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JANUARY 10, 2022

STATE OF THE STATE

Hochul details plans for rebates, tax cuts, job training Governor says she aims to make New York most worker-friendly in U.S.

ECONOMIC OUTLOOK

BY BRIAN PASCUS

G

This will be a pivotal year for New York

Our reporters weigh in with 23 predictions. SECTION BEGINS ON PAGE 13 FATTER PAYCHECKS

Infection bouts will promote more adaptive strategies.

Ambitious local restaurateurs with extra cash—as well as out-of-towners and chains—will look to replace shuttered eateries.

© 2022 CRAIN COMMUNICATIONS INC.

BUSINESS SPOTLIGHT

The theater comes to your living room PAGE 23

BUCK ENNIS

For the first time, cannabis is one of the larger tenant categories.

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$1B

A NEW CROP OF RESTAURANTS

NEGOTIABLE RENTS

NEWSPAPER

A number of employers plan to ask employees to return, and office landlords are expected to add perks for the workers coming in.

Wages will continue to rise as employers desperately seek workers.

WAVES OF COVID-19

VOL. 38, NO. 1

BACK TO THE OFFICE?

ov. Kathy Hochul unveiled a pro-business agenda in her first State of the State address, last Wednesday, promising billions of dollars in tax cuts and investments for job creation and workforce development.

“We’re going to jump-start our economic recovery by being the most business-friendly and worker-friendly state in the nation,” Hochul said.

“Our goal is for New York to be TAX REBATE known nationalthe governor ly as the place is planning for that grows and middle-class attracts talent, New Yorkers and the businesses will follow.”

The governor announced her wide-ranging agenda to a small audience at the Capitol Building in Albany, punctuated by her desire to push billions of dollars in state aid into the middle-class workforce.

Hochul said she would accelerate a $1.2 billion tax cut and initiate a $1 billion property tax-cut rebate for middle-class New Yorkers.

“That means more than 6 million middle-class taxpayers will get more money in their pocket sooner, at a time when inflation is robbing See TAXES on page 22

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TECHNOLOGY

How the ‘computer geek’ new mayor could make his mark on the city’s burgeoning tech industry

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self-professed computer geek, Mayor Eric Adams now oversees a city where the technology industry is thriving, but technology itself hasn’t always met the needs of all New Yorkers.

Here are the tech story lines to watch in his first year as mayor.

Looking at all things crypto: The tech policy goal that has brought the most national attention to Adams is, undoubtedly, his embrace of cryptocurrencies and their underlying blockchain technology. In November he pledged to convert his first paychecks to Bitcoin and introduce blockchain lessons to public schools.

The local crypto scene was growing before Adams made those comments—crypto firms held three of the top 10 slots on Crain’s recent tech unicorns list. But there is value in leveraging the large microphone of City Hall, as noted by Deven Parekh, a managing director at Insight Partners, one of New York’s oldest and most prolific venture capital firms. He said in a recent interview with Crain’s that Miami’s tech scene was boosted by similar encouragement from Mayor Francis Suarez. “If you go back to [Suarez’s] famous tweet—“How can I help?”—it was really as simple as showing interest,” Parekh said.

Connecting New Yorkers with jobs: In a recent poll of 1,000 New York City voters, more than half either agreed or somewhat agreed that the presence of technology companies in-

creases housing costs and “generally makes life harder for normal people living close to them,” according to Change Research and Embold Research.

Tech companies can counter negative perceptions by ensuring more New Yorkers have access to the jobs they offer, said Julie Samuels, executive director of Tech:NYC, the industry group that commissioned the poll. The survey found broad support for the idea of expanding city programs that provide training for tech jobs, such as apprenticeships and skills courses.

There was also wide agreement that governments need to help expand tech training programs.

Adams recently named Maria Torres-Springer deputy mayor for economic and workforce development. Torres-Springer previously oversaw the launch of the de Blasio administration’s Tech Talent Pipeline, a training partnership with the private sector that advocacy groups have called to be expanded.

“Mayor Adams has made clear he wants to work with the private sector,” said Samuels, who co-chaired Adams’ tech transition committee.

“On the other end, you will see companies coming to the table making robust hiring commitments.”

Managing the return to office: Though hiring within the technology sector has remained strong even following the onset of Covid, the industry is the most hesitant to return to the office—and that was true even before the omicron variant.

Remote work could blunt the eco-

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201 W. 52nd St. Time: Noon to 2:30 p.m.

CrainsNewYork.com/ MPW2022

Join Crain’s for an in-person lunch to celebrate the 2021 Most Powerful Women honorees.

Katherine Farley, chair of Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts, and Melba Wilson, founder and owner of Melba’s restaurant as well as president of the NYC Hospitality Alliance, will deliver an inspiring keynote discussion.

Nancy Hagans, president of the New York State Nurses Association, and Kimberly Godwin, president of ABC News, will take part in an exciting panel led by Crain’s Managing Editor Telisha Bryan.

CORRECTION ■ John Liu served as city comptroller from 2010 to 2013. He served on the City Council from 2002 to 2009. The dates were incorrect in “Does Scott Stringer deserve a second chance?” published Dec. 20.

LINKNYC kiosks are getting a 5G-enabled restart.

paign trail to create a “MyCity” portal that would be a one-stop shop for New Yorkers to interact with their city online.

Bridging the digital divide: There are still millions of New Yorkers without access to speedy broadband, either because the cost is too high or for a lack of options. As a borough president and a mayoral candidate, Adams put forth a “universal internet guarantee,” driven in part by requir-

ing real estate developers to provide affordable internet options in rezoned neighborhoods.

There are several de Blasio administration plans Adams could either revamp or build from, such as the 5G-enabled restart of LinkNYC and an Internet Master Plan that allows small internet service providers to add new broadband options by installing equipment on city assets. ■

HEALTH CARE

As Covid test turnaround times triple, clinics and labs try to mitigate crisis

BY SHUAN SIM

CONFERENCE CALLOUT

MANHATTAN MANOR

nomic impact of the industry, especially the influence of tech firms on the commercial real estate market.

Adams has already used his bully pulpit to encourage the financial industry to bring back employees; could tech be next? “I need my companies back open and operating,” Adams said on Bloomberg TV. “You can’t run a city like New York on 30% occupancy in buildings. We need to get back to business and open our city.”

Streamlining government tech: Covid-19 exposed many of the ways that government falls short in building tech that supports its services, as exemplified most recently by the struggle to find tests during the omicron surge.

Adams has pledged to make things run more smoothly, starting with his appointment last month of Matthew Fraser as chief technology officer. In an interview with City & State, Fraser said he planned to directly oversee the many city government offices with tech responsibilities—such as his new office, the Department of Information Technology and Telecommunications and Cyber Command—potentially streamlining operations.

And Adams pledged on the cam-

BUCK ENNIS

BY RYAN DEFFENBAUGH

T

he omicron surge has prompted sights unseen since Delta’s surge last fall: testing queues wrapping around the block and longer wait times for results. Clinics and testing labs pointed to staffing challenges as the culprit for bottlenecks, and beyond trying to hire more staff, some have attempted creative measures to alleviate the situation.

The city saw its seven-day positivity rate skyrocket to 35%, and various urgent care clinics and testing labs have also reported longer lead times for returning results.

CityMD’s turnaround time has increased to between five and seven days, when it was previously about two days. At NYC Health + Hospitals, the average turnaround time is 24 hours, although there could be outliers of up to 48 hours, said CEO Dr. Mitchell Katz.

Delays with processing samples occurs both before specimens are analyzed and with analysis itself, due to staffing issues, said Dr. Jon Cohen, CEO of BioReference Labs.

Though staffing challenges are the crux of delays, a few tactics have

been deployed to address issues.

When the omicron variant emerged, BioReference’s data-entry department was staffed at about 30% of maximum capacity, and medical technicians were at about 50%. To shore up its data-entry front, BioReference offered current staff $1,000 per six-hour shift to tackle the task, managing to clear out its backlog. The data-entry team has since hired its full capacity, although finding medical technicians for the laboratory side remains challenging, Cohen added.

Warnings issued Efficient testing poses a hurdle for consumers and sites alike. Some patients saw delays as long as 11 days, according to complaints lodged with Attorney General Letitia James’ office regarding misleading advertised turnaround times.

Her office has sent warning letters for sites to rectify signage or issue refunds. ClearMD, an urgent care network with clinics in Manhattan and Queens, was one of the firms issued a warning letter. According to complaints, at one point ClearMD charged nearly $500 with a promise of results in two hours,

which was not fulfilled. A rate of $389 for a two- to four-hour test result was posted on ClearMD’s website at press time.

The company said its turnaround claims were not misleading.

“ClearMD stands by its commitment to offer rapid and reliable Covid-19 testing. As our patient load has more than tripled over the last month, we have worked tirelessly to bolster our staff and enhance our daily operations to meet the increased demand,” a spokesperson said, adding that since adjusting its personnel and intake procedures, the company is not experiencing a backlog.

As cases mount, greater support from state or federal agencies could help companies handling Covid needs avoid whiplash when addressing surges, according to Cohen.

“We’ve been ping-ponging—we set up infrastructure for the original wave and took it down when it stopped, and did so for the subsequent wave,” Cohen said. “It’s difficult for companies to make investments into future Covid capabilities without knowing how the virus will play out in the future.” ■

Vol. 38, No. 1, January 10, 2022—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 2022 by Crain Communications Inc. All rights reserved.

2 | CRAIN’S NEW YORK BUSINESS | JANUARY 10, 2022

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TECHNOLOGY

BUCK ENNIS

AT THE DIME in Williamsburg, 2,000 packages were delivered in November alone.

Inside the Wild West of package deliveries Lawmakers, landlords seek solutions to the rise in e-commerce couriers clogging city streets

BY RYAN DEFFENBAUGH AND CARA EISENPRESS

A

t The Dime, a 177-unit apartment tower in Williamsburg that opened in the summer of 2020, developer Tavros Capital paid $15,000 to install an automated “smart package room.”

The investment was Tavros’ attempt to get a handle on the pandemonium created by the nearly 100 e-commerce packages that arrive, on average, each day.

“There is almost nothing more painful in the real estate industry than dealing with e-commerce and packages,” said Nicholas Silvers, founding partner of Tavros Capital, which co-developed the building with Charney Cos. The soaring number of residential deliveries is altering how the city uses its industrial space, streets, sidewalks and sanitation services and giving rise to the question: Who does the city belong to, the people or their packages?

THE NUMBER OF TRUCKS ENTERING THE CITY HAS INCREASED BY 10% SINCE 2020 The average number of trucks entering New York City in thousands, Q1–Q3 2019–2021 800K 600K

617K

578K

2019

2020

636K

400K 200K 0

SOURCE: Port Authority of New York and New Jersey

2021

The tension has caused frustrations to run high among competing factions of New Yorkers, especially as package volume soared during the holiday season.

A Crain’s data review shows: ● New York City residents receive an average of 2.3 million packages per day. That’s according to Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute’s Center of Excellence for Sustainable Urban Freight Systems. The daily figure is up from 1.8 million prepandemic.

Household deliveries now outpace those to businesses, according to the center’s director, José Holguín-Veras. ● Online shopping has exploded. In the third quarter of 2021, Americans allocated 13% of their total retail spending to e-commerce goods—a total of $214.6 billion. A decade ago less than 5% of goods were purchased online. ● Shippers are fighting for warehouse space. Nearly twothirds of industrial leasing activity in the city’s outer See DELIVERY on page 17 JANUARY 10, 2022 | CRAIN’S NEW YORK BUSINESS | 3

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RESIDENTIAL SPOTLIGHT

A beaux arts co-op with tabloid ties hits the market The not-quite-combined unit sits inside the Venetian palace–styled former home of publisher Joseph Pulitzer

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king of yellow journalism built it. Years later a mutual fund maven called it home. Now No. 3AC at 11 E. 73rd St.—a full-floor co-op with beaux arts flourishes—awaits its latest captain of industry.

The three-bedroom, three-anda-half-bath apartment, which came to market Dec. 9 at $12 million, is inside the Pulitzer mansion, the Venetian palace–styled former home of publisher Joseph Pulitzer.

Although Pulitzer might be best known for the awards he created for serious reporting, he actually made his career selling sensational tabloids such as The World. In 1903 he hired architect Stanford White to

“THIS APARTMENT IS AS RARE AS HEN’S TEETH. IT’S A REALLY INCREDIBLE HOME” design his East 73rd Street property, a balustrade-lined edifice where Pulitzer spent the final eight years of his life. Later, a developer carved the 5-story building into apartments, and in the 1950s it went co-op.

A few decades later, the then-landmark caught the eye of Howard Stein, who had several financial claims to fame. He’s credited with increasing the size of the mutual-fund market by way of direct

$12M

LISTING PRICE for the three-bedroom, three-and-a-half-bath apartment mailings to possible investors. And he popularized tax-free municipal bonds. (He also, perhaps improbably for a Wall Street wizard, ended up on President Richard Nixon’s enemies list for his antiwar stance.)

In 1990, Stein snapped up Nos. 3A and 3C and treated them as a single apartment, records show, even though he never really combined them. There are still two kitchens in the home, for instance.

Other features include 15-foot ceilings, arched French doors, fireplaces and a terrace.

Stein died in 2011.

His wife, Jean, who continued to live in the apartment, died last year.

The spacious spread might not be empty for long. Richard McTighe, the Douglas Elliman agent listing it, said he received offers within a day.

“This apartment is as rare as hen’s teeth,” said McTighe, who added that most Gilded Age single-family mansions of comparable dimensions wind up as clubs or museums, as did the nearby Cooper Hewitt, on East 91st Street, the former Andrew Carnegie mansion.

“It’s a really incredible home,” McTighe said. ■

STREETEASY.COM

BY C. J. HUGHES

NO. 3AC AT 11 E. 73RD ST. features 15-foot ceilings, arched French doors, fireplaces and a terrace.

REAL ESTATE

Luxury real estate kicks off 2022 by breaking a record

M

anhattan’s luxury real estate market has started the year on a high note.

The 22 contracts signed during the week ending Jan. 2 broke the record for the most ever recorded above $4 million at this time of year, according to a report by Olshan Realty. ​​The previous high was 15 signed contracts as the city was ringing in 2017, the data shows.

But as demand for luxury homes

from the international buyers who usually pour millions into Manhattan investment properties. They haven’t purchased much property in the city since the pandemic began, Donna Olshan, president of Olshan Realty, said.

“I just got off the phone with a client whom I sold a Midtown condo to in 1990. She had it rented for 30 years to diplomats, and now it's been empty for quite a while,” she said. “It’s an example of the foreign market not being there. Unless you have a private jet, flying now is really tough.”

“NEW YORKERS WILL COME OUT IN THE PLAGUE IF THEY’RE GETTING A DEAL” remains robust, the discounts on these pricey abodes continue to fall, reaching an average of 2%.

That’s down from the price cuts of more than 15% that the market was seeing in 2020 and early 2021.

This time the sales aren’t coming

More space

Most luxury sales during the course of the pandemic have been to New Yorkers or people from California and Texas, she added, and most of them want more space so they can accommodate a hybrid work model.

“New Yorkers have demonstrated that they will come out in the middle of the plague if they think

FLANK

BY NATALIE SACHMECHI

they’re getting a deal,” Olshan said.

They’re responsible for fueling sales in new developments on the Upper East Side, including 109 E. 79th St., and Naftali Group’s 1165

Madison Ave., which took the top two spots for the record week’s most expensive deals. Both buildings have yet to be completed.

“People are coming to the con-

clusion that no matter where they go, they can’t get away from a Covid variant,” Olshan said. “Life is too short, and you’ve gotta have a home.” ■

4 | CRAIN’S NEW YORK BUSINESS | January 10, 2022

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RESTAURANTS

Adams’ vegan lifestyle casts a spotlight on the city’s plant-based food options HOSPITALITY

To warm up January, 110 hotels offer discounts

BY CARA EISENPRESS

N

ew York City’s hotels are hoping that a substantial across-the-board discount will entice winter travelers to the city—helping make up for a chilly business climate in December.

More than 100 hotels are offering a 22% discount on standard room rates until Feb. 13—right before Valentine’s Day. NYC & Company, the city’s marketing organization, is running the promotion. The inns participating include the Beekman Hotel, Lotte New York Palace, the Pierre New York in Manhattan and the William Vale in Brooklyn.

This is the first time NYC & Company has put its weight behind the discount incentive and combined it with a handful of other citywide programs that will begin Jan. 18: NYC Restaurant Week, NYC Broadway Week and NYC Must-See Week. It's all part of a coordinated effort to support hospitality and tourism, which have been slow to recover.

The discount may be an important boost for what is traditionally a slow month, likely made slower by the resurgence of Covid-19 cases. By the time the discount is over, said Hotel Association President Vijay Dandapani, “I think we’ll be back where we were pre-omicron.”

The offering also helps individual hotels avoid the appearance of needing to offer discounts to fill rooms—a blow to high-end brands, Dandapani said.

Despite the lower rate, services at the hotels will not be at 78% of their normal level, he said.

In some typical prepandemic years, average hotel room rates dropped by more than $100 between December and January, Dandapani said. Occupancy would usually fall—going from around 85% in December to less than three-quarters full in January, he said.

Last year was a minor exception, as the city’s recovery began to accelerate in January, with both room demand and average revenue per available room steadily climbing through July.

