For years Lili Rosen, a trans woman from Brooklyn, didn’t feel at home in her body. She felt detached, like her body was a stranger. She avoided doctors and the entire health care system.
But she decided to wade back into the health care landscape in
BY NICK GARBER
What do a gay rights activist, a Brooklyn pastor, and Lin-Manuel Miranda’s father have in common? ey’re all lobbying for the real estate giants and gambling companies seeking to win a downstate casino license.
ough the application process is still months away from beginning in earnest, bidders have already paid outside lobbying rms at least $2.6 million combined this year to pitch their projects to elected o cials and community groups, according to a Crain’s review of public records.
outside rms to take meetings with city and state legislators, the mayor’s and governor’s o ces, borough presidents, and community boards—likely with an eye toward winning over the community advisory committees that could sink a potential bid if it lacks enough local support.
$1.1M
SPENDING ON LOBBYING by Mets owner Steve Cohen, far outpacing other bidders
$2B
ESTIMATED annual revenue from each of three New York City-area casinos
at’s a bargain compared to the estimated $2 billion in revenue that each of the three New York City-area licenses could generate each year.
e lings show that many applicants have enlisted multiple
A RENDERING of SL Green and Caesars’ proposed Times Square casino at 1515 Broadway
Some applicant teams have also doubled up, with both the real estate company and their gaming partner opting to lobby public o cials, records show. And some lobbyists are double-dipping in their own right, with rms like Albany Strategic Advisors and Bolton-St. Johns attached to multiple different bids.
e latest disclosures, which cover January through April, are only a small portion of each company’s total spending, which likely includes contracts
See CASINO on page 12
2021, when she began her transition journey. After she spent months on a waiting list, she started appointments at Apicha Community Health Center, which has clinics near Chinatown and in Jackson Heights. About a year later, she switched to Monte ore
The city is a refuge for transgender care in a hostile national landscape, but it’s still not easy to obtain services and pay for them
HEALTH CAREBUCK ENNIS SL GREEN
Adeveloper that builds affordable housing and homeless shelters has snapped up a college dorm in an affluent part of the Bronx.
The Stagg Group, a prolific developer, has purchased a 7-story property from Manhattan College that hugs the edge of the exclusive Fieldston section of Riverdale for $18 million. The deal, which closed
1967 for $1.
David Koeppel, a spokesman for the Catholic college, whose 23-acre campus is home to 3,694 boarding and commuter students and 750 employees, said the sale was part of an effort to overhaul the campus.
“Since we have further enhanced and modernized our other facilities, it was determined that we no longer had a need for Overlook,” Koeppel said in a statement.
THE DORM IS A RED BRICK STRUCTURE AT 3801 WALDO AVE. THAT HAS ONE- TO THREE-BEDROOM UNITS
May 17, appeared in the City Register on May 30.
Named Overlook Manor, the dorm is a red brick structure at 3801 Waldo Ave. that has one- to three-bedroom units serving 400 students, according to the school’s website. Manhattan College appears to have bought the site, which is at the corner of West 238th Street, as part of a tax-lien sale in
But the deal comes as Manhattan College, like other small schools in the region, has struggled financially in the wake of the pandemic. Last year the ratings agency Fitch downgraded the school’s credit rating in part because its enrollment declined 12% between 2018 and 2021, Fitch said. Likewise, the school’s cash flow margins have plummeted from 16.1% in 2017 to 5.4% in 2021, though federal stimulus funds were responsible for padding some of the totals, the agency said.
To help get its rating back to Afrom BBB+, Manhattan College needs to up enrollment and “and bring full occupancy back to resi-
dential housing,” according to Fitch. Brother Daniel Gardner, who became president of the school in September, seemed to recognize the struggles of the past few years in an interview with Crain’s in January.
“Another thing very frustrating to us, certainly since Covid, is that with the Great Resignation, it’s been challenging to reassemble the community that was here before Covid. We’re doing it, but it’s a challenge because people have been profoundly changed by that,” he said.
The college, which was founded in 1853 in Manhattan’s Manhattanville neighborhood and relocated to the Bronx in 1922, today charges boarding students $64,700 a year. Stagg, which does business under a number of limited liability companies linked to an address on Pitman Avenue in the Wakefield section of the Bronx, could not be reached by phone for comment on its plans and does not offer an email address on its website. But the company, which is helmed by CEO Mark Stagg, since 1996 has developed 3,500 affordable-housing units, most of which are in the Bronx.
Not all of those projects have
been met with open arms. Indeed, an apartment building that Stagg developed in 2017 at 5731 Broadway in the next-door Kingsbridge neighborhood caught flak for being initially promoted as market-rate luxury housing before ending up as a homeless shelter.
More recent Stagg projects in the area have included 5959 Broadway, a 6-story development with a mix of market-rate and affordable units.
Adolfo Carrion Jr., the current commissioner of the city’s Housing
Preservation and Development agency, worked as a vice president at Stagg in the mid-2010s after stepping down as Bronx borough president.
In 2017 Jeffrey Dinowitz, the Assembly member representing the area, slammed Stagg for its “bait and switch” approach at 5731 Broadway. But Dinowitz said he expects Stagg’s new site on Waldo Avenue not to serve as a shelter and instead offer more-traditional housing for lowerincome families. ■
EVENTS CALLOUT
JUNE 13
DIVERSITY & INCLUSION BREAKFAST
Crain’s Third Annual Diversity and Inclusion Awards event will feature a live unveil of our 2023 D&I Award-winning companies and individuals, as well as a keynote speech from Carla Harris, senior client adviser at Morgan Stanley and recipient of our Lifetime Achievement Award.
DETAILS
Time: 9:00 a.m. to 11:00 a.m.
Location: 180 Central Park S. CrainsNewYork.com/D&I2023
New York’s most competitive campaign of the summer is shaping up in Harlem, where two political veterans and a firsttime candidate are locked in a City Council race left suddenly wide open when the incumbent dropped out.
The Democratic primary in Central Harlem’s District 9 pits Inez Dickens and Al Taylor, both sitting members of the State Assembly, against Yusef Salaam, best known for being wrongfully convicted of rape at age 16 as one of the “Central Park Five.”
All three had lined up to challenge incumbent Kristin Richardson Jordan, a first-term socialist seen as vulnerable due to her lack of institutional support. She has also been widely criticized for her opposition to the One45 rezoning last year; the defeat of the proposal resulted in a truck depot opening on the site. But Richardson Jordan dropped her re-election campaign last month, upending the race with weeks left before the June 27 primary.
The campaign is playing out in a neighborhood in flux. Long seen as the epicenter of the city’s Black political scene, Harlem has lost ground to Brooklyn in recent years. More broadly, Harlem has seen large loss-
es in its Black population numbers—along with a corresponding rise in white residents, as high-end apartment buildings sprout up in the blocks north of Central Park.
At the same time, the neighborhood has struggled with public safety during the pandemic, with complaints of open drug use and shoplifting along the 125th Street corridor. Also looming over the race is the revived, two-tower One45 project, which developer Bruce Teitelbaum now hopes could pass the City Council with a more development-friendly member in office. (All three candidates have expressed openness to the latest version of the project.)
The race could test the remaining strength of Harlem’s political establishment, and also serve as a generational clash—Dickens and Taylor are 73 and 65, respectively, while Salaam is 49.
“There are concerns about the broad physical changes to the community, but also newer residents
that have been reluctant to get involved in the Harlem political machine,” said Basil Smikle, a longtime political strategist based in Harlem. “Because they’re questioning whether the older politics of that generation is relevant to who they are at this moment in time.”
In interviews, all three candidates ranked housing affordability and public safety at the top of their agendas. The candidates’ personalities could sway the race, since their platforms are broadly similar— though Salaam is quicker than his rivals to criticize excessive policing, having spent nearly seven years in prison after being wrongly convicted of the 1989 attack of a jogger.
A good deal of institutional support has coalesced around Dickens, who previously held the same council seat from 2006 to 2016 and is part of a prominent political family. U.S. Rep. Adriano Espaillat and his predecessor, Charlie Rangel, have endorsed Dickens. Other endorsements came from the United Federation of Teachers and Greater Harlem Coalition, a prominent local group that opposes the placement of drug treatment facilities and shelters in the neighborhood.
In a race shaped by development, each one can claim connections to real estate. Dickens touts her own experience as a landlord, while Taylor has been endorsed by a powerful carpenters’ union, and Salaam has the backing of Open New York, a pro-development group.
All three candidates have qualities that could make them unpalatable to certain voters. Dickens has faced opposition from tenant groups due to subpar conditions in the buildings she owns, as well as her lukewarm stance on renters’ protections. Taylor has refused to perform same-sex marriages in his church and has taken conflicting votes on efforts to safeguard abortion, sparking criticism from advocates. ■
Growing up in the Dominican Republic, Jose Herrera worked in a call center for a big money order company. e place was dark and dingy, with no windows, he says. He had to ask his boss for permission to use the bathroom.
More than a decade later, when Herrera launched his own customer support company with two co-founders, he vowed to create the nicest contact center ever. “We decided to build our entire culture around the employees,” he says.
His startup, Horatio, is headquartered in the Flatiron District, but its main contact center is in Santo Domingo, where it provides customer support for 108 clients, typically consumer-facing startups in areas like health, fashion and nancial services.
e contact center has the bright and airy look of a Manhattan startup, says Herrera, with wraparound views of the city. Employees work at round tables so they can chat with each other and enjoy the perks of big tech companies including free meals, a gym, game rooms and daycare. Horatio pays wages 20% above the market average for customer service reps in the city, says Herrera.
anks to this unusual level of employee support, Horatio’s attrition rates average 5% compared to the 30% industry norm, says Herrera. And that translates to better performance. “It’s great for clients because you get people who stay longer and are knowledgeable,” he says.
Among Horatio’s clients is Pair Eyewear, a Flatiron District-based startup that creates customizable prescription glasses. Pair began working with Horatio a year ago, says Associate Director of Customer Experience Emily Stubbs, who recently visited the contact center in Santo Domingo.
“ ey really make a connection,” she says of Horatio’s reps. “We’ve had customers come back and ask for the same rep because they had such a good experience.”
e strategy also shows in the numbers. Compared to other customer service providers employed by Pair, its Horatio team of 70 dedicated workers has a higher customer satisfaction score and lower error rate, she says.
e startup, which launched out of Herrera’s West Village studio on Horatio Street in 2018 and has never raised outside funding, is already earning tens of millions in revenue annually. e company’s founders say Horatio has been pro table since 2019.
The reigning Goliath: Teleperformance
Paris-based Teleperformance, a “global digital business services company,” employs 410,000 employees in 91 countries, providing customer support in more than 300 languages and dialects to 170 markets. Its 2022 revenue topped $8.5 billion.
How to slay the giant
Herrera, the CEO, met COO Alex Ross and CFO Jared Karson at the MBA program at Columbia Business School. ey had all worked for nearly a decade on Wall Street, “but we kind of caught the entrepreneurial bug from business school and hearing other entrepreneurs speak about their stories,” says Ross.
e trio invested in a fast-growing online startup that sold green cleaning supplies. And when the supply company needed help with customer service, they pitched in as support reps. ey soon realized there were many startups that had outgrown their in-house customer support teams and couldn’t nd an outside provider to meet their unique needs. “ ey’re moving really, really fast. And they don’t have everything perfect… ey need a consultative approach,” says Herrera. When Horatio launched, its rst clients included the cleaning supply company, a local kid’s soccer academy and a granola bar manufacturer. Since they couldn’t a ord to hire reps, the three co-founders provided most of the support service
themselves, sometimes taking a customer service call in the middle of a meeting.
“We got to a place where we could actually a ord to build the team, but that’s how we learned,” says Ross. “Now, every time we hire people, we tell them, ‘We’re not asking you to do a job that the three of us haven’t done.’”
By spring 2020, they had 10 clients and a team of 35 contact center reps in the Dominican Republic. ey lost half those clients when the pandemic hit, but were determined to keep going. Herrera drove around Santo Domingo delivering wireless boosters to reps so they could work from home.
And then things took o . e pandemic provided a huge boost to direct-to-consumer startups and these companies couldn’t keep up with demand for customer service. Because Horatio had already made a name for itself, the new accounts poured in. By spring 2022, its business had grown ten-fold.
Many companies had trouble recruiting workers during this period, but not Horatio. anks to its higher wages, benets and growing reputation for promoting from within, it grew its employee pool to more than 800 within two years and now employs more than 1,400 bilingual agents. “Word travels fast when people hear that this isn’t just a job that you get stuck in,” says Ross.
In July, Horatio will open a new hub in Bogota, Colombia, for up to 1,200 new employees. It is also expanding to include content moderation along with trust and safety services. In hopes of extending its employee culture to the new location, it is training its Colombia sta in its DR hub.
“One of the things that we have a really close eye on is how do we match the culture, so that it doesn’t become just another call center,” says Ross. ■
Anne Kadet is the creator of Café Anne, a weekly newsletter with a New York City focus.
BY C. J. HUGHES
With the bang of a gavel on a podium on May 23, the Flatiron Building, the much-loved and recently embattled wedge of a structure, began a new chapter.
After using a court-ordered auction essentially to buy out an owner, Nathan Silverstein, who had a competing vision about the future, the other owners can now move forward with plans to add residential condos to the upper floors of the 21-story tower while keeping office space below.
“We accomplished our goal, ending our relationship with Nathan Silverstein,” said Jeff Gural, the chairman of GFP Real Estate, one of three real-estate companies that now control the Flatiron; the others are Sorgente Group of America and ABS Real Estate Partners.
Gural assures New Yorkers that no dramatic changes are planned at the site, which is addressed at 175 Fifth Ave., He has a Lego version of the Flatiron on his desk because he loves it so much. “New Yorkers don’t have to worry,” he said.
Creating housing out of the three-sided structure, which points uptown like a ship, might be tricky. Even office tenants there were known to sometimes complain about the difficulty of squeezing into triangular rooms. Its exterior is also a landmark.
The market can also seem daunting for condo development. As borrowing costs have grown, chilling the market, the median sale price for new condos in Manhattan plummeted 31% in the first quarter versus the previous year, or to $1.6 million from $2.3 million, according to Douglas Elliman.
Gural says the 1902 edifice requires $100 million in renovations even without investing in a new function for the commercial building.
Still, the city is looking at office buildings hollowed out by remote work as opportunities for alleviating its housing shortage, so Gural’s timing could be right. And there’s a long history in New York of adding apartments to prewar fixtures, including opened and planned redevelopments of the Woolworth Building, 1 Wall St. and the McGraw-Hill Building.
Like with some of those, the Flatiron could market itself. “It is a building whose walls are covered with ornament, not one square inch remaining flush and plain,” said its official 1966 landmark report. “Nevertheless,” the report adds, “it still enjoys a feeling of daring slenderness and height, unequaled by many later structures.” ■
This eight-story commercial building fronted by large windows has deep ties to a prominent real-estate family, the Kaydens, who often invested alongside the Helmsleys and Malkins, though with less public attention. The Kaydens have owned this 29,000-square-foot site since at least the 1960s, or as far back as online property records go. Attorney Bernard Kayden appeared to handle the family’s real estate interests. He died in 2009, and his wife, Mildred, an accomplished songwriter for musicals, passed away in 2017. (A son, Jerold Kayden, teaches urban planning at Harvard.) Though Bernard’s brother, Herbert Kayden, who died in 2014, was a doctor, his daughter, Joelle Kayden, a managing partner at the VC firm Accolade Partners, manages No. 184 today, public records suggest. A Duane Reade pharmacy occupied the ground-level commercial space for years, though it appears to have recently shuttered.
