&M NEW University, receiving a bachelor’s degree in broadcast journalism. She worked her way up as a reporter and put in time as news director at major-market stations around the country. She then helped broadcast journalism evolve during a long tenure at CBS News as a trusted deputy to President Susan Zirinsky and as a pioneer in addressing race and diversity issues in the industry. Now Godwin has ascended to the top spot at ABC News, becoming the first Black woman to run a news division for parent company Disney. She is charged with overseeing tentpoles such as top-rated World News Tonight, Good Morning America and 20/20. She is jumping into the leadership of fast-growing digital and streaming divisions at a time of intense change in America as well as in her beloved broadcast-news business. All of which is to say that Godwin is taking on great responsibilities from a powerful perch in Manhattan. — RICHARD MARTIN

GODWIN IS THE FIRST BLACK WOMAN TO RUN A NEWS DIVISION FOR DISNEY

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LORIE SLUTSKY

SHEENA WRIGHT

President, New York Community Trust

President and CEO, United Way of New York City

GRANTS MADE IN 2020 $267 million ENDOWMENT $3.1 billion IMPACT Since Slutsky became president of the trust in 1990, it has contributed $5 billion in grants and raised $3.8 billion. She has served on the boards of the United Way of New York City, Hispanics in Philanthropy and the DeWitt Wallace Fund for Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center.

2020 REVENUE $56.7 million IMPACT Wright is a Columbia University trustee and a board member of New Visions for Public Schools, NYC Kids Rise and the New York City Regional Economic Development Council.

AS LEADER of the New York Community Trust, Lorie Slutsky has 2019 supported city RANK: 27 nonprofits through 9/11, the Great Recession and Superstorm Sandy. The pandemic was no different. By late March 2020, the trust had already formed a coalition with other major philanthropic institutions to create the NYC Covid-19 Response & Impact Fund. The initiative provided $73 million to 750 nonprofits to fund emergency social services, protective equipment and the technology to make remote work possible. An additional $26 million expanded the fund’s scope to the entire metropolitan region and longer-term projects. As Slutsky prepares to retire next year, she will leave behind a robust fundraising legacy. Since she became president of the trust in 1990, it has contributed $5 billion in grants and raised $3.8 billion. The foundation, one of the city’s oldest and largest, has more than tripled its endowment during her tenure to $3.1 billion. Its relationships across city government and philanthropy have led to long-term investments in schools, transit options for people with disabilities and foster care. The trust’s structure allows it to tackles the city’s evolving needs. This year those have included addressing vaccine hesitancy, increasing voter engagement, promoting reliable broadband access, and supporting the arts. — JONATHAN LAMANTIA

SURI KASIRER President, Kasirer 2020 REVENUE $14.2 million IMPACT She has served as vice president of Citymeals on Wheels and as a board member of the New York League of Conservation Voters, the Women’s Leadership Forum and the New York Building Foundation.

NOT EVEN a pandemic could knock Suri Kasirer and her 2019 namesake RANK: 29 firm from the top spot among New York City lobbying firms. Kasirer has been involved in campaigns that ushered in ranked-choice voting in New York City—which shaped this year’s mayoral election—and paved the way for SL Green’s One Vanderbilt. The firm’s client list spans the city’s major industries, including real estate, media and finance, and hallmark nonprofit and cultural institutions such as the American Cancer Society and Lincoln Center. This year Kasirer has been focused on advocacy on behalf of restaurants and the arts—two of the city’s hardest-hit sectors. Kasirer worked with Restaurants Organizing, Advocating, Rebuilding to win regulatory relief as eateries sought to adapt to outdoor dining and adhere to the state’s phased indoor-dining plan. Kasirer lobbied for mobile vaccine hubs in neighborhoods where workers live and an end to curfews and mandatory food orders at bars. Similarly, Kasirer helped Lincoln Center win approval for its Restart Stages cultural complex, which created 10 outdoor performance and rehearsal spaces. Her other civic and philanthropic work includes serving as vice president of Citymeals on Wheels and as a board member of the New York League of Conservation Voters, the Women’s Leadership Forum and the New York Building Foundation. — J.L.

SHEENA WRIGHT is the first woman to lead United Way of New 2017 York City in RANK: 41 its more than 80 years of existence. She has guided the organization through crises including Superstorm Sandy and the Covid-19 pandemic, combining corporate, government and community efforts to deliver relief. At United Way, Wright led the implementation of

WRIGHT BATTLES SYSTEMIC RACIAL DISPARITIES ReadNYC, an initiative designed to improve reading levels by the third grade in the city’s most-challenged communities. She launched the Campaign for Equity to address underlying structural and systemic racial disparities in health, education and financial stability. Wright, born and raised in the Bronx, lives in Harlem with her family. — SHUAN SIM

2% OF THE TOTAL CAPITAL INVESTED this year went to startups with female founders.

PATRICIA HARRIS Chief executive, Bloomberg Philanthropies 2020 CHARITABLE DONATIONS $1.6 billion IMPACT Harris is a board member of the National 9/11 Memorial & Museum, the Public Art Fund and the Performing Arts Center at the World Trade Center.

WHEN THE PANDEMIC began taking a toll in early 2020, Patricia 2019 Harris didn’t RANK: 21 miss a beat. On the heels of the first lockdowns, she created a plan to aid nonprofits for which the crisis posed an existential threat. Through the New York Community Trust and the HARRIS Nonprofit Finance HELPED Fund, the NYC GIVE OUT Covid-19 COVID Response & Impact FUNDING Fund has distributed more than $110 million in grants and no-interest loans to organizations that provide food, housing, child care and remote cultural programming in the city. Stopping the spread of Covid-19 and ameliorating its damage became a special mission. A partnership with World Central Kitchen provided meals to 30,000 frontline health care workers, and an alliance with the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health and Vital Strategies launched a contacttracing program. Overall, Bloomberg Philanthropies handed out $1.6 billion in 810 cities and 170 countries last year for the arts, education, the environment, public health, innovative government and other causes. Before becoming CEO of Bloomberg Philanthropies, Harris managed Bloomberg LP’s corporate communications. Later she became first deputy mayor under Michael Bloomberg—the first woman in that role. — JUDY MESSINA

50 MOST POWERFUL WOMEN IN NEW YORK

KIMBERLY GODWIN

SOURCE: Pitchbook

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WENDY WILLIAMS

Chef and owner, Melba’s Restaurant and Melba’s Catering, and president, NYC Hospitality Alliance

CEO, One Brooklyn Health

VIEWERS More than 1.8 million per episode IMPACT Williams is a board member and ambassador for the Lymphatic Education & Research Network

IN 2005 Melba Wilson looked at a location on a block of Harlem NEW notorious for its drug use, then helped revitalize it with her self-financed restaurant, Melba’s. WILSON’S With a menu that EFFORTS attracted New Yorkers HAVE from all over the city and, HELPED eventually, REVAMP tourists HARLEM seeking to explore the new Harlem, she was profitable by year two, Wilson said, with enough success to expand her footprint to more than 100 seats. Throughout her journey, she has been committed to hiring staff from the neighborhood. As president of the NYC Hospitality Alliance since 2019, she has sought to include restaurants owned by minorities and women in boroughs beyond Manhattan and has pledged to listen to the group’s 4,000 members. Their concerns often dovetail with hers: too many restrictions and too much red tape for smallbusiness owners, who might not be as savvy at navigating regulations and accessing capital as the big guys. This year she has worked on opening her second restaurant, Melba’s Mussels, also in Harlem. — CARA EISENPRESS

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POWER

FACTS

WESTON WELLS

ALLIANCE MEMBERSHIP 4,000 IMPACT The group donated more than 200,000 free meals to neighbors in need during the pandemic.

