Posted Feb 26, 2016, 6:23 PM
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Join Date: Jul 2001
Location: Borough of Jersey
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http://www.nydailynews.com/new-york/...icle-1.2543216
Mayor de Blasio's MTA board rep stalls $430M real estate deal for capital program
BY DAN RIVOLI
February 25, 2016
Quote:
Mayor de Blasio's rep on the MTA board is holding up a real estate deal that would give the transit agency $430 million for its capital program.
Polly Trottenberg, de Blasio's transportation commissioner, asked for a last-minute delay ahead of a vote to let developer Boston Properties take over the old MTA headquarters on Madison Ave. in Midtown.
A sticking point for Trottenberg and the city was the fact that Boston Properties would be exempt from paying property taxes to the city, which could put a dent in its coffers. Instead of property taxes, Boston Properties would make those payments to the MTA.
“There is a real question we need to work through … about whether the MTA can just transfer its tax exempt status to a private company for a 99-year period, whether that can work," Trottenberg said.
MTA chair Tom Prendergast defended the deal as a way to pump more money into the $29 billion capital plan waiting for approval in Albany.
“The revenues that we would get from it would go toward public good in terms of investment in the transit system,” Prendergast said.
While MTA board members agreed to hold off on approving the transaction for at least a month, several were concerned about missing out on revenue from the deal due to a delay in approval.
“Time is money,” board member Norman Brown said. “Next month, it’s going to be harder to vote on it. It’s not a free month.”
Boston Properties Chief Financial Officer Michael LaBelle declined to comment.
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