Change has come often to the pair of retail spaces at this six-story prewar mixed-use building. Though the left-side storefront has had a casual lunch-counter-lined restaurant since 1928, the eatery’s owners have rotated like a Lazy Susan every few decades. Indeed, just last fall, Eisenberg’s Sandwich Shop gave way to S&P Lunch, a new offering from the team behind the retro-themed Brooklyn and Manhattan chain Court Street Grocers. Yet the new menu looks a lot like the old one, with mid-20th century staples like egg creams, pastrami sandwiches and tuna melts. The right-side retail berth also turned over recently, switching from Heywear, an eyeglasses store, to an outpost of State and Liberty, a menswear shop whose shirts are styled for larger torsos. The Sander family of Stamford, Connecticut, has owned the 21,600-square-foot building since the 1970s.
The Civil War was raging when this six-story Italianate structure detailed in brownstone opened in 1862. Its first retail tenant was Grover and Baker’s Celebrated Sewing Machines, followed two decades later by J & C Johnston Dry Goods, whose Victorian-era finery included a dress in “bronze green velvet in combination with plush and silk” and “trimmed with iridescent beads,” according to a New York Times account of its 1885 opening day. About a century later, Restoration Hardware, a home furnishings chain, leased 19,000 square feet of the 57,300-square-foot block-through building, whose two mounted exterior clocks recall the era before wristwatches. The store, now known as RH, later relocated to its own five-story space in the Meatpacking District, which made way in 2021 for Harry Potter New York, an interactive three-story store that sells “butterbeer,” magic wands and Gryffindor t-shirts. Shefa Land Corp., whose principals are the Albert family, has owned No. 935 for decades in a neighborhood where commercial turnover appears rare.
186
With a Romanesque design by Dakota architect Henry Hardenbergh, this 1883 wine-red office-and-retail building originally housed a telegraph office for Western Union before the Flatiron arrived. In 2000, a group led by David Berley, the chairman of the 90-year-old real estate company Walter & Samuels and an avid converter of prewar buildings, bought No. 186 for $4 million, records indicate. In 2007, Berley turned the seven-story structure into a four-apartment condo under a plan that made $11.5 million, filings show. (A similar Berley undertaking was at nearby 15 Madison Square North.) Small berths that included a locksmith and shoe repair shop once lined the building’s retail level, though a Bank of America branch occupies the entire ground floor today.
175
Not the tallest, fanciest or most centrally-located tower, the Flatiron can nevertheless instantly conjure New York. Originally called the Fuller Building for the company of its builder, Harry Black, the triangular structure earned its catchier handle when people realized its resemblance to a tool for pressing shirts. In 1959, St. Martin’s Press moved in, and in 2004, the company’s parent, Macmillan Publishers, became the sole tenant of the 21-story, 183,500-square-foot site. As Macmillan prepared for its 2019 departure, troubles mounted among the building’s owners about how to reinvent the empty structure. The courthouse auction on May 23, which essentially had three owners buy out a fourth for $40 million as part of a $161 million offer, was the result. It was the second auction in as many months for the Flatiron. At the previous one in March, low-profile Virginia investor Jacob Garlick won with a bid of $190 million, but he never came up with his $19 million down payment. The current owners, led by GFP, have sued to collect the missing money and promised to continue the case.
936 BROADWAY
Constructed in 1884 with a cast-iron facade, this corner building was home to the clothier Brooks Brothers for the next 31 years, back when this intersection was an upscale shopping strip. Brooks Brothers had started in 1818 at Catherine and Cherry Streets in what is now Chinatown. But the iron finishes appear to have ended up as scrap metal after a 1930 Art Deco makeover intended to simplify the outer walls. In 1986, the 49,400-square-foot site became an 11-unit commercial condo. Commercial condos were frequently pitched to tenants in the era as a way to save on escalating lease costs as New York began to bounce back from its 1970s doldrums. A software executive, DeBorah Brill, bought three of No. 936’s office units last fall for $12.9 million, records show. The building has a billboard on its roof.
In the 1960s, a fire tore through this corner, and the resulting lot stood empty for years. Then, the insurance giant based around the corner known as MetLife sold the 28,000-square-foot site to the developer Rose Associates, which put up this 29-story, 423unit tower in the early 1980s. Initial plans to build a rental tower never came to pass because Rose could not find a lender willing to take the risk, according to news reports. In the end, Citibank provided a mortgage with a nearly 15% interest rate, though the site also benefited from the 421-a property tax break back when condos were eligible for it. Sales at the building, which has studios to three-bedrooms, many with balconies, totaled $68 million, according to its offering plan. In April, a 650-square-foot one-bedroom at the property, which is named Madison Green, sold for $1.2 million. West-facing units enjoy views of details of the Flatiron’s ornate terracotta facade.
An office-to-residential conversion is envisioned for the landmark tower, joining a neighborhood trend
When
succeed, our
do too
Five months into her tenure as dean of Fordham University’s Gabelli School of Business, Lerzan Aksoy has been thinking about how to align the school’s mission with current skill set demands from hiring managers as businesses focus on environmental, social and governance innovation. By focusing on ESG issues, companies and organizations are striving to do business in a more responsible way that protects communities and the environment. As more firms adopt ESG planning, Aksoy says, business schools have the opportunity to be at the forefront of training a generation of students who will enter the workforce poised to address the world’s most pressing concerns and create a response.
How will a focus on environmental, social and governance issues shape the future of the workforce?
When you look at the business world and how it’s changed over the past five years or so, we see a multistakeholder approach being taken. Businesses can no longer be just concerned about shareholder value; they need to be concerned about all of their stakeholders: their customers, their employees and the communities in which they operate. There are a lot of
WHO SHE IS Dean, Fordham University’s Gabelli School of Business
BORN Chile
RESIDES Cresskill, New Jersey
EDUCATION Bachelor’s in business administration, Hacettepe University in Ankara, Turkey; MBA, George Mason University; Ph.D. in marketing, KenanFlagler Business School at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
GLOBAL ROOTS Aksoy’s father was a Turkish diplomat. As a child, she lived in Mexico, Jordan, Cyprus, Pakistan and Turkey. She’s fluent in Turkish and English and can speak some French as well as a little colloquial Urdu.
OFF-HOURS When not working, Aksoy likes to spend time with her 12-year-old son, Max, and her two step-daughters. She’s big into Pilates as well.
PAGE TURNER Aksoy co-wrote the book The Wallet Allocation Rule, which links customer satisfaction to brand performance. It was a New York Times bestseller.
skeptics of ESG, and skepticism is absolutely fine. But whether it’s called ESG or something else, issues of climate, issues of governance, issues of compliance and issues of reporting are not
going to go away because of the environmental and climate crisis that we are in.
What role does a business school play in preparing students for a field that is still relatively new?
It’s going to be one of the big areas of how business schools can help students navigate this marketplace of these emerging, new kinds of jobs. There are so many problems and challenges that the world is facing, and there’s this idea that business is needed more than ever at this point in time to be a solution to those challenges. We are hearing from recruiters that they are looking for students who really understand what I call planetary boundaries—boundaries of the planet and how much it can endure in terms of pollution—and they’re not able to really get that. So if we are able to educate students with the mindsets and the skill sets and the knowledge to be able to make those decisions, we’ll be able to give them the mindset and skill set to be future-ready business leaders.
And what does that look like, practically?
We’re training for the jobs as they’re being created, and that’s an opportunity and a challenge. It takes much more than a few courses. It requires an infrastructure that is totally committed to ensuring that the students get the necessary education and experience so they come to believe that it’s their responsibility to address these challenges. We give them the knowledge and the literacy, but it’s also about helping the students understand that they have a responsibility to
After the failures of Silicon Valley and Signature Bank, anxious customers withdrew uninsured deposits at small and midsize banks everywhere. Nearly $5 billion departed Citizens Bank before the regional lender calmed the frenzy by offering higher yields to clients who left their money alone.
With markets interpreting even a small drop in deposits as a sign of trouble, Citizens CEO Bruce Van Saun told Crain’s, “It has become critical that you show deposit stability.”
Now, Citizens is one of many banks looking to the city of New York for help. This year it applied for the first time to become one of the banks approved to hold deposits for city agencies. On May 25, Citizens and 25 other institutions were approved by the New York City Banking Commission to handle billions in city funds.
The city writes a new list of approved banks every two years and the recent crisis in banking led officials to take new factors into account, such as how many of an applicant’s deposits are uninsured and how many unrealized losses lurk in its investment portfolio. Members of the public were invited for the first time to comment on the city’s banking decisions at a public hearing May 25, a level of scrutiny that made some lenders uncomfortable.
“This would be an opportunity
for some of our banking partners to talk about the wonderful things that they’re doing in our communities,” city Treasurer Mary Christine Jackman told Clare Cusack, CEO of the New York Bankers Association, at a banking commission hearing in February.
“I was just a little confused,” Cusack replied. “This is all based on the ability of banks to hold money safely and soundly.”
“Exactly,” Jackman said. “We recognize that there’s business practices that people don’t understand.”
Concerns about the business practices of certain banks, combined with worries that the federal government will fully backstop deposits, has resulted in commercial banks losing $600 billion in deposits so far this year, or 3% of the total, according to Federal Reserve data. Declines have been most pronounced at small and midsize banks.
Van Saun of Citizens Bank said deposit balances may continue to decline gradually because the higher interest rates set by the Fed effectively remove money from the financial system.
Facing that powerful headwind, banks seemed inclined to jump through whatever hoops were necessary to get a piece of New York’s municipal deposits, a vast sum in a city whose annual budget exceeds $100 billion. A record 28 institutions applied to get on the list approved by the banking commission,
which consists of the mayor, city comptroller and finance commissioner.
Piermont Bank was the only small institution that didn’t seek to renew its status as a “designated bank.” Piermont declined to comment publicly on its decision.
Wells Fargo was one of 26 banks approved May 25, even though last year the city said it wouldn’t open new depository accounts after Bloomberg News reported the bank rejected over half of Black applicants seeking to refinance their homes in 2020, while approving 72% of white applicants. In 2017 Wells was booted off the list for four years after the scandal involving the creation of sham accounts. City Comptroller Brad Lander said he voted against approving Wells.
Two additional applicants, Capi-
tal One and KeyBank, were permitted to continue existing contracts for a year but the city froze deposits because the banks failed to provide required anti-discrimination policies, Lander said.
In a statement, Capital One said it prohibits discrimination and harassment against any applicant, intern, associate, vendor, contractor, customer, or client on the basis of protected characteristics.
“Our 2023 submission is largely consistent with what we submitted to the city of New York in previous years,” the bank said.
KeyBank said: “KeyBank does not discriminate in any of its operations, including lending, hiring, and branch closures. We understood that we had provided the re-
quired certifications and information to the Banking Commission as part of the application process, including certifications and policies related to nondiscrimination. We believe this is a misunderstanding and we look forward to clarifying this issue with the Banking Commission.” ■
Two weeks ago, New York City’s chief housing officer announced her resignation. Reportedly, she will depart the Eric Adams administration in July, cutting short her tenure at well under two years.
Jessica Katz, who has had a long career in city government and the private housing sector, had been an Adams hire who drew plaudits from outside experts and advocates. Adams himself, a former Brooklyn borough president with close ties to the local Democratic organization, had stuffed his administration with patronage hires and other political allies, but Katz was the exception. She had a deep CV and hadn’t arrived at her post because she befriended Adams years earlier.
She had worked in the administrations of Mayors Bill de Blasio and Michael Bloomberg and, most recently, was the executive director of the Citizens Housing and Planning Council, a nonprofit research orga-
nization.
The trouble for Katz, as reported by the New York Times, was that her influence was ultimately limited. Unlike her predecessor, Alicia Glen, who oversaw de Blasio’s housing development agenda, Katz was never named a deputy mayor and competed with other city officials over a large portfolio that may or may not have included management of the homelessness and migrant crises.
Katz reportedly was also frustrated over Adams’ opposition to legislation that could increase access to city-funded housing vouchers—specifically, a City Council bill that would end a requirement that people stay in homeless shelters for 90 days before they’re eligible to receive the vouchers. As migrants continue to enter the city, Adams has tried to temporarily suspend the city’s right-to-shelter statute, angering many advocates for the homeless.
What comes next? It’s concern-
ing that Adams has named Maria Torres-Springer, who is already the deputy mayor of economic and workforce development, to head up housing development in Katz’s stead. Torres-Springer is very capable, but her portfolio will now be enormous, and her attention will be pulled in many different directions.
When Adams first announced his housing construction plan with Katz, both were roundly criticized for not identifying any kind of unit target. Later on, the plan morphed into a “moon-shoot” for 500,000 units in a decade, a figure that is virtually unachievable, given how much housing construction has slowed under Adams.
Still, having Katz oversee a push toward 500,000 units meant Adams had entrusted at least one experienced housing professional to try to alleviate New York’s dire supply crunch. Her absence will start to be felt in a tangible way. Adams has at times shown a limited interest in the nuts-and-bolts of governing.
If the Adams administration doesn’t devise a feasible route to
500,000 units, New York could very well have a lost decade for housing construction. After the building accomplished during the Bloomberg and de Blasio years, which was ambitious but not widespread enough, this would be a tremendous setback for the city. Future generations will suffer for the work not done now.
● As migrants get moved to sub-
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urban counties outside New York City, local backlash could imperil these well-intentioned efforts and potentially help Republicans if the crisis continues into 2024.
● The City Council is hoping Albany allows New York City to lower its speed limit from 25 to 20 miles per hour, which could potentially save the lives of more pedestrians. ■ Ross Barkan is a journalist and author in New York City.
Last week, to kick o Pride month, the New York City Council’s LGBTQIA+ Caucus released its Marsha and Sylvia Plan, a multi-year policy agenda to support the city’s queer community. e plan, named for trailblazers in the gay-rights movement, includes several action steps, including supporting job-security programs for queer youth, nominating and appointing more LGBTQ New Yorkers to citywide o ces, and establishing a local hiring program.
e agenda further cements the city as a welcoming place for queer individuals at a troubling time for our nation. Several states have passed or sought to pass
have protested “pride” merchandise at stores such as Target. Even in New York, traditionally considered a refuge for LGBTQ people, the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s crime data explorer counted 261 hate crimes between 2017 and 2021 attributed to bias based on sexual orientation, and 59 based on bias against gender identity.
It would be in the best interest of the business community, especially as it seeks to welcome employees back to o ces and recruit and retain a diverse workforce, to follow the City Council’s lead and
face harassment along the way. Knowing that their employers will seek to support them even outside the walls of the workplace will do wonders.
Locally, Johnson & Johnson, Morgan Stanley and Squarespace were cited by the website InHerSight as notably o ering transgender health care bene ts. Although such policies may cost companies more, studies show consumers view inclusive companies more favorably, and employees who feel supported and seen may work harder.
president & ceo K.C. Crain
group publisher Jim Kirk publisher/executive editor
Frederick P. Gabriel Jr.
EDITORIAL
editor-in-chief Cory Schouten, cory.schouten@crainsnewyork.com
managing editor Telisha Bryan
assistant managing editors Anne Michaud, Amanda Glodowski
director of audience and engagement
Elizabeth Couch
audience engagement editor Jennifer Samuels
digital editor Taylor Nakagawa
art director Carolyn McClain
photographer Buck Ennis
senior reporters Cara Eisenpress, Aaron Elstein, C.J. Hughes, Eddie Small reporters Amanda D’Ambrosio, Nick Garber, Mario Marroquin, Jacqueline Neber, Caroline Spivack
legislation a ecting the queer community, spanning from regulating drag performances to banning gender-a rming care, and opponents of LGBTQ rights
continue to set its own agenda for supporting queer New Yorkers. LGBTQ residents should be able to expect that they will arrive at their places of business safely and not
In addition, businesses can revisit their health insurance and bene ts policies, making sure to choose those that cover gendera rming and mental health care. As noted in this week’s cover story, trans individuals in New York still struggle to nd and pay for care. Many companies have made great strides: for the Human Rights Campaign’s corporate equality index, 842 of the 1,271 large companies surveyed nationwide received a perfect score for factors including o ering health coverage for domestic partners, creating diversity training programs on gender identity and adopting nondiscrimination policies.
