Crains New York - August 6, 2012 - (Page 1)

CRAIN’S NEW YORK BUSINESS AUGUST 6-12, 2012 PRICE: $3.00 THE BUSINESS OF SPORTS Inside the Spongetech stadium scam P. 11 2014 Super Bowl: It’s crunch time P. 11 The List: NY-area pro sports teams P. 13 ® VOL. XXVIII, NO. 32 WWW.CRAINSNEWYORK.COM Surge in shipping has New York hot on L.A.’s heels Fueled by Chinese imports, metro area’s port traffic approaches West Coast levels BY ANDREW J. HAWKINS ness reported. Chinese imports grew at a faster rate for New York than for L.A., accounting for much The New York metropolitan of the discrepancy. area is within “striking distance” of “It is not inconceivable that overtaking Los Angeles as the New York could surpass Los largest trade region in the Angeles as the largest trade nation, according to a area in the country,” wrote new report. Eugene Spruck, a Weissman INCREASE IN New York is the naCenter fellow and former TRADE last tion’s third-busiest port, chief economist for the Port year for N.Y., right behind L.A. and Authority of New York and the No. 3 port in the nation neighboring Long New Jersey. behind L.A., Beach. But the region is The Port Authority’s own Long Beach growing at a faster pace numbers back up that optithan its West Coast rivals.Two-way mism. June in particular was a good trade through New York’s seaports month for the region, as the and airports increased by 18% in 276,225 container “lifts”—the 2011 over the prior year, to $418.3 number of times a crane lifted a billion, while L.A.’s traffic grew by container off a ship—made it the 12%, the Baruch College’s Weiss- second-best June on record. Rail See NY PORTS on Page 32 man Center for International Busi- 18% Battle of the bazillionaires Ron Perelman In a Hummer of a legal fight, Ron Perelman, Ira Rennert trade some nasty accusations BY AARON ELSTEIN Ron Perelman and Ira Rennert have a lot in common. Both have amassed huge fortunes, thanks to their knack for buying out-of-favor companies, exIra Rennert tracting big sums and then selling the holdings for even more. The 69-year-old Mr. Perelman is worth $12 billion, according to Forbes, making him the fifth-wealthiest New Yorker, and his house is understood to be the largest in East Hampton.The 78-year-old Mr. Rennert weighs in at $5.4 billion, and his estate, a few miles from Mr. Perelman’s, is thought to be the largest private residence in the nation. Both men are also members of the Fifth Avenue Synagogue, where Mr. Rennert is honorary chairman. See BATTLE on Page 30 Nuts for theNets How a freewheeling Russian magnate turned the NBA’s doormat into its hottest property BY DANIEL MASSEY In February, the owner of the Brooklyn Nets, Mikhail Prokhorov, appeared on a Russian television comedy show called Spotlight Paris Hilton, and offered a musical tribute to his co-owner, hip-hop star Jay-Z. “Mr. Jay-Z, this rap is for you,” went the English portion of the lyrics.“Mr. Jay-Z, this is the first presentation/of real rap music from Russian Federation. Mr. Jay-Z, you are not alone/Mikhail Prokhorov on the microphone.” According to Mr. Prokhorov, a reprise is in the works, but this time in downtown Brooklyn, where Jay-Z will open the $1 billion Barclays Center with a series of sold-out concerts this fall. “Yes, I will rap at his concert,” Mr. Prokhorov informed Crain’s via email. “I am in rehearsals now 10 hours a day and plan to demand joint billing.” The metal magnate with a sense of humor and the rap mogul from Brooklyn are an unlikely pairing. One served See NUTS on Page 12 in the Soviet military, joined the Communist Party, became a businessman HELLO, BROOKLYN: Nets owner Mikhail Prokhorov (with, clockwise from top right, rap icon Jay-Z, borough booster Marty Markowitz, arena developer Bruce Ratner and player Deron Williams) has doubled the value of a team he bought only two years ago. newscom NEWSPAPER http://WWW.CRAINSNEWYORK.COM

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Crains New York - August 6, 2012

Crains New York - August 6, 2012
Contents
In the Boroughs
In the Markets
The Insider
Business People
Opinion
Greg David
From Around the City
Report: Business of Sports
Classifieds
Small Business
Real Estate Deals
Helluva Town
Source Lunch
Out and About

Crains New York - August 6, 2012