MARY ANN TIGHE CEO, CBRE Tristate 2020 DEALS VOLUME $500 million IMPACT Tighe is chairwoman emeritus of the Real Estate Board of New York, director emeritus of the New 42nd Street, a board member of the Inner-City Scholarship Fund, vice chairwoman of the Lung Cancer Research Foundation and co-chairwoman of the Metropolitan Museum of Art real estate council.

2020 REVENUE $1.1 billion IMPACT Brown, a board member of the Greater New York Hospital Association, helped established a federally qualified health center on Staten Island and a longterm-care hospital and nursing facility in Harlem.

WHEN LaRay Brown became president and CEO 2019 of Interfaith RANK: 22 Medical Center in Brooklyn in 2015, she became the first Black woman to lead a private hospital in the city. In 2017 she helped unite

THROUGHOUT her 37-year career as a Manhattan broker, Mary 2019 Ann Tighe, 73, RANK: 5 has managed to ascend to the top of the real estate boys’ club. She was the first woman to serve as chair of the Real Estate Board of New York when she assumed the role in 2010 for three years. She has brokered more than 110 million square feet worth of deals. In 2018 she took home her ninth REBNY Deal of the Year award—the most any person has ever won. A year later she sold Young & Rubicam’s 3 Columbus Circle office condominium to The Moinian Group, giving the landlord full control over the property, and then leased back more than 200,000 square feet at the building to Y&R. But it’s not just her dealmaking that makes her so influential. She was at the center of the city’s controversial Midtown East rezoning, which paved the way for the development of millions of square feet of new, iconic office buildings. She’s now at the forefront of transforming New York City into a hub for laboratory space for the red-hot life sciences sector. Her team is in charge of leasing the Manhattanville Factory District, a 1.5 millionsquare-foot life sciences campus in West Harlem. — NATALIE SACHMECHI

Host, The Wendy Williams Show

WENDY WILLIAMS has held many roles during her career: radio personality, Broadway star, author, comedian, entrepreneur and philanthropist. But she probably is best known for her NEW nationally syndicated daytime talk program, The Wendy Williams Show. With an unabashed sense of style and humor, Williams turns up the heat on celebrity gossip in her top-rated daily show. The program, taped in New York City, includes a diverse mix of interviews with celebrity guests from television, film, music and sports. Segments include “Hot Topics,” interviews and “Say It Like You Mean It,” an irreverent take on pop culture headlines. Before her success in television, the proud Jersey girl built a devoted fan base in radio during the course of 23 years. The Wendy Williams Show, in its 13th season, has earned Emmy nominations and is consistently among the bestranked talk shows in the coveted demographic of women 25 to 54 years old, making Williams a power player in daytime television. Taking on a new realm of entertainment this year, Williams produced a biopic for Lifetime. Wendy Williams: The Movie chronicles some of the drama in her life, including professional developments and her divorce from longtime husband Kevin Hunter. — DIANE HESS

WILLIAMS IS NOW A TV POWER PLAYER

BROWN IS THE FIRST BLACK WOMAN TO LEAD A PRIVATE HOSPITAL IN THE CITY Interfaith with two struggling hospitals to form One Brooklyn Health, which she leads as chief executive. The organization took in $1.1 billion in revenue last year. Brown had worked for nearly 30 years with NYC Health + Hospitals, the city’s public health system, and served as its liaison with state government. She graduated summa cum laude from the University of Pennsylvania and received her graduate training at Penn’s Fels Institute of Government. — SHUAN SIM

59.5% OF COLLEGE STUDENTS at the close of the 2020–21 academic year were women.

NICOLE MALLIOTAKIS Representative, 11th District, U.S. House of Representatives OFFICE BUDGET Approximately $1.4 million IMPACT She represents about 740,000 Staten Island and southern Brooklyn residents.

DEMOCRATS did not make the gains they had hoped for in the House NEW of Representatives during last year’s elections. Republican Rep. Nicole Malliotakis was one of the reasons why. The 41-year-old defeated incumbent Democrat Max Rose in the election to represent New York’s 11th Congressional District, and she is now the only Republican to represent the city in Congress. She entered the House with a lengthy history in New York politics, serving five terms in the Assembly and running a long-shot campaign against Mayor Bill de Blasio as the Republican candidate in the city’s 2017 mayoral race. Malliotakis sits on the House committees on foreign affairs and transportation and infrastructure, and she serves as the assistant whip for the House Republican Conference. She voted in favor of objections to Arizona’s and Pennsylvania’s electors, against the American Rescue Plan Act and for the bipartisan infrastructure bill. This year she introduced the Urban Forests Act, which aims to promote the creation, improvement and maintenance of green spaces. The passionate animalrights advocate supports strengthening laws against animal cruelty. — EDDIE SMALL

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50 MOST POWERFUL WOMEN IN NEW YORK

MELBA WILSON

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SOURCE: National Student Clearinghouse

26 | CRAIN’S NEW YORK BUSINESS | NOVEMBER 22, 2021

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New York state senator, 28th District

CEO, MAG Partners

FY2021 OFFICE BUDGET $875,000 IMPACT Krueger is founding director of the city Food Bank and is Senate finance chair.

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STACEY CUNNINGHAM President, NYSE Group STATS Roughly 2,800 firms trade about 1.5 billion shares on the New York Stock Exchange every day. IMPACT She is on the board of directors of the Partnership for New York City.

IN 1994 Stacey Cunningham started working as a summer 2019 intern at the RANK: 16 New York Stock Exchange, where her father was a trader. The women’s restroom back then was inside an old phone booth, while the men’s had couches and an attendant. The facilities have been equalized, and in 2018 Cunningham was named president of the exchange, which she joined full time in 2012. Stock-exchange chiefs serve as the representative for markets, as lobbyists, and are tech experts responsible for billions of transactions every day. They do whatever is necessary to make startups and their venturecapital backers feel good about listing their shares at the exchange when taking their companies public. On that front, she was especially effective last year, when the NYSE attracted DoorDash, Snowflake and several other large tech initial public offerings. It also lured in the year’s biggest special-purpose acquisition company, Pershing Square Tontine Holdings. “As communities around the world confront the challenging realities of Covid-19, the NYSE and its listed companies have come together to provide critical funds, resources and services to keep the economy moving forward,” Cunningham said. — AARON ELSTEIN

KRUEGER KEEPS AN EYE ON THE EFFECTIVENESS OF LOCAL GOVERNMENT the effectiveness of local government, introducing bills to transform the state’s Joint Commission on Public Ethics and the Legislative Ethics Commission into a new body, the Government Integrity Commission. It would be a more effective enforcer of state ethics laws, she said. Another mission is to professionalize the city Board of Elections so that commissioners are held accountable if they make a mistake, such as the ballot-counting fiasco during the Democratic mayoral primary in June. — CARA EISENPRESS

ANNA WINTOUR Worldwide chief content officer, Condé Nast, and global editorial director, Vogue 2019 CONDÉ NAST U.S. REVENUE $900 million IMPACT She is a trustee of the Metropolitan Museum of Art and a founding donor of the Youth Anxiety Center at New York–Presbyterian Hospital.