Companies also should reexamine hiring policies to weed out any implicit bias that would keep queer individuals out of their workforce and reword job posts to clarify that the company is welcoming to applicants from all walks of life.
e City Council notes that the city’s LGBTQ community currently numbers more than 700,000. ese are our neighbors, friends, family members and coworkers. As New York celebrates “pride” this month, the business community should do its part to ensure that, for queer New Yorkers, getting to, securing, or working in a job is not a traumatic experience. It might require some legwork and, in some instances, a cost investment, but the bene ts when it comes to sta retention and increased wellbeing will be worth it. ■
Four years ago, I presided over passage of the Gender Expression Non-Discrimination Act, which banned workplace discrimination against transgender people. It was a major step toward making New York a safer, more inclusive place to work, and it was a massive victory in our state’s long ght for LGBTQ+ rights.
From Seneca Falls—birthplace of the women’s rights movement— to Stonewall, New Yorkers have led the nation in the battle for equal rights. As the birthplace of the modern LGBTQ+ movement, we have made incredible strides toward establishing New York as a welcoming home.
is is a big reason why Out Leadership—a global LGBTQ+ advocacy organization that works to build business opportunities and drive equality forward—named New York the highest-ranking state on their LGBTQ+ State Busi-
ness Climate Index for the third year.
We are proud to receive recognition for everything weand our business community are doing to make New York a beacon of economic inclusivity. It is an honor to lead this ght, but we understand the importance of such a responsibility, especially when other states are working to dismantle the progress made.
State legislatures have introduced a record number of bills attacking LGBTQ+ communities, especially transgender youth. At least 20 states have passed restrictions, or outright bans, on transgender athletes’ participation in sports while 18 states have adopted laws barring gender-a rming medical care for minors. Dozens of anti-LGBTQ+ bills have been signed into law throughout the country.
But I won’t let us go backward—
not here in New York. We know that everyone, regardless of who they are or who they love, deserves a government that recognizes them, a rms them, and gives them the freedom to live their true, honest, loving self.
As governor, I have advanced major equity initiatives to help create a safer, fairer, and more inclusive New York. We have more than doubled funding for the LGBTQ+ Health and Human Services Network and established the Lorena Borjas Transgender Wellness and Equity Fund. We expanded options for gender markers to allow New Yorkers to choose “X” on driver’s licenses and other o cial state documents.
Transgender New Yorkers are now able to change their names or gender designations on marriage certi cates without leaving their dead names on them. We increased funding for runaway and homeless youth services and dedicated $20 million to building
LGBTQ+-a rming a ordable senior housing.
And, in the wake of increased hate crimes directed toward LGBTQ+ Americans, I invested $3.5 million to address di erent biases and challenges across the state and signed legislation to strengthen protections, promote acceptance, and help prevent future violence.
So, for companies residing in states demonizing LGBTQ+ workers, we say: come to New York and join the other businesses already ourishing here. Employees want to work for companies that respect their rights, and consumers watch these decisions. e best way for companies to send the message that they value the well-being of their workers is to operate in a state that does as well.
And nobody does it better than New York. ■
Kathy Hochul is the governor of New York.
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vice chairman Mary Kay Crain president & ceo K.C. Crain
senior executive vice president Chris Crain editor-in-chief emeritus Rance Crain chief nancial of cer Robert Recchia founder G.D. Crain Jr. [1885-1973] chairman Mrs. G.D. Crain Jr. [1911-1996]
THE BUSINESS COMMUNITY SHOULD DO ITS PART TO ENSURE THAT, FOR QUEER NEW YORKERS, GETTING TO, SECURING, OR WORKING IN A JOB IS NOT A TRAUMATIC EXPERIENCE
New York City has designated a “Pathways to CarbonNeutral NYC by 2050” (PCN2050) as its pathway to carbon neutrality. New York State has a number of programs to reduce carbon emissions.
But these are mere goals. Even the city’s purported pathway, as set out in PCN2050, is built on assumptions, projections and inconsistencies that don’t withstand scrutiny. PCN2050,
the city’s wish to reduce carbon emissions with a plan of sorts when he became the first councilmember to create a hyper-local climate plan for his council district.
Announcing the plan, he said, “I think if we all sit around hoping for some international agreement that’s going to come in and save the day, we’re going to be waiting around for a long, long time. We need to roll up our sleeves and take action at the local level, at the neighborhood level, on our blocks.”
for example, relies in large part on “Renewable Natural Gas” from things like food waste, manure, agricultural residues and landfills for heating buildings. But Gov. Kathy Hochul signed legislation in May that bans natural gas hookups in new construction with no exception for renewable natural gas.
It’s been said that “A goal without a plan is just a wish.” New York City Councilmember Lincoln Restler (D- District 33), may have advanced
OP-ED
That hyper-local approach provides what could be a viable blueprint for New York to meet a major portion of our climate objectives. But it’s not entirely original. It’s been advanced by the International Council for Local Environmental Initiatives, among others, to keep post-industrial temperatures rising no more than two degrees celsius from the agricultural age. In Seattle, a not-for-profit called the Municipal Research and Services Center provides support services for hyper-local climate initiatives, including detailed metrics on greenhouse gas emissions and recommendations to reduce or eliminate them.
(See the City of Everett Climate Action Plan for Municipal Operations,
for example.)
Engaging stakeholders, especially those disadvantaged by new policies, almost always achieves better outcomes than the kind of topdown, mandatory dictates that Albany and City Hall announce. (See, for example, the failed Amazon HQ2 project that Governor Cuomo and Mayor de Blasio tried to bigfoot into Astoria using a “general project plan” instead of the more inclusive and considered Uniform Land Use Review Procedure of the City zoning regulation.).
To achieve New York’s climate goals, its smallest political subdivisions should be empowered to identify and adopt hyper-local climate initiatives for their community, and to join with other contiguous subdivisions to create regional climate plans. Things like composting, recycling, gray streets, building out renewable energy infrastructure, adopting building code changes and more efficient HVAC standards are all things that could be adopted by local communities. In New York City, each of the 59 community boards could be enabled to adopt an environmental plan akin to the 197A Plans that the City Charter authorizes the boards to prioritize land use within their districts.
In 2021, New York made history when the city council passed the nation’s first law guaranteeing app-based food delivery workers a minimum pay rate.
The legislation required city leaders to implement a minimum pay rate for delivery workers—or “deliveristas”—in January 2023; however, nearly six months after the deadline, deliveristas are still waiting for the city to enact it.
the proposal.
The Adams proposal would deliver a historic victory for 65,000 delivery workers, setting the floor for an essential workforce.
New York’s leaders should administer change, not dictate outcomes. And as the state with the highest per capita level of debt in the nation, and the third highest per capita level of state and local spending, it’s vitally important that climate mitigation initiatives be highly accountable, discrete and transparent. Projects should match specific climate objectives identified by local communities. A state and city that saw the enor-
mous waste of ThriveNYC, and that permitted what the New York Times called “The most expensive mile of subway track on earth” to come about, should never be allowed to subsume the good intentions of climate change mitigation to the carte blanche wasteful spending endemic to New York. ■
DeLIVeRY WORKeRS ON AVERAGE SPEND $338.99 A MOnTH JUST ON EXPENSES
While the Adams administration and the city’s Department of Consumer and Worker Protection missed the deadline to implement the pay rate—and introduced a rolled back rate in March—Uber Eats, DoorDash, and Grubhub have been lobbying City Hall and pushing misleading information about
Here’s how it would work: App companies would be required to pay deliveristas using one of two methods. One method is a standard hourly minimum payment, $19.96 an hour by 2025 while they’re on the clock, which would include the time they spend both waiting for a delivery and doing a delivery. All other service industry employees who are paid by the hour enjoy this same method of payment. A dishwasher, for example, is paid for each hour they’re on the clock, not just for the time they spend washing dishes.
The other proposed method is a minimum pay rate for each trip. This would include a payment of approximately 53 cents a minute, but it would only apply from the time a worker accepts an order until the time they complete an order.
Some app companies claim this method will result in delivery workers making $33 an hour, but the claim is misleading by omission. Under this model, delivery workers would only receive pay for minutes spent fulfilling delivery orders. But deliveristas spend on average about 40% of their time waiting for assignments while signed into an app, according to a DCWP study. That means their pay rate would actually net $19.08 an hour on average—a far cry from $33 an hour.
According to another survey of 500 delivery workers by the Cornell Worker Institute and the Worker’s Justice Project, 71% said they usually wait 15 minutes or longer to get their next order. More than half said that deliveries usually take 30 minutes or less.
The city’s proposal does not require the app companies to cover deliveristas’ expenses. According to the Cornell survey, e-battery powered bikes run $1,000 to $2,200. Delivery workers also must purchase unlimited data cell phone plans
and cover maintenance costs, and many spend about $100 a month for spots at garages.
Delivery workers on average spend $338.99 a month on expenses. The DCWP estimates delivery workers’ costs at $3.06 an hour. None of that is covered by the app companies, nor is health insurance.
App companies claim the minimum pay rate will reduce worker flexibility, but the apps aren’t flexible now. Most app companies require workers to schedule shifts in advance and penalize them for declining delivery orders with long
distances and low pay. An order with no tip can pay as little as $2.50.
When the city implemented the minimum pay rate for Uber drivers, app companies made similar claims about how flexibility would be lost. But four years later, the drivers still have flexibility, the companies still make money and customers can still get rides. ■
Joshua Wood has been doing deliveries since 2016. Andrew Wolf is assistant professor at Cornell University’s School of Industrial & Labor Relations.
Withum
Patrick Donahue is an Audit Principal specializing in integrated audits and other SEC lings. He services both domestic and international public and private clients, including group audits, and has worked with clients in various industries, including technology, life sciences, and media and entertainment. Patrick also has extensive knowledge in technical areas, including revenue recognition, internal controls over nancial reporting, business combinations, and complex nancial instruments.
City National Bank
City National Bank added Stephanie Saint-Cyr to its Trust & Estates team and Joseph Dionisio to its Client Advisory team, which advises on wealth management.
City National is a subsidiary of Royal Bank of Canada. Visit https://cnb.com/ privatebanking.
Saint-Cyr
City National Bank City National Bank has added Dean Ryan and Ken DiCairano to its Client Advisory team in New York, led by Karen Reynolds Sharkey, which advises on all aspects of wealth management.
Windels Marx Lane & Mittendorf, LLP
S+C Communications
Cumming Group
Dawn Perri joins Cumming Group, an international construction consultancy, as the Chief Human Resources Of cer and will focus on building an agile HR organization that can ex with the needs of the growing rm. With more than 23 years of experience in HR leadership roles, Perri will oversee Cumming’s HR global function, including business partners, talent acquisition, compensation and bene ts, HRIS & HR Operations, culture and administration, learning and development, and DE&I.
HEALTH CARE
YAI
YAI, one of New York’s largest healthcare nonpro ts, named Kevin Carey its next Chief Executive Of cer. Carey has been YAI’s Interim CEO for the past seven months. Prior to becoming Interim CEO, Carey served as YAI’s Chief Financial Of cer for six years. Before joining YAI, he was the Deputy Director of Financial Operations and Business Development at Children’s Aid. Carey earned a master’s degree in Business Administration from New York University.
Saint-Cyr brings 20 years’ experience advising high-net-worth clients on trusts and estates, most recently as a relationship manager and duciary advisor at various nancial institutions, and previously at her own law rm. Dionisio provides comprehensive nancial planning services, including estate and charitable plans, to high-net-worth individuals and families. A CFP and life insurance licensee with 33 years of experience, he previously held leadership roles at major nancial institutions in New York.
U.S. Bank
Veteran wealth management leader Scott Ford is U.S. Bank’s new president of Wealth Management.
Dionisio
Beginning June 1, Ford will lead all of U.S. Bank’s wealth businesses, including Af uent Wealth Management, Private Wealth Management and Ascent Private Capital Management of U.S. Bank. He will also oversee U.S. Bancorp Investments (USBI). These businesses represent more than 3,200 professionals. Ford will be based in U.S. Bank’s New York City of ce.
City National is a subsidiary of Royal Bank of Canada. Visit https://cnb.com/ privatebanking Ryan partners with Private Banking teams to implement traditional and customized strategies for clients. He brings more than 30 years’ experience in leadership positions at large banks in New York.
As head of Private Banking’s Business Owner Advisory, DiCairano provides guidance on business transitions including both exit and retention options as well as pre-transaction planning. He spent the past 12 years focused on private business owners at a major nancial institution.
Rebecca Schmutter, Partner, counsels corporations, partnerships, limited liability companies and individuals on domestic and international tax matters, including navigating complex income tax issues arising from sales, acquisitions, joint ventures, personal business investments and nancings. She has a JD from Columbia University Law School (Harlan Fiske Stone Scholar, 2005-2006, 2006-2007), and a BA, magna cum laude, from Columbia College, Columbia University. She is admitted in NY.
S+C Communications has appointed Kim Mandara as EVP, Communications & Business Development. She will also serve as Managing Director of S+C’s new east coast of ce in New York City. Mandara previously held leadership roles at the NBA, Legends, and Viacom and brings strategic communications experience in sports, entertainment, media, hospitality, and global brands. S+C Communications is a boutique communications agency with expertise in public relations, media training, and crisis communications.
Weaver
Hershel Stern, CPA, joins Weaver as a Partner in Tax Services. With more than 12 years of experience, he provides tax and consulting services for a variety of clients, such as real estate companies, inclusive of advising on quali ed opportunity zone/funds, Section 1031 exchanges and Historic Rehabilitation Tax Credits. He has served retail, distribution, media and entertainment businesses, as well as High Net Worth individuals, ling forms such as 1120S, 1065, 1040, 1041 and 990PF.
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The days of 24-hour doormen and on-site tness centers generating a buzz are over. In New York City’s upscale residential apartment and condo buildings, that’s just the standard.
Now, it takes something increasingly special to lure and retain tenants. Real estate developers are getting creative, and there’s a focus on nding niche facilities and services that are both practical and appealing for residents.
At GID Development Group’s Waterline Square on the Upper West Side, for example, developers are focused on turning the building into something of a way of life for residents.
“Everything that you need is
pool and movie theater, but also targeting more speci c hobbies and habits with features like the boxing studio, tennis courts, music recording facilities, a hydroponic garden and even an indoor skate park.
“We really just thought about every single customer that we potentially want and essentially gave them what they’d be interested in,” Sullivan says of the approach.
“When someone walks in here that’s got one unique interest, how do we nab them?”
e mere existence of Sullivan’s position is a token of that e ort. Her goal is to help residents realize the full potential of the building, in part by turning the physical amenities into actual services. What good is having a yoga studio without yoga classes? Why build a $1 million communal kitchen without a professional chef to come cook for residents?
at’s the kind of void she looks to ll—and the building gives her a budget to do it.
bowling alley, hammam, squash court, cigar lounge and a massive private garden.
here,” says Kelly Sullivan, the lifestyle director at the 5-acre complex. “One of the things that people marvel at when they come is that they never have to leave, and it’s true. It’s just a comprehensive lifestyle.”
at means o ering amenities that appeal to the masses, like a lap-
Another heavyweight in the city’s luxury residential real estate scene is One Manhattan Square, a Lower East Side project from Extell Development. e building claims be the rst one in the city to boast upward of 100,000 square feet of amenities, which includes a pilates studio,
“ e amenities are about a certain quality of life that people want, a certain lifestyle, and that’s why they buy these highly amenitized buildings,” says Ari Goldstein, Extell’s vice president of development. “It creates this ability for people to be able to enjoy themselves, have friends over, really have access to all this stu that you wouldn’t otherwise be able to do anywhere else in New York.” e investment in amenities is proving to pay dividends for these buildings. “ at’s been a huge part
of the success,” Goldstein says. “Anything you can imagine is in that building. at’s what people want.”
ese are far from the only buildings taking this kind of amenity- rst approach. Dozens of the city’s luxury residential real estate developers are out tting their buildings with upgraded perks.
