Cynthia Doty in the News

How Harlem Could Elect a White Council Member

By JONATHAN P. HICKS
Published: July 20, 2005

For the last few generations, central Harlem has been the home turf of City Council members who were among the powerhouses of black politics in New York, including Adam Clayton Powell Jr. and J. Raymond Jones, the master organizer known as the "Harlem Fox." C. Virginia Fields, who in most polls is running second among Democratic mayoral candidates, held the seat during the 1990's.

But as the district prepares to select a new council member this November, there is a chance that its representative will be white.

The candidate, Cynthia Doty, a Democratic district leader, could well benefit from a fractured field of opponents who would split the overwhelmingly black vote in the area. And with the district being nearly 20 percent white, many Harlem political strategists suggest that the white vote could actually account for at least 25 percent of the Democratic primary electorate, providing a base of voters that could bode well for Ms. Doty in an eight-person field in which she is the only white candidate.

The Ninth Council District includes central Harlem and part of the Upper West Side. The seat is open because Bill Perkins, the current councilman, is barred by term limits from running for re-election. The crowded race to succeed him is drawing names from both Harlem's history and among those portraying themselves as Harlem's future.

Inez Dickens, a real estate developer, has raised the most money and has assembled Harlem's marquee endorsements. Ms. Dickens, 56, is a daughter of Lloyd E. Dickens, who had a long political and entrepreneurial career in Harlem and served in the State Assembly in the 1960's. She has been endorsed by the four members of "the Harlem Clubhouse": former Mayor David N. Dinkins; Representative Charles B. Rangel; Basil A. Paterson, a former New York secretary of state; and Percy E. Sutton, a former Manhattan borough president and mayoral candidate.

But these days in Harlem, that big-name support among the neighborhood's old guard may not be enough to bring victory, particularly with the myriad issues facing a neighborhood that has experienced sharp changes in recent years, like the development and gentrification pressures largely unknown to Harlem a generation ago.

Ms. Doty, 54, has been politically active on the Upper West Side for some years. She was a longtime aide to Edward C. Sullivan when he served in the Assembly, is a former president of Three Parks Independent Democrats, and has been a vocal critic of some of the development planned in the district.

She has acknowledged that the racial dynamic of the race "is a concern to some people, because this seat is seen as one where there is the opportunity for minority representation."

But she added: "I have won the endorsement of a lot of Democratic clubs that are diverse. And my message resonates with people in this district. I'm trying to ensure that the rich heritage of this district is still here 10 years from now. And I'm fighting to make sure that the development that's sweeping up Manhattan is looked at critically. I believe I would do more to protect the people who live here and hold on to the ethnic diversity that exists."

The other candidates who have raised significant amounts of money and have well-known civic and community group endorsements are Virginia Montague, 63, a onetime aide to Ms. Fields who has run unsuccessfully for the Council seat twice before; Yasmin H. Cornelius, 33, the district manager of Community Board 10; and Rodney L. Carroll, 39, an organizer for Local 371 of the Social Service Employees Union.

The other Democratic candidates listed with the Board of Elections are William A. Allen, a Democratic district leader; I. Ronnie Holly, a former Democratic district leader; and Geoffrey Johnson, who served on the local community precinct council.

If the other candidates in the race are fearful that Ms. Doty might win, they are expressing no such sentiment.

"I'm staying focused on my own race," Ms. Dickens said. "And I have been working for years in this community and I have been active here for a long time. Of course, there is always a possibility that someone else could win. But I believe I'm the best one for the job and I think others will think so, too."

Indeed, Ms. Dickens has played a behind-the-scenes role in so many political campaigns in Harlem that many of the past and present elected officials said they were compelled to support her.

But Ms. Cornelius casts herself as the voice of the new generation of Harlem leadership. "What I bring is a new spirit of leadership and independence," Ms. Cornelius said. "I bring responsible and attentive leadership that doesn't just go with the status quo." And Mr. Carroll, who has won several endorsements from labor groups, said that his would be an energetic campaign that will win "without focusing on who else is in the race."

Ms. Cornelius has amassed a large campaign organization of volunteers and has been the second-highest fund-raiser in the race, next to Ms. Dickens, who has raised $126,000. Ms. Cornelius has raised $70,000; Ms. Montague, $28,000; Mr. Carroll, $27,000; and Ms. Doty, $20,000.