ANNA WINTOUR, cultural influencer and longtime 2019 editor in RANK: 35 chief of Vogue, last year took on an additional role as Condé Nast launched a wholesale restructuring in an effort to turn around its struggling magazine business. The new responsibility expands Wintour’s reach, giving her editorial sway over publications in 30 markets across the globe. She has her work cut out for her. The pandemic has decimated print advertising in a field already racing to reinvent itself online. In the meantime, New York City’s biggest social event, the Metropolitan Museum of Art’s annual Costume Institute gala, over which Wintour has traditionally presided, was canceled last year because of the pandemic. In 2019 she raised a record $15 million for the annual red-carpet event. This year the gala returned, and Wintour once again commanded a star-studded, albeit smaller, extravaganza, raising a record $16.8 million. — JUDY MESSINA

5% OF NYC’S HIGHEST-PAID CEOs are women.

chairwoman emeritus of the Downtown Brooklyn Partnership, an executive committee member of BAM, a board member of New York Public Radio and an executive committee and board member of the Real Estate Board of New York.

ONCE, TWICE, four times a CEO. At 56, MaryAnne 2017 Gilmartin has RANK: 11 already been at the helm of four high-profile development firms in the city. She bought out her partners at L+L MAG to start MAG Partners in 2019. The company now controls a pipeline of three residential ground-up developments, as well as one commercial, in New York City. While working on the new company, she was tapped to serve as the interim chief executive of New Jersey– based real estate investment trust Mack-Cali after investment group Bow Street partners ousted its previous leader, Michael DeMarco. Gilmartin has since relinquished the role and is back at her firm. When she served as chief executive of Forest City Ratner Cos., she was a driving force behind some of the city’s most important developments including the Barclays Center and Pacific Park, which transformed Brooklyn, as well as the New York Times Building. — NATALIE SACHMECHI

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$800 million

IMPACT Gilmartin is

VICKI BEEN Deputy mayor for housing and economic development, New York City BUDGET $1.4 billion set aside for affordable housing to be completed by 2026 IMPACT She is on the board of Build NYC Resource Corp.

VICKI BEEN, the city’s deputy mayor for housing and economic development, turned a childhood interest in land disputes into a legal and public policy career focused on land use, urban NEW policy and affordable housing. Growing up in Naturita, Colo., she was fascinated by the clashes between ranchers and miners, and the disagreements between the federal government and those groups. In a Politico interview, she said she realized then that “where you’re born determines a lot about you.” As deputy mayor, Been is focused on affordable housing. She is also working to transform the city’s anti-displacement strategies, which support New Yorkers at risk of being pushed out of their home because of new investment in their neighborhoods. She oversees 25 agencies including the Department of Parks and Recreation. Mayor Bill de Blasio asked her in April to head the Hudson River Park Trust. From 2014 to 2017, she was head of the Department of Housing Preservation and Development. She helped craft Housing New York, a plan to create and preserve 300,000 affordable homes by 2026. Been, a lawyer and a professor, has taught at the NYU School of Law for many years. She is the faculty director of NYU’s Furman Center for Real Estate and Urban Policy. — DIANE HESS

BEEN IS WORKING TO KEEP MORE NEW YORKERS IN THEIR HOME

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WITH A MISSION to make the city fairer, lifelong New Yorker NEW Liz Krueger first made an impact locally as an advocate for food access and security, serving as the founding director of the New York City Food Bank and then as an associate director for the Community Food Resource Center. There she got to know the government programs that helped, and didn’t help, low-income residents—essential to her advocacy work on issues relating to poverty. With nearly two decades of state Senate experience, she recently turned to the processes that seek to check

CORPORATE ASSETS Worth

50 MOST POWERFUL WOMEN IN NEW YORK

MARYANNE GILMARTIN

LIZ KRUEGER

SOURCE: Crain’s analysis

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PAT WANG

Chief of staff and deputy mayor for administration, New York mayor’s office

President and CEO, Healthfirst

MSNBC’S 2020 AD REVENUE $709 million IMPACT Jones is a member of the Council of Urban Professionals and an adjunct coach at CUNY.

RASHIDA JONES became the first Black female NEW executive to head a major cable news network when she took over as president of MSNBC in February. She oversees the channel’s programming, editorial units, business development and technical operations. Jones previously was senior vice president of NBC News and MSNBC. She spearheaded breaking news and major events for both networks, including coverage of the Covid-19 pandemic, presidential debates, town halls, primaries and specialelection nights. In a December 2020 letter to employees announcing her promotion, NBCUniversal News Chairman Cesar Conde wrote: “If you’ve worked with Rashida on any of those endeavors, you know that she has an outstanding track record, and she leads with laserlike focus and grace under pressure.” Although MSNBC’s political coverage boosted its ratings during the presidency of Donald Trump, the network reportedly struggled last year to keep pace with Fox News and CNN. In her first month as president, MSNBC was the most-watched network on cable. Jones is known for her ability to develop special news reports, increasingly important for news organizations. She won an Emmy for coverage of the Supreme Court’s 2016 decision on same-sex marriage and produced the most-watched Democratic presidential debate in history in 2020. — DIANE HESS

POWER

FACTS

MAYOR BILL DE BLASIO HAS CALLED WOLFE A GREAT STRATEGIST

ONE IN FIVE New York City residents is on a health insurance 2019 plan overRANK: 31 seen by Pat Wang. The president and CEO of nonprofit insurer Healthfirst thus wields tremendous influence as the pandemic pushes health care reform from being a buzzy phrase to a legislative priority. It was no surprise when Gov. Andrew Cuomo named her co-chair of the state’s vaccine equity task force and last year appointed her to version 2.0 of his Medicaid redesign team. Since Wang took Healthfirst’s helm in 2008, it has increased its membership by nearly 500% and its revenue by more than 600%, to $12 billion last year. She now leads 5,000 employees and a portfolio of Medicaid, Medicare, long-term-care, individual and small group plans that cover more than 1.7 million people. She has a unique stake in Healthfirst’s success. Before she was its top executive, she was working at the Greater New York Hospital Association on an experimental insurance model pegged to patients’ health outcomes, not the services they received. The concept she helped design turned into Healthfirst. Last year that same model was responsible for returning more than $440 million to the local delivery system. — M.K.

MELVA MILLER Chief executive, Association for a Better New York FY2020 BUDGET $1.5 million IMPACT She serves on the boards of the New York City Economic Development Corp., Habitat for Humanity NYC and the Greater Jamaica Development Corp.

LAST YEAR Melva Miller became the first CEO of the NEW Association for a Better New York, a memberdriven organization that aims to connect the city’s top private and public-sector organizations. It’s a role for which she is well suited. A master networker with an extensive background in community organizing, she spent more than a decade working in her native Queens in roles including deputy borough president and director of economic development before joining ABNY and leading the organization’s Census 2020 initiative. Now, as the head of ABNY, which had an estimated $1.5 million budget last year, she looks to grow strategic partnerships as well as membership to continue the ambitious goals of improving economic development at a key time in the city’s history. A longtime member of the board of directors at the New York City Economic Development Corp., she also now serves on the boards of Habitat for Humanity NYC and the Greater Jamaica Development Corp. She is working on her doctorate in the social welfare program at City University’s Graduate Center. — RICHARD MARTIN

FY2 IMP exec of N Tim boa Fun Equ

NANCY HAGAN 2019 REVENUE $48 million IMPACT She’s a registered nurse at Maimonides Medical Center and a trustee of the NYSNA Benefits Plan.