At Summit New York in Midtown East, there’s a state-of-the-art basketball gym that’s been known to attract professional players and celebrities alike, from LeBron James and James Harden to Drake and
Justin Bieber. One Hudson Yards boasts an exercise facility curated by Equinox, and residents get discounted memberships to the luxury tness clubs. ere are indoor rock climbing gyms at residences like e Copper in Murray Hill and Brooklyn Point, which also boasts one of the highest in nity pools in the country. And golf simulators can be found at buildings across the city, from Madison House in NoMad to 53 West 53rd in Midtown. All of these real estate developers are pursuing the same end-goal. As Sullivan puts it, “when they were designing the building, the goal was to be the best of the best.” ■
After 15 months of contract negotiations, subway and bus operators with the city’s second-largest transit union will receive a 9.5% raise over four years and lifetime health bene ts.
e raise is retroactive, with employees expected to receive a lump sum in their bank accounts followed by the increases beginning in August.
e Subway Surface Supervisors
chael Carrube told Crain’s. “ e whole contract was back and forth; it was nonstop.”
e 9.5% over four years includes 2% for the rst year, then 2.25%, 2.5% and 2.75%. Carrube expects the raises to take e ect cumulatively this summer.
Union members include supervisors in the city’s subway system, bus dispatchers, Staten Island Railroad managers, and some maintenance supervisors.
and bus workers, continues talks with the authority for a new bargaining agreement. e TWU contract expired on May 16.
MTA Chief Executive Janno Lieber told reporters May 24 that there have been “productive discussions” between transit o cials and the TWU, but that it would be “premature to say anything more than that.” Lifetime health bene ts for dependents of workers who died of Covid-19 and healthcare demands remain key roadblocks, according to TWU o cials.
Association’s more than 4,000 members voted last month to ratify a contract and had been working without one since July 2020. Talks between the SSSA and the Metropolitan Transportation Authority stalled due to Covid-19 and didn’t pick up until February 2022.
“It was a long, drawn-out ght with the MTA,” SSSA president Mi-
Active and retired SSSA members have lifetime access to Aetna health benets, along with lifetime coverage for their spouses. Signi cant others were previously restricted to a year of health care coverage if a union member died.
e contract is the rst labor agreement completed with the MTA since the pandemic began.
SSSA’s new contract comes as the Transit Workers Union Local 100, the city’s largest transit union that represents some 40,000 subway
SSSA members rati ed the contract by 46% with 1,512 members who voted in favor of the agreement and only 358 members opposed it, according to results shared with Crain’s SSSA’s contract is set to expire August 1, 2024, and is where the union expects to ght for pandemic-related concessions, along with increased wages and enhanced bene ts.
“ at contract, I like to say, is going to be our post Covid contract,” said Carrube.
Securing hazard pay for members who went to work throughout
the pandemic and related health bene ts rank high on the to-do list for next contact, said Carrube. Other items on the agenda include rules around hybrid and remote work for some positions.
“Covid opened our eyes to a lot
of di erent things, such as telecommunication and things like that that we never thought were possible,” said Carrube. “ ese are going to be issues that are at the forefront the next round of bargaining.” ■
health bene ts, 9.5% raise over four years
TRANSPORTATION
BY CAROLINE SPIVACK
“THE AMENITIES ARE ABOUT A CERTAIN QUALITY OF LIFE THAT PEOPLE WANT”
“THE WHOLE CONTRACT WAS BACK AND FORTH; IT WAS NONSTOP”THE INFINITY POOL at Brooklyn Point is just one of the many elevated amenities making their way into New York’s luxury residential buildings.
with consultants and public relations rms that are not subject to public records. For this story, Crain’s is also not including in-house lobbying spending, which some bidders have reported in addition to contracts with outside rms.
Manhattan Borough President Mark Levine, who is listed as a “target” for several prospective bidders, said he has taken meetings inperson and over Zoom. “Each of them have a pitch about why their proposal would be good for, ll in the blank: the neighborhood, the borough, the city, the economy, the arts sector,” he said.
Still, the frenzy so far pales in comparison to what will happen once bidding opens, Levine predicted.
“Once the applicant list is set and community advisory committees are in place, this will be extremely intense,” he said.
Here’s a (likely incomplete) look at who’s paying whom:
Steve Cohen and Seminole Hard Rock: $1,077,806
Steve Cohen’s lobbying spending for his Queens casino bid has dwarfed his competitors’ so far this year. New Green Willets, the entity created by the New York Mets owner and hedge fund titan, has paid at least $817,806 to eight different lobbying, law and real estate rms in support of its bid for a casino next to Citi Field. at includes $337,306 spent since January to law rm Fried, Frank, Harris, Shriver & Jacobson, whose dozens of listed “targets” include the mayor’s chief counsel Brendan McGuire.
New Green Willets has also paid $192,500 to lobbyists at MirRam Group—co-founded by Luis Miranda, father of the “Hamilton” playwright—and $100,000 to Dickinson & Avella, plus smaller contracts with Moonshot Strategies, Hollis Public A airs, Lemma Strategies, RXR Development and former Assembly member Marcos A. Crespo.
e heavy spending could stem from the heavier lift that Cohen faces for his bid to succeed. On top of the zoning and community approv-
als that any winning bidder must secure, Cohen rst needs the city and state to pass legislation giving him the ability to build on the parking lots surrounding Citi Field. Both of those measures are listed as focuses in his lobbying disclosures.
Seminole Hard Rock, Cohen’s rumored gaming partner, has not announced any formal afliation with his Flushing bid. But the Florida-based company has reported spending at least $260,000 of its own so far, on issues that appear to overlap with Cohen’s.
Hard Rock paid $80,000 to Queens-based Green Book Strategies to lobby ve City Council
Empire Consulting Group in its joint proposal with e Related Cos., which would involve a casino on the undeveloped western half of Hudson Yards. e Las Vegas company has paid the rm $120,000 this year to lobby a cohort of city and state lawmakers.
Allen Rosko also got $7,500 from SL Green between March and April to tout the bid to City Council members Erik Bottcher and Julie Menin, as well as two State Assembly members.
In late May, or also inked a $7,500-a-month contract with Brooklyn-based Bender Cantone Consulting.
e group’s other partners, the Chickasaw Nation and the hospitality rm Legends, do not appear to have reported any spending.
Hudson’s Bay Company: $60,000
In support of its bid to build a casino atop the Saks Fifth Avenue agship, store owner Hudson’s Bay Company has paid Cozen O’Connor Public Strategies $60,000 so far this year.
e rm’s lobbying targets have included Levine, Manhattan City Council member Keith Powers, and Nate Bliss, chief of sta for Deputy Mayor Maria Torres-Springer.
members for a so-called home rule provision that Cohen has sought, as well as $180,000 to Actum and a just-registered $15,000-a-month contract with Tusk Strategies.
Bally’s: $279,000
As it pursues a 10-acre casino on the Trump Golf Links course in the Bronx, Rhode Island-based Bally’s has dished out at least $279,000 to six di erent rms so far this year, records show.
at includes $40,000 to prominent Bronx attorney Stanley Schlein, who was hired to lobby Borough President Vanessa Gibson, Council member Marjorie Velazquez and members of the local community board; as well as $60,000 to the government relations rm Pitta Bishop & Del Giorno.
Bally’s also reported $80,000 in payments to a Brooklyn rm headed by pastor and civil rights activist Kirsten Foy, $40,000 to Albany Strategic Advisors, $24,000 to Moonshot Strategies and $15,000 to Marcos Crespo, though the latter two contracts have since ended.
Related Companies and Wynn Resorts: $176,000
Wynn Resorts has linked up with
Wynn has also contracted with Tonio Burgos and Associates ($40,000) to lobby ocials including Comptroller Brad Lander and Community Board 4 chair Je rey LeFrancois, plus $16,000 to Mercury Public Affairs.
LeFrancois, who was also the recipient of lobbying e orts by SL Green and Caesars, said the Wynn meeting served mostly as an introduction. While his board has been publicly critical of a Hudson Yards casino, LeFrancois said the slow rollout of the application process has left neighbors with nothing concrete to latch onto.
“Everybody has a whole lot of ideas and a whole lot of talk, but there’s nothing to respond to until we see a full application,” he told Crain’s e Related Cos., unlike its partner, has reported no speci c casino lobbying.
SL Green and Caesars
Entertainment: $161,500
e major o ce landlord has shelled out at least $100,000 this year to BerlinRosen and Ostro Associates to promote its bid: a resort-casino within the 54-story o ce building at 1515 Broadway in Times Square. (SL Green also paid the top city lobbying rm Kasirer $30,000 for a “brie ng on 1515 Broadway” involving six City Council members.)
e longtime gay rights activist
Rosko , better known for his work in social justice than the gambling world, told Crain’s he is a longtime friend of the Green family, having worked with Mark Green during his tenure as the city’s public advocate. Rosko said he accepted an o er to join their bid because he views the company’s politics as closer to his own than some of their competitors’.
Vornado Realty Trust; Soloviev Group: No reported spending Vornado, which has vaguely oated a potential casino for the soonto-be-demolished Hotel Pennsylvania site on Seventh Avenue, has not reported any explicit lobbying spending on casino or gaming issues this year.
And neither the Soloviev Group nor its gaming partner Mohegan have reported any explicit lobbying on casinos for their joint bid, which calls for a hotel-casino on a long-empty site near the United
“I went in and looked at the project and I think the project is incredible,” he said. “I’m retired, and I love being retired, but I couldn’t say no to this because they represent everything I believe in.”
SL Green’s Vegas-based partner, Caesars, has given $54,000 of its own money to the public relations rm Bolton-St. Johns, targeting a slew of City Council members, a Manhattan community board and Borough President Levine.
Thor Equities, Saratoga, Chickasaw Nation and Legends: $65,000
Saratoga Casino Holdings gave $40,000 to Albany-based Featherstonhaugh, Wiley & Clyne in support of its bid with Joseph Sitt’s or Equities for a Coney Island casino. e company lobbied six state lawmakers, including Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie and Senate Majority Leader Andrea Stewart-Cousins, records show.
or Equities signed its own $25,000 monthly contract with lobbyist Patricia Lynch, whose targets included Public Advocate Jumaane Williams and members of the neighborhood community board.
Two existing “racinos” are widely expected to win two of the three new downstate licenses: Resorts World in Queens, run by Malaysian casino company Genting; and Empire City Casino in Yonkers, headed by MGM Resorts.
Still, those friendly odds haven’t stopped either venue from lobbying. Genting has reported a combined $596,000 in lobbyist compensation this year, going to six rms: Obsidian Strategists, BoltonSt. Johns, Albany Strategic Advisors, Patrick Jenkins and Associates, Moonshot Strategies and Ward Strategies.
MGM, for its part, reported paying Kasirer $60,000 this year, in part to help build a relationship with Bronx Borough President Vanessa Gibson.
Finally, Las Vegas Sands, whose proposed Nassau County casino took a step forward recently, has reported paying $22,500 to the Parkside Group, $60,000 to Long Island-based Ten Key Strategies, and $140,000 to the attorneys and lobbyists at Brown & Weinraub. ■
“ONCE THE APPLICANT LIST IS SET AND COMMUNITY ADVISORY COMMITTEES ARE IN PLACE, THIS WILL BE EXTREMELY INTENSE”STEVE COHEN LAS VEGAS SANDS SUNSHINE SACHS HBC BLOOMBERG LAS VEGAS SANDS proposal in Nassau County HUDSON’S BAY COMPANY, owner of Saks Fifth Avenue, has spent at least $60,000 to hire lobbyists pushing its vision of a casino atop its agship store. RENDERING OF Thor Equities’ plan on Coney Island
mounting nationwide, it is with admiration and a measure of gravity that we present this year’s Notable LGBTQIA+ Leaders. In highlighting these pacesetters, we strive to honor not only the individuals in our pages, but also the remarkable community they represent. Indeed, since the 1969 Stonewall Riots, New York’s LGBTQIA+ community has been a generative force for change the world over. And it hasn’t been easy: The Williams Institute in 2021 found that nearly half of LGBTQIA+ workers experienced unfair treatment in the workplace.
The 74 individuals profiled here come to you from a range of industries, including law, real estate, healthcare and the nonprofit realm. Read this list and meet people driving equity at major financial institutions, helping organizations root out misconduct, ensuring gender-affirming care, leading significant grantmaking, and more. To qualify, candidates needed to work in a senior role in the New York metropolitan area and identify as LGBTQIA+. We specifically sought individuals with demonstrated impact on equality in the workplace and who held leadership roles in professional associations, community work, diversity and inclusion efforts, or similar undertakings.
Read on for a glimpse into their outstanding work.
Partner Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison
A partner at the law firm Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison, Edward “Ted” Ackerman is a member of the mergers and acquisitions and private equity group and serves on the firm’s management committee. He focuses his practice on advising private equity and strategic clients on mergers and acquisitions, joint ventures, equity financing, restructuring, and general corporate transactions. As co-chair of the firm’s public matters committee, Ackerman leads a firmwide initiative to increase transactional pro bono opportunities. He is also involved with GMHC—the first AIDS nonprofit in the world—as a member of the board of directors and the executive committee.
Senior vice president of asset management
Silverstein Properties
As senior vice president of the asset management group at the real estate company Silverstein Properties, AJ Arlauckas oversees five of the company’s properties totaling more than 6 million square feet, including 120 Broadway, 4 World Trade Center, the US Bank Tower, and the Hudson Research Center. He is a member of the New York City chapter of Gay Real Estate Group, an organization of LGBTQIA+ real estate industry professionals that hosts conferences and events tackling a range of industry topics. Arlauckas is also a member of Silverstein’s diversity, equity and inclusion committee and has participated in company-wide discussions about allyship.
Antitrust and competition litigation practice chair; managing partner, New York
DiCello Levitt
Gregory Asciolla is chair of DiCello Levitt’s antitrust and competition litigation practice, and managing partner of the law firm’s New York office. He focuses on representing businesses, public pension funds, and health and welfare funds in antitrust and commodities class actions, including price-fixing, monopolization, commodities manipulation, pay-for-delay agreements, and other anti-competitive practices. Asciolla is co-chair of DiCello Levitt’s diversity, equity and inclusion committee, and vice chair of the American Bar Association’s (ABA) Antitrust Law Section’s Diversity.Advanced initiative. He is also a member of the ABA’s sexual orientation and gender identity working group, where he works to increase the visibility of diverse members.
Partner Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati
As a partner at the law firm Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati, Megan Baier counsels technology and life science companies on high-growth and capital markets transactions. She focuses on corporate and securities law, including general corporate representation, public offerings, and venture capital financings within the technology, digital health, and life sciences sectors. Baier has assisted with matters ranging from formation and early-stage venture financing to listings of publicly traded securities on U.S. exchanges. In addition to serving as a leader of the firm’s New York corporate group, she is one of nine members of the firm’s global board of directors. She also invests time in associate development and mentorship of diverse junior attorneys.
Head of LGBTQ+ initiatives, JPMorgan Chase commercial banking
JPMorgan Chase
David Barbee is head of LGBTQ+ initiatives for JPMorgan Chase commercial banking. He works with entrepreneurs to develop financial strategies that support their business goals. This includes helping them navigate capital solutions—from traditional bank loans to private equity and other alternatives—as well as connecting them to the firm’s experts and resources. Barbee also works with the firm’s office of LGBTQ+ affairs to ensure all employees have a safe space at work. He serves as co-chair on the board of directors for the nonprofit Center for AntiViolence Education, which works to prevent hate violence in New York City communities.
Global head of LGBTQ+ affairs
JPMorgan Chase
As global head of LGBTQ+ affairs for JPMorgan Chase, Brad Baumoel leads the global strategy to drive equity and inclusion for the LGBTQIA+ community. This includes attracting, retaining, and developing LGBTQIA+ talent; delivering products and services to improve LGBTQIA+ consumer financial health; supporting LGBTQIA+ entrepreneurs in growing and scaling businesses; and partnering with nonprofits to uplift global communities. Baumoel is a designated Stonewall Rebel, a group of leaders and trailblazers elevating awareness for the Stonewall National Monument Visitor Center in New York. He also helped launch and lead the nonprofit LGBTQIA+ network OPEN Finance, combining the expertise of more than 50 firms to drive equity and diversity across the financial services sector.