December was also unusual. The month started off with promise. Visitors flocked to holiday offerings and Broadway shows, and they filled up hotels. The weekend of Dec. 10 had the highest occupancy of the postMarch 2020 era. ■

O

n Jan. 1, his first day in office, Mayor Eric Adams ate a takeout salad topped with chickpeas, quinoa and mushrooms from Los Angeles–based chain Sweetgreen.

The next day featured a morning smoothie from Joe and the Juice, a coffee and juice chain out of Copenhagen, and a bowl of kale, quinoa, sweet potatoes, broccoli and tofu from Dig, the vegetable-centric restaurant group headquartered in New York City.

Day three brought a stop at citybased Just Salad, where the mayor ordered a mix of corn, tofu, beets, kale and chickpeas, according to the Twitter account of administration official Rachel Atcheson.

That the city’s first vegan mayor can so easily source his lunches is evidence of how the local culinary landscape in the past five years has shifted, especially as the pursuit of wellness has become mainstream.

Adams, for his part, credits a whole foods–centric, plant-based diet with curing his diabetes, impaired vision and other serious health problems diagnosed in 2016. He walks into his post in a city that seems to be on a similar path.

“Mayor Adams isn’t causing this,” said Matt Marshall, who tracks the vegan food scene on Instagram at @vegan.nyx. “But we’re at this huge turning point, where having a vegan mayor and having all these restaurants opening, it’s all moving in the same direction.”

New York City has about 1,000 specifically vegetarian and vegan restaurants, according to review site Happy Cow. In 2008, when Marshall adopted a vegan diet, he

BLOOMBERG

AP PHOTO

BY CARA EISENPRESS

The seasonal boom accompanies a longer-term change in how New Yorkers eat.

“More and more people are enrolling in a healthier lifestyle,” Kenner said. Someone who chooses a whole foods-based meal once a week in January might end up ordering that same lunch more frequently as the year progresses.

For some, each meal choice can be about life and death, not just lettuce. At the Nourish Spot, a takeout vegetarian restaurant and juice bar in Queens, owner Dawn Kelly said that, more and more, customers are coming in with literal doctor’s prescriptions for special plant-based diets. She said she watches as clients lose weight or thrive after cancer diagnoses.

Covid’s arrival heightened her customers’ search for good health through food, she said. “People were calling on the phone and texting,” Kelly remembered. They would ask, “Ms. Dawn, what should I take?”

The big sellers at the Nourish Spot are homemade vegetable soups; juices with wheatgrass, ginger and turmeric; nuts that contain trace minerals such as magnesium; and a smoothie known as the Green Goblin. Business has increased each year, and Kelly expects this year will count the highest sales yet.

That’s what Sabrina Rudin, owner of vegetarian eatery Spring Café Aspen in Lower Manhattan, has noticed among her clientele.

“People are starting to understand the connection between the idea of wanting to keep themselves

“THERE WILL BE A LOT OF RESTAURANTS THAT ANTICIPATE HIM COMING IN” remembers there being about 20 all-vegan spots, including nowclosed cult favorites such as Angelica Kitchen in the East Village. Now there are more than 200, including high-end Eleven Madison Park, where most dishes contain no animal products. Hundreds more—including the likes of Just Salad and Dig, and even mainstays such as Serendipity3, among others—have plentiful meat-free and nutritious options, although they are not fully vegetarian.

Seasonal boom The mayor’s vegan lifestyle comes to prominence during a month that already booms for restaurants perceived as healthy: January.

Sales can register as much as 20% above what they did in an average December or February, said Nick Kenner, chief executive of Just Salad.

which opened in 2021 and has already accumulated regulars.

“Not only do we get people who come or order every day Not just for vegans for lunch, they are making the choice to eat In May Steven Salm Spring Café Aspen two or opened a branch of PlanROUGHLY ta Queen, one of several three times a week,” Ruthe number of concepts in his all-vegan din said. Dishes such as vegetarian and portfolio of restaurants spinach-mushroom envegan restaurants already operating in Florchiladas, vegetarian burin the city, per ritos and spaghetti ida and Canada.

Happy Cow squash with a temPlanta Queen serves vegetable sushi such as peh-based vegetarian mushroom “bacon” inari, “bolognese” are among wok-made dishes such as the most frequently orpineapple fried rice and dered.

YEAR Adams was diagnosed with small plates such as XO The vegetable-focused health issues that tofu. So far sales have proprietors of the hospiled him toward been brisk, he said—but tality industry said they the vegan path not only among the meatwere eager to watch what free crowd.

Adams would do with his “A very big part of our ability to cast a spotlight ethos, and why Planta was created on their approach to cuisine. in the first place, was to not [only] “This is one of the more exciting attract plant-based diners,” Salm political figures I’ll have the ability said. To have a larger impact on the to live through firsthand,” Salm environment and people’s health, said, adding that having a politician he said, restaurants such as his have who views food through a lens simto appeal to a broad range of diners, ilar to his could help bring discusnot just official vegans or vegetari- sions of sustainability, environmentalism and food sourcing to the ans.

Similarly, at Spring Café Aspen, forefront. “it doesn’t feel like when our guests Restaurants outside the plant-focome in, it’s their one vegetarian cused sphere might want to pay atmeal or their meatless Monday,” tention too, Marshall said. Adams Rudin said. The lifelong New Yorker has said that he will frequently pop and lifelong vegetarian said she into restaurants and clubs throughdoes not even market the restau- out the city. That means everyone rant as “plant-based.” ought to be ready for their potential Rudin has run the original Spring vegan guest.

“I think there will be a lot of Café Aspen in Aspen, Colorado, for nine years, although she lives in restaurants that anticipate him New York City. She identified the coming in one day and will have same demand in her hometown for something ready for him, or people nourishing, well-made food that who eat like him,” Marshall noted. had brought her success in Aspen. “It will encourage restaurants to In March 2020 she finished raising have a solid vegan option on their money for the New York location, menu.” ■ healthy and seeing that one way to do that is to make good choices about food,” she said.

1,000 2016

January 10, 2022 | CRAIN’S NEW YORK BUSINESS | 5

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SPONSORED CONTENT

Optimism is warranted despite business challenges, New York executives say interactions, so we’re encouraging people to come in a few days a week.”

Even as the outlook on the pandemic seesaws from gloomy to hopeful and back again, the New York City business world has cause for optimism.

That’s the aggregate takeaway from panelists at a Dec. 1 virtual panel conducted by Crain’s Content Studio and sponsored by the accounting and consulting firm Baker Tilly. The discussion, moderated by Fred Gabriel, publisher and executive editor of Crain’s New York Business, engaged several executives to provide a cross-industry look into trends, many of them brought on by the pandemic, that affect the city’s business community.

The panelists broadly identified similar challenges, but their approach toward them often diverged. Employee vaccine mandates, for example, were a case in point.

Mikrakis cautioned, however, that companies that insist on their employees returning fully are likely to have a higher attrition rate than those that adopt a more flexible model.

Baker Tilly’s Fenske concurred with Mikrakis about the danger of return-to-work mandates. Her organization, she explained, has adopted an approach grounded in behavioral economics that offers in-office perks, such as free lunches and on-site gyms, to draw employees back to the workplace.

CHRISTINE FENSKE

“We’ve come at this [the mandates] with the goal of preserving employee choice,” said Christine Fenske, managing partner of financial services at Baker Tilly. “But we’ve had to make changes to continue doing so while complying with vaccine rules for government contractors.”

The organization is considering a system of “blue days” and “orange days”; vaccinated employees are allowed in the office on the former and unvaccinated on the latter. This has limited mingling—and infection seeding—between the two groups and would be implemented if/ when the federal, state or local governments require it.

This varies by industry, of course, because some require more in-person collaboration than others.

FRED GABRIEL

GIL ADDO

At RubiconMD, employee dispersion has been so dramatic that the company gave up its previous office space. “Prepandemic, most of our workforce was in New York,” said Addo.

“Now less than half is, and we’ve embraced a hybrid model.”

His tale is but one in a chronicle of similar stories occurring across the city, as evidenced by data collected in a survey during the fall. The survey, also sponsored by Baker Tilly, canvassed senior executives in the city for their opinions on the main challenges and concerns of the business community in this new year. The 137 respondents—most of them owners, partners, presidents or C-suite executives—hailed from a variety of industries, with financial services, real estate and professional services having the largest representation.

But for Gil Addo, CEO and co-founder of the digital health Of the executives surveyed, nearly platform RubiconMD, that’s NICHOLAS MITRAKIS two-thirds reported that their precisely the scenario he’s trying offices had reopened. But half expected their to dodge. “We wanted to avoid creating two firms to move to a hybrid work model. Only classes within our company, with some people at one-third expected a full-time return to the in-person events and others unable to attend,” he office. said. “So we decided not to give our employees that choice. We mandated vaccines—which we The upshot of that, of course, is decreased felt was the right call as a part of the health care demand for commercial real estate—and the industry.”

Panelists were unanimous in lamenting the difficulties involved in getting employees back into the office after nearly two years of remote work.

“Even after our office reopened, it was mostly vacant,” shared Nicholas Mitrakis, senior vice president and corporate controller at the engineering professional services firm WSP. “But employees really benefit from face-to-face

their landlords to rework existing leases.

Talent recruitment and retention was identified—in the survey and by the panel—as an area of high concern for this year. Forty-four percent of those surveyed listed it as a top challenge. The issue stems from a lack of quality candidates and an extremely competitive job market, respondents said.

“THERE’S A TON OF DEMAND FOR WORK OUT THERE. NOT HAVING ENOUGH EMPLOYEES TO DO IT ALL — THAT’S A GOOD PROBLEM TO HAVE.” — Nicholas Mitrakis “We have no shortage of work,” WSP’s Mitrakis said. “We’re diversified in many industries— water, energy, real estate—and the recent infrastructure bill has given us a lot of opportunity. But we’re struggling to find qualified people.”

Employers are using diverse tactics to attract and retain talent. Forty-five percent of those surveyed are touting improved work-life balance as part of their recruitment efforts. Nearly one-third are raising salaries.

At RubiconMD, geographic constraints on hiring have been relaxed. “We’ve onboarded many people living in Spain,” Addo reported. “Hiring is less competitive there than in New York City.

And our foreign employees tend to stay at their jobs longer.”

“We believe culture is central to retention,” Fenske said. To strengthen its ranks, her firm has offered more holiday time and recently distributed holiday gift boxes. “We’ve also beefed up our employee referral process, increasing rewards for employees who get their friends to join Baker Tilly.”

The panelists agreed that organizations are looking at an employee’s market in which employers must use every device available to lure quality candidates to them. This raises the question: How long can organizations cater to employees and still grow their businesses?

According to Fenske, it depends. “Baker Tilly is a partnership, so we can sustain this model” she said. “Public companies may not have that sort

“WE BELIEVE CULTURE IS CENTRAL TO RETENTION.” — Christine Fenske data bears that out. More than one-third of respondents expected a reduction in their office space, and one-quarter had already spoken with

of flexibility, so for them it may not be sustainable. But if they don’t attract quality employees, they can’t grow their businesses

either. It’s a real Catch-22.”

As an executive at the publicly traded WSP, Mitrakis can vouch for that. “Some companies are offering employees crazy amounts of money,” he said. “Firms are poaching workers from each other, which drives up compensation rates even higher. At some point it will come to a head—and I suspect the most expensive employees will be the first ones on the chopping block.”

WSP tripled its number of recruiters recently, but it’s still not enough. More employees are leaving the organization than are joining it, which means staffing is a constant game of catch-up.

Fueling some resignations, Mitrakis said, is a lack of personal connection between workers and the organizations that employ them—a predictable phenomenon when employees work largely from home. Even those who appear at the office are greeted by empty workspaces and echoing halls.

It’s not surprising, then, that survey respondents were somewhat grim when appraising work culture. Burnout and stress were reported. Some noted difficulties with communication and securing new clients.

Others pointed to decreased productivity and motivation.

Fenske has seen these realities in the trenches.

“We’ve observed more strain in our employees as they’ve been working from home,” she said.

CRAIN’SCONTENTSTUDIO NEW YORK

COPY EDITOR ______ COLD READER ______ WRITER ______ SENIOR EDITOR ______ FINAL ______ P006_P007_CN_20220110.indd 6

1/7/22 8:50 AM

“Peo unti

But hope clim perc pess

Thes

“

plan the n sang year

In a on in inve decr

For on d

“Wit

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rs tion e to

but ng ans

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SPONSORED CONTENT

CFO FORECAST SURVEY

BY THE NUMBERS

Nearly two-thirds of executives surveyed reported that their offices had reopened.

Half

expected their firms to move to a hybrid work model.

One-third

expected a full-time return to the office.

One-third

of respondents expected a reduction in their office space.

One-quarter

had already spoken with their landlords to rework existing leases.

44%

of those surveyed listed talent recruitment and retention as a top challenge.

“People log in at 7 a.m. and are on their laptops until 11 p.m. It’s not good for anyone.”

But on a brighter note, survey respondents were hopeful overall when questioned about the business climate for the next 12 to 24 months. Sixty-four percent reported being optimistic; just 28% said pessimism described their feeling.

These sentiments align with respondents’ business

work and more for occasional meetings, we’ve realized we need more meeting spaces,” Addo of RubiconMD said. “We also need to engage technology solutions to help virtual employees participate in a meaningful way.”

Panelists shared a mirthful moment recounting the ways technology has made for quirkier meetings— from muted participants to canine interlopers—the past two years.

“WITH PEOPLE COMING INTO THE OFFICE LESS FOR DAILY WORK AND MORE FOR OCCASIONAL MEETINGS, WE’VE REALIZED WE NEED MORE MEETING SPACES.” — Gil Addo plans: Close to half expect to step up operations in the next 12 months. One in ten, apparently less sanguine, expects to dial back plans in the coming year.

In a similar vein, fully 81% of those surveyed plan on increasing or maintaining their capital investment plans. Nineteen percent plan to decrease them.

For many organizations, such investments center on digital infrastructure and new work models.

“With people coming into the office less for daily

“The business community as a whole will need to be more thoughtful and intentional about improving the virtual experience,” Addo said.

That is already happening.

Nearly three-quarters of survey respondents are undertaking digital transformation, with plans to invest in digitization. Primarily, businesses are investing in technology tools, such as Cisco, Microsoft and Zoom, and are working to automate processes. They are leveraging mobile technology, introducing e-commerce strategies, and digitizing receipts and payments.

Half

Tech investments at some organizations relate directly to Covid-19.

expect to step up operations in the next 12 months.

“At WSP, we developed an app designed to stop the spread,” Mitrakis shared. “Employees who want to work in the office must check in through the app, which screens them for symptoms before they enter. This also helps us restrict capacity to 50%.”

One in ten

expects to dial back plans in the coming year.

To Addo, things seem to be moving in the right direction. “People are feeling optimistic about New York right now,” he said. “Our city thrives on events and real-life socializing, and we’ve developed responsible ways to get people out there. I think New York is ready to come back.”

Echoing the positive sentiments of survey respondents, the panelists ended by noting one thing they were optimistic about.

81%

of those surveyed plan on increasing or maintaining their capital investment plans.

19%

“There’s a ton of demand for work out there,” Mitrakis said. “Not having enough employees to do it all—that’s a good problem to have.”

Addo is excited about the benefits of the hybrid work model. “Many people that would have dropped out of the workforce for various reasons are able to stay due to the flexibility brought on by the pandemic,” he said.

“I’m also feeling good about the inroads we’ve made on racial justice and diversity in the past year.”

“I think we’ve all realized that we’re never going back to March 2020,” Fenske said. “We’ve finally accepted that this is the new normal—and we’re finding that we might actually like it.”

plan to decrease them.

Three-quarters

of survey respondents are undertaking digital transformation, with plans to invest in digitization. *Crain’s New York Business “CFO Forecast” Survey, October 2021, n=137 respondents

COPY EDITOR______ COLD READER______ WRITER______ SENIOR EDITOR______ FINAL______ P006_P007_CN_20220110.indd 7

1/7/22 8:51 AM

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

EDITORIAL

publisher/executive editor

New mayor’s embrace of private-sector vaccine mandate is the right step forward

Jennifer Samuels art director Carolyn McClain photographer Buck Ennis senior reporters Cara Eisenpress,

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

Brian Pascus, Natalie Sachmechi, Brandon Sanchez, Shuan Sim op-ed editor Jan Parr,

opinion@crainsnewyork.com executive assistant Brittany Brown to contact the newsroom:

editors@crainsnewyork.com www.crainsnewyork.com/staff 685 Third Ave., New York, NY 10017-4024 ADVERTISING

www.crainsnewyork.com/advertise sales manager Courtney McCombs account executives Kelly Maier, Marc Rebucci,

Laura Warren people on the move manager Debora Stein,

dstein@crain.com

mentioned this dynamic in November in a story about restaurant workers who didn’t show proof of vaccination. It was easier to blame de Blasio, Burke told Crain’s reporter Cara Eisenpress. “I’m not the one putting them out of work,” he said. “The mayor is.”

In a world where businesses compete for advantage, it falls to

government to create some rules that are “non-rivalrous and non-excludable,” according to the work of economist Paul Samuelson.

He was writing about making rules for the public good. Pandemic times create a need for this kind of communal thinking.