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NANCY HAGAN became president of the New York State Nurses NEW Association in July, but she has been working for decades to protect the rights and needs of the more than 42,000 nurses in the union. During the Covid-19 pandemic, the Haiti native and Staten Island resident has championed safe staffing levels for patients and workers, an effort that culminated in a law passed this year. “The law represents years of outreach and action by our members and fellow caregivers to communities, whose collective HAGAN voices PUSHES were heard,” FOR SAFE Hagan said. STAFFING She started as LEVELS a surgical intensive care nurse at Maimonides Medical Center in 1990 and became president of the collective-bargaining unit for NYSNA nurses at the facility in 1993. Today she still provides direct representation to members at the health system and is a trustee of the union’s health plan. She was first elected to NYSNA’s board in 2015. — SHUAN SIM

$0.63 AMOUNT Black women in New York typically make for every dollar paid to white men

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President, New York State Nurses Association

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President, MSNBC

Pres

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RASHIDA JONES

ANYONE WHO HAS NEEDED to get to Mayor Bill de Blasio has had to go through Emma Wolfe first. Wolfe has had de Blasio’s ear since serving as his deputy campaign NEW manager and political director for his 2013 mayoral campaign. After he won the race, she joined his administration as his director of intergovernmental affairs, doing the nitty-gritty organizing work to make policies such as universal pre-K a reality. Nearly two full terms later, Wolfe remains at his side even after last year’s exodus of several high-ranking staffers. De Blasio has called Wolfe a “great strategist” and one of his most indispensable aides. In her current roles as chief of staff and deputy mayor for administration, Wolfe is the mayor’s lead adviser and overseer of day-to-day operations in the executive office. Today that means standing beside de Blasio in his last few weeks in office as he attempts to steer the city through the pandemic. To get there, the city unveiled a $98.6 billion “recovery budget” in April. Wolfe gained yet another title in September as the city’s inaugural extreme weather coordinator, overseeing storm preparation. — MAYA KAUFMAN

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2020 REVENUE $12 billion IMPACT Wang serves on the Medicare Payment Advisory Commission as well as on state task forces dealing with vaccine equity and the Medicaid budget.

2021–2022 BUDGET: $98.6 billion IMPACT Wolfe is a BAM board member.

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50 MOST POWERFUL WOMEN IN NEW YORK

EMMA WOLFE

11/18/21 5:12 PM

MARIA GOTSCH

CHIRLANE MCCRAY

President, Broadway League

Chief executive, Partnership Fund for New York City

First lady, New York City

CHARLOTTE St. Martin was instrumental in drawing back the NEW curtains for Broadway’s return, coordinating politicians, talent, unions, theaters and producers; betting that Covid-related safety measures would lure back hesitant regional fans; and, finally, planning a public-facing opening party to tell New Yorkers that Broadway was back. The year was an outlier for St. Martin, who has presided over a Great White Way that has thrived since her arrival at the trade organization in 2006. In 2019 THE attenGREAT dance reached WHITE 14.8 million WAY HAS and ticket THRIVED sales clocked in at $1.8 billion. During her tenure, Broadway has become both a creator and a receptacle for contemporary culture. Hamilton started there and became a phenomenon, but theaters also became venues where reinvented movie hits such as Mean Girls and Mrs. Doubtfire could find an audience. St. Martin, who used to see 100 shows a year, began her career at age 12, working at a cinema concession stand. She anticipates that the reopened Theater District will be a place where diverse playwrights, actors and fans will converge. — CARA EISENPRESS

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SUSAN HUANG Vice chairwoman and global head of investment banking, Morgan Stanley 2020 INVESTMENT BANKING REVENUE $7.2 billion IMPACT Huang is a member of the Lincoln Center board of directors.

IN AN INDUSTRY dominated by men, Susan Huang NEW has the distinction of being one of the few women to lead a major Wall Street investment banking division. The role gives her oversight of a large chunk of Morgan Stanley’s revenue. Her experience and achievements have earned her mentions as a possible CEO contender someday. Indeed, during her more than 30 years at Morgan Stanley, including a stint as head of mergers and acquisitions for the Americas, she has advised the bank’s largest clients in their pursuit of high-impact mergers, acquisitions, spinoffs, divestitures and recapitalizations. Among them are the combination of General Electric’s oil and gas with Baker Hughes, GlaxoSmithKline’s acquisition of Human Genome Sciences and Pfizer’s $68 billion acquisition of Wyeth. Huang, one of the most senior women on Wall Street, spends considerable time mentoring women— and men. — JUDY MESSINA

FY2021 THRIVENYC BUDGET $226.7 million IMPACT Under McCray’s guidance, the city’s mental health hotline, NYC Well, has received more than 1 million calls, texts and chats since October 2016.

SEED FUND $170 million IMPACT Gotsch is an advisory board member of Pro Publica and the Hospital for Special Surgery innovation advisory council, and head of the Small Business Resource Network.

FIRST LADY Chirlane McCray has played a major policy 2017 role in Mayor RANK: 34 Bill de Blasio’s City Hall. Her signature mental health initiative, ThriveNYC, faced a new test during the pandemic, as nearly half of New Yorkers reported feelings of anxiety related to Covid-19, according to city health data. But McCray’s time in public office—she’s officially a volunteer—is running out. She decided against a run for Brooklyn borough president last year. In its final months, the de Blasio administration worked to expand mental health access and address criticism that ThriveNYC’s programs didn’t adequately connect New Yorkers who have serious mental illness to care. ThriveNYC, which spans 30 programs and 13 city agencies, has led to the training of 160,000 New Yorkers to help identify and direct people to mental health care. The city’s mental health hotline, NYC Well, has received more than 1 million calls, text messages and chats since October 2016. McCray also leads the Mayor’s Fund to Advance New York City, which raised more than $60 million for Covid-19 emergency relief. Evidence of McCray’s work won’t end when she leaves Gracie Mansion. De Blasio created the Mayor’s Office of Community Mental Health by executive order May 5— part of his preparation to hand off ThriveNYC’s policies to the next administration. — J.L.

YOU CAN thank Maria Gotsch for helping make the NEW life sciences industry a rare bright spot in New York’s economy. Gotsch, chief executive of the Partnership Fund for New York City, the nonprofit investment arm of the Partnership for New York City, has been focused on the life sciences industry for years. She believed New York’s sector needed only investment and support— and help finding and developing lab space— to make it competitive with the established hubs in Boston and Silicon Valley. Armed with seed money from a $170 million fund that the partnership continually reinvests, Gotsch has fostered innovation labs for multiple new sectors including fintech, transit tech, fashion tech and digital health care. Most recently she has been overseeing the Small Business Resource Network, a public-private partnership helping small-business owners through the pandemic. The network provides them with free websites and other digital tools to make them more competitive online. The former senior financial industry executive has led the Partnership Fund since 1999. Henry Kravis founded it in 1996. — MATTHEW FLAMM

ADENA FRIEDMAN President and chief executive, Nasdaq 2020 REVENUE $5.6 billion IMPACT Friedman is a member of the New York Forward advisory board and the Federal Reserve Bank of New York board of directors.

ADENA FRIEDMAN has presided over Nasdaq during one of the hottest markets for initial public offerings on record. Last year the Nasdaq attracted 2019 Airbnb and its $3.5 billion market RANK: 19 debut as well as New York companies Royalty Pharma ($2.2 billion) and Warner Music Group ($1.9 billion). In February Nasdaq landed the $2.1 billion IPO of dating app Bumble. In all, 560 companies listed on the Nasdaq through IPOs, “blank check” firms and direct listings as of Sept. 30. The exchange also nabbed the largest IPO since 2012 in October, when electric vehicle maker Rivian raised $11.9 billion in its debut. Friedman became the first woman to lead a major stock exchange when she was appointed president and CEO of Nasdaq in January 2017. She’d returned to Nasdaq, where she started her career, in 2014 after serving as chief financial officer and managing director at the Carlyle Group. Before leaving for Carlyle, she held roles at Nasdaq including CFO, head of data products and head of corporate strategy. She has had a seat on the Federal Reserve Bank of New York board since December 2018. Last year she oversaw Nasdaq’s nearly $2.8 billion purchase of Verafin, which sells software to detect financial crimes. She is set to lead the firm as it migrates the company’s markets to the public cloud from on-premise data centers by 2030. As a member of Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s New York Forward advisory board, she worked with other corporate leaders to help plan the state’s return from the pandemic. — JONATHAN LAMANTIA

FRIEDMAN WAS THE FIRST WOMAN TO LEAD A MAJOR STOCK EXCHANGE

$0.56 AMOUNT Latina women in New York typically make for every dollar paid to white men

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FY2020 REVENUE $7.8 million IMPACT St. Martin is an executive committee member of NYC & Company and the Times Square Alliance and a board member of the Actors Fund and Broadway Cares/ Equity Fights AIDS.