Americas vice chair, strategy and transactions
EY
In January 2022, Mitch Berlin was appointed EY Americas vice chair of strategy and transactions (SaT), where he now leads a team of nearly 8,500 professionals. Under his leadership, the $4.8 billion SaT business achieved a record growth of 25% year over year in EY’s latest fiscal year, making it the fastest-growing business at the company. Berlin took on the role of Americas executive sponsor to Unity, EY’s professional network for LGBTQIA+ people and allies, and hosted the first-ever LGBTQIA+ roundtable at EY’s annual strategic growth forum. In addition, he serves on the Lincoln Center President’s Council.
Chief of strategy and policy
NYC Kids RISE
Leila Bozorg is chief of strategy and policy at NYC Kids RISE, a nonprofit working to help families and communities invest in their children’s futures. She has played a key role in the citywide expansion of the Save for College Program, a community-driven wealth-building platform offered at all public schools citywide, as well as participating charter schools. Bozorg previously led the Office for Neighborhood Strategies at the New York City Department of Housing Preservation and Development, serving as a deputy commissioner. Before joining the City Planning Commission, she was on the board of Open New York, an organization advocating for inclusive neighborhoods and homes for New York City residents.
Senior vice president and head of communications
SiriusXM
Jessica Casano-Antonellis is senior vice president and head of communications for SiriusXM. In this role, she is responsible for all aspects of the company’s communications function, including strategic communications, brand reputation management, and media relations. As an LGBTQIA+ executive leader in the senior management ranks, CasanoAntonellis has modernized and redefined the company’s communication strategy to include elevating brand reputation; diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives; and innovation. She is involved with various SiriusXM committees and groups including SXM Women, and has hosted a company-wide “Can We Talk? Crucial Conversation” session about mentorship and career development. Casano-Antonellis currently serves on the advisory board for Revry, an LGBTQIA+ digital streaming service.
Partner Akin
A partner at the law firm Akin, Dean Chapman Jr. is a litigator with a track record of handling complex restructuring disputes. In the past 18 months, Chapman Jr. has played leading roles in several restructurings, including those of Celsius Network, Sears Holdings, and GTT Communications. He leads an affinity group for LGBTQIA+ lawyers focused on promoting diversity, equity and inclusion within the firm by fostering communication with leadership and organizing programs to recruit, retain, and develop diverse lawyers. In addition to managing a substantial billable caseload, Chapman Jr. devotes hundreds of hours to pro bono and diversity efforts, with a particular emphasis on representing and advancing the interests of the LGBTQIA+ community.
Partner Jenner & Block
Matthew Cipolla is a partner at the law firm Jenner & Block, where he specializes in investigations, compliance, and defense. He is co-chair of the firm’s monitorship practice, where he helps companies root out misconduct and implement compliance enhancements to prevent recurrence. Cipolla maintains a pro bono practice and is committed to LGBTQIA+ rights, with a particular emphasis on LGBTQIA+ health. He serves as counsel to medical associations such as the American Medical Association and World Professional Association for Transgender Health. Cipolla also chairs the firm’s LGBTQIA+ mentoring circles program, bringing together partners and associates to provide guidance and sponsorship to junior attorneys.
Senior director of advanced practice providers
NYU Langone Health
John Davidson is senior director of advanced practice providers at NYU Langone Health, where he oversees the professional practice of physician assistants and nurse practitioners at academic medical centers.
As co-chair of the LGBTQIA+ advisory council for the health system, Davidson ensures that the health system is providing affirming care to the LGBTQIA+ community, and has had a particular impact on the care of trans patients within the health system. He is treasurer of the New York chapter of the American Case Management Association and chair of the governance committee of the New York State Society of Physician Assistants.
Chief technology officer amfAR
Sue Doster has worked for nearly three decades at amfAR, the Foundation for AIDS Research, where she serves as chief technology officer. With the mission of ending the global HIV and AIDS epidemic, amfAR is one of the world’s leading nonprofit organizations dedicated to the support of AIDS research, HIV prevention, treatment education, and advocacy. Doster currently serves as co-chair for NYC Pride. She is a past co-president of InterPride, a membership organization that supports pride committees worldwide. In 2017, Doster was named one of the national co-chairs for the Equality March for Unity and Pride.
Managing partner
Kaplan Hecker & Fink
Julie Fink is co-founder and managing partner at Kaplan Hecker & Fink, a litigation firm, where she oversees all operations, finances, and strategy. Fink represents individuals who are victims of sexual assault and discrimination, and advises other companies on those issues. Beyond her legal work and firm leadership, she is on the board of directors of New York Lawyers for the Public Interest and the Family Justice Law Center. Fink also serves on the board of MAKERS@, an organization focused on accelerating equity for women in the workplace. In addition, she has co-authored articles and amici briefs on reproductive rights and LGBTQIA+ rights issues.
LGBTQ+ program manager
VNS Health
Arthur Fitting is the LGBTQ+ program manager at VNS Health, the nation’s largest not-for-profit home- and communitybased healthcare organization. In his current role, he aligns and coordinates with nonprofits, civic organizations, and LGBTQIA+ advocacy groups to improve education and access to care for LGBTQIA+ New Yorkers in need of home healthcare. By providing training and serving as a resource for hospice clinicians and social workers, Fitting helps to better integrate sexual orientation and genderidentity language throughout intake processes. He also plays a role in HIV/AIDS health and advocacy through his involvement with the New York City HIV planning council needs assessment committee.
The New York Community Trust
In 2022, Amy Freitag became the fourth president of The New York Community Trust, a community foundation with $3 billion in assets and $200 million in annual
grantmaking serving a large constituency in New York City, Westchester, and Long Island. As a foundation leader, she supported early investments locally and nationally, including in the NYC LGBT Historic Sites Project and the prison abolitionist organization Black & Pink. Freitag is a board member of the James Marston Fitch Charitable Organization, and a former board member of NextGen America, which is empowering new generations of American voters. She was an advisor to the University of Pennsylvania’s Center for the Preservation of Civil Rights Sites.
Public affairs and government relations lead Getir
Alex Gabriel is the lead for public affairs and government relations for Getir, a quick commerce delivery service. He co-chaired the Out for Biden coalition, spearheading the largest LGBTQIA+ voter engagement effort in U.S. history. In 2019, Gabriel served as deputy senior advisor to former mayor Bill de Blasio for Stonewall 50 / WorldPride NYC, which was the largest pride event in New York history. He serves on the campaign board for the LGBTQ+ Victory Fund, a political action committee that supports openly LGBTQIA+ candidates across the country. Gabriel formerly served as senior advisor for the nonprofit The Future Society, working to ethically implement AI systems globally.
Vice president, community business development officer, LGBTQ2+ TD Bank
As a vice president at TD Bank, Steven Garibell leads community and LGBTQ2+ business development efforts, drawing on more than 20 years of experience fostering financial empowerment and education for diverse communities. As part of his community outreach, Garibell works to deliver business and community development to LGBTQIA+ markets and neighborhoods. He connects business owners to chambers, community development financial institutions, and other organizations to ensure neighborhood businesses remain operational. Garibell is also president of the board of directors for the New Jersey Pride Chamber of Commerce and is co-chair of the certification committee for the New York LGBTQ Chamber of Commerce.
We
TD Bank celebrates our colleagues Jennie Platt, Steven Garibell, and Barton Jackson.
We applaud your outstanding commitment to improving diversity, equity and inclusion that inspires a brighter future. Congratulations to each of you, along with this year’s notable LGBTQ2+ Leaders. You all continue to impact New York’s vibrant business community significantly, and we thank you.
Learn
Founding partner
Selendy Gay Elsberg
As a founding partner, Faith Gay co-leads the litigation firm Selendy Gay Elsberg. She oversees strategy, culture, and management and also leads the litigation and corporate defense practices. In September 2022, in a win for public servants, Gay represented members of the American Federation of Teachers before the Second Circuit Court. She also cofounded the American Immigration Representation Project, which provides lawyers for immigrant detainees in New York and nationally in response to new federal immigration and deportation policies. Gay serves as a board member of Her Justice, which provides free legal help to impoverished women in New York.
Chairman and chief executive officer
Macy’s
As chairman and chief executive officer of Macy’s, Jeff Gennette is one of the few openly gay executives at the helm of a Fortune 500 company. Over the past year, he launched Mission Every One, Macy’s social purpose platform. Under Gennette’s leadership, Macy’s is the largest funder of The Trevor Project, which focuses on suicide prevention among LGBTQIA+ youth, raising more than $5 million since the partnership began. Gennette is an original signatory of the CEO Action for Racial Equity, a commitment by chief executive officers to advance workplace diversity, equity and inclusion and to promote scalable public policies.
Of counsel
Morrison Foerster
Gerardo Gomez Galvis is of counsel at the law firm Morrison Foerster, where he focuses on white-collar criminal defense; SEC and regulatory enforcement; and corporate internal investigations. He is on an ongoing monitorship team appointed by the U.S. Department of Justice and two multilateral development banks following one of the largest Foreign Corrupt Practices Act settlements in history. He is a member of his firm’s LGBTQIA+ affinity group and its Latin America desk. Off the clock, he maintains a pro bono practice focused on LGBTQIA+ issues and is an inaugural board member for the Brazil-U.S. 40 and Under White Collar Lawyers Initiative.
President and chief executive officer
Food Bank For New York City
As president and chief executive officer of Food Bank For New York City, Leslie Gordon helped the organization double its annual output of food at the height of the pandemic.
Gordon has guided the organization to expand access throughout its network of more than 800 food pantries and soup kitchens across the five boroughs. She has also strengthened partnerships with organizations focused on serving the LGBTQIA+ community such as SAGE, GMHC, and Make the Road New York. Gordon serves as chair of the board of directors of Feeding New York State, and as a member of the board of directors of the Hunts Point Cooperative Market.
Partner
Latham & Watkins
Chris Harris, a partner at the law firm Latham & Watkins, serves as global vice chair of the litigation and trial department and heads the bankruptcy litigation and creditors’ rights practice. Recently, Harris acted as lead advisor in Mallinckrodt’s bankruptcy litigation, and represented clients in litigations related to the Bernie Madoff Ponzi scheme. Harris served as partner liaison to Latham’s LGBTQIA+ affinity group, and mentors incoming LGBTQIA+ associates in the litigation department. He currently serves as the firm’s liaison to Lambda Legal and the Human Rights Campaign. In his pro bono work, Harris supports LGBTQIA+ communities facing housing discrimination and has represented the LGBTQIA+ project of the American Civil Liberties Union.
CEO; Habitat for Humanity New York City and Westchester County
President; Habitat for Humanity New York City Community Fund
Karen Haycox is chief executive officer of Habitat for Humanity New York City and Westchester County and president of Habitat for Humanity New York City Community Fund. Her projects have included efforts to advance health and climate equity in Westchester, and initiatives toward offering scalable solutions to housing affordability and equity challenges. Haycox is involved in housing and LGBTQIA+ issues as a developer of Haven Green, Manhattan’s first LGBTQIA+friendly senior affordable housing development. She serves on the boards of Rainbow Railroad, which helps LGBTQIA+ people facing persecution, and NYC Housing Partnership, which helps develop, promote, and revitalize affordable homeownership and rentals.
President
The Hayes Initiative
Anthony Hayes founded The Hayes Initiative, where he serves as president, to build a communications firm that would provide service to each client and broaden accessibility through advocacy at all levels of government.
From being a player in the New York State fight for marriage equality and fighting the federal government’s gay blood ban, to launching the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey’s first LGBTQIA+ employee resource group, Hayes has worked throughout his career to make New York a more equitable place. He has served on the boards of several organizations, including Broadway Impact, Human Rights Campaign, Hell’s Kitchen Democrats, and Manhattan Community Board 4.
Executive vice president and chief strategy officer
Public Health Solutions
As executive vice president and chief strategy officer for Public Health Solutions, Zachariah Hennessey works to establish and strengthen pathways between healthcare systems, managed care organizations, community resources, and their constituencies. Recently, he led the launch of Public Health Solutions’ new citywide community resource network, WholeYouNYC, which brings together more than 400 New York City organizations offering programs ranging from nutrition assistance to maternal and reproductive health services. Hennessey’s advocacy work was critical in securing emergency funding to protect sexual and reproductive healthcare in New York City. He was a member of the New York State LGBT Health & Human Services Network.
Relationship manager
TD Bank
Barton Jackson, a relationship manager at TD Bank, is an LGBTQIA+ economic activist who leverages his experience to give back to his community.
Jackson launched Own It!, a program for transgender, gendernonconforming, and nonbinary individuals with the National LGBT Chamber of Commerce and Destination Tomorrow. Now in its third year, Own It! has provided access to education, mentorship, and industry research to dozens of transgender and genderexpansive entrepreneurs. Jackson regularly mentors colleagues, participating in TD Bank’s TENT initiative to mentor LGBTQIA+ asylum seekers and refugees. He also serves as an ambassador and business enterprise certification site visitor for the National LGBT Chamber of Commerce.
Project architect Gensler
Rajas Karnik, a project architect at Gensler, has experience in aviation and transportation as well as in urban design and commercial and residential building projects. He is now working on the New Terminal One at John F. Kennedy International Airport. As a co-leader of Gensler’s network of LGBTQIA+ employees and allies, Karnik has organized and moderated numerous LGBTQIA+ focused events, elevating voices in the local design and construction community. As co-founder, past president, and board member of Build Out Alliance—a nonprofit promoting and advocating for the LGBTQIA+ community within the building design and construction industry—Karnik helps guide key initiatives around mentorship, networking, and leadership training.
BETH FORD, CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER OF LAND O’LAKES, IS THE FIRST OPENLY GAY WOMAN TO BEAR THE TITLE CEO AT A FORTUNE 500 COMPANY
—TIME
Creative director INFEMNITY Productions
Nina Kennedy, host of “The Noshing with Nina Show,” is creative director for INFEMNITY Productions. Her show, for which she acts as scriptwriter and coproducer, has won the B Free Award in the entertainment and First Amendment categories. Kennedy has brought LGBTQIA+ subjects to the attention of cable television audiences in New York City and throughout the country. She is a member of NLGJA: The Association of LGBTQ+ Journalists and an author: Her first book was a 2021 Lambda Literary Award finalist, and her second book is being considered for a Publishing Triangle award. She has been invited to the LGBTQIA+ pride celebration at the White House this year.
Chief executive officer
Caring for the Hungry & Homeless of Peekskill
Cynthia Knox, chief executive officer of Caring for the Hungry & Homeless of Peekskill (CHHOP), works to alleviate hunger and homelessness in that community and its surrounding areas. She increased organizational revenue by 227% and has developed programs in response to community needs, such as a collaborative rapid-rehousing program for domestic violence survivors. Knox also created the Hudson Valley Justice Center, and has co-created a strategic coalition of shelter and housing providers to address policy issues. In addition, Knox has served on the New York State Bar Association’s Committee on Legal Aid and worked with The LOFT LGBTQ+ Community Center.
Partner and deputy chair of the mergers and acquisitions litigation practice group
Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison
Alexia Korberg is a partner and deputy chair of the mergers and acquisitions litigation practice group at the law firm Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison. Korberg also co-leads the state’s Pro Bono Task Force on Reproductive Health. In the wake of the Supreme Court’s decision overturning Roe v. Wade, Korberg has been leading counsel to companies, medical providers, and those seeking abortion care across the country. They also participated in the founding of the Abortion Defense Network, a collaborative effort by nonprofit organizations, private law firms, and government officials committed to safeguarding abortion access and upholding reproductive rights.