Adams was right to proceed on the path de Blasio laid out. ■

CUSTOM CONTENT associate director, custom content

Sophia Juarez, sophia.juarez@crainsnewyork.com custom content coordinator Ashley Maahs,

ashley.maahs@crain.com EVENTS

www.crainsnewyork.com/events marketing manager Jessica Botos,

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Ana Jimenez, ajimenez@crainsnewyork.com senior manager of events Michelle Cast,

michelle.cast@crainsnewyork.com REPRINTS director, reprints & licensing Lauren Melesio,

212.210.0707, lmelesio@crain.com PRODUCTION production and pre-press director

Simone Pryce

scale events, including gatherings for consuls and other dignitaries.

I’m proud to say that we have served Presidents Bill Clinton and Barack Obama, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and the last three presidents of France. In two decades we expanded and Tastings Social grew into the restaurants Mountain Bird and Gaudir in East Harlem.

Then the pandemic hit and everything changed. Business fell off quickly. I furloughed three employees, but I thought I would have them back within a month. I had no idea what was in store.

A Paycheck Protection Program loan kept me on my feet for a while.

To adjust to the new normal, I changed my business model. Everyone at Tastings had new tasks.

We canceled our delivery service and made deliveries ourselves. But we were still barely making payroll. Ultimately, my partner and I had to close Mountain Bird.

But then there was a glimmer of

ISTOCK

T

assistant managing editor Anne Michaud

deputy digital editor, audience & analytics

Replenish Restaurant Revitalization Fund before more businesses close he new year is traditionally a time for renewal, but we remain stuck in the past as the latest surge from the omicron variant grips New York, and Covid mandates are certain to affect businesses again.

To survive, we need sane policies from our local leaders, and we need Congress to replenish the Small Business Administration’s Restaurant Revitalization Fund.

Thousands of New York businesses are barely hanging on and, like me, are just one step away from having to close for good.

It would be a tragic end to an otherwise great success story. After falling in love with food service, I started working with French pastry chef Francois Payard, organizing special events. This evolved into Tastings NYC, my catering company. From humble beginnings, we served private clients and from small boutiques to large-

managing editor Telisha Bryan

digital editor Taylor Nakagawa

OP-ED

BY ALEXANDRA MORRIS

editor-in-chief Cory Schouten,

cory.schouten@crainsnewyork.com

data editor Amanda Glodowski

hospitalizations for Covid-19 are the highest they've been during the pandemic.

Business owners and executives have rightly lamented the changing mandates from government, which have cast an onagain, off-again fog over daily work life. In the midst of this omicron-led spike, it’s wise for City Hall administrations to coordinate their response.

Evidence is clear that vaccination, at a minimum, eases symptoms. Vaccinated people are 17 times less likely to be admitted to the hospital, said Dr. Rochelle Walensky, director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Vaccinated people are less likely to die from infection.

"If you are unvaccinated, you are 10 times more likely to be a case and 20 times more likely to be a fatality," Walensky said at a Dec. 29 White House briefing.

Consistency helps business in another way: The boss doesn’t have to weather the blowback for vaccine requirements.

David Burke, the owner of David Burke Tavern in Lenox Hill,

REQUIRING VACCINATION DURING A PUBLIC HEALTH CRISIS IS REASONABLE tion, business must exclude that worker from its workplace.

Adams’ decision, announced Dec. 30, has the benefit of consistency. The timing of the change of administration coincided with record-high numbers of people sick and near-record hospital admissions. Pediatric

EDITORIAL

NYCMAYOROFFICE/FLICKR

I

ncoming Mayor Eric Adams seemed to flirt with the idea of doing away with some of his predecessor’s more ambitious Covid-related policies. But Adams’ decision to side with former Mayor Bill de Blasio and extend the requirement for private-sector workers to show proof of vaccination against Covid-19 is ultimately what’s best for the city.

Requiring vaccination during a public health crisis is a reasonable policy, and advocating for public safety is an appropriate role for government.

The policy went into effect Dec. 27. If a private-sector worker in the city does not provide proof of vaccination or show an exemp-

Frederick P. Gabriel Jr.

hope when the SBA announced grants would be available to restaurants through the RRF. I applied immediately and was approved in mid-May 2021. I was told funding would arrive soon. Everyone at Tastings was thrilled. We began to plan for our recovery and the company’s future. Finally, we had a lifeline to pay off some debt and replace equipment that was on its last legs. For those staff members who had stuck with me, I wanted to reward them with bonuses.

I waited and waited.

Then I was told that funding was delayed; a lawsuit had been filed because the SBA had given priority to women-, minority- and veteran-owned businesses.

Even though I had already been approved, I was stuck in limbo. A little later I learned the RRF had been depleted and I would not receive what I had been promised.

Meanwhile, other restaurants and businesses, by random luck of the draw, did receive RRF money before the SBA ran out of funds.

This has created an unfair and uneven playing field.

The only way to bring back some semblance of fairness is for Congress to fulfill the promises it made to hardworking business owners and replenish the RRF. ■

media services manager Nicole Spell SUBSCRIPTION CUSTOMER SERVICE

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CRAIN COMMUNICATIONS INC. chairman Keith E. Crain vice chairman Mary Kay Crain chief executive officer K.C. Crain senior executive vice president Chris Crain secretary Lexie Crain Armstrong editor-in-chief emeritus Rance Crain chief financial officer Robert Recchia founder G.D. Crain Jr. [1885-1973] chairman Mrs. G.D. Crain Jr. [1911-1996]

Alexandra Morris is the founder of Tastings NYC.

8 | CRAIN’S NEW YORK BUSINESS | JANUARY 10, 2022

P008_CN_20220110.indd 8

1/7/22 4:53 PM

OP-ED

BY HALINA RADCHENKO

H

ow safe are the toys your kids received this holiday season?

We have made a great deal of progress in passing laws that protect children from harmful toys.

The state’s Child Safe Products Act, passed in 2020, requires toy manufacturers to disclose the presence of potentially dangerous chemicals in children’s products, enables the state to restrict use of the most toxic chemicals and makes New York a national leader on the issue.

Now another bill, known as the Consumer Justice Act, would require out-of-state corporations that register with the secretary of state to do business in New York to explicitly agree to the general jurisdiction of our courts.

Businesses come to New York because of the unique economic opportunities we offer. We are a large, diverse state that is an international hub of commerce and tourism. But if you are going to operate here, then you need to uphold our values. The bill is currently awaiting Gov. Kathy Hochul’s signature.

Together, those two laws are prime examples of how we can hold corporations accountable, whether for unsafe toys or anything else that

harms New Yorkers.

This type of tough legislation has not always been the status quo. It took decades of consumer advocacy and families turning to the civil justice system to lay the groundwork for enhanced oversight of corporations that would prefer to cut corners in pursuit of profit.

In the 1970s lawyers and parents fought for children who were tragically burned by pajamas after manufacturers failed to implement proper precautions and used flammable fabrics. The action spurred a new wave of safety protections enacted by the federal government.

More recently, a 10-year-old tragically died after ingesting magnets from a toy set. Although the company and the Consumer Product Safety Commission were aware of similar complaints, no action was taken until the child’s family went to court—which led to new rules regarding magnetic toys.

Accountability through courts It is clear that without someone watching closely, some corporations will put the lives of ordinary Americans at risk through reckless and negligent behavior, cutting corners in order to maximize profits.

An open and accessible civil justice system serves as an important

ASSOCIATED PRESS

Hochul must sign consumer-protection legislation to ensure out-of-state companies play by our rules

check on such behavior, by allowing consumers to seek justice and accountability.

The government often falls down on the job of upholding the laws on the books, however. Living in a progressive state such as New York, which goes to great lengths to protect consumers, might make it easy to forget, but during the Trump administration, critical consumer protection agencies were weak-

ened. The federal government’s commitment to protecting consumers might ebb and flow, but we must never weaken the ability of the civil justice system to safeguard the fundamental rights of every American.

This holiday season, New York must recommit itself to serving as a leader in protecting everyday people by defending the civil justice system against attacks by powerful

special interests and continuing to prioritize expanded consumer-protection rules. Hochul must sign the Consumer Justice Act and ensure the corporations that do business here do so while upholding our values—or face accountability in our court system. ■ Halina Radchenko is president of the New York State Trial Lawyers Association.

OP-ED

Let’s use available downstate casino licenses to unlock the potential of existing gaming facilities

A

s New York continues to deal with a crippling pandemic-induced recession, communities are calling on the governor and state legislators to prioritize job-creating initiatives that can turbocharge New York’s comeback.

One easy solution is to use available downstate commercial casino licenses to unlock the potential of existing gaming facilities—a move that would immediately create thousands of family-supporting jobs.

of them upstate.

It is imperative that Gov. Kathy Hochul and the Legislature establish a fair, transparent process to award downstate licenses this year.

We have no doubt that, if the Legislature and governor act, licenses would be issued to the two existing video lottery terminal facilities: MGM Resorts Empire City Casino in Yonkers and Genting’s Resorts World at Aqueduct in Queens. They are two of the largest gaming floors in the country.

Such an opportunity couldn’t come at a more critical time for the Bronx, a locality that typically experiences crises more acutely than its neighbors.

The borough today has an unemployment rate of 13.9%, one of the highest in the state. During the height of the Covid-19 pandemic, the Bronx had the highest unemployment rate in the nation.

The ongoing pandemic has brought to bear deep inequities

THE OPPORTUNITY COMES AT A CRITICAL TIME FOR THE BRONX, WHICH NEEDS JOBS In 2013 New York voters approved a constitutional amendment allowing up to seven full-scale casinos.

And yet to date the Legislature has allowed only four licenses—and all

that raise concerns about not only the severity of the pain wrought by Covid-19 and the accompanying economic downturn but about what lawmakers are doing about it.

Empire City Casino employs hundreds of Bronx residents, and it could add thousands of new jobs if the Legislature and governor act.

Transforming Empire City into a full-scale casino would create 2,500 jobs there, plus 10,000 new direct and indirect jobs, and generate $1 billion in economic activity for the region.

GETTY IMAGES

BY LISA SORIN

Unmistakable benefits The resulting economic wave would lift the entire region. That’s why it has the support of local elected officials as well as the more than 70 business, labor and community groups that have formed a new alliance: A Sure Bet for New York’s Future.

The benefits are unmistakable.

And it is important to recognize what the plan is not. Awarding downstate licenses would not be an expansion of gaming. Allowing

Empire City and Resorts World to become full-scale casinos merely would replace computerized table games with live-dealer tables, each staffed by six union employees. The plan also would create jobs in finance, marketing, surveillance, food and beverage, and more. It is unfathomable that the Legislature would pass up such an opportunity

to put thousands of men and women to work.

The governor and the Legislature need to put a defined process in place for making the plan a reality. It is a sure bet for New York’s future, and we cannot afford to pass on it. ■ Lisa Sorin is president of the Bronx Chamber of Commerce.

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.

January 10, 2022 | CRAIN’S NEW YORK BUSINESS | 9

P009_CN_20220110.indd 9

1/6/22 3:21 PM

ASKED & ANSWERED

INTERVIEW BY BRYAN MENA

A

ccess to capital is essential for a business to successfully bid on a state contract. For minority- and women-owned business enterprises, or MWBEs, the biggest challenge is gaining that access, and one nonprofit has vowed to address the inequity head-on. Founded in 1980, the Local Initiatives Support Corp. (LISC) NYC provides underinvested-in communities with capital and strategies.

It recently partnered with the state Dormitory Authority and the Cayemitte Group to offer detailed guidance on expanding opportunities.

Executive Director Valerie White says the racial and gender disparities in the bidding process are systemic, but she’s hopeful the desire to reckon with injustice in the aftermath of the murder of George Floyd will continue.

Why is it important for all New Yorkers that the public bidding process for contracts be equitable?

In New York state, we have seen that contracts have not always been equitably distributed to minority- and womenowned businesses, or even disabled veteran–owned businesses. Those tend to be smaller businesses that are starting out. They may have the qualifications, but they don’t always get the opportunity to get the jobs. It’s really important to provide them that support, which includes capacity building in some cases and the access to capital

WHO SHE IS Executive director, LISC NYC GREW UP Fishkill, New York RESIDES Clinton Hill, Brooklyn EDUCATION Bachelor’s in communications, Fordham University; juris doctorate, Fordham University School of Law; master’s in management, The New School FAMILY LIFE White has two adult daughters who also live in the city.

WORKPLACE INSPIRATION White says she has had a long career, including 18 years on Wall Street, but she credits a role at the Brooklyn Navy Yard with getting her more involved with initiatives to build MWBEs and small businesses. From there, she moved on to a role at the state’s Division of Minority and Women’s Business Development.

FILM FAN “My favorite movie is The Godfather number one,” she said. “Love that movie.”

there is an equitable distribution based upon the number of businesses available to do the various types of contracting work. For Black- and other minority-owned businesses, the pandemic really exacerbated the inequities in existence. That’s primarily because when one does not have the same access to networking, capital and opportunity in their particular communities, groups are more drastically hit by a pandemic. It makes it difficult, and in some cases irreparable, to recover from a disaster.

What challenges are unique to women?

Challenges that are unique to women are what one would call “non-traditional women careers” like engineering. It’s basically the assumption that women are not able to do certain types of things and it does take a lot of not just talent, but perseverance to be able to be successful in those areas. And we have seen minority-owned firms owned by women of color do very well.

Have things gotten better since the racial reckoning after the murder of George Floyd?

I think that there was a public recognition right after that happened, but as you can see, that attention is starting to fade away. It’s up to us in the industry to be really thoughtful and ensure that we are continuing to make those types of changes.

What gives you hope about the future for MWBEs? to be able to complete state contracts.

Have these disparities gotten worse or better over time?

What we want is to ensure that MWBEs across the various industries, when the state or the city issues contracts, that

I’m hopeful that this particular cycle of seeing what systemic inequities can do to general life, general opportunity, education and growth, that this will be a time where we can start long-standing change. That it’s not just another blip until the next horrible racial tragedy, and we go back to the way things generally are. I'm hopeful that this time, we'll be able to implement these changes before society forgets about everything. ■

BUCK ENNIS

VALERIE WHITE LISC NYC

DOSSIER

CRAIN’S NEW YORK BUSINESS 2022

BLACK LEADERS

Nominate Notable Black Leaders BLACK LEADERS

RK BUSINESS 2021

Crain’s New York Business is proud to announce Crain’s 2022 Notable Black Leaders, a special print and digital editorial feature on Monday, February 21, 2022 that will profile notable black leaders within the New York City business community. Help us determine 2022’s honorees who are making an impact on our business landscape.

Nomination deadline extended to January 14, 2022

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CrainsNewYork.com/NotableBlackLeaders 10 | CRAIN’S NEW YORK BUSINESS | JANUARY 10, 2022

P010_CN_20220110.indd 10

1/6/22 4:45 PM

THE LIST TOP PROPERTY SALES Largest commercial transactions in New York City through the second half of 2021, ranked by price

1 2

100% VALUE (MILLIONS)

CLOSE DATE

BUYER(S)

SELLER(S)

THE TOP FOUR

$1,370

5,881 $310,707

71%

$1,827

8/20/2021

Settlement Housing Fund

Rockpoint Group/Brooksville Company

441 Ninth Ave.

$1,032

700,000 $1,475

100%

$1,032

12/17/2021

CommonWealth Partners

Cove Property Group/ Baupost Group

7 Hanover Square

$850

967,886 $878

100%

$850

12/17/2021

Commerz Real

GFP Real Estate/Northwind Group

51 W. 52nd St.

$760

873,000 $871

100%

$760

10/13/2021

Harbor Group International

ViacomCBS

3412 36th St.

$600

500,000 $1,200

100%

$600

11/8/2021

Hackman Capital/ Square Mile Capital

Kaufman Group

123 Melrose St./54 Knoll St.

$506

828 $611,111

100%

$506

12/6/2021

Atlas Capital Group

Yoel Goldman

Office Garment District

Office Financial District

4

Office Midtown

6

INTEREST CONVEYED

1255 Pennsylvania Ave.

(Spring Creek Towers) Apartment East New York

3 5

PRICE (MILLIONS)

SQ. FT OR NO. OF UNITS/ PRICE PER SQ. FT. OR UNIT

Industrial Astoria

(Evergreen Gardens I & II) Apartment Bushwick

1255 Pennsylvania Ave. TRANSACTION PRICE $1.8 billion

7

30 Waterside Plaza

$437

1,470 $395,918

100%

$582

10/28/2021

Brookfield Asset Management

UBS/Richard Ravitch

8

235 E. 42nd St. (Pfizer Building) Office Midtown East

$407

823,623 $494

100%

$407

7/30/2021

David Werner Real Estate/Alexandria

ABS Partners Real Estate

9

Office Kips Bay

1 Park Ave.

$394

957,000 $914

45%

$875

8/5/2021

Vornado

CPP Investment Board

220 E. 42nd St.

$387

1,102,147 $717

49%

$790

7/22/2021

Meritz Financial Group

SL Green

498 Seventh Ave.

$339

876,704 $776

50%

$680

7/1/2021

JR AMC

JPMorgan

360 Park Ave. South

$300

451,800 $1,581

42%

$714

12/20/2021

Boston Properties

Enterprise Asset Management

116 John St.

$248

416 $595,353

100%

$248

12/22/2021

Silverstein Properties

Metro Loft/Norman Weisman

14

530 Fifth Ave.

$192

59,839 $3,209

100%

$192

11/12/2021

Aurora Cap Assocs/ EMS Capital LP

Brookfield Asset Management/Thor Equities

15

216 W. 18th St.

$170

165,670 $1,026

100%

$170

12/3/2021

Meadow Partners

Columbia Property Trust

350 W. 39th St.

$166

520 $320,115

100%

$166

9/17/2021

NY 39th Street LLC

McSam Hotel Group/Square Mile Capital

86 Trinity Place

$155

181,725 $853

100%

$155

10/18/2021

Yucaipa Cos.