50 MOST POWERFUL WOMEN IN NEW YORK

CHARLOTTE ST. MARTIN

SOURCE: National Women’s Law Center

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2019–2020 BUDGET $260,000 IMPACT She is a board member of the Black Women’s Health Imperative and Transgender Solutions Center and a steering committee member for Positively Trans. Mayor Bill de Blasio appointed her to the Commission on Gender Equity.

KIARA ST. JAMES has spent more than two decades working as a community organizer to improve the lives of Black trans women such as herself. All too often, she noticed, the groups NEW that were focused on helping trans women of color did not have leaders who looked like her. So in 2014 St. James co-founded the New York Transgender Advocacy Group. The Harlembased organization lobbies for legislation to help transgender and gendernonconforming New Yorkers. Its advocates train health and social services providers on how to better support the transgender, gendernonconforming and nonbinary communities. The state since has adopted several of the group’s legislative priorities including the Gender Expression Non-Discrimination Act, which bans discrimination based on gender identity or expression and adds that as a protected class under the state’s hate-crimes law. St. James had spent 17 years advocating for the act by the time it became law in 2019. She helped gain the repeal of the state’s “walking while trans” ban, a vague loitering law that had overwhelmingly affected Black and Latina women. — MAYA KAUFMAN

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ST. JAMES LOBBIES TO SUPPORT TRANS NEW YORKERS

POWER

FACTS

MELISSA MOORE New York state director, Drug Policy Alliance FY21 OFFICE BUDGET $620,000 IMPACT Moore was media outreach coordinator for the Opportunity Agenda, a progressive communications think tank, from 2014 to 2016.

WHEN New York legalized recreational marijuana in March, NEW the decision didn’t just pave the way for dispensaries. It sought to address decades of racist drug policies. There’s Melissa Moore to thank for that. As leader of the Drug Policy Alliance’s Start SMART (sensible marijuana access through regulated trade) NY campaign, Moore lobbied state officials during two legislative sessions to push through a comprehensive law that reinvests in the communities affected most by the war on drugs. Now 40% of dispensary sales will funnel into schools and drug-treatment programs in those neighborhoods, whose residents also will have the opportunity to become cannabis-industry entrepreneurs through loans, grants and incubator programs. And the law wipes clean criminal records for convictions on drug offenses that are no longer illegal. In her five-year tenure with the Drug Policy Alliance, Moore has committed herself to police reform and the opioid crisis. Last year she helped pass the Safer NY Act bills, which repealed 50-a, a statute that shielded police from misconduct charges. Her activism in the End Overdose NY coalition begot weekly rallies at City Hall and civil disobedience at the governor’s office to push for safer consumption spaces. — SUZANNAH CAVANAUGH

KELLY COFFEY

CEO and co-founder, Ellevest

Chief executive, City National Bank

ASSETS UNDER MANAGEMENT $1 billion IMPACT She is chairwoman of the Ellevate Network and the Pax Ellevate Global Women’s Leadership Fund and a member of the Time’s Up global leadership board and the 2U board of directors.

SALLIE Krawcheck’s mission is to get more money into 2011 the hands of RANK: #5 women, but her ultimate goal is a lot bigger. Increased funding for women, she says, not only lets them live better lives but benefits families, communities and the American economy as a whole. Krawcheck, co-founder and chief executive of Ellevest, a digital investment platform for women, first built a successful career on Wall Street. She started out as a research analyst and became CEO of several financial powerhouses including investment firm Sanford C. Bernstein, Citigroup’s wealth-management division, Bank of America’s Merrill Lynch unit and US Trust. Ellevest, founded in 2015, doubled its assets under management last year to $1 billion. Today the firm has 123,000 clients and makes frequent appearances on up-and-coming lists including CNBC’s top 50 disruptors, LinkedIn’s 50 most-sought-after startups and Entrepreneur’s top 100 brilliant ideas. Krawcheck has been named a top female founder by Inc., one of the 100 most innovative founders by Fast Company and the seventh most powerful woman in the world by Forbes. If social media is a measure of influence, Krawcheck has it, with more than 39,000 followers on Instagram, 66,500 on Twitter and 2.1 million on LinkedIn. — JONATHAN LAMANTIA

AMBER RUFFIN Host, The Amber Ruffin Show, and writer, Late Night With Seth Meyers IMPACT In 2014 Ruffin became the first Black woman to write for a U.S. late-night network talk show.

AMBER RUFFIN became familiar to NBC viewers NEW on Late Night With Seth Meyers, headlining the “Amber Says What?” and “Jokes Seth Can’t Tell” segments. But she had her heart set on bigger things. She achieved that goal when The Amber Ruffin Show first aired in September 2020 on Peacock, NBC’s streaming service. Ruffin’s spin on late-night comedy leans into her talent for sketches and social commentary and skips the canned celebrity interviews. NBC brought the show to its lineup for a short trial in the 1:30 a.m. time slot in February, and Peacock picked it up for a second season, which started Oct. 8. The Amber Ruffin Show was nominated for an Emmy this year for outstanding variety-series writing. The Omaha, Neb., native built her comedy career performing improv at the Boom Chicago theater in Amsterdam and at the Second City Mainstage in Chicago. She became the first Black woman to write for an American late-night network talk show in 2014 for Meyers’ program. Ruffin can now add author of a New York Times bestseller to her credentials. She and her older sister, Lacey Lamar, navigated the delicate balance of writing a humor book about bias in You’ll Never Believe What Happened to Lacey: Crazy Stories About Racism. The book, released in January, features the pair pointing out the absurdity of racists. For her next act, Ruffin will be a co-writer with Matthew López on the Broadway adaption of Some Like It Hot—which is expected to hit the stage next year. — J.L.

$8B WAS INVESTED in women-led startups this year, compared with $4B last year.

BANK ASSETS $87 billion IMPACT Coffey is a board member of the Central Park Conservancy and board chairwoman for Marymount School of New York.

VETERAN investment banker Kelly Coffey became NEW the chief executive of City National Bank, a subsidiary of the Royal Bank of Canada, two years ago. Coffey is the fourth person to run the bank—and its first female CEO—in its 67-year history.

