| When Governor Spitzer said that "Day One, everything changes", some people expected minor miracles. Readers of the CapCon blog are familiar with the persistent lament of "nytransition," trapped working in that cesspool of corruption, Empire State Development Corporation, who seemed completely beside himself with impatience with Sptizer's time-table for economic development reform.
I tended to sympathize-- that part of the people's house had, indeed, been infested with the very worst crony vermin, piles of dirty laundry had accumulated to the roof, and nytransition's favorite object of scorn, the "cooking school graduate," had seemingly not washed a dish or a pan since she began cooking her long-simmering stew of corruption....
Put on your hip waders and rubber gloves, folks, we are going to take a peek at the "clean sweep" underway.... and if you see any rats absconding with millions, FOLLOW THAT MONEY (it's your taxes). |
| Now, the first thing to realize is that the Kingpin of ESDC, aka "the Ambassador" Charlie Gargano, behaved as big rats do, and jumped ship at the first whiff of sunshine antiseptic to come. His law-school-buddy Pataki appointed him to a cushy post at the Port Authority, where he could be handy to their other law-school-buddy, the developer of the Atlantic Yards project in Brooklyn, and generally continue to extort the good people of NY (does the word "extort" seem overheated? Well, check out the facts at: http://www.villagevo...)
Spitzer appointed new leaders at ESDC: first Patrick Foye, then Avi Schick, and finally (to focus on Upstate economic development from an office in Buffalo), Dan Gunderson. Touring Upstate cities in his first few days on the job, Gunderson (whose previous high-level economic development work had been in Maryland and, more recently, Pennsylvania) was shocked by what he heard: "The staff at all of the regional offices said they had never been visited by the ESD (Empire State Development) chairman. There had been no encouragement for any kind of dialogue".
He clearly did not understand how regional offices worked under his Rattiness, the Ambassador. Dialogue was irrelevent-- Gargano, who had been Pataki's campaign fundraising chair, knew who had contributed, and who his relatives were, so, he knew who got the cash and tax breaks. The regional reps were there to shake down businessmen for new contributions, not to talk!
Finally, the muck is being mucked out. Let the sun shine in and disinfect this gawdawful mess. The new hires look to be up to the job. Jennifer McCormick, for instance, had been the Director of Budget Studies at the comptroller's office-- a female budget and fiscal policy geek!!! Be still my heart, she appears to have authored a precursor to the new education funding formula that Spitz is pushing as a proposal back in 1999 (along with 3 co-authors, including FPI's Frank Mauro and Trudi Renwick). She sounds like just the right type for the position of Vice President for Policy and Programs. Jennifer Rimmer, in addition to being on the Board of Directors of Sustainable Long Island, is somebody I can look up in the American Planning Assocition's on-line directory, and is described as having "a city-planning background." She will be Vice President for Subsidiary Development. Darren Bloch, who has been named Vice President for External Relations (to coordinate with community groups and other government branches) was previously working for Public Advocate Betsy Gotbaum.
The agency has refused to comment on the 5 senior officers from Pataki days who were ushered out in its "clean sweep." Perhaps they can shuffle off away from Albany with this week's "Unshackle Upstate" caravan of the hopelessly misguided corporate welfare-seekers. Everything, you see, is changing. Go beg for pork at some other pig sty-- there's a new sheriff in town, and your theivin' ways have got to change. |