Clarion Partners/GHC Development

330 Jay St.

$128

186,000 $688

100%

$128

8/10/2021

60 Guilders/Davidson Kempner

Brookfield Asset Management

511 Barry St.

$119

139,700 $852

100%

$119

8/24/2021

CalPERS

Innovo (IPG)/Nan Fung Group

20

110 E. 42nd St.

$117

205,000 $571

100%

$117

12/22/2021

Meadows Development Corp.

SL Green

21

248 N. Eighth St.

$116

169 $687,574

100%

$116

12/16/2021

HUBB NYC

Greystar

22

345 Seventh Ave.

$107

220,000 $486

100%

$107

9/2/2021

Empire Capital Holdings/Namdar Realty Group

Clemons Management Corp.

54-62 W. 125th St.

$105

141 $744,681

100%

$105

9/15/2021

HUBB NYC

JV Capital Group/Jay Group

24

590 Fifth Ave.

$103

103,000 $1,000

100%

$103

10/22/2021

The Hematian Family

SL Green

25

576 Fifth Ave.

$101

78,564 $1,286

100%

$101

7/12/2021

Lawrence Taylor

Severn Construction Co.

10

Apartment Kips Bay

(Daily News Building) Office Midtown East

11

Office Midtown

12

Office Flatiron

13

Apartment Financial District

16

Retail Midtown Office Flatiron

(Hyatt Place Hotel) Hotel Midtown

17

Office Financial District

18

Office Downtown Brooklyn

19

Industrial Hunts Point

23

Office Midtown East

Apartment Williamsburg

Office Midtown

Apartment Harlem Office Midtown

(The Jewelry Building) Office Midtown

441 Ninth Ave. TRANSACTION PRICE $1 billion

7 Hanover Square TRANSACTION PRICE $850 million

SOURCE: Real Capital Analytics with additional research by Amanda Glodowski. The data is based on independent reports of properties and portfolios $2.5 million and greater and is considered to be preliminary.†The list excludes portfolio sales and sales for which no price was made public. Partial-interest transactions are included at the prorated share of the 100% property value. Square footage for development sites consists of the square footage of the acquired land. Real Capital Analytics, headquartered in New York City, is an independent data and analytics firm focused on the investment market for commercial real estate. RCA offers data on commercial property transactions around the world.

PHOTOS: BUCK ENNIS

ADDRESS PROPERTY TYPE NEIGHBORHOOD

AMANDA.GLODOWSKI@CRAINSNEWYORK.COM

51 W. 52nd St. TRANSACTION PRICE $760 million

January 10, 2022 | CRAIN’S NEW YORK BUSINESS | 11

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PEOPLE ON THE MOVE

Advertising Section To place your listing, visit www.crainsnewyork.com/people-on-the-move or, for more information, contact Debora Stein at 917.226.5470 / dstein@crain.com

ADVERTISING / PR / MARKETING

FINANCIAL SERVICES

LAW

TECHNOLOGY

Optimist Consulting

City National Bank

Dentons

NPower

Brent Williams has been promoted to executive vice president of National Corporate Banking at City National Bank and has joined the bank’s Executive Committee. He reports to President Richard A. Raffetto. Williams has more than 25 years of financial services experience. He joined the bank in 2018 and helped launch National Corporate Banking.

City National has $91.3 billion in assets and more than 70 offices. The company opened five offices on the East Coast in 2020, including three in Manhattan.

Christopher Hagenbuch joined Dentons’ Venture Technology and Emerging Growth Companies practice as partner. Resident in the New York Meatpacking office, Chris represents private equity, venture capital and other institutional investors, along with emerging growth tech companies, in strategic transactions. A trusted business advisor to companies of all sizes, Chris’ clients span a diverse range of industries including technology, life sciences, energy, and entertainment.

Stefanie Boles joins the nonprofit NPower as Chief Administrative Officer where she brings strategic direction and leadership to their HR, Finance, Business Operations and IT teams. Before joining NPower, Boles was COO and CFO of United Way in Connecticut. NPower helps young adults and veterans move from poverty to middle class by training them for in-demand tech careers. Graduates earn industry-recognized certifications in 6 months without any tuition debt.

Paul Booth has joined Optimist Consulting, a Manhattan-based Public Relations & Digital Marketing agency specializing in real estate and luxury lifestyle, as SVP of Digital. Paul most recently served as Director of Digital Strategy & Content at Douglas Elliman Real Estate. In his 10 year at Douglas Elliman, Paul oversaw the firm’s vast social and digital expansion, encompassing hundreds of thousands of followers and delivering hundreds of millions of impressions annually.

COMMERCIAL REAL ESTATE

Feature your latest milestones, launches, partnerships, awards and more in Crain’

TRANSPORTATION

Elite Amenity Management ELITE Amenity Management, New York’s premier luxury lifestyle services company, has promoted longtime Matzelle employee Jon Matzelle to Chief Operating Officer and named Jonathan Lavora as its Director of Operations.

Matzelle works with all clients ensuring that Lavora Standard Operating Procedures are implemented, state guidelines are followed, and the ELITE staff is properly certified.Lavora, who previously worked in security operations for luxury brands such as Condé Nast and The Fairmont Hotel, supervises the management staff and its training, so clients enjoy ELITE-level service standards.

Founded in 2006, ELITE manages the amenities and staff at over 80 residential communities and private clubs throughout the tri-state area.

SHARE YOUR COMPANY’S JOURNEY

MEDIA / ENTERTAINMENT

Gannett Co., Inc. FINANCIAL SERVICES

TIAA TIAA, a leading provider of secure retirements and outcome-focused investment solutions to millions of people and thousands of institutions, appointed Sastry Durvasula Chief Information & Client Services Officer. Durvasula joins on February 14, 2022, from McKinsey & Company, where he was Global Chief Technology and Digital Officer. At TIAA, he will lead the firm’s Client Service & Technology organization and will be responsible for global technology and client support operations.

CONSTRUCTION

LAW

Lendlease

Barclay Damon

Mark Coe has been appointed as the new Business Development Director for New York Construction at Lendlease. In his new role, Mark is tasked with developing client relationships, exploring market sector expansion opportunities, and supporting sales efforts. In a career spanning almost four decades as an owner, owner’s representative and construction manager, Mark’s project experience extends from largescale mixed use, hospitality and residential to commercial, tenant fit-out and retail spaces.

Chris Shaw has joined the New York City office of Barclay Damon as a partner in the Health Care Controversies and Health & Human Services Providers Teams and White Collar & Government Investigations Practice Area.

Shaw, the former regional director of New York’s Medicaid Fraud Control Unit, focuses his practice on audits, criminal and civil investigations and litigation, compliance in the health care industry, and defense of whitecollar criminal investigations and government investigations.

Gannett has promoted Kelly Andresen, to President, USA TODAY, National Sales, a role she begins at the start of the new year. Andresen will be responsible for leading the National Sales business units including National Direct, Programmatic, National Retail Team, and the Sports Media Group. Andresen brings 20 years of experience in advertising marketing.

NONPROFIT

Partnership with Children André Branch, SVP and General Manager, M.A.C. Cosmetics in North America; and Castleigh Johnson, Founder and CEO of Branch My Home Pathway, have joined PWC’s Board of Directors.

Branch has a long career managing iconic luxury brands in senior executive Johnson roles for world-class consumer packaged goods companies including L’Oreal and Diageo. He has also grown and sold private equity-backed businesses, implementing marketing technologies and strategic partnerships. Johnson leads the financial technology firm he founded that provides proprietary algorithms and customer engagement programs to mortgage companies to increase mortgages among People of Color. PWC provides trauma-informed mental health counseling for over 30,000 students in NYC schools.

Wheels Up Wheels Up (NYSE:UP), the leading brand in private aviation, announced the appointment of Stevens J. SainteRose as Chief People Officer. In this role, Sainte-Rose will lead all aspects of human resources and culture at Wheels Up including organizational design, talent acquisition, development and retention, as well as diversity and inclusion functions.

For more information, contact Debora Stein at dstein@crain.com or submit directly to

CRAINSNEWYORK.COM/COTM

INDUSTRY ACHIEVERS ADVANCING THEIR CAREERS Recognize them in Crain’s

For listing opportunities, contact Debora Stein at dstein@crain.com or submit directly to

CRAINSNEWYORK.COM/PEOPLEMOVES

12 | CRAIN’S NEW YORK BUSINESS | JANUARY 10, 2022

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20022222 20 ECONOMIC OUTLOOK

What’s ahead for business and life in New York?

Here are 23 predictions collected by our reporters

GETTY IMAGES/ISTOCK PHOTO

N

BY CARA EISENPRESS

ew York City enters a third chaotic year of pandemic-era life with its economy still in recovery and its way of life in flux. Companies are likely to add back many more of the city’s lost jobs, as the labor shortage lessens and consumer demand stays strong, but employers probably will not be able to toss out their contingency plans, as the specter of Covid-19 remains hard to shake.

A year ago, restaurant dining rooms and Broadway stages were still shuttered, but the end of the public health crisis seemed near at hand. Mayor Bill de Blasio said he believed the city, by the end of 2021, would bring back 400,000 of the 930,000 jobs lost between February and April 2020. And the federal government had just promised relief for New York’s struggling restaurant and performing arts sectors. Instead, after a late spring of near normalcy, disruptions returned to New York, as a new coronavirus variant emerged, along with vaccine mandates for work and play. In politics, New York’s governor lost his seat after a sexual harassment scandal, and the mayoralty is changing hands.

As 2022 unfolds, both the recovery and setbacks promise to continue. The city will keep monitoring the pandemic as it debates the tone of containment measures. And residents and businesses will come to terms with which of the major pandemic-related adaptations are likely to become permanent fixtures of city life.

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ECONOMIC OUTLOOK 2022 WAVES OF COVID-19

MANY WORKERS CAN EXPECT FATTER PAYCHECKS

We should expect infection rates to rise and fall all year, according to Dr. David Boguslavsky, a physician in New Jersey who consults with school districts and companies in the metropolitan area with Back to Work Solutions. “With high vaccination,” he said, “we will have lower waves. That said, we will still have waves of Covid-19 and hospitalizations and deaths.”—Cara Eisenpress

Morgan Stanley strategist Michael Wilson says there has been a “generational shift” in the balance of power between capital and labor, meaning wages will continue to rise as employers desperately seek workers. “Wage inflation is not going away,” he said.

“The trend toward labor getting a higher share of income is on the upswing.” —Aaron Elstein

EMPLOYERS ON ALERT Companies probably will retain their role as part-time health administrators during 2022. Although city, state and federal agencies set policy, companies are apt to retain leeway to make decisions about when to open and close, whether to reduce employee or customer capacity, and whether to stay live or go remote. That means companies will need to keep watching infection levels locally and globally and to stay in touch with federal public health authorities who evaluate new variants and label them “of concern,” as with Delta and omicron, or “of high consequence”—a category not yet used.

Beyond that, businesses will have to keep determining their exact protocols, said Dr. Robert Amler, a vice president, dean and public health professor at New York Medical College who advises several private companies in the city. “The important thing will be to listen to your customers and, of course, to your workforce,” he said. Roslyn Stone, chief executive of Zero Hour Health, which runs checks at hospitality companies, said firms in her sector “just have to keep putting one foot in front of the other, doing the things that we learned to do well”: testing, ventilating, encouraging vaccination, using masks and staying home when sick.

On the ground, however, some business owners say they are tired of the strict guidance and hope to see most rules disappear. “This is the new cold and flu,” said Tyler Hollinger, owner of Upper East Side restaurant Festival.

—C.E.

MANY EMPLOYEES ARE LIKELY TO BE AT THEIR DESKS—MOST OF THE WEEK A number of employers plan to ask employees to return, following big businesses such as JPMorgan and Morgan Stanley, amid recognition that New Yorkers might have to learn to live with the coronavirus. But the number of workers in the office might not rise to the level that would bring commercial districts back to 2019 vibrancy. “If we only have 30% to 40% of our office population back, it’s not sustainable for Midtown Manhattan’s economy,” said Rob Byrnes, president of the East Midtown Partnership.

Office landlords, meanwhile, are expected to add perks for their workers coming in, coordinating with restaurants to up the ante.

—Brian Pascus

421-A IS ENDANGERED

APARTMENT RENTS PROBABLY WILL INCREASE AT THE LOW END BUT STABILIZE HIGHER UP Tenants in November signed three times the number of two-year leases as they did in January—residents’ hedge against an expected rise in monthly costs. “It gives us the market’s view of 2022,” said Jonathan Miller, president and CEO at real estate appraisal firm Miller Samuel. “Rents are not going to be less than they are this year.” The increase is likely to be sharper in non-doorman buildings. Rents on such lower-cost units have been rising for only the past two months, compared with doorman buildings, where rents began their increase five months ago in response to pent-up demand during the summer.

—C.E.

The 421-a program, also known as Affordable New York, provides a tax break for developers who set aside 30% of the units in a project as affordable housing. The program is set to expire in June. Eli Weiss, principal at Joy Construction, said the fight over the program’s fate will be a major issue in 2022. He said he hopes to see the program extended “so that we can continue to build multifamily housing for a city that— hopefully, based on the recovery— will grow.”

—Eddie Small

ALMOST 200,000 JOBS COULD BE BACK The Independent Budget Office predicted in May that the city would add 199,400 positions in 2022. But it had predicted 224,000 jobs would be added in 2021. The city added only 204,900 jobs through November 2021. The office said it will revise its predictions for 2022 in the coming weeks.

—C.E.

The city’s Department of Transportation continues to assess the rules and approval process for restaurants that want to make their outdoor dining space permanent.

Long before spring, Mayor Eric Adams might bring back the propane heaters that allowed for al fresco dining on colder days; they were ruled out by his predecessor’s administration, which cited safety concerns.

Meanwhile, boat trips, food festivals and other types of open-air experiences are sure to remain popular. The TSX Broadway development is building an outdoor stage in Times Square, the Delacorte Theater in Central Park is slated to undergo an update, and a redone Harlem skating rink and swimming pool are expected to near completion. The Brooklyn Botanic Garden sold 100,000 tickets to a brand-new outdoor light show that it said brought in visitors from more than 40 countries.

—C.E.

THE LABOR SHORTAGE SHOULD EASE AS SOON AS WORKERS ARE READY TO RETURN Businesses in the city will add jobs as soon as job seekers want them, said Jason Bram, a research officer at the New York Federal Reserve Bank. In a bank survey of employers asking how many workers they had and how many they would like to have, the number employed was well below pre-pandemic levels. However, the number they wanted was about equivalent to early 2020 employment. Getting the job seekers ready, Bram said, means reducing their virus concerns.

—C.E.

THE END OF FEDERAL DOLLARS IS A DIFFICULT BLOW TO ABSORB With lockdowns and full business closures likely off the table, so too is federal economic relief, even for industries that are still struggling to recover. That means the city will have to rely on its own coffers to pay for education and health care— costs that have been rising. Mayor Eric Adams has said he will ask all agencies to find 3% to 5% in sav—B.P. ings.

AP PHOTO, BLOOMBERG, ISTCOK

LIFE WILL CONTINUE TO TAKE PLACE OUTDOORS

AN INTENSE FIGHT OVER NEW EVICTION RULES LOOMS Cea Weaver, campaign coordinator for the Housing Justice for All movement, said she expects that the fight over whether or not to enact goodcause eviction—which would make it more difficult for a landlord to remove almost any tenant—will be “a pretty pitched battle” in 2022. The concept essentially would give tenants affirmative rights that they could defend if they go to housing court, Weaver said. “Your landlord would have to have a good reason to not renew your lease,” she said.

—E.S.

14 | CRAIN’S NEW YORK BUSINESS | January 10, 2022

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ECONOMIC OUTLOOK 2022 THE POT INDUSTRY IS BUSY PLANNING New York state has legalized recreational cannabis, but its first shops aren’t expected to open until 2023. That means New Yorkers likely will soon be taking the PATH for edibles, tinctures and marijuana buds. Jessica Rabe of DataTrek Research estimates the Garden State—which has yet to open any recreational-marijuana shops—will reap up to $670 million in cannabis sales in 2022.

—A.E.

DR. ZOOM WILL SEE YOU NOW

BUSINESS COMMUNITIES TO REMAIN ALLIED To get through the string of crises in 2020 and 2021, companies gathered by industry or geography to advocate for common causes and help one another out of binds. “Those lines in the community just got stronger, more firmly established,” said Joanne Kwong, president of Pearl River Mart, who added that she expects the bonds among business owners in Chinatown, for example, to stay tight as they plan events and advocate for representa—C.E. tion together.

The beginning of December offered a thriving holiday season more akin to 2019 than 2020, but the boost from shopping, holiday events and performing arts attendance is not likely to last, especially after end-of-December virus-related slowdowns. January, always slow, will “be worse than usual,” said Barbara Denham, an economist at Oxford Economics. Her projections show the city recovering its lost jobs by the end of 2022; but viral waves, back-to-the-office hesitation and a continued labor shortage could darken the picture, she said. —C.E.

THE TECH SECTOR WILL GROW … ELSEWHERE? Almost all of the city’s fastest-growing startups are opening their job postings to people who live outside of commuting distance—with the sector showing the slowest overall rate of employees returning to the office.