GETTY IMAGES

Co-founder and executive director, New York Transgender Advocacy Group

SALLIE KRAWCHECK BUCK ENNIS

50 MOST POWERFUL WOMEN IN NEW YORK

KIARA ST. JAMES

CEO Since taking over, she has been at the helm of the financial institution’s expansion strategy, opening offices in metropolitan areas around the country. Despite the pandemic, Coffey debuted a new flagship financial center in Hudson Yards in October 2020. That came on the heels of two branch openings in August 2020 in Manhattan, in the NoMad and Flatiron districts. City National has five Manhattan offices plus a banking center on Long Island. In addition to broadening the bank’s physical presence during the pandemic, Coffey has increased its virtual operations. Before City National, she was chief executive of the JPMorgan Private Bank. She previously spent more than 20 years in the firm’s investment sector, heading diversified industrials investment banking; equity, foreign exchange and interest rate derivatives marketing; and corporate finance advisory in North America. Coffey recently was named Diversity, Inclusion and Equity CEO of the Year by the Los Angeles Business Journal. — DIANE HESS

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IN THE FIVE YEARS since Ellen Alemany called it quits 2017 on early RANK: 28 retirement to become CIT’s chief executive, she has sculpted the commercial finance company into a top-20 national bank. Her strategy: a combination of divestments and mergers. Alemany relieved CIT of noncore businesses through the sell-offs of aircraft lease company Avolon and European rail leasing business NAACO. Alemany completed the $1 billion acquisition of Mutual of Omaha Bank last year, a deal that expanded the company’s footprint into middle-market banking. In October 2020 Alemany crystallized CIT’s position among the nation’s leading banks by announcing the company’s merger with First Citizens BancShares of Raleigh, N.C.,to create the 20th-largest bank in the U.S. The deal positions Alemany as the vice chairwoman of First Citizens, which will keep its name in the merger, and allows the new company to offer a full suite of banking services beyond mortgage and deposit products. The money isn’t bad either: She will get a $13 million bonus if she retains her role for two years. — S.C.

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TORY BURCH CEO and designer, Tory Burch ESTIMATED 2020 REVENUE $318.4 million IMPACT She is a Council of Fashion Designers of America board member and is founder of the Tory Burch Foundation.

IT’S NO SECRET that the pandemic has been hard on in-store shopping. A McKinsey report found that the industry’s profits fell 93% as Covid-19 shuttered retail storefronts. As a private 2017 company, Tory Burch doesn’t report RANK: 5 revenue, but industry estimates project the luxury retailer—forced to close the majority of its more than 300 stores at some point during the pandemic—took a substantial hit. Even as her own brand struggled, Tory Burch the designer turned her attention to aiding her industry peers. Last year she lobbied the federal government. She emailed Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin, imploring him to roll back or postpone duties and tariffs, and she asked the Trump administration to offer rent relief to retail stores. Meanwhile, Burch transformed her foundation’s website into a guide for female entrepreneurs navigating the federal aid disbursed to small-business owners. The organization launched a series of webinars that offer tips on rebuilding a business and avoiding burnout. In June 2020 Burch continued her foundation’s fellows program, surprising 50 earlycareer female entrepreneurs with acceptance into the initiative, which includes $5,000 for business education. The Tory Burch brand donated $5 million in products to health care workers, plus material for masks and hospital gowns to six New York hospitals. — SUZANNAH CAVANAUGH

BURCH ASSISTS FEMALE BUSINESS OWNERS

TARIKA BARRETT Chief executive, Girls Who Code 2021 BUDGET $14.2 million IMPACT She helped develop the Academy for Software Engineering for the city Department of Education and is a supporter of the Studio Museum and the New York Public Interest Group.

GIRLS WHO CODE, founded in 2012 to address a gender gap NEW across the tech industry, has reached nearly half a million girls who might otherwise never have taken a computer science class. It boasts 90,000 collegeage alumni. Although the organization has long seemed synonymous with its founder, Reshma Saujani, new CEO Tarika Barrett is now shepherding the nonprofit toward its long-range goal: helping to close the gender gap in entry-level tech jobs by the end of the decade. BARRETT Barrett, who HELPS succeeded Saujani in CLOSE April, has played a key TECH’S role at Girls GENDER Who Code since 2016, GAP when she came on board as vice president of programs. She became chief operating officer in 2018. She steered the launch of the organization’s international program and has led its summer immersion program and after-school clubs—the group’s two biggest components. Barrett, who has a doctorate in teaching and learning, was chief program officer at nonprofit iMentor. — MATTHEW FLAMM

WHEN THE PANDEMIC turned the lights out on New York’s performing arts scene, Katherine Farley turned lemons into lemonade. As a leader of Lincoln Center’s reconstruction of David Geffen Hall—home of the New 2017 York Philharmonic—Farley harnessed the RANK: 14 downtime as an opportunity to kick the $550 million restoration into high gear. Lincoln Center has announced that the renovated auditorium will debut next fall, nearly two years ahead of schedule, thanks to months of uninterrupted construction made possible during the pandemic. “The goal of accelerating this project is to invest in New York City at a time when we all have a part to play in its recovery,” she said. Farley, a decades-long champion of New York’s cultural institutions, joined Lincoln Center in 1999. She led the $1.2 billion renovation of the venue’s campus as chairwoman of the Lincoln Center Redevelopment Project from 2006 to 2010. In 2016 she retired from a 32-year career at commercial real estate firm Tishman Speyer. Over the years she has dedicated her time away from Lincoln Center to Rockefeller University and the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation. She is on their boards of directors. — S.C.

“WE ALL HAVE A PART TO PLAY IN NEW YORK’S RECOVERY”

50 MOST POWERFUL WOMEN IN NEW YORK

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FY2020 BUDGET $106 million IMPACT Farley is a member of the Rockefeller University and Andrew W. Mellon Foundation boards.

Chairwoman, Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts

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Chairwoman and CEO, CIT Group and subsidiary CIT Bank 2020 NET FINANCE REVENUE $1.3 billion IMPACT She is a board member and chairwoman of the FIS corporate governance and nominating committee; a board member for the Center for Discovery, Catholic Charities of New York and the Partnership for New York City; and an advisory board member of the Mayor’s Fund to Advance New York City.

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KATHERINE FARLEY

MPWNY

ELLEN ALEMANY

MARK YOUR CALENDAR JOIN US MARCH 3, 2022, to celebrate the honorees! Register at CrainsNewYork.com/MPW2022.

$14.5M IS THE AVERAGE salary for NYC’s highest-paid female CEOs, compared with an average of $20.5M for the top-paid men. SOURCE: Crain's analysis

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LEASE AUCTION

Lease Auction NYC Vacant Lots for Lease

Online bids accepted: Dec. 2, 2021 9:00 a.m. to Dec. 9, 2021 9:00 p.m. Two Brooklyn properties available:

• South west corner of New Lots Avenue and • Elton Street • West corner of 37 Street and Fort Hamilton • Parkway

Visit nyc.gov/auctions to place bids and for all auction information.

POSITION AVAILABLE

PUBLIC & LEGAL NOTICES

Compass RE Texas LLC has a role in New York, NY. *Senior QA Engineer [COMP-NY21-SRQAE] – Develop, implement quality assurance policies, conducts tests & inspections, identify process & product issues; SQL queries; design & maintain scripts for automation test & mobile testing for Android and IOS applications. Travel to unanticipated U.S worksites may be required and may work anywhere in the U.S. Mail to: J. Ritch, 90 Fifth Ave Fl 3, New York, NY 10011 & note Job ID#

Notice of Qualification of Mami Pi, LLC. Authority filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 09/09/21. Office location: NY County. LLC formed in Delaware (DE) on 09/03/21. SSNY designated as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to: c/o Steve Bills, 16633 Ventura Blvd., Ste. 815, Encino, CA 91436. Address to be maintained in DE: 1013 Centre Rd., Ste. 403S, Wilmington, DE 19805. Arts of Org. filed with the Secy. of State, 401 Federal St., Ste. 4, Dover, DE 19901. Purpose: any lawful activities.