Executive managing director
RIPCO Real Estate
Emily Kripitz, executive managing director at RIPCO Real Estate, specializes in landlord/tenant representation in the New York metropolitan area and numerous submarkets. She recently completed deals with LOOK Dine-In cinemas, Altuzarra, and others. Her landlord representations include Acadia Realty Trust and Brookfield Properties. While a student at the University of Michigan, Kripitz created an art show called reVOLUTION: Making Art for Change, through the Sexual Assault Prevention and Awareness Center’s program for survivor empowerment and ally support. The show has now been running for 16 years, and Kripitz continues to speak at the university. She also serves on the board of Weaving Earth.
Weil, Gotshal & Manges
As a partner in the banking and finance practice at the law firm Weil, Gotshal & Manges, Justin Lee advises institutional leaders, loan funds, asset managers, and corporate borrowers on all types of bank financing transactions. Recently, he represented JPMorgan in credit facilities for Ford totaling $17.5 billion. In addition to counseling clients on not-for-profit corporation law, he advocates for The Ali Forney Center, The Trevor Project, and the Anti-Violence Project. At his firm, Lee leads an LGBTQIA+ affinity group and has crafted diversity initiatives, including Weil’s family-building benefit program providing surrogacy, adoption, and fertility benefits to all employees.
Executive director
Meatpacking District Management Association
Jeffrey LeFrancois, executive director for the Meatpacking District Management Association, oversees the Meatpacking District on the West Side. His work supports the neighborhood through public space management and programming in an area that is home to Chelsea Market, the Whitney Museum of American Art, and Little Island. LeFrancois is chair of Manhattan Community Board 4, where he oversaw an expansion of the board’s affordable housing plan calling for 30,000 new units of housing. LeFrancois has positioned the Meatpacking District as the place to be with engaging outdoor programming such as the upcoming High School of Fashion Industries runway show and fundraiser, as well as a movie screening, part of Rooftop Films’ 2023 Summer Series.
Chief executive officer
The Door and Broome Street Academy
Kelsey Louie, chief executive officer for The Door and Broome Street Academy, oversees the youth development organization and its charter high school. Louie oversees the organizations’ combined $40 million budget, as well as strategy, operations, fundraising, policy, and programmatic initiatives. In leading The Door, Louie has helped thousands of adolescents go to college, connect to healthcare, find legal services, and more. Louie also helped to change the discriminatory federal blood donation policy for gay men, and fought to ensure that people living with HIV were prioritized for COVID vaccinations. In 2014, Louie was appointed to former Governor Andrew Cuomo’s task force to end the AIDS epidemic.
OUTHISTORY.ORG
Vice president of brand marketing and communications MetroPlusHealth
Ken Louie, vice president of brand marketing and communications for MetroPlusHealth, is responsible for the internal and external presence of the organization. As an Asian American Pacific Islander and LGBTQIA+ advocate, he ensures that his team educates on LGBTQIA+ issues and shines a light on the challenges New Yorkers encounter when trying to access high-quality, affordable health care. In August 2021, Louie joined MetroPlusHealth as the senior director of brand marketing and communications, responsible for developing and executing overall marketing strategy and spearheading the health plan’s rebranding efforts—including its mission, logo, and website. Louie’s efforts earned multiple award recognitions.
President and chief executive officer
God’s Love We Deliver
David Ludwigson is president and chief executive officer for God’s Love We Deliver. During his tenure at the charitable organization, fundraising has grown from $6 million to more than $22 million annually in the most recent fiscal year; the number of meals cooked and delivered has grown from 670,000 to more than 3.2 million annually. Under Ludwigson’s leadership, God’s Love We Deliver has focused on expanding its reach to historically under-resourced neighborhoods. He also partners with local organizations to uplift the LGBTQIA+ community and all New Yorkers, from delivering Thanksgiving meals to teens at The Ali Forney Center to partnering with City Harvest.
Managing director Goldman Sachs
George Macdiarmid, a managing director at Goldman Sachs, is the global head for equity cross product engineering as well as chief operating officer for Goldman’s LGBTQIA+ network. In addition to overseeing pride programming at the firm, mentoring junior members of the firm’s LGBTQIA+ community, and ensuring its visible representation within the firm, Macdiarmid pioneered a series of listening sessions that reached more than 100 employees. He also sponsors a series of LGBTQIA+ managing director roundtable discussions for analysts, and is a frequent mentor at the Out for Undergraduate business conference.
THE TAVERN GUILD OF SAN FRANCISCO, THE FIRST GAY BUSINESS ASSOCIATION NATIONWIDE, WAS FOUNDED IN 1962
Litigation partner
Simpson Thacher & Bartlett
Linton Mann lll, a litigation partner at the law firm Simpson Thacher & Bartlett, advises on litigation and investigation matters. Leading pro bono representations to promote racial and social justice, he is partnering with the New York Civil Liberties Union to investigate allegations of racially based misconduct within New York’s Department of Corrections and Community Supervision. Mann III co-chairs Simpson Thacher’s United for Justice committee, leading efforts to secure and donate more than $1 million in financial and legal services to LGBTQIA+ and minority rights organizations. He is also a member of The National LGBTQ+ Bar Association and Foundation and serves as chair for Uncommon Schools New York City.
Partner and co-chair of the consumer financial services practice
Hinshaw & Culbertson
Brian McGrath is partner and co-chair of Hinshaw & Culbertson’s national consumer financial services practice, leading the law firm’s strategic growth and opening new offices. The first openly gay leader in Hinshaw & Culbertson’s history, he manages a nationwide litigation practice, specializing in representing financial services companies in a variety of litigation and regulatory matters. McGrath has fostered partnerships between Hinshaw and organizations such as the Human Rights Campaign and Immigration Equality, combating LGBTQIA+ rights rollbacks. He serves on various boards, including those of the Development Authority of the North Country and the Lewis County Health System Foundation, and has taken on leadership roles with the Leadership Council on Legal Diversity.
Managing partner
Vishnick McGovern Milizio
Joseph Milizio founded Vishnick McGovern Milizio’s LGBTQIA+ representation practice more than two decades ago. A managing partner, his recent work has focused on assisting individuals and families cope with the repercussions of the COVID-19 pandemic; representing trans youth and their families; and providing legal counsel and representations, mostly pro bono, to several LGBTQIA+ rights organizations. He co-founded the Suffolk County LGBTQ Advisory Board, co-established the National LGBT Chamber of Commerce Long Island chapter, and established one of the first surrogacy legal practices in New York State for LGBTQIA+ parents. For these accomplishments and others, Milizio received special congressional recognition.
Deputy chief diversity officer
Office of Governor Kathy Hochul
As deputy chief diversity officer for the office of Governor Kathy Hochul, Priya Nair leads diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives in New York State. They manage the implementation of statewide initiatives by overseeing communication with an array of stakeholders, including agency leaders and staff, and providing guidance and oversight on diversity, equity and inclusion efforts across the enterprise— including implementation of equitable policies for the state’s workforce. Nair has spoken on behalf of the governor at NYU Langone Health’s disparities symposium, and led statewide pride events. They formerly served as a board member of the Stonewall Democratic Club of New York City.
Senior director of advanced practice providers
Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center
Joseph Narus is a senior director at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, leading a team of advanced practice providers (APPs). With a background as a nurse practitioner and associate medical director, he has developed practice models for APPs, improving new visit access and generating additional revenue streams. For 17 years, Narus worked on the management of sexual dysfunction after cancer treatment in the Men’s Sexual & Reproductive Medicine Program. He advocates for education and engagement among advanced practice providers, and led the development of various committees and symposiums. At his alma mater, Manhattanville College, Narus has served on the board of trustees and is president of the alumni association board of directors.
PRESIDENT BIDEN’S SIGNING OF THE RESPECT FOR MARRIAGE ACT LATE LAST YEAR MANDATED RECOGNITION OF SAME-SEX MARRIAGES AT THE FEDERAL LEVEL
NEW YORK TIMES
Senior partner
McKinsey & Company
Maurice Obeid is a senior partner at McKinsey & Company’s New York office, where he works in sectors such as travel and transportation, real estate and infrastructure, and government. He leads the firm’s social impact committee, collaborating with more than 600 nonprofits, and supports young professionals through the firm’s mentorship program. Additionally, Obeid recently hosted a two-day leadership masterclass for New York City LGBTQIA+ senior executives. He serves on several boards, including those of the Citizens Budget Commission and Rethink Food. Obeid is a David Rockefeller fellow and a corporate leader at the Council on Foreign Relations.
Program manager
Northwell Health
Jared Oliveira is a program manager and LGBTQIA+ advocate and inclusion leader at Northwell Health, where he oversees a system-wide initiative to train staff on LGBTQIA+ health. Oliveira recently helped revive Northwell’s LGBTQIA+ task force, establishing multiple subcommittees and hosting regular forums on LGBTQIA+ health concerns. He also manages LGBTQIA+ community outreach at Northwell, ensuring that HIV/PrEP services are available across corporate sponsorship and promoting gender-affirming services at trans care clinics. Oliveira serves on the Northwell Health Physician Partners board of governors, and consults internally to ensure inclusive practices at Northwell. He also represents Northwell in collaborations with local organizations, including Cherry Grove Community Association, TransNY, and Pride For Youth.
Senior project manager
Gilbane Building Company
As a senior project manager at Gilbane Building Company, Tracy J. Passarella is overseeing development of the Made in New York Campus at Bush Terminal in Brooklyn, where she is responsible for running mechanical, electrical, plumbing, elevators, and site coordination. She also holds a leadership role in a pride employee resource group at Gilbane. Passarella serves as a member of organizations such as the New York chapter of the Gay Real Estate Group and Build Out Alliance, and was recently invited to consult for the New York American Institute for Architects on its new LGBTQIA+ community-building initiatives. Passarella speaks at industry events, where she advocates for inclusion in construction.
Head of U.S. integrated marketing and customer strategy
TD Bank
As head of U.S. integrated marketing and customer strategy, Jennie Platt leads marketing strategies to drive customer acquisition and engagement at TD Bank. As an LGBTQIA+ leader within the organization, Platt played a pivotal role in developing TD Bank’s 2023 pride campaign, showcasing its support for the LGBTQIA+ community through housing, health, and financial empowerment initiatives. Platt also serves on TD Bank’s transformation, enablement and customer experience inclusion and diversity leadership council. In this role, she leads a variety of initiatives to support LGBTQIA+ mentorship, networking, intersectionality events, and local community efforts for TD Bank across North America.
Associate managing attorney
The Travelers Companies
Tricia Prettypaul is an associate managing attorney as part of The Travelers Companies. She helps oversee the operation of a 27-person team and provides guidance in the appellate, innovation, and regulatory space. Over the course of her career, Prettypaul has amassed an array of litigation experience with bench trials, motion and arbitration hearings, court appearances, research, investigation reviews, document drafting, and providing training to partners and staff alike. Prettypaul is responsible for creating presentations on diversity initiatives and organizing philanthropy efforts. She regularly takes part in community service initiatives and corporate sponsored events and does pro bono work.
Executive
vice president and general counselSavills North America
In his role as executive vice president and general counsel at Savills North America, James Repking leads the legal department at the real estate services company. He provides guidance on various aspects of Savills’ business, including mergers and acquisitions, strategic development, and corporate governance. Throughout his career, he has participated in LGBTQIA+ affinity groups, including at Savills. Outside of his professional role, Repking is involved in the New York Gay Real Estate Group as well as the NYU Stern Real Estate Pride Roundtable. He was also involved in the National Leadership Symposium for LGBTQ+ in Real Estate & the Built Environment in April 2023.
Chief executive officer
JCCA
As chief executive officer of JCCA, Ronald Richter helps provide mental health, education, and child welfare services to children and families in New York City. Recent achievements include launching a New York City assertive community treatment team for young individuals with acute mental health challenges and opening an office in the Bronx to provide a modern, family-oriented space for mental health, behavioral, educational, and foster care services. Richter serves on various advisory committees and boards, including the Mayor’s Advisory Committee on the Judiciary and the New York State Coalition for Children’s Behavioral Health. He is also board chair of the nonprofit Child Trends.
Senior counsel
Arnold & Porter
Rosalyn Richter serves as senior counsel at the law firm Arnold & Porter. She also engages in pro bono work, advocating for LGBTQIA+ rights and equality. Richter played a role in a precedentsetting settlement on behalf of a transgender teacher, and is leading ongoing litigation in Florida to protect the rights of a transgender girl in school sports. Richter has held key positions in organizations such as Lambda Legal and SAGE, and served as co-chair of the New York City Bar Association’s diversity, equity and inclusion committee. She recently received a lifetime achievement award from the New York Law Journal in recognition of her accomplishments.
Director of corporate compliance
EmblemHealth family of companies
Greg Rider is director of corporate compliance at the EmblemHealth family of companies, where he oversees the standards of conduct, policies and procedures, compliance training, compliance communications, and the compliance and ethics hotline. Rider is also founder and leader of Prism, an LGBTQIA+ employee resource group at EmblemHealth. Outside of his professional role, Rider is a member of the NYC Gay Men’s Chorus, and contributes to the diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging committee of its board of directors. He is also involved in various industry associations such as the Association for Talent Development, where he has presented workshops on training and cultural competency.
OF THE 50 STATES, NEW YORK IS RANKED AS THE FIFTHFRIENDLIEST STATE FOR LGBTQIA+ TRAVELERS (NO. 1: CALIFORNIA) FORBES
Co-head of litigation and disputes, New York
Norton Rose Fulbright
Mark Robertson is co-head of dispute resolution and litigation for Norton Rose Fulbright in New York. He has achieved significant victories in representing LGBTQIA+ individuals, such as securing the right for Presbyterian ministers nationwide to marry their same-sex partners while maintaining their roles as ministers. Robertson is actively involved in promoting LGBTQIA+ inclusion at his firm, serving as chair of its pride committee, implementing initiatives such as preferred pronouns on emails, and recruiting events for LGBTQIA+ law students. He also holds leadership positions in various organizations, including the New York City Bar Association and the Human Rights Campaign.
President and chief executive officer Institute for Community Living
Jody Rudin leads the human service agency Institute for Community Living as president and chief executive officer. She advances a whole-health model to meet the needs of children, families, adults, and seniors facing serious behavioral health challenges. Her recent accomplishments include expanding addiction treatment services, launching a program that helps people transition from street homelessness to housing in 30 days, and strengthening support for individuals with serious mental illness. Rudin is vice chair of the board of Homeless Services United. Before becoming a leader in private-sector nonprofit organizations, she served as deputy commissioner of the New York City Department of Homeless Services.
Managing director, legal Nomura Securities
Thomas Salatte is a managing director in the legal department at Nomura Securities in New York. He has been a proactive force behind the company’s responses to finance-industry developments such as the Dodd-Frank Act. As founder and co-chair of the pride network at Nomura Americas’, he has championed LGBTQIA+ benefits; helped lead the company to achieve a perfect score on the Human Rights Campaign’s Corporate Equality Index; and fostered partnerships with organizations such as Out for Undergrad and the Tent Partnership for Refugees. Salatte has been a guest lecturer at law schools and served on the board of New York City’s Anti-Violence Project.
Founding director, Jacobs Urban Tech Hub at Cornell Tech; director of campus planning and sustainability
As founding director of the Jacobs Urban Tech Hub at Cornell Tech and director of campus planning and sustainability, Michael Samuelian is a leading voice on using technology to make cities more equitable and sustainable.
During his time as president and chief executive officer of the Trust for Governors Island, he enhanced public access and diverse programming. Samuelian supports emerging LGBTQIA+ professionals through mentorship and involvement with organizations such as Queer Urbanists NYC. He is a fellow of the American Institute of Architects and serves on the New York State Board for Architecture, the Advisory Board of ULI (Urban Land Institute) New York, and the Long Island City Partnership.
Managing director and head of digital strategy
Fiduciary Trust International
Rod Sayegh is a managing director and head of digital strategy at Fiduciary Trust International (FTI), where he leads the strategic direction and implementation of FTI’s virtual channels to achieve operational efficiencies, transparency, and cohesive experiences for wealth advisors and clients. Sayegh is an advocate for the LGBTQIA+ community, leading FTI’s New York City pride chapter and contributing to educational programs devoted to financial planning for LGBTQIA+ couples. He co-founded and contributes to the Fire Island Artist Residency and is a member of Punks and Pin Stripes, an organization focused on change management and diversity and inclusion.