The lack of physical presence begs the question: What exactly is a New York technology company? “We’re hiring nationwide,” said Michael Carvin, co-founder and CEO of fintech firm SmartAsset, based in Nolita. “It’s unclear what is going to make a company a New York company going forward. We’ll always have been founded in New York, and we will always be unbelievably proud of that. But I don’t really think of us going forward as a —Ryan Deffenbaugh New York company.”

NEGOTIABLE RENTS EXPECTED TO BRING IN NEW COMMERCIAL TENANTS

“Dark grocers [retail-level warehouses for grocery products] and cannabis are two of the larger tenant categories that we are seeing for the first time,” said Lindsay Zegans, retail leasing specialist at Ripco Real Estate.

—Natalie Sachmechi

INDEPENDENT HOTELS HAVE AN ADVANTAGE Individual business and leisure travelers will return, while business groups and conventions will be slower to come back, observers predict.

Small, downtown hotels could lead the hospitality recovery, therefore, because individuals are more likely to seek out downtown and outer-borough neighborhoods.

—C.E.

A NEW CROP OF RESTAURANTS REPLACES SHUTTERED EATERIES

PAYMENT INCENTIVES ARE BOUND TO SPARK HEALTH CARE INNOVATIONS

THE STOCK MARKET WILL GO UP—PROBABLY Wall Street’s bull run isn’t quite finished, said David Kostin, chief market strategist at Goldman Sachs, which predicts the S&P 500 will rise by 10% in 2022, thanks to continued strength in corporate earnings and rising profit margins. Not everyone agrees, however. Morgan Stanley said the S&P will fall by 6% next year.

—A.E.

Health care operating margins were squeezed in 2020 and 2021, driven by the pandemic, supply-chain disruptions and labor shortages. The industry is moving toward value-based payment models—which pay professionals for the quality of the care, not the number of appointments—that could alleviate those squeezed margins and improve patient outcomes. Implementing the models, however, requires resources, and cashstrapped providers find themselves in a less sustainable status quo, said Dr. Richard Becker, chief executive of the Physician Affiliate Group of New York. That means consumers and investors will keep pushing for more and better standards of care, said Isabel Kenyon, chief executive of Calibrate, a weight-management company.

—Maya Kaufman, Shuan Sim

YOU MIGHT BUY THAT SELF-DRIVING CAR WITH BITCOIN Mayor Eric Adams appears far more ready than his predecessor to cheerlead for the technology industry. He has called for New York to serve as a hub for cryptocurrency, self-driving car technology and companies building Web 3.0, a decentralized vision of the internet.

“Even talking about this is a big improvement over what we have had,” said Bradley Tusk of Tusk Holdings. “But it comes down to the talent you hire, how much you empower them politically and the resources you invest. If Adams does that—whether it’s crypto, Web 3.0, autonomous vehicles or anything else—he will have been true to his word.”

—R.D.

The trials of 2020 and 2021 shuttered an uncounted number of city restaurants. Ambitious local restaurateurs with extra cash—as well as out-of-towners looking to build a city presence—are snatching up those spaces. “They are burning up the real estate,” said Steve Zagor, restaurant consultant and profes—C.E. sor.

CULTURAL COMMUNITIES COULD COLLABORATE MORE “The creative community hasn’t been dormant” during the pandemic, said Jonelle Procope, the Apollo Theater’s president and CEO. The community “has been working throughout,” she said, “and we will see the fruits of that” in performances and exhibits. The creativity isn’t limited to single troupes, she said, adding that interborough collaborations and jointly created festivals will connect cultural organizations citywide. —C.E.

ISTCOK, UNSPLASH

JANUARY MIGHT BE ESPECIALLY SLOW

Telehealth exploded during the pandemic, and even though some patients have returned to doctors offices, utilization still stands at 38 times pre-pandemic levels, said Kate Ryder, chief executive of Maven Clinic. “The health care industry has now generally accepted that telehealth is a critical component of delivering care,” she said. New platforms are likely to keep popping up, especially as a shortage of providers in both primary and specialty care continues.

—M.K.

January 10, 2022 | CRAIN’S NEW YORK BUSINESS | 15

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DELIVERY FROM PAGE 3

boroughs is for e-commerce fulfillment centers, according to commercial real estate firm JLL. ● The pandemic is accelerating freight growth. A recent report from the city Department of Transportation found that freight crossing the Hudson River jumped 50% from January 2020 to September 2021. ● Cardboard recycling volume is up. Collection of paper garbage, which includes the cardboard detritus of many packages, was 279,417 tons through November, a 3.6% increase over the same period in 2020.

City officials have promised to take action. Former Mayor Bill de Blasio and Transportation Commissioner Hank Gutman released a plan Dec. 15 to move more freight by boat and cargo bike—an e–pedal bicycle that pulls a small cargo trailer.

The City Council has passed relevant bills that are working their way toward implementation: requiring more dedicated loading zones and a bidding process for new microdistribution centers. The council also is considering charging delivery companies several cents per minute for the time they spend at the curb.

Jockeying for curb space E-commerce delivery trucks fight with construction vehicles, vans and all sorts of other commercial vehicles to use the estimated 28,600 commercial parking spaces in the city.

Lawmakers have recognized that there is a need for more designated space for delivery vehicles, particularly in residential neighborhoods. Right now delivery drivers often double-park to offload their goods—which endangers cyclists, pedestrians, other drivers and themselves. FedEx and UPS drivers rack up millions of dollars in parking fines each year.

Proper street management often collides with thorny local politics.

Brick-and-mortar retailers have butted heads with Amazon and other delivery services, saying their vans linger too long at the curb.

And residents tend to get vocal when they lose free parking spaces—even if the aggravation means their packages could arrive more quickly.

“The irony is that these trucks need the space in order to deliver to the same people who might be inconvenienced by the repurposing of the parking space,” said Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute’s Holguín-Veras.

There were 111 new loading zones launched in 28 districts during the past two years through the city’s Neighborhood Loading Zones program, according to a Department of Transportation report.

The DOT found that the zones cut down on instances of double-parking by as much as 70% in some areas.

The City Council has demanded more. A bill approved in November requires five dedicated loading zones per neighborhood each year—for a total of 1,500—during the next three years. The de Blasio administration opposed the bill, setting a more modest goal of 800 new zones by 2026, according to a plan from the former mayor’s office in December.

Either way, more loading zones are likely coming in the next few years. The council also is requiring the city to launch a bidding process for new microdistribution centers—smaller distribution spaces that could replace larger warehouses.

The council also could consider charging delivery companies for curb access. Charles Komanoff, an energy policy analyst, produced a report suggesting a way to charge a fee for time spent loading or unloading.

Correctly pricing curb time, Komanoff said, could push e-commerce delivery firms to be more efficient. If they passed extra costs on to consumers, those consumers

THE DEPARTMENT OF SANITATION HAS SEEN A 7% INCREASE IN PAPER TRASH COLLECTED SINCE THE PANDEMIC BEGAN

Change in tons of paper collected between January and November 2019 versus the same period of 2021, by community district

SOURCE: Department of Sanitation

Northeast. Paying for time could be advantageous, he said, if the payment guaranteed a spot and helped couriers avoid double-parking— and parking tickets. He said loading zone programs would have to be vastly expanded to have a real benefit in improving delivery companies’ curb access.

The increase in warehouse usage also brings an increase of trucks, congestion and pollution, something that a recently formed coalition of environmental and public health advocacy groups is calling attention to. Called the Last Mile Coalition, the group wants the city to implement a more stringent oversight process for e-commerce warehouses—which currently do not require a formal environmental review.

“These are the same communities that have suffered from longterm exposure to toxic pollution due to decades of environmental racism and disinvestment,” said Kevin Garcia, transportation planner for the New York City Environmental Justice Alliance, at a press conference Dec. 15 in Sunset Park.

“These huge facilities increase vehicle traffic, tailpipe emissions and

“WE NEED TO CONVINCE PEOPLE TO REDUCE THEIR PURCHASING PATTERNS” might buy a bit less, he figured, reducing the number of packages and trucks, or at least their rate of growth.

“Do we want to thin the number of e-commerce vehicles occupying street space? Of course we do,” he said. “Do we want to shut down the sector? Of course we don’t.”

Any new curb management would have to be carefully weighed, said Reiner Wolfs, DHL vice president and general manager for the

other toxic air pollutants.”

Smart package rooms In the roughly one hour that a Crain’s photographer and reporter spent in the lobby of The Dime apartment building last month, four delivery trucks and vans arrived with packages, along with restaurant and grocery couriers.

More than 2,000 packages were delivered to Dime residents in November alone, according to data provided by Position Imaging, a startup in New Hampshire that developed the smart package room technology. Packages can be quickly scanned and placed on shelving behind a locked door. Residents are then emailed a QR code that unlocks the door and activates lights; a laser pointer directs them to their deliveries.

Position Imaging views its product as a solution for building staff, helping them manage the onslaught of daily deliveries. Without it, the company says, building staff can be distracted from other duties.

“You are asking people to be in two places at once; one of those jobs is not going to get done as well,” said Matthew Knoff, vice president of service and fulfillment for the firm, who did a demo for Crain’s.

It is worth noting that only 30% of apartments, at least of the ones listed on StreetEasy, have a doorman, according to data from the company. That can leave couriers with little choice but to drop packages in unattended common areas or on doorsteps. There is no exact data kept by the New York Police Department, but a New York Times analysis in 2019 estimated that 90,000 packages are stolen from local buildings each day.

Position Imaging’s tech can allow for couriers to directly place packages inside. Likewise, tech company Latch, based on the West Side, in 2019 struck a deal with UPS to allow its drivers to enter a building’s lobby to leave packages.

A bill from City Councilman Antonio Reynoso of Brooklyn would require a secure package room in any building that is newly constructed or undergoing major renovation. The bill has yet to progress from committee review.

Silvers, a principal of The Dime’s development firm, said tours of the building for prospective tenants often start with the package room.

“This is increasingly an amenity residents demand,” he said.

Experts are clear that something will have to change as the number of packages heads to 1 billion annually in the next two years—the city’s prediction.

“The streets and sidewalks of New York City are the site of intense competition,” said Mitchell Moss, professor of urban policy and planning and director of the Rudin Center for Transportation Policy and Management at New York University. There are “pedestrians, cyclists, scooters, e-scooters, dog walkers, baby strollers, outdoor dining, truck loading and unloading, the double-parking by Uber and Lyft drivers, and, of course, the normal trash bags and garbage trucks, metered parking and street vendors.”

Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute’s Holguín-Veras said reducing e-commerce congestion will require change beyond City Hall.

“We are experiencing a more than doubling in freight activity and deliveries. It is not possible to accommodate that only by supply-side change, like microdistribution centers or whatever it is,” he said. “We need to enact behavior changes—convince people to reduce their purchasing patterns or consider ways more friendly to the environment.” ■

ON AVERAGE, MORE THAN 2 MILLION PARKING TICKETS ARE ISSUED TO COMMERCIAL VEHICLES EACH YEAR Number of parking tickets doled out to commercial vehicles 2.50M 2.33M 2.15M

2.02M

2.11M

1.84M

1.82M

1.75M

2020

2021

BUCK ENNIS

1.25M

0

2015

2016

2017

2018

2019

SOURCE: Department of Finance

January 10, 2022 | CRAIN’S NEW YORK BUSINESS | 17

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POLITICS

Adams appoints ‘efficiency czar’ to trim down city’s bloated, 325,000-employee bureaucracy

I

f Mayor Eric Adams has a North Star in the first 100 days of his administration, it may be slimming down New York City’s bloated bureaucracy—a task that could prove more difficult than his rhetoric suggests.

Adams opened his first remarks from City Hall on Jan. 1 by arguing the city’s government has been dysfunctional “for far too long” and promising New Yorkers that the city’s overall recovery will be tied to an improved municipal workforce.

“It means weeding out the waste and eliminating the inefficiencies.

It’s about accountability,” Adams said. “This may seem like an obvious approach, but it is so practical

La Rocca promised as much during her Dec. 21 introductory news conference at Rockefeller Center.

“We’ll put aside our different agency missions, we’ll reevaluate our missions and we’ll ask ourselves the tough question of ‘What are we doing here, and how is this serving New Yorkers?’ ” she said.

“Our neighbors demand better services and a more effective city as a whole.”

Deep experience La Rocca has deep experience in city government. She enters the Adams administration after serving two years as commissioner for the Department of Buildings and more than five years as a vice president at the city’s School Construction Authority. She was the chief of staff for Christine Quinn, the former City Council speaker.

But it’s unclear how La Rocca’s administrative résumé will translate into transforming a massive bureaucracy into a well-oiled machine.

“At this point we don’t have the details about what the structure and process is, but it’s good to have someone who’s managed the city and has experience with it, especially with an agency point of view,” said Andrew Rein, president of the Citizens Budget Commission, an independent fiscal watchdog.

Adams takes command of a government that grew larger and more

“FAR FROM BEING WASTE, WE NEED ESSENTIAL WORKERS NOW MORE THAN EVER” that it has been forgotten.”

To this end, Adams appointed Melanie La Rocca to the newly created role of chief efficiency officer.

“Her new position will be basically the efficiency czar for New York City,” said Lorraine Grillo, Adams’ first deputy mayor. “She will go through every agency and every process to find those things that no longer make sense, that are not legally required, that instead just cause more and more bureaucracy.”

expensive during the eight-year tenure of his predecessor. Under former Mayor Bill de Blasio, the city budget increased from $77 billion in 2014 to more than $100 billion in 2021. The city’s workforce stands at more than 325,000 workers, surpassing a previous high of 311,000 in 2008.

Adams has announced targeted cuts to the Department of Education, which accounted for 41% of a $19 billion rise in city spending between 2014 and 2019. He also committed to cutting overtime spending at the New York City Police Department in half by the end of his first term.

Adams said he intends to institute a 3% to 5% agencywide PEG— program to eliminate the (budget) gap—savings plan. When previous administrations ordered acrossthe-board budget cuts, the Office of Management and Budget has asked each city department to provide a concrete outline showing where it would find savings and how the cuts would affect services.

Adams may find it hard to trim the fat, mainly because the growth of the city’s workforce has carried with it added costs that are difficult to untangle.

“It’s easier to reduce the overall level of employment than it is the cost of each individual employee,” said Peter Warren, director of research at the Empire Center for Public Policy, a nonpartisan Albany think tank. “They cost so much because the benefits in the city are just off the charts, even compared to other big cities across the country.”

ADAMS hopes La Rocca can succeed where others have failed to weed out waste.

Warren noted city employees carry health care plans that require no premium contributions and that the retiree health care benefits are “out of whack” with the overall marketplace. He suggested that adding more hours to each employee’s workweek might reduce the need for personnel.

Welfare benefit funds Any changes to municipal headcount or health care plans would require negotiating with unions that may be resistant to change.

District Council 37, the city’s largest municipal employee union, pushed back on any intention the Adams administration may have in finding efficiencies through workforce reductions.

“If the last two years have taught us anything, it’s that it’s critical to

AP PHOTO, NYC.GOV

BY BRIAN PASCUS

have a strong and robust city workforce,” said Freddi Goldstein, a representative for DC37. “Far from being waste, we need essential workers now more than ever.”

Even so, Adams might have an opportunity to achieve his budget goals without challenging the unions by consolidating more than 100 different welfare benefit funds—individual union plans that provide prescription drug coverage, legal services, and dental and vision benefits funded by the city— into larger entities that are more easily managed, said Rein of the CBC. “Consolidating these funds would achieve administrative efficiencies and purchasing efficiencies,” Rein said. “That can actually save the city money without reducing benefits.” ■

FINANCE

Head of taxi lender Medallion Financial, who allegedly paid for good headlines, is hit with SEC fraud charge

G

ood news for taxi owners was scarcer than a cab in a rainstorm when Uber became king of the roads in the past decade. The share price of the city’s leading taxi lender, Medallion Financial, sank, and Crain’s found the company boosted the value of ailing loans to remain profitable.

To counter this narrative, federal regulators say, Medallion President Andrew Murstein secretly paid touts to write nice things about his business. Two weeks ago he and his company were charged with fraud.

The Securities and Exchange Commission said Murstein made undisclosed payments for more than 50 favorable articles published in the Huffington Post, SeekingAlpha, TheStreet and the opinion page of Crain’s. Murstein personally edited many of the articles, which the SEC said were “really paid advertisements placed across the web in an effort to deceive investors

about the value of Medallion’s stock.”

An attorney for Murstein, Randy Mastro, denied the allegations.

“The SEC’s claims are unfounded, and we intend to—and will— prove them wrong and completely vindicate our client,” he said. “This purported conduct occurred five or more years ago and is not even alleged by the SEC to have had any impact on the markets or Medallion’s stock price then or since.”

James Hickman, a hedge-fund manager who bet on Medallion’s stock falling, viewed the matter differently.

“Regulators allowed ride-sharing, thus ending the taxi-medallion monopoly and causing severe economic consequences for medallion values and loans,” he said. “Medallion Financial’s actions to weather that crisis introduced a whole new set of regulatory problems that we anticipated, and now we have the SEC’s action.”

Last Monday an activist investor

called for Andrew Murstein and his father, CEO Alvin Murstein, to step off the Medallion board and be suspended from their executive positions.

“Medallion Financial finds itself at a critical juncture in its existence,” said Kenneth Orr of KORR Value, a fund that controls a 5.6% stake.