PUBLIC & LEGAL NOTICES Notice of Formation of SALT 154, LLC. Arts. of Org. filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 10/19/21. Office location: NY County. Princ. office of LLC: 154 W. 120th St., NY, NY 10027. SSNY designated as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to c/o Andre Adams at the princ. office of the LLC. Purpose: Real estate.

Notice of Qualification of BROOKFIELD PROPERTIES (USA) LLC Appl. for Auth. filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 10/05/21. Office location: NY County. LLC formed in Delaware (DE) on 10/13/17. SSNY designated as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to c/o Corporation Service Co. (CSC), 80 State St., Albany, NY 12207-2543. DE addr. of LLC: c/o CSC, 251 Little Falls Dr., Wilmington, DE 19808. Cert. of Form. filed with Secy. of State, Div. of Corps., John G. Townsend Bldg., 401 Federal St. - Ste. 4, Dover, DE 19901. Purpose: Any lawful activity. Notice of formation of Jason Pang, DDS, PLLC. Arts. of Org. filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 08/30/21. Office location: NY County. SSNY designated as agent of LLC upon whom process may be served. SSNY shall mail a copy of process to: 501 5th Ave, #703, NY, NY 10017. Purpose: Dentistry.

Notice is hereby given that a license number 1338550 for a beer, wine and liquor license has been applied SPEAKEASY101 LLC. DBA TIPSY MONK to sell beer, wine and liquor at retail in a restaurant under the Alcoholic Beverage Control law at 42-44 CRESCENT ST., LONG ISLAND CITY, NY 11101 for on-premises consumption.

Notice of Formation of FRANK ROMOFF PARTNERS LLCArts. of Org. filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 08/02/21. Office location: NY County. Princ. office of LLC: 77 Charlton St., Ste. 10E, NY, NY 10014. SSNY designated as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to Lawrence Spielman, SKP, LLP, 1675 Broadway, 20th Fl., NY, NY 10019. Purpose: Investment rental property.

Notice of Formation of 900 AFFORDABLE GP, LLC Arts. of Org. filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 09/23/21. Office location: NY County. Princ. office of LLC: 30 Hudson Yards, NY, NY 10001. SSNY designated as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to Corporation Service Co., 80 State St., Albany, NY 12207-2543. Purpose: Any lawful activity.

Notice of Qualification of CSC GP, LLC Appl. for Auth. filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 10/06/21. Office location: NY County. LLC formed in Delaware (DE) on 04/06/06. SSNY designated as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to the LLC, 55 E. 52nd St., 34th Fl., NY, NY 10055. DE addr. of LLC: Corporation Service Co., 251 Little Falls Dr., Wilmington, DE 19808. Cert. of Form. filed with Secy. of State, 401 Federal St., #4, Dover, DE 19901. Purpose: Any lawful activity.

141 Development LLC, Art. of Org. filed with SSNY 10-28-21. Office Location: NY County. SSNY designated as agent of the LLC for service of process. SSNY shall mail a copy of any process to c/o the LLC, 6 W. 14th St., NY, NY 10011. Purpose: Any lawful act or activity.

Notice of Formation of Goddard Real Estate Development LLC. Arts. of Org. filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 10/22/21. Office location: NY County. SSNY designated as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to: c/o Goddard Riverside Community Center, 593 Columbus Ave., NY, NY 10024. Purpose: any lawful activities.

Notice of Qualification of Brilliant Earth, LLC. Authority filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 06/14/21. Office location: NY County. LLC formed in Delaware (DE) on 11/29/12. SSNY designated as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to: 26 O’Farrell St, 10th Fl., San Francisco, CA 94108. Address to be maintained in DE: 3500 S DuPont Hwy., Dover, DE 19901. Arts of Org. filed with the Secy. of State, 401 Federal St #4, Dover, DE 19901. Purpose: any lawful activities.

Notice of Formation of FIVE IRON GOLF SEATTLE LLC. Arts. of Org. filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 5/28/2021. Office location: New York County. SSNY designated as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to: 883 AVENUE OF THE AMERICAS, Fl 3, NEW YORK, NY 10001 Purpose: Any lawful activity.

Notice of formation of Manhattan Pain Medicine Provider, PLLC. Arts. of Org. filed w/ Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 08/02/2021. Off. loc.: New York Cnty. SSNY designated as agent upon whom process may be served. SSNY shall mail process to: 2 Fifth Ave., Ste 7 , New York, NY 10011. Purpose: Any lawful activity.

PUBLIC & LEGAL NOTICES Notice of Qualification of CityRock Venture Partners II, L.P. Appl. for Auth. filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 10/04/21. Office location: NY County. LP formed in Delaware (DE) on 07/16/21. Duration of LP is Perpetual. SSNY designated as agent of LP upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to Corporation Service Co., 80 State St., Albany, NY 12207-2543. Name and addr. of each general partner are available from SSNY. DE addr. of LP: 251 Little Falls Dr., Wilmington, DE 19808. Cert. of LP filed with Secy. of State of the State of DE, 401 Federal St., Ste. 4, Dover, DE 19901. Purpose: Any lawful activity. NOTICE OF FORMATION of NYCNCC SUB-CDE 15, LLC ( the “LLC”) filed with the Secretary of State of the State of New York (“SSNY”) on 07/ 16/2021. Office location: New York County. The principal business address of the LLC is: One Liberty Plaza, New York, New York 10006. SSNY has been designated as the agent of the LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail service of process to c/o New York City Economic Development Corporation, One Liberty Plaza, New York, New York 10006, Attention: General Counsel. Purpose: any lawful purpose.

Notice of formation of PECUNIAM LLC, file with SOS of NY on 7/22/2021 Loc. in NYC, designed as agent upon whom process may be served SSNY, shall mail process to 2 Pinehurst Ave. Apt F7, NY, NY 10033. Purpose: Any lawful activity.

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NOTICE OF FORMATION OF M-DESIGN BUILD, LLC. Articles of Organization filed with the Secretary of State of NY (SSNY) on 09/12/2021. Office location: NEW YORK County. SSNY has been designated as agent upon whom process against it may be served. The Post Office address to which the SSNY shall mail a copy of any process against the LLC served upon him/ her is: MICHAEL MAHAL, 440 WEST END AVE., NEW YORK, NY 10024 Purpose: any lawful act or activity.

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Notice of Formation of NEXT GENERATION SIMULATORS LLC. Arts. of Org. filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 12/14/2020. Office location: New York County. SSNY designated as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to: 883 AVENUE OF THE AMERICAS, Fl 3, NEW YORK, NY 10001 Purpose: Any lawful activity.

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employees of tour bus companies and sightseeing guides. “Using the power of her office to deliver good news is Politics 101,” said Evan Stavisky, partner at the Parkside Group, a Democratic political consulting firm. “She recognizes she’s the first governor north of the MTA service area since 1920. It makes sense for a governor not from New York City to build support.” She represented New York at the White House, celebrating with President Joe Biden as he signed his $1.2 trillion infrastructure bill into law; announced $30 million to promote green energy in affordale housing; added $2 million for city homeowners affected by Hurricane Ida; and welcomed the New York State Black, Puerto Rican, Hispanic and Asian Legislative Caucus at the

mo, whose plan leaned heavily on a controversial real estate project to fund Penn Station’s rebuild, Hochul intends to fix the commuter experience first. She showcased a new, double-height train hall and even suggested changing the station’s name to reflect New York. “The era of neglecting our Penn Station commuters and the neighboring community is over,” Hochul said when announcing the proposal. “New York leaders are expected to offer visionary ideas and take bold actions.” If there’s a method to the Buffalo native’s five-borough focus, it may come from a calculated assessment: Her opponents in next year’s Democratic Party primary will likely hail from the metropolitan area.