THE STONEWALL RIOTS ERUPTED ON JUNE 28, 1969, WHEN POLICE RAIDED THE STONEWALL INN IN GREENWICH VILLAGE, A GAY CLUB IN NEW YORK CITY. THE ENSUING RIOTS HELPED SPARK THE GAY RIGHTS MOVEMENT. HISTORY.COM
Deputy chief executive officer
Urban Resource Institute
Carla Smith is a leader in the nonprofit sector with a strong focus on serving vulnerable populations, particularly LGBTQIA+ individuals impacted by violence and homelessness. As deputy chief executive officer of Urban Resource Institute, she has significantly expanded the organization’s services, including traumainformed prevention and intervention programs reaching 40,000 people annually, as well as 22 shelters accommodating 2,200 individuals. She is recognized for her advocacy efforts and has received honors for her work, including being named among “40 Changemakers’’ by the New York City Anti-Violence Project. She serves on the advisory panel for the Lubin School of Business Transformative Leadership Program at Pace University.
Chair of global wealth management
Alvarium Tiedemann | AlTi
Craig Smith is chair of global wealth management at Alvarium Tiedemann | AlTi. He helps develop the company’s strategic direction and oversees all aspects of its wealth management business. Over the course of his career, Smith has been instrumental in building one of the largest global wealth management firms: Alvarium Tiedemann | AlTi oversees $40 billion in assets for more than 800 clients. He is also chair of his firm’s diversity, equity and inclusion committee. Outside of his professional role, Smith is a member of the advisory board of the Ali Forney Center, a nonprofit that provides shelter and support for LGBTQIA+ youth.
Chief executive officer
Northwell Direct
As chief executive officer of Northwell Direct, Nicholas Stefanizzi is responsible for the performance of Northwell’s direct-toemployer business and for creating alternative revenue streams for the largest healthcare organization in New York State. He led the development of on-demand access to behavioral health services for the New York Police Department, and launched an insurance alternative to improve access and quality of healthcare while reducing cost for New Yorkers. He is a member of the employee resource group that serves LGBTQIA+ members across Northwell’s workforce, and is committed to building diverse teams. Stefanizzi formerly served as vice chair and chair of the board of the International Model United Nations Association.
Executive vice president and chief corporate affairs officer
Pfizer
Sally Susman, executive vice president and chief corporate affairs officer for Pfizer, leads engagement with external stakeholders, also overseeing communications, corporate responsibility, global policy, government relations, patient advocacy, and investor relations.
In March 2023, Harvard Business Review Press published Susman’s first book, BREAKING THROUGH: Communicating to Open Minds, Move Hearts, and Change the World, which was named a Wall Street Journal bestseller. She lends her time to New York Women in Communications and OUT Leadership, and frequently comments in magazines, podcasts, and newspapers. Susman also serves as co-chair of the International Rescue Committee, is on the board of UL Solutions, and is a member of the Council on Foreign Relations.
Partner and chair of the tax group Cadwalader, Wickersham and Taft Linda Swartz, a partner and chair of the tax group for the law firm Cadwalader, Wickersham and Taft, has advised on various major transactions. She is committed to mentoring LGBTQIA+ attorneys and acts as a partner sponsor for the firm’s LGBTQIA+ affinity network. In 2017, Swartz designed and founded the Cadwalader Civil Rights Series, a program of year-round, publicfacing speaker events hosted by the firm’s New York City office featuring today’s civil rights leaders and influencers— including leading LGBTQIA+ rights champions. Swartz’s pro bono work includes chairing Cadwalader’s nonprofit incubator, which incorporates and obtains tax-exempt status for fledgling nonprofit organizations.
Executive director
New York City Anti-Violence Project
Beverly Tillery is executive director of the New York City Anti-Violence Project, an organization that empowers LGBTQIA+ and HIV-affected communities to end all forms of violence through organizing, education, and support for survivors via counseling and advocacy. She is an experienced thought leader, advocate and national organizer with three decades of experience working in social justice movements. Most recently, Tillery was a deputy director of education and public affairs in charge of community education, advocacy and inclusion at Lambda Legal, an organization dedicated to achieving full recognition of the rights of LGBTQIA+ people and people living with HIV.
Project manager
Gemini Rosemont Development
Andrew Torres is a project manager at Gemini Rosemont Development. He is currently working on three high-end residential projects in New York. Boasting 16 years in the real estate sector, Torres uses his connections and insights in role as president of Build Out Alliance, a nonprofit advocacy group that is dedicated to supporting LGBTQIA+ individuals working in the building design and construction industries. Serving as a platform to foster and amplify visibility, advocacy, and service in the LGBTQIA+ space, Build Out can affect positive change at both the professional and community level.
Congressman U.S. Congress
Vice chairman and managing principal
NYC LGBT HISTORIC
As a U.S. congressman serving New York’s 15th District, Ritchie Torres has advanced legislation to fight for LGBTQIA+ rights, including support for businesses with LGBTQIA+ owners and the Respect for Marriage Act. Making history as the first gay Afro Latino elected to Congress, Torres has introduced legislation to address the rise in hate crimes targeting the LGBTQIA+ community. As a member of city council, and now in Congress, Torres has worked throughout his career to improve public housing and transparency in city business dealings. Torres serves on the House Financial Services Committee, focusing especially on its Subcommittee on Housing and Insurance.
Vocon
Thomas Vecchione is vice chairman and managing principal for Vocon, advising top corporations and real estate investors in planning and positioning their properties to meet the demands of prospective tenants. He brings more than 30 years of industry experience to the classroom as a professor at Cornell University’s Baker Program in Real Estate, where his courses dissect the dynamics of the office market and investigate how real estate affects business performance, employee engagement, and business districts. Vecchione is a member of the board of directors of the Center for an Urban Future, and is an advisory board member at New York University’s Schack Institute of Real Estate.
THE FIRST PRIDE MARCH IN NEW YORK CITY TOOK PLACE JUNE
28, 1970, ONE YEAR AFTER THE STONEWALL RIOTS, WITH THOUSANDS OF PARTICIPANTS
SITES PROJECT
Artistic director and chief executive officer
Ballet Hispánico
As artistic director and chief executive officer of Ballet Hispánico, Eduardo Vilaro helms the nation’s largest Latinx arts institution, overseeing an organization that centers access for BIPOC communities. The architect behind the organization’s Diálogos conversations series, Vilaro was a key panelist for a forum on “reimagining heteronormativity in dance,” partnering with The Ali Forney Center and the Stonewall Inn for this first-ever discussion. He has expanded Ballet Hispánico’s scholarship opportunities to ensure students have access to high-quality training, regardless of ability to pay. Vilaro is a board member of Dance/NYC, an advocacy organization that centers inclusion and equity within its mission to promote dance throughout the New York metro area.
Partner Willkie Farr & Gallagher
Jordan Wall, recently elected partner at the law firm Willkie Farr & Gallagher, represents public and private clients in complex commercial and cross-border disputes before U.S. trial and appellate courts and domestic and international arbitral tribunals. In 2022, he played an integral role in securing a high-profile victory before the U.S. Supreme Court for AlixPartners. Wall is devoted to furthering the LGBTQIA+ community in New York, particularly the queer community of color, through supporting and volunteering at the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual & Transgender Community Center, the Brooklyn Community Pride Center, and Lambda Legal’s Young Leadership Council.
Chief
Educational Alliance
Jamaul Webster serves as chief development officer at Educational Alliance, developing the annual fundraising strategy that allows this nonprofit network of community centers to offer high-quality, affordable education programs, health services, and diverse cultural enrichment across downtown Manhattan. In addition, Webster is a member of the organization’s executive team. For more than 12 years, he has volunteered with the Human Rights Campaign, America’s largest civil rights organization working to achieve equality for the LGBTQIA+ community.
Webster serves on the board of The LOFT LGBTQ+ Community Center, a nonprofit institution currently serving more than 9,000 LGBTQIA+ individuals.
Partner
Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom
As a partner at the law firm Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom, Gavin White advises clients on a wide variety of U.S. and international tax matters, including public and private acquisitions, divestitures, bankruptcy reorganizations, equity and debt offerings, and joint ventures. He has extensive experience advising private equity firms and their portfolio companies on a variety of transactions. White speaks on panels at a variety of law schools about hiring and about particular issues facing LGBTQIA+ lawyers. He has endowed a scholarship for law students at the University of Virginia School of Law, where he recently began serving a four-year term on the alumni council.
We Congratulate Our Colleague and Partner Linton Mann III on His Recognition as a Notable LGBTQIA+ Leader
WHEN KATHY KOZACHENKO WAS ELECTED TO THE ANN ARBOR CITY COUNCIL IN MICHIGAN ON APRIL 2, 1974, SHE BECAME AMERICA’S FIRST OPENLY GAY INDIVIDUAL ELECTED TO POLITICAL OFFICE
NBC NEWS
Clinical director of VNS Health’s gender affirmation program
VNS Health
As clinical director of the nonprofit VNS Health’s gender affirmation program, Shannon Whittington supports and trains home health clinicians caring for transgender and nonbinary patients following gender-affirmation surgery. She also plays a vital role in recruiting and training New York City clinicians, ensuring that patients undergoing genderaffirmation surgery receive expert care and feel fully supported during the experience. Whittington supports diversity, equity, and inclusion workplace initiatives at VNS Health, also sharing her expertise outside the organization to help others support LGBTQIA+ perspectives. She is also involved in a project studying the impact of postsurgical home care following gender-affirming surgery.
President and chief executive officer
Amida Care
As president and chief executive officer of the nonprofit Amida Care, Doug Wirth oversees the largest Medicaid Special Needs Health Plan in New York with $500 million in annual premiums and more than 9,000 members.
Under Wirth’s leadership, Amida Care strengthened its comprehensive genderaffirming care for its 2,700 transgender or gender nonconforming members. He developed Amida Care’s gender identity support team, which works with each member to help them access affirming care and services. Wirth is currently on the board of RCHN Community Health Foundation and co-chair of the board of the NEW Pride Agenda.
Unispace
As chief diversity officer of Unispace, Chely Wright leads the global workplace design firm’s diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging (DEIB) program.
In this role, she identifies, cultivates, and develops relationships with diverse stakeholders. Since joining the firm, Wright has launched Groundbreakers, a Unispace podcast exploring the intersection of DEIB and the workplace. She also spearheaded the company’s Art for Impact program, which reimagines ways for organizations to drive positive outcomes in their communities through art and storytelling. Wright also created two employee resource groups, Women@Unispace and Parents&Caregivers@Unispace, which elevate the needs and concerns of women, working parents, and those with caring responsibilities.
As the first female to hold the position of vice president of facilities and leasing for the nonprofit Services for the UnderServed (S:US), Faith Xikis is responsible for the maintenance and safety of 92 supportive housing buildings and more than 1,200 scattered supportive housing apartments across New York City. She manages a staff of more than 80, and recently became certified by the National Association of Home Builders as an aging-inplace specialist. Xikis volunteers her time to deliver breast milk for moms in need and participates in an annual benefit ride for women’s health.
AS OF 2019, THE GLOBAL PURCHASING POWER OF THE LGBTQIA+ CONSUMER SEGMENT— SOMETIMES KNOWN AS “PINK MONEY”—WAS ESTIMATED AT $3.9 TRILLION
LGBT CAPITAL
Notice of Formation of Cosmetic Eye Surgery, PLLC. Arts. Of Org. filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 5/8/2023. Office location: New York County.
SSNY designated as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to: The LLC, 1 Central Park West, #41C, NY, NY 10023. Street address of principal place of business: 1 Central Park West, #41C, NY, NY 10023.
Purpose/character of LLC: Any lawful purpose.
NOTICE OF FORMATION of
DU SEL LIMITED LIABILITY COMPANY. Arts of Org filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 3/17/23. Office location: NY County. SSNY designated as agent upon whom process may be served and shall mail copy of process against LLC to 99 Warren St, NY, NY 10007. R/A: US Corp Agents, Inc. 7014 13th Ave, #202, BK, NY 11228.
Purpose: any lawful act.
Notice of Formation of Prince Driving Schol LLC. Arts of Org filed with Secy of State of NY (SSNY) on 1/12/23. Office Location: BX County. SSNY designated as agent upon whom process may be served and shall mail copy of process against LLC to 1759-B Jerome Ave, Bronx, NY 10453. Purpose: any lawful act.
RI Feng LLC filed w/ SSNY 4/24/23. Off. in NY Co. SSNY desig. as agt. of LLC whom process may be served & shall mail process to the LLC, 57 E. Broadway, NY, NY 10002. Any lawful purpose.
Contact
Notice of Formation of STURDY INCLINE LLC, Arts of Org filed with Secy of State of NY (SSNY) on 1/24/23/ Office Location: NY County. SSNY designated as agent upon whom process may be served and shall mail copy of process against LLC to 228 PARK AVE S, #974932 NY, NY 10003 R/A: US Corp Agents, Inc. 7014 13th Ave, #202, BK, NY 11228 Purpose: any lawful act.
Notice of Qualification of 744 Madison Sale Center, LLC Appl. for Auth. filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 05/08/23. Office location: NY County. LLC formed in Delaware (DE) on 04/04/23. SSNY designated as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to 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 State of DE, Secy. of State, Div. of Corps., 401 Federal St., Ste. 4, Dover, DE 19901. Purpose: Any lawful activity.
Notice of Qualification of BRSP BLANCHARD LIC, LLC Appl. for Auth. filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 05/12/23. Office location: NY County. LLC formed in Delaware (DE) on 04/27/23. Princ. office of LLC: c/o BrightSpire Capital, Inc., 590 Madison Ave., 33rd Fl., NY, NY 10022. 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, 401 Federal St., Dover, DE 19901. Purpose: Any lawful activity.
NOTICE OF FORMATION OF Psychotherapy Counseling Services LCSW PLLC. Arts of Org filed with the Secy of State of NY (SSNY) on 5/2/23. 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 PLLC served upon him/her is: 418 Braodway ste N, Albany, NY, 12207. The principal business address of the LLC is: New York. Purpose: any lawful act or activity.
Senior Software Engineer positions w/ WarnerMedia Services, LLC in NY, NY. Design, dev’p, implement, test, document & deliver large-scale, multitiered, distributed or embedded SW apps, tools, systems & svcs using Object Oriented programming, distributed or embedded programming, relational DBs &/or related tech in Linux, Unix, or rltd sophisticated platform or operating syst in an Agile environ. Position based in NY, NY. May telecommute from anywhere in U.S. Salary range is $157,477/yr - $195,000/yr, depending upon qualifications. Email resume to GMRI@warnerbros.com. Ref: 6376936SSE2.
Staff Data Engineer positions (Turner Services, Inc.; NY, NY). Develop, construct & test existing & new architectures. Salary range is $163,758/yr - $195,000/yr, depending upon qualifications. Position based in NY, NY. May telecommute from anywhere in the U.S. Email resume to GMRI@warnerbros.com. Ref: 6006921SDE2.
Notice of Formation of 80TH 12J, LLC
Arts. of Org. filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 05/02/23. Office location: NY County. SSNY designated as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to Daniel Sperling, 300 Manida St., Bronx, NY 10474.
Purpose: Any lawful activity.
Ekimetrics, Inc. seeks Confirmed Consultant in Strategy and Data Science in New York, NY to utilize advanced statistical techniques and best data practices to help the team progress through project work; develop a logical story combining data and industry knowledge to share actionable insights that will drive our clients' businesses. Req. Bach. in bus. analyt., poli. Sci. or rel. deg. with sig. quant. cw. No exp. req. 10% dom. & int’l travel to client sites. $98,862/yr. Resume to Ioana Irimia at Recruitment.us@ekimetrics.com
Notice of Formation of LITTLE MAC'S MARKET LLC
Arts of Org filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 2/17/23. Office location: NY County. SSNY designated as agent upon whom process may be served and shall mail copy of process against LLC to 228 Park Ave S, #48324, NY, NY 10003. R/A US Corp Agents, Inc, 7014 13th Av, #202, BK, NY 11228. Purpose: any lawful act
912 PLYMOUTH STREET LLC. Arts. of Org. filed with the SSNY on 11/01/22. Office: New York County. SSNY designated as agent of the LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail copy of process to the LLC, 234 Bradhurst Ave 6, New York, NY 10039. Purpose: Any lawful purpose.