All the candidates emphasize the need to preserve housing for low- and moderate-income residents, saying that development and rising rents have pushed many such people out of the area. In addition, many candidates have complained that too many residents in the district are without health insurance, and they say they would work to find ways to extend coverage.

The concerns about housing costs in the district has caused several of the candidates to focus their attention on appealing to renters, as an offhand attack on Ms. Dickens, who is a landlord in Harlem.

But Ms. Dickens said she was unconcerned. "Many of my tenants are in my Democratic club and are volunteering in this campaign," she said. "I'm proud that my family and I have a history of providing affordable housing when Harlem was not perceived to be the gem that it is now. I'm not worried about what anyone else has to say or any other candidate in this race. I have history on my side."

[Source: http://www.nytimes.com/2005/07/20/nyregion/
metrocampaigns/20harlem.html]

A tale of two neighborhoods for company at center of collapse

BY PRADNYA JOSHI
STAFF WRITER

July 16, 2005

Over the past several months, Gary Barnett and his Extell Development Corp., have made a big splash in the city's real estate community, but the firm's strategy remains a mystery.

In Brooklyn, the company made new friends on July 6, submitting a surprise bid for the Metropolitan Transportation Authority's Vanderbilt Yards, where the Forest City Ratner Cos., hope to build a new arena for the New Jersey Nets.

Extell also turned heads in the real estate community in June when it joined The Carlyle Group, a politically connected investment firm in Washington, to snap up Trump Place and Riverside South in a $1.76-billion deal.

Things are very different on the Upper West Side.

Plans to build high-rises on the east and west side of Broadway between 99th and 100th streets were met with community opposition.

Those plans were thrust into the limelight Thursday when a former Gristede's being demolished to make way for a 31-story high-rise at 2633 Broadway collapsed onto scaffolding, injuring six pedestrians.

"This is a wake-up call for everybody," said Cynthia Doty, a City Council candidate who is part of Westsiders for Responsible Development, which opposes Extell's plans.

"I think he owes our community now. Our neighbors have been frightened and some seriously injured," she said.

Barnett, a former diamond trader turned real-estate developer, has not responded to requests for an interview over the past two weeks. But his spokesman, Bob Liff, said Barnett remains concerned about the health of those injured in the collapse Thursday.

Extell and the Carlyle Group purchased 2633 Broadway for about $122 million in April, according to title records. It also owns 2628 Broadway, where it plans a 37-story high-rise.

Residents on the Upper West Side have expressed concern that Extell's plans are totally out of character with the neighborhood.

That is not the case in downtown Brooklyn, where Extell's plan for the MTA yard is "very much along the lines of what a large part of the community wants," said Daniel Goldstein, spokesman for Develop -- Don't Destroy Brooklyn.

Chris Ullman, a spokesman for the Carlyle Group, said the firm is not involved with the Brooklyn bid but has worked with Extell to acquire other New York properties.

Those joint Extell-Carlyle projects include The Orion, a 60-story luxury condominium under construction at 350 W. 42nd St.

[Source: http://www.nynewsday.com/news/local/manhattan/
nyc-exte0716,0,7193003.story?coll=nyc-manheadlines-manhattan]

One-Story Building Collapses Into Busy Block of Manhattan

By JENNIFER BAYOT and TIMOTHY WILLIAMS
Published: July 14, 2005

A one-story building collapsed into a busy uptown block of Broadway this morning, trapping a handful of people waiting at a bus stop and leaving a heap of debris that spilled across three lanes of traffic.

The collapse, on Broadway between 99th and 100th streets, happened shortly before 9:30 a.m. Residents and demolition workers rushed to rescue a woman pinned at the waist. "We cleared the debris, and there was a woman screaming, 'My baby, my baby,' " said Oren Adler, 34, who was across the street from the building when it fell. "We could all see the stroller."

It took about five minutes to free the woman, Mr. Adler said, and then several people lifted an unbroken chunk of wall to free another woman, a man, and the baby, 7 months old. All were alive.

"The baby looked like it was blue; they rushed it straight into an ambulance," said Jeff Rosenthal, an importer who was walking into a deli next to the building before the wall fell.

