Before Tuesday's election, there was a lot of squawking about city comptroller candidate Eliot Spitzer's family connections to the real estate industry. Now that Manhattan Borough President Scott Stringer (and Lena Dunham pal) has won the primary (and—let's face it—the general election), it's time to start thinking about how he will impact the real estate industry in his new role.
Well, The Real Deal published an article speculating on just that, and the conclusion? It's a bit of a toss-up!
Bob Knakal, the chairman of Massey Knakal Realty Services, says that one of the key issues that Stringer could exact change is on real estate taxes, since his plan to "audit 'every' city agency" could result in a drastic increase in taxes if he's unable to cut waste.
As for development, Stringer's supporters point to his "willingness to adapt and bring people to a consensus" during his tenure as Manhattan beep, specifically referring to his stance on Columbia University's expansion plans. He has also shown himself to be a friend of developers, as seen in his conditional support for the Midtown East rezone and a 10-year limit on Madison Square Garden's permit above Penn Station.
Still, The Real Deal brings up his past opposition to a number of projects, including the proposal to build a 240,000-square-foot office addition to Chelsea Market, among others.
Either way, it should be interesting to see how Stringer impacts the industry, especially in the wake of current comptroller John Liu's oft-contentious relationship with developers.
What do you think? Will the new comptroller be good for New York City real estate, or will he alienate the industry? Let us know in the comments!
· "Sizing up Scott Stringer: What will new comptroller mean for NYC real estate?" [TRD]
· Previous Stringer coverage [Curbed]
Loading comments...