Purported payouts Medallion, whose roots go back to a cab fleet started by Andrew Murstein’s grandfather, for decades specialized in writing loans for taxi medallions, the city-issued permits that confer the right to drive a cab.

The company went public in 1996 and for years its stock ticker was TAXI. Murstein teamed up with former Gov. Mario Cuomo and baseball’s Henry Aaron to launch a special purpose acquisition company that tried in 2009 to acquire the Chicago Cubs and Montreal Canadiens.

The feds say that in 2014 Murstein

started secretly paying a promoter named Lawrence Meyers to write nice things about Medallion after the rise of e-hailing apps crushed its stock price, which fell to $3 a share from a high of $17. Meyers was paid about $65,000.

In 2016 a New York MURSTEIN Post reporter called out Murstein, who falsely claimed he didn’t know Meyers, then hired a second tout and paid her hush money, the SEC found. The touts were on Medallion’s payroll for nearly two years.

“Murstein knew or was reckless in not knowing that the touters did not disclose their affiliation with the company,” the SEC said. “For Murstein, that was the point: His touters would not be credible if they disclosed that they were being paid.”

Medallion also deceived investors with false and misleading fi-

nancial statements, the SEC said.

The company reported that the fair-market value of its loans was rising even as Uber decimated the taxi business.

The SEC said this was accomplished by Murstein’s asking other financial institutions if they were interested in acquiring some or all of Medallion’s banking unit at a price he suggested. No deal was struck, but the SEC said Medallion used the preliminary indications of interest to justify raising the value of its assets, which were overstated by $140 million in 2016 and by more than $115 million in 2017.

“Companies … cannot shop for higher valuations when there is no evidence to support them,” Richard Best, director of the SEC’s New York office, said in a statement.

Medallion said its valuation methods were fair and accurate. ■ BUCK ENNIS

BY AARON ELSTEIN

18 | CRAIN’S NEW YORK BUSINESS | JANUARY 10, 2022

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CLASSIFIEDS CLASSIFIEDS

Advertising Section Advertising Section

To place a classified ad, Call 212-210-0189 Contact Claudia Hippel at 312-659-0076 or email: claudia.hippel@crain.com or Email: classifieds@crainsnewyork.com

LEGAL NOTICE

PUBLIC & LEGAL NOTICES

LEGAL NOTICE SUPREME COURT OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK COUNTY OF NEW YORK MID ISLAND LP d/b/a/ MADISON MANAGEMENT OF QUEENS and CARNEGIE PARK ASSOCIATES, L.P., on behalf of themselves and all others similarly situated, Plaintiffs, -againstHESS CORPORATION, Defendant.

Index No. 650911/2013 (Schecter, J.)

Notice of Settlement of Class Action and Fairness Hearing There is a proposed settlement of $3,400,000 of the above-captioned class action (the “Action”), and the Court has scheduled a hearing to determine the fairness of the settlement and an award of attorney’s fees and expenses to counsel for Plaintiffs and the Class Members.

By Order dated, December 2, 2021, the Court preliminarily approved the settlement and scheduled the fairness hearing.

Description of the Action 1.

Plaintiffs have alleged that between March 2009 and March 2013, Defendant breached its warranties to thousands of Defendant’s heating-oil customers who ordered, and paid for Hess No. 4 or Hess No. 6 fuel oil, but instead third-party carriers, unrelated to Hess, delivered a product adulterated with non-Hess used or waste oil. Defendant has denied and continues to deny Plaintiffs’ allegations that it has committed any violations of law or engaged in any of the wrongful acts alleged in the December 16, 2013, First Amended Complaint (the “First Amended Complaint”), and has maintained that it has meritorious defenses to Plaintiffs’ claims.

The Class 2.

By Order dated February 17, 2021, the Court certified the Action under CPLR §§ 901 and 902 as a class action “on behalf of all persons or entities in New York City, Westchester, and Long Island who, between March 2009 to March 2013 (the Class Period), purchased Hess No. 4 fuel oil or Hess No. 6 fuel oil and received and paid for an adulterated product containing non-Hess used and/or waste oil.”

3.

The purpose of this Notice is to inform you of the terms of the proposed Settlement, and of a hearing to be held by the Court to consider the fairness, reasonableness, and adequacy of the Settlement, the proposed Plan of Distribution, and the motion by Lead Plaintiffs’ counsel for an award of attorneys’ fees and reimbursement of Litigation Expenses (the “Settlement Hearing”). See below for details about the Settlement Hearing, including the date and time of the hearing.

4.

The issuance of this Notice is not an expression of any opinion by the Court concerning the merits of any claim in the Action, and the Court still has to decide whether to approve the Settlement. If the Court approves the Settlement and the proposed Plan of Distribution, then payments to Class Members will be made after any appeals are resolved.

The Settlement 5.

Subject to Court approval, Plaintiffs on behalf of themselves and the Class have agreed to settle the Action in exchange for $3,400,000 cash (the “Settlement Fund”). The Settlement Fund minus costs of Notice to the Class Members, administrative expenses and any attorney’s fees and/or expenses as awarded by the Court, and any other expenses, including but not limited to any taxes that would be deducted from the Settlement Fund (the “Net Settlement Fund”) will be distributed to Class Members in accordance with Paragraph 7-9, below. Defendant will not be liable for any payments in connection with the Settlement other than payment of the $3,400,000 to the Settlement Fund.

6.

Plaintiffs and Lead Plaintiffs’ Counsel for the Class negotiated the Settlement being fully informed of all factual and legal issues concerning the claims and defenses involved in the Action and were aware of the potential risks and uncertainties of a favorable determination after trial and further appeals. It is the considered judgment of Lead Plaintiffs’ Counsel that the Settlement is fair and reasonable to Plaintiffs and the Class Members.

Plan for Distribution of the Settlement Fund 7.

After deducting from the Settlement Fund attorneys’ fees to Lead Plaintiffs’ counsel and/or reimbursement expenses as awarded by the Court, and any other expenses, including but not limited to any taxes that would be deducted from the Settlement Fund, the Net Settlement Fund will be distributed directly to “Class Members,” defined as Hess customers who, between March 2009 and March 2013 received a delivery of Hess No. 4 or Hess No. 6 heating fuel which was allegedly blended with what the First Amended Complaint in the Action has characterized as “waste oil.” Class Members will not be required to submit claims in order to recover a share of the Net Settlement Fund. Class Members will be identified by JND Legal Administration (the “Claims Administrator”), which is a third-party claims administrator with extensive experience in class-action administrative processes and

whose retention has been authorized by the Court. The identification of Class Members will be based, among other things, on documents of Defendant and other documents produced in discovery in the Action.

8.

The calculation of each Class Member’s share will be performed by the Claims Administrator. For each Class Member for whom a current mailing address has been ascertained by the Claims Administrator (each an “Eligible Class Member”) a determination will be made of the number of gallons of waste oil it allegedly received which was included in a delivery of Hess No. 4 or Hess No. 6 fuel oil. The aggregate number of gallons of waste oil allegedly received with a delivery of Hess No. 4 fuel oil by that Eligible Class Member will then be multiplied by $2.61, and the aggregate number of gallons of waste oil allegedly received with a delivery of Hess No. 6 fuel oil by that Eligible Class Member will then be multiplied by $2.46, which are approximate averages of the purchase price per gallon of Hess No. 4 and Hess. No. 6 heating oil during the Class Period (the “Claim Amount”).

Each Eligible Class Member will receive a pro rata share of the Net Settlement Fund to be determined as follows: Eligible Class Member’s Claim Amount x

Aggregate of all Eligible Class Members’ Claim Amounts

Net Settlement Fund

= Eligible Class Member’s Share of Net Settlement Fund 9.

Checks will be mailed directly to Eligible Class Members via Federal Express with signature required. The checks will expire within sixty (60) days of the date sent by the Claims Administrator.

Lead Plaintiffs’ Counsel’s Application for an Award of Attorneys’ Fees and Reimbursement of Expenses 10. Lead Plaintiffs’ Counsel have litigated this case for over eight years on a strictly contingent basis, meaning that they have not been paid any money for their services on behalf of Plaintiffs and Class Members. Additionally, expenses in excess of $500,000 have been advanced and incurred in furtherance of prosecuting the claims for the benefit of Plaintiffs and the Class Members and to obtain Class certification. The case has been vigorously litigated by Plaintiffs and Defendant and Lead Plaintiffs’ Counsel have spent in excess of 3,000 hours prosecuting the Action. Lead Plaintiffs’ Counsel will apply for an award of attorneys’ fees in an amount not to exceed one-third of the Settlement Fund in addition to reimbursement of expenses in excess of $500,000. Any fees and expenses awarded by the Court will be paid from the Settlement Fund. Class Members are not and will not be liable for any such fees or expenses.

The Settlement Hearing 11. The Court has scheduled the Settlement Hearing for April 7, 2022 at 11:00 a.m. The hearing will be conducted virtually on Microsoft Teams. Any party, objector, or member of the public who does not receive an invitation to the hearing on Teams may, no earlier than March 16, 2022, email the court (mrand@nycourts.gov) to request an invitation (which will also have a telephone dial-in option) so they may observe and/or participate in the hearing.

12. Class Members are not required to attend the Hearing or submit any papers in order to receive a share of the Net Settlement Fund, as described above. Any Class Member may request to speak at the Settlement Hearing or submit objections to the Settlement or application of Lead Plaintiffs’ Counsel for an award of fees or reimbursement of expenses, provided that, on or before March 15, 2022, a Notice of Intention to Appear and papers supporting an objection is filed with the Court and served upon Plaintiffs and Defendant through their respective counsel, as follows:

Lead Plaintiffs’ Counsel

Defendant’s Counsel

GROSSMAN LLP Stanley M. Grossman, Esq. Judd B. Grossman, Esq. Lindsay E. Hogan, Esq. 745 Fifth Avenue, 5th Floor New York, New York 10151 (646) 770-7445

WHITE & CASE LLP Heather K. McDevitt, Esq. David G. Hille, Esq. Kimberly A. Havlin, Esq. 1221 Avenue of the Americas New York, New York 10020 (212) 819-8200

Further Information About the Settlement A website has been established posting documents relevant to the Settlement Hearing: www.HessFuelOilSettlement.com. Further information about the Settlement may also be obtained by contacting Lindsay E. Hogan, Esq. at lhogan@grossmanllp.com and 646-770-7445. Please do not call the Court or the Court Clerk’s office for information.

www.HessFuelOilSettlement.com

SUBMIT YOUR BUSINESS CLASSIFIEDS

TODAY

Notice of formation of Four On The Floor LLC, file with SOS of NY on 8/27/2021. Loc. in NYC, designed as agent upon whom process may be served SSNY, shall mail process to 135 W. 24th St, Apt. 2D, NY, NY 10011. Purpose: Any lawful activity.

Notice of Formation of 136 WINCHESTER LLC Arts. of Org. filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 12/06/21. Office location: NY County. Princ. office of LLC: 98 Anderson Rd., Kent, CT 06757. SSNY designated as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to the LLC, Attn: Lewis Hart at the princ. office of the LLC. Purpose: To purchase, own and sell real estate in New York.

NOTICE OF FORMATION of PrettySub Cosmetics LLC. Arts of Org filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 9/8/21. Office location: NY County.

SSNY designated as agent upon whom process may be served and shall mail copy of process against LLC to 35 W 31st St. Frnt 1. NY, NY 10001. R/A: US Corp Agents. Inc. 7014 13th Ave. #202, BK, NY 11228. Purpose: any lawful act.

CLASSIFIEDS Contact Claudia Hippel at 312-659-0076 or email: claudia.hippel@crain.com JANUARY 10, 2022 | CRAIN’S NEW YORK BUSINESS | 19

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CLASSIFIEDS CLASSIFIEDS AUCTION BANKRUPTCY AUCTION SALE Hotel Development / Redevelopment Site 232 Seigel Street, Brooklyn, NY 11206

Auction: Thursday, February 3, 2022 In re: 232 Seigel Development LLC, et al.

Case No.: 20-22844 (RDD) Howard P. Magaliff, Chapter 7 Trustee

ADDRESS 232 Seigel Street, Brooklyn, NY 11206

AUCTION DETAILS

NEIGHBORHOOD East Williamsburg

PROPERTY DETAILS

Former development site of The AUCTION: Thurs, February 3, 2022 @ 11:00 a.m. Bushwick Hotel, a 10-story, 144-key hotel located in East Williamsburg, Brooklyn, NY. to be conducted via Zoom online meeting platform Approved plans for a 97,345-square-foot building that was to have a restaurant and lobby on the ground floor followed REGISTRATION DEADLINE: by 18 rooms each on floors 2-9. Below Tues, February 1, 2022 @ 5:00 p.m. ground, the cellar floors will hold bike Opening Bid: 8,000,000 storage, 14 parking spots, a gym and the Qualifying Deposit: $800,000 hotel’s kitchen and laundry. There was

CONTACT

Please contact MYC for Terms & Condition of Sale, approved hotel development plan, survey and other pertinent information.

PHONE SITE

to be another nine parking spaces on the ground floor, bringing the project’s total to 23. This property also presents a redevelopment opportunity for multilevel industrial warehousing which is currently at a premium in Brooklyn, NY.

(347) 273-1258 www.myccorp.com

SUBMIT YOUR SUBMIT YOUR BUSINESS BUSINESS CLASSIFIEDS CLASSIFIEDS TODAY TODAY Advertising Section

Contact Claudia Hippel

To place a classified ad, at 312-659-0076 or Call 212-210-0189 email: claudia.hippel@crain.com or Email: jbarbieri@crainsnewyork.com

INVITATION TO BID

Invitation to Prequalify and to Bid

Rehabilitation and Flood Mitigation of the New York Aquarium, Brooklyn, NY: Turner Construction Company, an EEO Employer, is currently soliciting bids for the Rehabilitation and Flood Mitigation of the New York Aquarium from subcontractors and vendors for the following bid packages: BP #055 – Cleaning/Laborer (Bid, Payment & Performance Bond Required) BP #048 – Misc. Metal & Railing (Bid, Payment & Performance Bond Required) BP #043 –Carpentry (Including Temp Shed & HMW) (Bid, Payment & Performance Bond Required) BP #064 – Spray on Fireproofing (Bid, Payment & Performance Bond Required) BP #046 – Paint (Bid, Payment & Performance Bond Required) BP #054 – Pre-Construction Surveying (Report/Pictures) (Bid, Payment & Performance Bond Required) BP #056 – Surveying (Bid, Payment & Performance Bond Required) BP #045 – Masonry (Bid, Payment & Performance Bond Required) Only bids responsive to the entire scope of work will be considered and, to be successful, bidders must be prequalified by Turner. Certified M/WBE and Small Business (13 CFR part 121) companies are encouraged to submit.

In order to receive the bid packages, potential bidders either (1) must initiate the prequalification process by submitting a Subcontractor/Vendor Prequalification Statement to Turner, or (2) must be prequalified based on a prior submission to Turner. (Note: Prior prequalification submissions that remain current will be considered as previously submitted or may be updated at this time.) All bidders must be prequalified by the bid deadline: February 7th, 2022 and initial submission of a prequalification statement not later than February 7th, 2022 is strongly encouraged. All bidders must have an acceptable EMR, and will be subject to government regulations such as 44 CFR and Federal Executive Order 11246. Successful bidders will be required to use LCP Tracker compliance verification software. Note that while this is a New York City prevailing wage project, union affiliation is not required for BP #055, #048, #043, #064, #046, #054, #056 and #045. For BP#055 – Union 79 labor force is required.

A Webcast about the above Bid Package/s will be held on January 13, 2021. Attendance is optional for all; the Webcast is designed to assist potential M/WBE subcontractors/vendors.

Link: Please join this meeting from your computer, tablet or smartphone. https://teams.microsoft.com/l/meetupjoin/19%3ameeting_NWFmNDViZmQtNzNkZi00M2ZhLWIzYjAtMDdhMTM2ZDQ5YTMy%40thread.v2/0?context=%7b%22Tid%22%3a%2220e27 700-b670-4553-a27c-d8e2583b3289%22%2c%22Oid%22%3a%2281be9e3a-0656-4e94-9245-fa214eb20ab2%22%7d To obtain further information about contracting opportunities and/or the prequalification package and bid solicitation package/s, please contact Dolores Wooden, DWooden@tcco.com 201-954-9092.

The date for the virtual public opening at the Turner Construction Company office located at 375 Hudson Street, New York, New York, is February 8th, 2022 1PM. Link: Please join this opening meeting from your computer, tablet or smartphone.

https://teams.microsoft.com/l/meetupjoin/19%3ameeting_YzUxYzI4YWEtMGYwYy00MGM1LTg5ZWEtNTkwZDUwNTQ4Yjhj%40thread.v2/0?context=%7b%22Tid%22%3a%2220e2770 0-b670-4553-a27c-d8e2583b3289%22%2c%22Oid%22%3a%22732a90ce-24b7-42eb-bf78-d638e2a629ac%22%7d

POSITIONS AVAILABLE Sr. Principal Software Dev Engineer needed by Oath Holdings Inc. in New York, NY to analyze software reqs & investigate softw solutions. Domestic & int’l travel required annually up to 15% of time. To apply email resume to immigration@yahooinc.com & refer Job#LASHIY.

Manager-Product Development/Management needed

by Verizon in New York, NY to lead product development for the small business segment’s Software as a Service (SaaS) products. Travel required 20% to work with the Verizon team in Sunnyvale, CA. Must have the ability to work from home. To apply, email resume to vzapply@verizon.com. Ref. Job # SHDESD-L.