Notice of Formation of REED PLACE LLC. Arts of Org filed with Secy . of State of NY (SSNY) on 2/27/23. Office location: BX County. SSNY designated as agent upon whom process may be served and shall mail copy of process against LLC to 1418 Reed PL. Bronx, NY 10465.
Purpose: any lawful act
WEDDLE & GILMORE
ARCHITECTS, PLLC filed an App. for Auth. with the Dept. of State of NY on 5/1/2023. PLLC formed in AZ on 8/21/1998. Office located within NYS: New York County. The Sect'y of State of NY is designated as agent upon whom process against it may be served and shall mail process to: Goetz Fitzpatrick LLP, Attn: John B. Simoni Jr. Esq., One Penn Plaza, Ste 3100, NY, NY 10119. Purpose: Architecture.
Health System to receive genderaffirming care.
Rosen had received hormone-replacement therapy, which results in physical changes to a person’s body that help their appearance align with their gender identity, before going to Montefiore. At Montefiore she underwent an orchiectomy, a surgical procedure to remove her testicles. She received facial feminization procedures and had a breast augmentation.
Now Rosen, who is an actress, writer and consultant and lives in the Bronx, finally feels as if her body belongs to her. “I look in the mirror and I recognize myself,” she said. “I see myself.”
Gender-affirming care can encompass hormone therapy, surgery, mental health care and social support. But it is not simply synonymous with transitioning; it is a spectrum of services that affirms peoples’ chosen identities, such as using the correct pronouns and providing access to gender-affirming spaces.
This spectrum of care can be life-saving for transgender and gender-expansive people. But misinformation about certain procedures, as well as an uptick in restrictions in other states across the country, has created a hostile environment for patients who need such care, many of whom are part of marginalized groups.
At least 19 states have banned gender-affirming care for youth who identify as transgender or genderexpansive, and nearly a third of transgender youth live in states that have passed bans, according to the Human Rights Campaign Foundation. Most restrictions target care for patients under 18—but some states, including Florida, have passed bans that would restrict insurance coverage for gender-affirming care for adults too.
New York City has distinguished itself as a refuge for genderaffirming health care in an increasingly volatile landscape. But even as city health systems and community organizations work to ensure access to services for transgender people, clinician shortages and knowledge gaps within the medical workforce still present hurdles for the community.
Clinicians who provide genderaffirming services are trained across a range of medical specialties, including primary care, pediatrics, endocrinology, surgery and psychiatry. Health care designed for gender-diverse individuals is multidisciplinary and may include support from social services professionals and peer advocates. Most providers adhere to standards set by the World Professional Association of Transgender Health, an organization that offers clinical guidance for the care of transgender people.
Hospitals and health systems in
New York have medical programs designed to provide hormonereplacement therapy or genderaffirming surgeries. Montefiore, for example, runs TransWellness Centers and the Oval Center for sexual health, while Mount Sinai operates a Center for Transgender Medicine and Surgery in Chelsea. New York City Health + Hospitals’ seven Pride Centers offer gender-affirming surgery at certain sites, hormone therapy, sexually transmitted infection testing, social work and behavioral health services.
According to Annais Morales, a representative for H+H, the system’s Pride Centers treat 1,000 to 5,000 New Yorkers each year. The budget for gender-affirming care is folded into the system’s budget for ambulatory care and thus difficult to calculate. The fiscal year 2024 budget for H+H is $913 million, which is $174 million less than the 2023 adopted budget.
About 700 patients receive gender-affirming care per year at Montefiore, according to Tracy Gurrisi, a representative for the health system.
Dr. Barbara Warren, senior director for LGBT programs and policies at Mount Sinai, said that the institution supports employee training, fellowship programs for physicians and internships for LGBTQ+ youth through a combination of grants, donors and internal budget allocations.
Community-based organizations such as Chelsea-based CallenLorde and Apicha Community Health Center have also become established spaces for people within the queer community, as well as people of color, to receive health care. Giselle Byrd, who grew up in Augusta, Georgia, came out in 2015 and started receiving care in New York at CallenLorde in 2018, said going to a community organization helped her grow confidence and gain control over her body. The clinic helped her access hormones for replacement therapy and legal resources to change her name.
Although New York City is a safe haven for people looking for gender-affirming care, Byrd said, hate and hate crimes can still happen anywhere.
Many in the LGBTQ+ community are exposed to trauma related to the rise in hate against their community. The Federal Bureau of Investigation’s crime data explorer counts 261 hate crimes in New York between 2017 and 2021 that were based on bias against sexual identity, and the University of CaliforniaLos Angeles School of Law reports that transgender people are more than four times more likely to be the victims of violent crime than cisgender people.
Meanwhile, transgender and gender-diverse patients still face challenges in accessing services, ranging from covering costs to finding a provider.
Hormone-replacement therapy can cost patients between $30 and $300 a month. The price of surgery is dependent on the type of procedure, but some surpass $50,000. Insurers in New York are barred from denying coverage for genderaffirming care, but for people who
staff, the institute still has struggled to meet demand.
Brooks Nicolosi, a health and wellness program manager at the Brooklyn Community Pride Center, said that the current mental health workforce shortage has stalled some patients’ ability to access gender-affirming surgeries. Before health systems will provide facial, chest or genital surgeries, many require patients to get one or more letters of recommendation from a mental health clinician.
insurers from denying transgender patients coverage for genderaffirming care. But before it was largely covered by insurance, patients in New York resorted to other measures to start transitioning, said Dr. Andrew Lee, director of transgender surgery at Montefiore, who specializes in facial feminization and masculinization.
are uninsured or underinsured, costs are a hurdle to access. Rosen said that without insurance coverage, she would not have been able to afford her care.
“Most people have to spend so much time just finding the right provider,” Rosen said. She was able to access a range of services at Montefiore but is well aware that providers across the city have long wait times that make it difficult for transgender patients to find care.
The health care workforce shortage across New York state and the country has widened gaps in care for the transgender community. The mental health sector—a key aspect of gender-affirming services— has faced dire shortages since the start of the pandemic.
“In gender-affirming care, we have that same problem for people who have mental health support needs,” said Dr. Joshua Safer, director of the Center for Transgender Medicine and Surgery at Mount Sinai. “And trans people with more stressors have more of that need than the average population.”
Community-based organizations that provide mental health care and refer patients to outside providers say that long wait lists and the slim supply of behavioral health clinicians trained in gender-affirming care have exacerbated the needs among transgender people—specifically youth and adolescents. Youth who cannot access gender-affirming services face a higher risk of mental health concerns including anxiety, depression and suicide, studies show.
“Many of the young people that we work with have experienced lots of exposure to trauma throughout their lives,” said Bridget Hughes, chief program officer at the Hetrick-Martin Institute, a nonprofit based in Lower Manhattan that serves LGBTQ+ youth.
Since the pandemic began, the demand for mental health services at the institute has skyrocketed, Hughes said, to the point where it had to double its mental health counseling workforce. The staff has reached 78 providers, said Noah Nilson, program manager of community mental health partnerships at the institute.
In the past year, the HetrickMartin Institute has provided both on-call and long-term counseling services to 256 youth and has had more than 3,000 total sessions, Hughes said. Despite increases in
But in cases where patients don’t have an established relationship with a mental health provider, recommendations can take months or even years to obtain, said Nicolosi, who uses they/them pronouns. People who identify as transgender or gender-expansive may have trouble finding an affirming therapist, and even when they do, many clinicians have long waitlists, they added.
“If they’re not already enrolled in mental health care services with an affirming provider, that’s a whole other step they have to go through first,” Nicolosi said. “That’s just an extra hurdle for folks.”
It’s even more critical for transgender and gender-expansive people to find providers that are trained in gender-affirming care, as many have experienced discrimination from the wider medical system.
Anthony Fortenberry, deputy executive director at Callen-Lorde, said that discrimination and fear of coming out to a provider are among the biggest challenges that genderexpansive people face.
When providers “deadname” patients—or use their government name instead of the name they chose for themselves—or seem uncomfortable, patients don’t feel accepted or safe. That can create health care access issues, Fortenberry said.
Dr. Jeffrey Birnbaum, a pediatrician who cares for transgender patients at SUNY Downstate Medical Center in East Flatbush, said that other infrastructural barriers, such as nuances in electronic medical records, can cause harm. Medical records may not have accurate fields for a patient’s chosen name, for example, which adds to confusion about how to refer to them.
Changes such as updating medical record systems are slowly becoming more prevalent, Birnbaum said. But there’s still a need to educate providers within the mainstream medical community on how to care for patients who are transgender and gender-expansive, he added.
“I think the bigger issue is that providers and facilities view it as something that’s really complicated,” Birnbaum said. “I think treating diabetes is a lot more complicated than transgender care.”
At SUNY Downstate, Birnbaum runs a clinic for transgender patients called Health & Education Alternatives for Teens. He said that making patients feel accepted within the health system is integral to the provision of care.
“Patients are motivated to be on treatment,” Birnbaum said. “They become very closely connected to care because, among other things, we validate them as human beings.”
Insurance coverage
New York state prohibits health
This included going to nonlicensed providers and getting industrial-grade silicone injected into the face to aid in feminization or masculinization, he said. According to the Food and Drug Administration, silicone injections can lead to long-term pain, injections and serious injuries.
“Even now I see patients who maybe 10 years ago got silicone injected into their faces,” he said. “Many of my patients now deeply regret it, and it’s very difficult to correct once it’s in the face.”
He noted that even though coverage has improved, some patients have difficulty getting their procedures covered by commercial insurance and will often switch to Medicaid.
For the city’s community organizations, funding can be an obstacle to providing gender-affirming care—one so big, Fortenberry said, it “keeps me up at night.”
He spoke to New York’s recent 340B drug program carve-out, which began April 1 as part of the state Medicaid program’s pharmacy benefit transition to a different model, in an attempt to save the state millions of dollars. Providers that participate in 340B, which allows those that serve a large percentage of Medicaid patients to buy discounted drugs, have said for months the carve-out will cause them to lose revenue and interrupt services.
Those revenues are what allow Callen-Lorde to provide support services and make medications affordable for un- or underinsured patients, Fortenberry said. Community organizations are looking to the state for a better explanation of how they will be able to continue providing care.
Additionally, Fortenberry said, the end of the federal public health emergency for Covid-19 has changed reimbursement structures for telehealth services, which could further impact providers’ ability to supply their full range of genderaffirming services.
Dr. Anjna Ganatra, chief of ambulatory care at H+H/Metropolitan, said the health system is reliant on local and city funding to be able to provide gender-affirming services. The Pride Center at Metropolitan currently employs a part-time plastic surgeon and one endocrinologist each for adults and kids.
With more funding, H+H could provide more medications, have more choices in care provision and hire more doctors, she said, adding that mental health funding is critical in hiring providers that can address the needs of this vulnerable community.
“This patient population has really been … discriminated against,” Ganatra said. “And that has taken a huge toll on mental health. I think mental health funding and funding for hormone therapy would really go a long way.” ■
“MOST PEOPLE HAVE TO SPEND SO MUCH TIME JUST FINDING THE RIGHT PROVIDER”DR. JOSHUA SAFER of Mount Sinai says trans people with more stressors have a greater need for mental health support. BUCK ENNIS
Industry City-based Room got its start in 2017 thanks to an observation about ofce noise.
“Open oor plans were all the rage,” said Brian Chen, Room’s CEO, who co-founded the company with Morten Meisner-Jensen, “and the subject of anger and frustration.”
Chen and Meisner-Jensen were introduced by mutual friends who had been complaining about noise in their workplaces. e two were between jobs at the time, and they started tinkering with the idea of in-o ce phone booths.
At rst, it didn’t seem like much of a concept.
“We laughed it away,” Chen said. ey soon realized the problem with o ces wasn’t just the lack of privacy or too much noise but how they were built out. “ e lightbulb moment was when we realized a phone booth in the o ce was a replacement for construction,” Chen said.
An o ce is nothing more than an empty box inside a building. Turning that box into a space where people work usually means that a landlord or a tenant hires an architect and a general contractor, les building permits and buys hundreds of thousands of dollars worth of o ce furniture through dealers. With increasingly exible leases and changeable tenants, such a buildout might not happen more than once a decade.
And so when Chen and Meisner-Jensen sold their rst booth in 2018, they saw the sale as the initial step toward educating the
market about “modular architecture”— spaces built out using prefabricated elements rather than renovations.
“You’re replacing multiple cycles of renovations and demolition between tenants or as needs change,” said Meisner-Jensen.
Either way, o ce managers and coworking companies wanted the tech-enabled phone booths, which now cost $6,000 and up depending on speci c features and are available to buy on Room’s website. In 2018 Chen and Meisner-Jensen did $7 million in sales. In 2019, they did nearly $30 million.
Customers seemed to like the transparent pricing and click-to-order functionality, and they didn’t seem to mind receiving the premade parts and doing the assembly themselves, which takes about an hour. Room’s booths have good acoustics and soundproofing. Meisner-Jensen, who heads up design, said his team spent hours adjusting the light settings, choosing fabrics and guring out where to hide electrical elements to avoid sprawling wires.
“ ey are designed down to the last detail,” he said.
e ventilation is “best in class,” said Federico Negro, founder and CEO of Canoa, a marketplace and design tool company that resells furniture, including Room’s spaces. “You never feel stu y like in other booths,” he added.
In 2020, when o ces shuttered, Room’s
growth came to a standstill. e founders raised a $12.5 million Series A round of funding to get through the lull and laid o a large handful of employees.
e blip was short, and the comeback was strong. When workers returned to o ces in 2021, conditions were ripe for more booths. Managers rethought o ce layouts for hybrid workers, and companies insisted on shorter leases from their landlords. A rm subletting space could move in within weeks if they designed with Room’s portable spaces rather than waiting three to six months for contractors to move things around. As economic conditions worry executives, some companies are buying the company’s o erings as a way to add capacity to existing spaces instead of expanding their footprint
“As more people came back and the density increased, they had more of a need to seek that truly private space,” said Jean Chandler, senior director of design at workspace operator Industrious, which buys Room’s booths for their spaces around the world.
ese factors helped Room take in revenue for 2022 that was well above 2019 levels, the co-founders said, more than $50 million.
Room has also branched out from the phone booth to make it easier on sta juggling still having to conduct Zoom meetings from the o ce. It now sells $20,000 meeting rooms equipped with technology to make videoconferences seamless. at includes a specialized camera that can capture people
COMPANY Room
FOUNDED 2017
MANAGEMENT Co-founders Brian Chen and Morten Meisner-Jensen FULL-TIME EMPLOYEES 50 2022 REVENUE More than $50 million
PRODUCT MIX The company’s phone booths, meeting rooms, open rooms and focus rooms are all prefabricated, designed with in-of ce needs, from privacy to collaboration, in mind.
GROWTH STRATEGY Eventually, the company would like to offer enough prebuilt environments that the entire of ce could consist of prebuilt modular spaces.
WEBSITE room.com
sitting across from each other so they appear on one screen for remote participants. In addition, its focus rooms, which cost slightly less, are soundproof private o ces that come with height-adjustable desks, power, lighting and whiteboards.
e company raised an additional $23 million over the last two years to fuel the growth.
In keeping with its focus on modular architecture, Room’s next move is to cull data from how each workspace is used to help landlords build out fully modular o ces from the beginning so they can inexpensively toggle between designs depending on an occupant’s needs.
“We want to make building workspaces more like building digital products,” MeisnerJensen said, “where we build, learn from it, iterate, make a better version and then continue.” ■
