Crains New York - April 15, 2013 - (Page 10)

OPINION The mayor’s race heats up A fter years of candidates fundraising and jockeying for position, the race for mayor of New York City is kicking into high gear. With the business community no less worried about who will succeed Michael Bloomberg, several recent storylines bear watching. On the Democratic side, City Council Speaker Christine Quinn saw her lead in the polls decline for the first time, just as an independent anti-Quinn campaign surfaced with a nasty television ad and a $1 million budget. Her 5-point drop in one survey presages a tightening of the race. Because Ms. Quinn had positioned herself as the most Bloomberg-like candidate in the primary, the increasing pressure on her bodes badly for businesspeople, as she tends to tack left in response. Recent examples include her support for bills mandating paid sick leave, letting job applicants sue employers and establishing an inspector general for the police. Another intriguing development is former Rep. Anthony Weiner’s potential return to the race, which he abandoned— along with his congressional seat—in 2011 when he was caught “sexting” and falsely denied it. Before the scandal, Mr. Weiner had demonstrated some innovative thinking about how to run the city. The question now is whether voters can take him seriously again—assuming he asks them to. If so, he could give the other Democrats a much-needed kick in the pants. But after his humiliating episode and two years off the political grid, he must earn back people’s trust CRAIN’S ONLINE POLL and articulate a rationale for running. Public Advocate Bill de Blasio, neck and neck with former Comptroller Bill Thompson for second in the polls, has doubled down on his strategy of being the liberal alternative to Ms. Quinn. He blasted her almost daily for holding up the sick-pay legislation, then lamented that her compromise bill exempted too many businesses. Mr. de Blasio has been so aggressive that Ms. Quinn blamed him for the attack ad, though she soon softened that accusation. For businesses against mandatory sick pay, the silver lining is that Mr. de Blasio’s full-throated support did little for his poll numbers. Comptroller John Liu, meanwhile, has enthusiastic supporters but too few of them to lift him to double digits in the polls. That’s good news for taxpayers who don’t want to pay the soaring cost of publicemployee benefits Mr. Liu so assiduously defends. The Democrats, for all their shortcomings, at least understand city government. The only Republican candidate who seems to is former Deputy Mayor Joseph Lhota. The others are trying to figure it out as they campaign. One thing they are likely to learn is that voters demand better. Under pressure, front-runner Christine Quinn tacks left COMMENTS bloomberg news Chinatown crackdown HANDS OFF ABACUS BANK SHOULD ANTHONY WEINER STAY IN THE PUBLIC SPOTLIGHT? Yes. He should run for mayor this year, and let the voters decide. Yes. He should skip the mayor’s race but ease his way back into public life. No. He needs to get a real job. It’s too soon for him to return to politics. No. He should go away and never come back. He’s finished. Date of poll: April 10 345 votes 12% No 29% Yes In America, it is important to catch the little fish, especially ones that do no harm. Why? Because it makes for great headlines and adds to the statistics. Rarely are the big fish caught, such as the banks that caused the financial meltdown. The little fish are targeted because they are defenseless. Just look at the case of Abacus Bank (“Big trouble, little Chinatown bank,” April 8). To draw a similar analogy: Rather than go after murderers, crooks and reckless drivers, police target ordinary citizens for petty driving infractions because they are an easy mark. Such is democracy in this country, where common sense is out the window. —john ngai Rego Park 9% Yes 50% No OLD CAN BE GREEN, TOO A study presented in your article “Landmark battle turns FOR THIS WEEK’S QUESTIONS: Go to www.crainsnewyork.com/poll to have your say. 10 | Crain’s New York Business | April 15, 2013 green” (March 25) claims that replacing New York’s older buildings with new towers will create significant energy savings. Yet that claim is not supported by the facts. Energy-usage data on large buildings reported to the city over the past two years reveal that buildings constructed 40 to 100 years ago are often good energy performers. As for the “energy-oozing” 47-year-old building at 675 Third Ave. cited in the article, it actually uses less energy per square foot than many buildings built recently to new energy codes or voluntary green programs, according to public data. In fact, the city has collected, analyzed and publicly posted this type of building energy information at www.nyc.gov/ggbp for exactly this purpose—to help real estate stakeholders and policymakers make smart and informed decisions based on the facts. There are many good economic reasons for the higher energy-usage intensities of new buildings. But tearing down old buildings for questionable energy-efficiency benefits is simply not good policy. —andrew burr Director, Building Energy Performance Policy Institute for Market Transformation WEINER’S BACK As a former constituent of Anthony Weiner (Crain’s online poll, April 10), I’m very conflicted. Several years ago, I actually wrote in my name against him when I voted because I witnessed him acting like a jerk! Having said that, he has always done really, really well for my neighborhood no matter what political position he was in. There’s my conflict. Do I want someone who does good for my neighborhood but is of questionable character? If you think about it, aren’t most politicians? —tina gray Sheepshead Bay CRAIN’S WELCOMES SUBMISSIONS to its opinion pages. Send letters to letters@crainsnewyork.com. Send columns of 475 words or fewer to opinion@crainsnewyork.com. Please include the writer’s name, company, address and telephone number. CRAIN’S NEW YORK BUSINESS editor in chief Rance Crain publisher, vp Jill R. Kaplan EDITORIAL editor Glenn Coleman managing editor Jeremy Smerd deputy managing editors Valerie Block, Erik Ipsen assistant managing editor Erik Engquist senior producer, news Elisabeth Butler Cordova news producer Amanda Fung contributing editor Elaine Pofeldt columnists Greg David, Alair Townsend crain’s health pulse editor Barbara Benson senior reporters Theresa Agovino, Aaron Elstein, Lisa Fickenscher, Matthew Flamm reporters Chris Bragg, Matt Chaban, Daniel Geiger, Andrew J. 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All rights reserved. ®CityBusiness is a registered trademark of MCP Inc., used under license agreement. CRAIN COMMUNICATIONS INC. BOARD OF DIRECTORS chairman Keith E. Crain president Rance Crain treasurer Mary Kay Crain Cindi Crain executive vp, operations William Morrow senior vp, group publisher Gloria Scoby vp/production, manufacturing David Kamis chief information officer Paul Dalpiaz founder G.D. Crain Jr. (1885-1973) chairman Mrs. G.D. Crain Jr. (1911-1996) secretary Merrilee Crain (1942-2012) http://www.crainsnewyork.com/subscribe http://www.crainsnewyork.com/advertise http://www.crainsnewyork.com/events http://www.nyc.gov/ggbp http://www.crainsnewyork.com/poll

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Crains New York - April 15, 2013

IN THE BOROUGHS
IN THE MARKETS
THE INSIDER
BUSINESS PEOPLE
CORPORATE LADDER
OPINION
STEVE HINDY
GREG DAVID
REAL ESTATE DEALS
REPORT: SMALL BUSINESS
THE LISTS
CLASSIFIEDS
NEW YORK, NEW YORK
SOURCE LUNCH
OUT AND ABOUT
SNAPS

Crains New York - April 15, 2013