PUBLIC & LEGAL NOTICES Notice of formation of Konisan (NY), LLC, file with SOS of NY on 12/13/21. Loc in NY County, designed as agent upon whom process may be served SSNY, shall mail process to 600 Mamaroneck Ave #400, Harrison, NY 10528. 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.

Advertising Section Advertising Section

To place a classified ad, Call 212-210-0189 Contact Claudia Hippel at 312-659-0076 or email: claudia.hippel@crain.com or Email: classifieds@crainsnewyork.com

PUBLIC SALE NOTICE UCC Public Sale Notice On January 24, 2022 at “11:00 A.M.” in the offices of Fried, FrAnk, HArris, sHriver And JAcObsOn LLP, One neW YOrk PLAZA, neW YOrk, neW YOrk 10004 and via Webex virtual link to the live auction, Jones Lang Lasalle, on behalf of 640 brOAdWAY Lender LLc, a delaware limited liability company (the “Secured Party”), will offer for sale the following interests, as permitted pursuant to the terms of a Pledge and security Agreement (the “Pledge Agreement”) between eve sTrAUsMAn WinsTOn (“Debtor”) and the secured Party and Article 9 of the Uniform commercial code of the state of new York. secured Party is offering for sale 100% of the limited liability company membership interests (together with certain related rights and property relating thereto, the “Collateral” or the “Interests”) in Winhaven 640 broadway LLc, a new York limited liability company (“Winhaven”). Winhaven is the owner of a 36.875% interest in 640 broadway Owners LLc (“Owner”). Owner is the indirect owner via certain subsidiaries in two condominium units commonly known as “The 640 broadway condominium” located at 640 broadway, new York, new York (the “Property”), together with all buildings and improvements located thereon and all appurtenant property rights relating thereto.

The sale is being made in connection with the foreclosure on a pledge of the interests to secured Party by debtor under the Pledge Agreement, pursuant to which debtor has granted to secured Party a first priority lien on the interests as collateral for the loan (the “Loan Agreement”) from secured Party to debtor. The Loan Agreement was made pursuant to the Pledge Agreement and a Promissory note dated July 8, 2014 (as amended by that certain Amendment to Promissory note dated december 27, 2016 and that certain second Amendment to Promissory note dated April 20, 2018, collectively, the “Note”, and together with the Pledge Agreement, the “Loan Documents”). The Property is subject to a mortgage loan pursuant to certain loan documents evidencing the mortgage loan.

The sale shall be a public auction to the highest qualified bidder. The interests are being offered as a single lot, “asis, where-is”, with no express or implied warranties, representations, statements or conditions of any kind made by the secured Party or any person acting for or on behalf of the secured Party, without any recourse whatsoever to the secured Party or any other person acting for or on behalf of the secured Party and each bidder must make its own inquiry regarding the interests. The winning bidder shall be responsible for the payment of all transfer taxes, stamp duties and similar taxes incurred in connection with the purchase of the interests.

There are specific requirements for any potential bidder in connection with obtaining information, bidding on the collateral, and purchasing the collateral (the “Requirements”), including without limitation, that (i) such bidder is a Qualified bidder as that term is defined in the Terms of Public sale, (ii) such bidder has satisfied all of the requirements set forth in Terms of Public sale to be a Qualified bidder and complied with the other qualifications and requirements of the Terms of Public sale, and (iii) such bidder has complied with 640 broadway Owners LLc operating agreement and the Loan documents.

The secured Party reserves the right to credit bid, set a minimum reserve price, reject all bids (including without limitation any bid that it deems to have been made by a bidder that is unable to satisfy the requirements imposed by the secured Party upon prospective bidders in connection with the sale or to whom in the secured Party’s sole judgment a sale may not lawfully be made) and terminate or adjourn the sale to another time, without further notice.

The secured Party further reserves the right to restrict prospective bidders to those who will represent that they are purchasing the interests for their own account for investment not with a view to the distribution or resale of such interests, to verify that each certificate for the interests to be sold bears a legend substantially to the effect that such interests have not been registered under the securities Act of 1933, as amended (the “Securities Act”), and may not be disposed of in violation of the provisions of the securities Act and to impose such other limitations or conditions in connection with the sale of the interests as the secured Party deems necessary or advisable in order to comply with the securities Act or any other applicable law.

All bids (other than credit bids of the secured Party) must be for cash, and the successful bidder must be prepared to deliver immediately available good funds and otherwise comply with the bidding requirements. Further information concerning the interests, the requirements for obtaining information and bidding on the interests and the Terms of sale can be found at http://www.winhaven640broadwayllcuccsale.com. brett rosenberg +1 212-812-5926; brett.rosenberg@am.jll.com

PUBLIC SALE NOTICE UCC PUbliC Sale NotiCe

PLEASE TAKE NOTICE THAT RICP II 241 BEdfORd, LLC, a delaware limited liability company (together with its successors and assigns, “Secured Party”), will offer for sale at public auction (the “Sale”) on february 17, 2022 at 2:00 P.M. (New York Time), in the offices of Dechert LLP, located at 1095 Avenue of the Americas, New York, New York 10036 (subject to the COVId-19 pandemic and applicable law (including any Executive Orders of the Governor of the State of New York) relating thereto), and also broadcast for remote participation via virtual audio/video teleconference, one hundred percent (100%) of the issued and outstanding limited liability company interests (collectively, the “Membership Interests”) in each of 241 Bedford Investors, LLC, a delaware limited liability company, and Redbridge Bedford Holdings LLC, a delaware limited liability company (collectively, the “Pledged Entities”), together with certain rights and property representing, relating to, or arising from the Membership Interests (collectively with the Membership Interests, the “Collateral”).

Based upon information provided by 241 Bedford Partners, LLC, a delaware limited liability company, and Redbridge Bedford Partners LLC, a delaware limited liability company (collectively, “debtor”), the Pledged Entities and certain other persons and entities affiliated therewith, it is the understanding of Secured Party (but without any representation or warranty of any kind by Secured Party as to the accuracy or completeness) that: (i) debtor owns one hundred percent (100%) of the Membership Interests in the Pledged Entities; (ii) the Pledged Entities (a) own one hundred percent (100%) of the limited liability company interests (the “Mezzanine A Collateral”) in 241 Bedford Associates, LLC, a delaware limited liability company, and Redbridge Bedford LLC, a delaware limited liability company (collectively, the “Property Owners”) and (b) have pledged, among other things, the Mezzanine A Collateral as collateral for a senior mezzanine loan made to the Pledged Entities (the “Mezzanine A Loan”); (iii) the Property Owners own (and debtor indirectly owns) certain condominium units in the real property known as 241 Bedford Condominium and by the street numbers 156 to 170 North 4th Street, 155 to 175 North 3rd Street, 239 to 243 Bedford Avenue and 237 Bedford Avenue, Borough of Brooklyn, County of Kings, City and State of New York (collectively, the “Property”) and (iv) the Property is subject to a mortgage loan (the “Mortgage Loan”) made to the Property Owners. debtor has granted to Secured Party a security interest in the Collateral as collateral for a junior mezzanine loan made by Secured Party to debtor (the “Mezzanine B Loan”). The Mezzanine B Loan is subordinated to the Mezzanine A Loan and the Mortgage Loan.

The Collateral will be sold as a single lot, and will not be divided or sold in lesser amounts, on an “as is, where is” basis, with all faults, and without representations or warranties of any kind or nature whatsoever, including, without limitation, any representation or warranty relating to title, possession, quiet enjoyment, or the like, and without any recourse whatsoever to Secured Party or any other person acting for or on behalf of Secured Party. Secured Party reserves the right to restrict prospective bidders to those who will represent that they (i) are purchasing the Membership Interests for their own accounts for investment and not with a view to the distribution or resale of such Membership Interests; (ii) are an accredited investor within the meaning of the applicable securities laws; (iii) have sufficient knowledge and experience in financial and business matters so as to be capable of evaluating the merits and risks of investment and have sufficient financial means to afford the risk of investment in the Collateral; (iv) will not resell or otherwise hypothecate the Collateral without a valid registration under applicable federal or state laws, including, without limitation, the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the “Securities Act”), or an available exemption therefrom; provided that the Secured Party reserves the right to verify that each certificate for the limited liability company interests to be sold bears a legend substantially to the effect that such interests have not been registered under the Securities Act and to impose such other limitations or conditions in connection with the sale of the Collateral as the Secured Party deems necessary or advisable in order to comply with the Securities Act or any other applicable law; (v) will purchase the Collateral in compliance with all applicable federal and state laws; (vi) are or will be, at the time of closing of the sale, a Qualified Transferee (as defined in the Intercreditor Agreement); and (vii) will be able to satisfy and will satisfy all of the other requirements of the Intercreditor Agreement. The cost, expense and risk of satisfying any of the foregoing requirements shall be solely the responsibility of the prospective bidder.

PLEASE TAKE NOTICE that there are specific requirements for any potential bidder in connection with obtaining information, bidding on the Collateral and purchasing the Collateral (the “Requirements”), including (i) complying with the restrictions applicable to the sale of the Membership Interests set forth in that certain Intercreditor Agreement, dated as of May 25, 2018 (the “ICA”), including without limitation, that such bidder is a “Qualified Transferee” (as defined in the ICA), and the winning bidder must deliver all documents and pay such amounts required by the ICA (including, but not limited to, providing replacement guarantees and indemnities by a Supplemental Third Party Obligor (as defined in the ICA)), (ii) complying with each Pledged Entity’s governing documents, the Mezzanine A Loan documents and the Mortgage Loan documents, and (iii) complying with all other applicable qualifications and requirements (including but not limited to, such qualifications and requirements set forth in the Terms of Public Sale relating to the sale of Collateral (the “Terms of Sale”)).

Secured Party reserves the right to credit bid, reject all bids and terminate or adjourn the Sale to such other date and time as Secured Party may deem proper. All bids (other than credit bids of Secured Party) must be for cash and the successful bidder (other than Secured Party) must be prepared to deliver immediately available federal funds (i) for the Required Deposit (as defined in the Terms of Sale) within twenty-four (24) hours after the conclusion of the Sale and (ii) for the balance of the purchase price of the Collateral on the closing date prescribed by the Terms of Sale and otherwise comply with the Requirements. The winning bidder must pay all transfer taxes, stamp duties and similar taxes incurred in connection with the purchase of the Collateral. further information concerning the Collateral, the Sale, the requirements for obtaining information and bidding on the interests and the Terms of Sale can be found at http://www.241bedforduccsale.com, or by contacting Brett Rosenberg of JLL Capital Markets by telephone at (212) 812-5926 or by email at brett.rosenberg@am.jll.com.

PUBLIC & LEGAL NOTICES Notice of Qualification of FANATICS SPV, LLC. Appl. for Auth. filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 11/12/21. Office location: NY County. LLC formed in Delaware (DE) on 0 3/11/21. Princ. office of LLC: 205 Hudson St., 5th Fl., NY, NY 10013.

SSNY designated as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to c/o Corporation Service Co., 80 State St., Albany, NY 12207-2543.

DE addr. of LLC: 251 Little Falls Dr., Wilmington, DE 19808. Cert. of Form. filed with Secy. of State, John G. Townsend Bldg., 401 Federal St., Ste. 4, Dover, DE 19901. Purpose: Any lawful activity.

Notice of Formation of 9 VANDAM LP JV LLC. Arts. of Org. filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 10/18/21.

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 Arch Companies, 15 West 27th St., 6th Fl., NY, NY 10001. Purpose: any lawful activities.

NOTICE OF FORMATION OF : Javier Jr Bike Shop 2 LLC. Articles of Organization filed with the Secretary of State of NY (SSNY) on 05/06/2021 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: 1774 Amsterdam Ave New York, NY 10031 The principal business address of the LLC is 1774 Amsterdam Ave New York, NY 10031. Dissolution date: N/A Purpose: any lawful act or activity.

NOTICE OF FORMATION of GENEALLELE LLC. Arts. of Org. filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 11/03/2021. Office location: NY County. SSNY designated as agent upon whom process may be served. SSNY shall mail copy of process to: GeneAllele LLC, 82 Nassau St #60941, New York, NY 10038.

Purpose: any lawful purpose.

Notice of Qualification of FBG ENTERPRISES OPCO, LLC. Appl. for Auth. filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 11/12/21. Office location: NY County. LLC formed in Delaware (DE) on 09/21/21. Princ. office of LLC: 205 Hudson St., 5th Fl., NY, NY 10013. SSNY designated as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to c/o Corporation Service Co., 80 State St., Albany, NY 12207-2543. DE addr. of LLC: 251 Little Falls Dr., Wilmington, DE 19808. Cert. of Form. filed with Secy. of State, John G. Townsend Bldg., 401 Federal St., Ste. 4, Dover, DE 19901. Purpose: Any lawful activity.

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PUBLIC & LEGAL NOTICES ESRT MV Swap Chesapeake Owner, L.L.C. Authority filed SSNY 11/29/21. Office: NY Co. LLC formed DE 9/28/21. Exists in DE: c/o Corporation Service Company, 251 Little Falls Dr., Wilmington, DE 19808. SSNY designated agent upon whom process against the LLC may be served & mail to: c/o Corporation Service Company, 80 State St., Albany, NY 12207. Cert of Formation Filed: Jeffrey W. Bullock, DE Secy. of State, Townsend Bldg., 401 Federal St., Ste. 3, Dover, DE 19901. General Purpose.

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Notice of Formation of ORANGEBURG MANOR DEVELOPER, LLC Arts. of Org. filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 11/19/21.

Office location: NY County. Princ. office of LLC: 30 Hudson Yards, 72nd Fl., 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 RADIO RESTAURANT, LLC. Appl. for Auth. filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 12/27/21. Office location: NY County. LLC formed in Delaware (DE) on 12/02/21.

SSNY designated as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to Youngwoo & Associates, LLC, 545 W. 25th St., 8th Fl., NY, NY 10001. DE addr. of LLC: c/o Corporation Service Co., 251 Little Falls Dr., Wilmington, DE 19808. Cert. of Form. filed with DE Secy. of State, Div. of Corps., 401 Federal St., Dover, DE 19901.

Purpose: Any lawful activity.

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Notice of Formation of PAULA ZIRINSKY LLC Arts. of Org. filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 11/24/21. Office location: NY County. Princ. office of LLC: 315 Riverside Dr., #9A, NY, NY 10025. SSNY designated as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to the LLC at the addr. of its princ. office. Purpose: Any lawful activity.

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Notice of Formation of CAPE GRAVITY, LLC Arts. of Org. filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 11/19/21. Office location: NY County. SSNY designated as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to Brian Orlando, 350 Bleecker St., Apt. 6X, NY, NY 10014, regd. agent upon whom and at which process may be served. Purpose: Any lawful activity.

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Notice of Qualification of J26 LLC Appl. for Auth. filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 12/02/21.

Office location: NY County. LLC formed in Delaware (DE) on 06/26/20. 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, John G. Townsend Bldg., 401 Federal St., Ste. 4, Dover, DE 19901. Purpose: Any lawful activity.

ESRT Victory Owner, L.L.C. Authority filed SSNY 11/29/21.

Office: NY Co. LLC formed DE 9/28/21. Exists in DE: c/o Corporation Service Company, 251 Little Falls Dr., Wilmington, DE 19808. SSNY designated agent upon whom process against the LLC may be served & mail to: c/o Corporation Service Company, 80 State St., Albany, NY 12207. Cert of Formation Filed: Jeffrey W. Bullock, DE Secy. of State, Townsend Bldg., 401 Federal St., Ste. 3, Dover, DE 19901. General Purpose.

Notice of Qualification of KINOKO LOGISTICS, LLC Appl. for Auth. filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 12/02/21. Office location: NY County. LLC formed in Delaware (DE) on 02/04/14.

Princ. office of LLC: 100 Ave. of the Americas, 16th Fl., NY, NY 10013. SSNY designated as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to the LLC at the princ. office of the LLC. DE addr. of LLC: c/o Corporation Service Co., 251 Little Falls Dr., Wilmington, DE 19808. Cert. of Form. filed with DE Secy. of State, John G. Townsend Bldg., 401 Federal St., Ste. 4, Dover, DE 19901. Purpose: Any lawful activity.

Notice is hereby given that a license, number 1340105 for onpremise liquor has been applied for by the undersigned to sell liquor, beer, wine & cider at retail in a restaurant under the Alcoholic Beverage Control Law at 37 W. 46 Street,1st Flr, N.Y. ,N.Y. 10036 for on premise consumption.

Ruaymak Inc t/a Mitr Thai

NOTICE OF FORMATION OF : Javier Jr Bike Shop LLC. Articles of Organization filed with the Secretary of State of NY (SSNY) on 11/02/2020 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: 5025 Broadway New York, NY 10034. The principal business address of the LLC is 5025 Broadway New York, NY 10034. Dissolution date: N/A Purpose: any lawful act or activity.

Notice of formation of Limited Liability Company name: Walker 5, LLC Art. Of Org. Filed Sec. of State of NY 06/07/2017. Off. Loc.: Richmond Co. SSNY designated as agent upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY to mail copy of process to The LLC, 209 Granite Ave Staten Island NY. Purpose: Any lawful act or activity.