The baby and four adults were taken to hospitals for treatment, Fire Commissioner Nicholas Scoppetta said in a news conference this morning. One man had suffered broken arms and legs, Mr. Scoppetta said. Five firefighters also suffered injuries in the rescue effort, though none were life-threatening.

The fire commissioner said that there was "no indication at this point that there is anyone else in there," but rescue workers were conducting a secondary search just to make sure.

What now is a heap of stray pillars, brick and metal was once a Gristedes grocery, residents said, and had a front wall of glass just like most groceries. Steven Smith, a witness who lives across the street and was interviewed on NY1 television, said the glass had shattered, allowing the wall to cave in.

Patricia Lancaster, the city's buildings commissioner, said the department was investigating the precise cause of the collapse and noted that the developer and the contractor in charge of the demolition had obtained all of the required permits. A large piece of equipment lifted onto the roof earlier today may have been too heavy for the building's remaining structure to support, she said.

But until the department knows for sure, Ms. Lancaster said, it is suspending the project - which extends to another nearby building also bordered by scaffolding and being dismantled - until it completes its investigation.

Closed about three months ago, the building was being cleared for the construction of a high-rise that residents had protested only last night in a rally. They had objected to the planned building's height, saying it would tower over the rest of the neighborhood's buildings and compromise its "rich historical feeling," said Cynthia Doty, Democratic district leader for the neighborhood and a steering committee member of Westsiders for Responsible Development.

The property's owner, Extell Development Corporation, said the company was cooperating with authorities. "At this point our sole concern is the safety of all concerned, especially those who were reported injured," the company said in a statement. "They are central in our thoughts and our prayers."

The statement described the firm handling the site's demolition, the Safeway Environmental Corporation, as "one of the city's premier union demolition companies with a long record of safe performance" and said that it had worked with the company on other projects. Safeway referred reporters to Extell for comment.

Extell, owned by the developer Gary Barnett, has been very active in the residential real estate market in recent weeks.

Earlier this month, the Manhattan-based company submitted a bid to develop the Atlantic Yards site in downtown Brooklyn where Bruce Ratner, owner of the New Jersey Nets, has proposed building a basketball arena, to be designed by the architect Frank Gehry, and some 6,000 apartment units. The Extell plan for the site calls for 1,940 units in 11 buildings, and unlike the proposal by Mr. Ratner, would not rely on eminent domain to claim property whose owners do not want to sell.

As part of a partnership with the developer Douglas Durst, Extell paid $120 million for the rights to develop property owned by Verizon across 11th Avenue from the Javits Convention Center.

As another partnership, this time with the Carlyle Group, Extell agreed earlier this month to buy land and three buildings on the Upper West Side from the Trump Organization in the Trump Place development for about $1.8 billion. They plan to build as many as 10 new apartment towers on the site.

But on the Upper West Side, Extell's plans for a 31-story building has met a frosty reception. On a piece of scaffolding that remained standing was a painted sign with the words "Yuppie Condos" crossed out.

The rest of the area is covered with rubble that at least 50 firefighters and emergency workers were methodically clearing, passing down white buckets of debris for waiting sanitation trucks.

Nearby, underground, the 1, 2 and 3 trains resumed their routes after being out of operation for about an hour, but they must slow to no more than 5 miles an hour as they near the area, to avoid shaking the ground before officials have a full account of the collapse and its reach. The Office of Emergency Management said that no water mains had been damaged.

Still, the building's neighbors were evacuated, and other nearby residents were shaken.

"It sounded like an earthquake - it just kept falling," said Mr. Rosenthal, an importer.

Raquel Gayle had stepped out of her apartment building a block away when, "Boom, I saw rocks falling," she said. "I was petrified; I thought it was like London, with the terrorist attacks."

Firefighters had arrived at the collapse about four minutes after receiving calls about the collapse at 9:25, Mr. Scoppetta said. Police officers and workers from the Office of Emergency Management and the Red Cross also descended on the scene.

"It appears that the heavy equipment on the roof undoubtedly contributed," Mr. Scoppetta said, referring to a white backhoe. He added that he could not judge whether the collapse was a result of carelessness.

Janon Fisher, Alan Feuer, Corey Kilgannon and Charles V. Bagli contributed reporting for this article.

[Source: http://www.nytimes.com/2005/07/14/nyregion/
14cnd-collapse.html?ex=1122004800&en=88dc832861dcd700&ei=5070&emc=eta1]