“USING THE POWER OF HER OFFICE TO DELIVER GOOD NEWS IS POLITICS 101.” Executive Mansion. Perhaps most transformative, Hochul declared a new vision for Penn Station on Nov. 4 that differs considerably from the plan promoted by her predecessor, former Gov. Andrew Cuomo. Unlike Cuo-

Keeping the city in her corner

Downstate rivals Attorney General Letitia James has already announced her intention to run for governor, as has New York City Public Advocate Jumaane Williams. Mayor Bill de Blasio is entertaining throwing his hat in the ring. James, Williams and de Blasio all come from Brooklyn, a borough of 1.2 million registered Democrats. The borough accounted for more votes in the 2018 generation election for governor than any of the other four boroughs. Downstate leaders are hoping to get what they can from Hochul’s attention to New York City.

The so-called Triboro Line—which would eventually reach Co-Op City in the Bronx—would run along 24 miles of existing track owned partly by the MTA, Amtrak and CSX, a private freight rail company. “There’s enormous excitement and enthusiasm at a local level for this project,” said Tom Wright, president and CEO of the Regional Plan Association.

HOCHUL AT THE VETERAN’S PARADE The governor also signed 12 bills to support veterans

GOVERNORKATHYHOCHUL/FLICKR

VOTERS

Janno Lieber, acting chair of the Metropolitan Transportation Authority, said during a business breakfast on Nov. 10 that Hochul has been “a great partner for me” and praised her commitment to new infrastructure projects. “She just stepped up and said the one thing everyone is talking about, and that’s how crummy Penn Station is,” Lieber said. “We’ve got a governor that’s been a local official, as well as a congresswoman and a statewide official. She has a unique perspective." Randy Peers, president of the Brooklyn Chamber of Commerce, suggested Hochul could leverage

the Empire State Development Corp.’s capital lending program to bolster the Brooklyn chamber’s $2.5 million EXCELerate Loan Fund, which targets minority-owned businesses. “It’s really important for Brooklyn,” Peers said. “The next phase of this is helping new entrepreneurs. [State funding] opens up tremendous opportunities for us to ensure equity in this recovery.” Another outer-borough opportunity for Hochul lies in championing a new MTA above ground rail line between Brooklyn and Queens, connecting Bay Ridge to Astoria wtihout stopping in Manhattan.

While New York City represents half the state’s vote, Hochul shouldn’t feel pressure to appeal to every voter or support every project championed by interest groups, political consultants cautioned. “The New York City vote is not monolithic, it’s diverse,” Gyory said. “She doesn’t have to sweep the city to win the primary. She just has to avoid being blown out there.” For whatever she ends up doing in the five boroughs, longtime state political junkies view Hochul’s strategy of reaching beyond her base in Buffalo as akin to what the more nationally known Nelson Rockefeller did in cultivating New York City in the 1960s and what the Queens-born Mario Cuomo did in cultivating upstate in the 1980s. Together, the men won a combined seven elections for governor. “It’s a time-tested tactical path,” said Gyory, who also teaches political science at the University at Albany. “But Hochul’s flipped the script. Now she’s doing it in the primary.” ■

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TECH SPOTLIGHT ROYAL TRUMPET MUSHROOMS

BUCK ENNIS

CARTER’s Smallhold has recently launched a cookbook.

FOCAL POINTS

High-tech mushroom farmers in Brooklyn raise $25M with vision for ‘the future of food’

FOUNDED 2017 MANAGEMENT Andrew Carter, co-founder and CEO; Adam DeMartino, co-founder and COO

Smallhold cultivates rare fungi in Williamsburg for sale in grocery stores, restaurants BY RYAN DEFFENBAUGH

he royal trumpet mushroom can grow in just two weeks to weigh more than a pound. Chop one up in a food processor and fry it with the right spice mix and the fungi can pack as much umami flavor as chorizo sausage. That’s according to a new mushroom-focused cookbook curated by the founders of Smallhold, a startup growing the royal trumpet, among several other specialty mushrooms, inside a 3,000-square-foot warehouse in Williamsburg. Mushrooms in the Middle: A Smallhold Cookbook is part of an effort to expand the palate of Americans for specialty fungi. “To us, mushrooms represent the future of food,” co-founders Andrew Carter and Adam DeMartino wrote in the introduction for the book. Smallhold in October raised $25 million in a Series A venture capital investment round that will allow it to work toward that vision, expanding its method of sustainably growing mushrooms to more cities. Two new commercial farms have launched this year in Austin, Texas, with plans to build another in Los Angeles next year. Whole Foods, FreshDirect and grocery chains Safeway and Albertsons are among Smallhold’s 250 corporate customers.

Before Smallhold was founded four years ago, Carter worked for indoor-farming startups that largely focused on leafy greens, such as BrightFarms. He saw a gap in the market for rare fungi. The vast majority of mushrooms consumed in the U.S. are white button—the type you might see sliced on top of a pizza. But the diversity of mushroom types means they could serve as more than just a topping. “They can be either a side dish or sit in the middle of your plate and are overall exceptionally versatile produce,” said Carter, Smallhold’s CEO. “Plus, they’re delicious.” Smallhold grows the mushrooms—with names such as lion’s mane and yellow oyster—in controlled tanks with LED lighting, connected to Wi-Fi or cellular service that allows for constant monitoring of growing conditions. The need for constant control is driven by “thick-headedness and semi-neurotic perfectionism,” as described on the company’s website. The process also allows for a wider range of commercially viable mushrooms. Drawing from lumber industry waste to plant the roots of the vegetable, Smallhold’s mushrooms are USDA-certified organic. The company grew its first fungi in shipping containers in Brooklyn. It has also sold minifarms that grow mushrooms on-site at restaurants and grocery stores, including

Maison Yaki in Prospect Heights and the Gowanus Whole Foods. After Covid-19 sank demand from its restaurant customers, Smallhold last year launched a line of $35 grow-at-home kits. “It turns out that mushrooms are the perfect thing to grow during quarantine,” Carter said.

Investor interest The startup has raised just under $29 million from a list of backers that includes Astanor Ventures, a European venture capital firm focused on innovation in the global food system. AlleyCorp, an investment firm and startup incubator based in Manhattan, invested in Smallhold’s seed and Series A rounds. Smallhold has the potential to be the first global farming company launched in New York, said Kevin Ryan, AlleyCorp’s CEO and co-founder of MongoDB, Zola and Gilt Groupe, among other companies. Smallhold has “developed both new technology for growing mushrooms and a brand—which has never existed in this space before,” Ryan said. “This has the potential to be a global brand doing hundreds of millions of dollars in revenues.” Tech-driven agriculture as a whole has grown quickly in response to the pandemic, headlined by startups including Bowery

FULL-TIME EMPLOYEES 75 FUNDING Smallhold has raised $32.5 million from venture capital investors in two deals. PRODUCT MIX The company has indoor farms in Williamsburg and Austin, Texas, where it grows a range of mushrooms indoors, as well as mini indoor mushroom farms inside restaurants. Smallhold also sells athome mushroom-growing kits through its website. GROWTH STRATEGY The company is opening microfarms across the country and partnering with local restaurants in each city. The next small indoor farm will open in Los Angeles next year. WEBSITE smallhold.com

Farming, which has raised nearly $500 million from venture investors toward growing leafy greens indoors, including just outside of the city in Kearny, New Jersey. “Efficient supply chains, water consumption and land use are necessary for us to exist as a species,” Carter said. “Investors are catching on to this and see the opportunity to feed the world with these newly emerging technologies.” ■

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