Notice of formation of Limited Liability Company. Name: Nathan Galinsky Apartments Preservation LLC (“LLC”). Articles of Organization filed with the Secretary of State of the State of New York (“SSNY”) on December 6, 2021. NY office location: New York County. The SSNY has been designated as agent of the LLC upon whom process against it may be served. The SSNY shall mail a copy of any process to Nathan Galinsky Apartments Preservation LLC, 641 Lexington Avenue, 15th Floor, New York, NY 10022.

Purpose/character of LLC is to engage in any lawful act or activity.

Notice of Formation of FJM INTERNATIONAL LLC Arts. of Org. filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 11/09/21. Office location: NY County. SSNY designated as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to Franck Moison, 993 Park Ave., NY, NY 10028. Purpose: Any lawful activity.

Notice of Formation of Greenstein Family Legacy LLC. Arts. of Org. filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 10/21/21. Office location: NY County. SSNY designated as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to: 240 West 40th St., NY, NY 10018. Purpose: any lawful activities.

NOTICE OF FORMATION OF ANNA WEISS, P.L.L.C. Arts. of Org. filed with Secy of State of NY (SSNY) on 2/7/19. Office: NY County. SSNY designated as agent upon whom process may be served. SSNY shall mail copy of process against PLLC to 200 Rector Pl 12B, NY, NY 10280.

Purpose: Any lawful act.

Suki Ichiro Japanese LLC, Arts of Org filed with SSNY on 11/01/21.

Off Loc: New York County, SSNY designated as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served.

SSNY shall mail a copy of process to: The LLC, 1694 Second Ave, New York, NY 10128. Purpose: to engage in any lawful act.

Notice of formation of Limited Liability Company name: Walker 89, LLC Art. Of Org. Filed Sec. of State of NY 05/19/2016. Off. Loc.: Richmond Co. SSNY designated as agent upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY to mail copy of process to The LLC, 209 Granite Ave Staten Island NY. Purpose: Any lawful act or activity.

Notice of Formation of Food & Courage, LLC. filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 11/10/21. Office location: NY County. Princ. office of LLC: 1136 1st ave apt 5 NY, NY 10065.

SSNY designated as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to c/o Rachel R. Bieber at the princ. office of the LLC. Purpose: Any lawful act.

Notice of Qualification of CITY WINERY GRAND CENTRAL, LLC Appl. for Auth. filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 12/13/21.

Office location: NY County. LLC formed in Delaware (DE) on 11/08/21. Princ. office of LLC: 25 11th Ave., NY, NY 10013. 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. 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., Dover, DE 19901. Purpose: Any lawful activity.

Notice of formation of Limited Liability Company. Name: Nathan Galinsky Apartments Preservation Management LLC (“LLC”). Articles of Organization filed with the Secretary of State of the State of New York (“SSNY”) on December 6, 2021. NY office location: New York County. The SSNY has been designated as agent of the LLC upon whom process against it may be served. The SSNY shall mail a copy of any process to Nathan Galinsky Apartments Preservation Management LLC, 641 Lexington Avenue, 15th Floor, New York, NY 10022. Purpose/character of LLC is to engage in any lawful act or activity.

ESRT MV Swap Victory Owner, L.L.C. Authority filed SSNY 11/29/21. Office: NY Co. LLC formed DE 9/28/21. Exists in DE: c/o Corporation Service Company, 251 Little Falls Dr., Wilmington, DE 19808. SSNY designated agent upon whom process against the LLC may be served & mail to: c/o Corporation Service Company, 80 State St., Albany, NY 12207. Cert of Formation Filed: Jeffrey W. Bullock, DE Secy. of State, Townsend Bldg., 401 Federal St., Ste. 3, Dover, DE 19901. General Purpose.

Notice of Formation of Limited Liability Company (LLC). NAME: ArletteClaudine LLC. Articles of Organization filed with the Secretary of State of NY (SSNY) on 07/02/2021.

Office Location: NEW YORK County.

SSNY designated as agent upon whom process against it may be served. Address to which SSNY shall mail a copy of process is: United States Corporation Agents Inc, 7014 13th Avenue, Brooklyn, NY, 11228, USA. Principal business address of the LLC is 33 Riverside Drive, Apt 7DA, New York, NY 10023. Purpose: any lawful act or activity.

Notice of Qualification of THUZIO, LLC Appl. for Auth. filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 11/18/21.

Office location: NY County. LLC formed in Delaware (DE) on 12/ 12/11. Princ. office of LLC: 114 W. 26th St., 5th Fl., NY, NY 10001.

SSNY designated as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to the LLC at the princ. office of the LLC. DE addr. of LLC: 251 Little Falls Dr., Wilmington, DE 19808.

Cert. of Form. filed with Secy. of State of DE, Dept. of State, Div. of Corps., John Townsend Bldg., 401 Federal St., Dover, DE 19901. Purpose: Any lawful activity.

Notice of formation of Limited Liability Company. Name: Nathan Galinsky Apartments Development LLC (“LLC”). Articles of Organization filed with the Secretary of State of the State of New York (“SSNY”) on December 6, 2021. NY office location: New York County. The SSNY has been designated as agent of the LLC upon whom process against it may be served. The SSNY shall mail a copy of any process to Nathan Galinsky Apartments Development LLC, 641 Lexington Avenue, 15th Floor, New York, NY 10022.

Purpose/character of LLC is to engage in any lawful act or activity.

Notice of Qualification of YONKERS PORTFOLIO MEMBER LLC Appl. for Auth. filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 12/22/21. Office location: NY County. LLC formed in Delaware (DE) on 05/13/21. Princ. office of LLC: 116 E. 27th St., 11th Fl., NY, NY 10016. SSNY designated as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to c/o Corporation Service Co., 80 State St., Albany, NY 12207-2543. DE addr. of LLC: 251 Little Falls Dr., Wilimington, DE 19808. Cert. of Form. filed with Secy. of State, John G. Townsend Bldg., 401 Federal St., Ste. 4, Dover, DE 19901. Purpose: Real estate owner.

Notice of Formation of CPG CSA PRESERVATION PARTNERS LLC Arts. of Org. filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 12/08/21.

Office location: NY County. Princ. office of LLC: 116 E. 27th St., 11th Fl., NY, NY 10016. 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.

Purpose: Real estate.

SUBMIT YOUR SUBMIT YOUR BUSINESS BUSINESS CLASSIFIEDS CLASSIFIEDS TODAY TODAY Advertising Section ToContact place aClaudia classified ad, Hippel Call 212-210-0189 at 312-659-0076 or email: claudia.hippel@crain.com or Email: jbarbieri@crainsnewyork.com

JANUARY 10, 2022 | CRAIN’S NEW YORK BUSINESS | 21

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FROM PAGE 1

them of any gains in income,” Hochul said.

Small business Hochul also announced that her administration will deliver $100 million in tax relief to 195,000 small businesses across the state by reducing their gross taxable income and provide a tax credit for expenses related to Covid-19, such as the purchase of outdoor heating and seating.

“These businesses are the economic engines of small towns and big cities alike, and they are what make our communities unique,” said Hochul, who referred to restaurants and bars as “the soul of our neighborhoods.”

Hochul also stated her intention to permanently legalize to-go drinks at bars and restaurants, a policy that has sparked debate between government officials and small-businesses owners in the city.

The governor acknowledged that New York has suffered the steepest population loss of any state in the

nation, with more than 300,000 residents leaving last year. Hochul called the population decline “an alarm bell that cannot be ignored” and cited plans for workforce development.

With the Empire State Development Corp. and regional economic development councils, Hochul said, her administration will create the Office of Workforce and Economic Development and invest heavily in job training to relieve employers of the burden of preparing unemployed workers for open positions.

“It’s a common-sense approach backed by an uncommon level of funding, and it’s going to help supercharge our economy,” she said.

Kathryn Wylde, president and CEO of the Partnership for New York City, called the governor’s approach “practical” and “smart.”

She said Hochul’s workforce-development initiatives “are aimed squarely at the population that needs new skills to succeed in the post-pandemic digital economy,” adding that city employers “are ready to step up” and support the governor’s plan to weave training and hiring programs into the state’s

“IT’S A COMMONSENSE APPROACH BACKED BY AN UNCOMMON LEVEL OF FUNDING”

GOVERNORKATHYHOCHUL/FLICKR

TAXES

HOCHUL called restaurants and bars “the soul of our neighborhoods.”

economic-development agenda.

Cold water Peter Warren, director of research at the Empire Center for Public Policy, an Albany think tank,

said the $1.2 billion tax cut was legislated years ago, and Hochul is merely moving up the timeline on a measure that was to have stretched into 2025.

“It’s a modest middle-class tax

cut that she would move up, and it would produce modest revenue reductions for a couple of years,” Warren said.

Warren also poured cold water on Hochul’s $1 billion property tax rebate proposal for middle- and low-income households by noting that the income-level eligibility cutoff is unclear, and any broadly available property tax rebate would exceed 2 million homeowners, the number the governor projects for eligibility.

“She’s moving in the right direction, but broad-based income tax and property tax relief is better than selected, targeted credits and rebates,” Warren said. “She’s also spending a lot of money. The spending proposals are going to exceed the scope of the tax credit proposals.” ■

FINANCE

Local public firms with the biggest stock market gains (and losses) during the pandemic

BY AARON ELSTEIN

V

aluations for many of the city’s public companies are at record highs, even as well-established firms have struggled to adapt to the dizzying disruptions of Covid-19.

Using share price data from S&P Global Market Intelligence from Feb. 28, 2020, through Dec. 31, 2021—a period when the S&P 500 rose by a remarkable 62%—Crain’s assembled a list of the pandemic’s biggest winners and losers.

We think many of the results will surprise you.

Who would have imagined that a failed oil fracker and investor in Archie comics would emerge as a big winner? And with everyone gazing at screens so much, why is a leading wireless carrier having a rough go of it?

1. Bit Digital: +1421% gain We admit that we hadn’t heard of this company, a bitcoin miner headquartered on Irving Place that launched in February 2020.

After a strong first half of 2021, it stumbled in the third quarter when China banned bitcoin mining and posted a $20 million net loss on $10 million in revenue. The company said it has found new locations to do its work and has a market value of $425 million, which, for those scoring at home, is equal to about 9,200 bitcoin.

2. IDT Corp.: +485% No cat ever had as many lives as this Newark, New Jersey–based company, founded in 1990 by Howard Jonas, who attacked Ma Bell’s monopoly with his “1-800-SCREW-AT&T” marketing campaign. IDT got into credit-card collections and oil fracking. It has owned an animation studio that made episodes of The Simpsons and a conservative talk-radio network called Liberty. It has held stakes in Archie Comics Entertainment and the canned food company Vitarroz. Today IDT describes itself as a global provider of communications and payment services.

3. Datadog: +295% Cloud computing—basically, renting an-

THE LOSERS other company’s servers—is one of the hottest businesses in tech, and Datadog, with a nearly $50 billion market capitalization, is the most successful startup to emerge from New York’s venture-capital scene. Competitor MongoDB, up 247% since the pandemic started, pays workers a higher average wage than Goldman Sachs or the Blackstone Group.

4. Etsy: +278% Millions turned to this marketplace when masks became the world’s most wanted item. After a rocky start as a public company, the Brooklyn firm has carved out a lucrative niche for its sales of handmade merchandise.

It has a $25 billion market capitalization.

5. Carver Bancorp: +267% Carver is one of the pandemic’s stranger and more heartening stories. The long-dormant stock of New York’s last Black bank became a Reddit favorite, and the institution took advantage of that by raising millions in new capital to serve small businesses, churches and other borrowers shunned by larger banks. Similarly, Signature Bank, up 158%, one of the city’s largest lenders to small businesses and commercial landlords, benefited from New York’s recovery. Ivanka Trump served on its board many years ago.

1. Staffing 360 Solutions: -78% Its business model is acquiring and running employment agencies in the U.S. and the U.K. Although the company regained profitability last year as people returned to work, revenue continued to edge down, and most investors have abandoned ship. In June the company did a 1-for-6 reverse split to lift its sagging stock price, but the shares still trade for less than a dollar each.

2. Altice USA: -37% Netflix and Apple are, of course, pandemic winners, but cord-cutting has hurt this tele-

communications company, which acquired Cablevision in 2016 for about $10 billion. Altice’s market value today is just $8 billion.

3. Madison Square Garden Sports Corp.: -35% The world’s most famous arena was dark for a year, and although the improved Knicks and Rangers are playing again before fans, investors seem doubtful business will fully recover. It probably didn’t help that the omicron surge caused Phish’s end-of-year concerts to be postponed.

4. Revlon: -35% The durable consumer brand, owned by billionaire Ron Perelman for more than 35 years, has been a dud for public investors for a long time because of its hefty debt burden.

Some cosmetics companies were caught offguard when shoppers started buying lipstick less often at drugstores and more often online.

5. Paramount Group: -31% This landlord owns several prime office towers in Midtown and San Francisco that have been mostly empty for nearly two years.

Finding new tenants to fill vacancies is difficult, and the company defied shareholders last year by reseating a director who had been voted off the board. Paramount’s misery has plenty of company: Empire State Realty Trust is down 23%, Vornado Realty Trust, 22%, and SL Green, 10%. ■

BLOOMBERG, BUCK ENNIS

THE WINNERS

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BUCK ENNIS

SMALL- BUSINESS SPOTLIGHT

LANE AND COMLEY OF BROADWAYHD say productions are now building the cost of so-called digital captures into their budget.

FOCAL POINTS COMPANY NAME BroadwayHD

Broadway finds a new audience in living rooms

FOUNDED 2015 FULL-TIME EMPLOYEES 15, plus up to 100 during productions

Midtown West’s BroadwayHD films and streams performances, helping them broaden reach

BY CARA EISENPRESS

F

or years those in the Broadway world worried that digital versions of their productions would cannibalize tickets sales for live shows.

Then came the 2020–2021 shutdown of theaters. Suddenly producers were calling Bonnie Comley and Stewart Lane, co-founders of BroadwayHD, a streaming site for Broadway shows.

“It was the spigot turning on,” Lane said.

That spigot led to a much wider acceptance among Broadway talent and fans of what the co-founders call “digital captures”—the high-quality filmed performance of top-tier shows, sometimes with the original cast.

Their concept was helped along by high-profile digital premieres that occurred during the live-theater interlude. Diana: The Musical aired on Netflix in advance of its Broadway opening. The original production of Hamilton aired on Disney+ in the summer of 2020. HBO Max streamed David Byrne’s American Utopia, which was playing on Broadway pre-shutdown and has since resumed. Apple has Come From Away.

As a result, a surge of theater-starved subscribers joined the BroadwayHD platform, which costs $11.99 a month or $129.99 annually for an all-you-can-watch ticket to shows.

Lane and Comley’s first digital production

was The Will Rogers Follies, filmed at the Palace Theatre in 1993. At the time, they were both producers on Broadway and filmed the performance against the going argument that no one would buy tickets if they could watch a Broadway performance on television.

Their idea was bigger than that. In normal times, 30 shows might turn over during the course of a Broadway season, even after spending millions. Just 1 out of 5 shows recoups its investment, Lane said.

Lane and Comley thought they could hedge that financial investment at the same time as they widened the potential audience for the best performances in the world.

“We feel that if a show makes it to Broadway, it’s worth being seen by the world,” Comley said. She likened the digital capture to an original cast recording—another asset related to the show’s brand but nothing that would prevent a fan from buying a ticket when in town. “You can’t argue with the production value.”

Digital investment Throughout their time as producers, the pair sometimes helped shows film their productions. But it wasn’t until the 2010s that they came up with the BroadwayHD concept, building the platform for streaming. They created relationships with existing shows to be the digital producers, coming in to en-

FOUNDERS Bonnie Comley and Stewart F. Lane

hance the stage show to be ready for a digital capture. BroadwayHD also licenses content from elsewhere, though it avoids lower-quality or temporary versions of shows.

The founders say monthly revenue has increased by 304% between the end of 2019 and the end of 2021. The amount the firm takes in can depend on whether the team is involved in the stage show, shoots the digital version itself or licenses the deal.

Part of the expense of shooting has to do with the broad range of union positions on each theater set, so everyone who would be compensated in a regular production has to be compensated for the filming. Shows that BroadwayHD films cost $10 million to produce and capture on digital—an investment for any production but one the team says pays off as marketing for the show.

In the past filming a digital capture was often an afterthought—and a new expense. But now producers seem to have come around on the idea and are willing to build the cost into their original budget, Comley said, so it is not a surprise negotiation down the line.

“The conversations are being had much earlier,” she said.

In addition to convincing Broadway that it’s worth the investment and time to create a digital capture, the company also had to make an argument to hard-core theater fans.

“People have admitted they are watching

NO COMPETITION Lane and Comley say the return of live theater has been thrilling and they are not worried about live shows putting a damper on streamed versions—a mirror image of the original worry that streaming would take a bite out of ticket sales.

COMING SOON BroadwayHD’s 2022 content will focus on supporting the New York City performing arts industry.

West Side Story will air, as will I Love You, You’re Perfect, Now Change and Chitty Chitty Bang Bang.

NUMBER OF SHOWS STREAMING 350

streamed theater,” Comley said, “whereas before, it was [as though] if you watched it on a screen, it was like you were cheating.

Now it’s just part of what the fan base is doing. You watch sports on TV and you go to the game.”

Though subscriptions shot up during the early days of the pandemic, they have sustained at a fairly high level. They follow a seasonal pattern, with fewer subscribers in summer months and more in the colder weather, or as viral waves peak and theater fans hunker down inside again. ■

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