20100809-NEWS--0001-NAT-CCI-CN_-- 8/6/2010 8:09 PM Page 1 INSIDE CITY POLS CALL TRUCE. CAN YOU BLAME THE SKEPTICS? P. 15 TOP STORIES THE WAR ON SMALL BIZ The billionaires next door. (And the local charities most likely to get their money) ® PAGE 2 NY’s highest-paid athletes, top teams VOL. XXVI, NO. 32 WWW.CRAINSNEWYORK.COM AUGUST 9-15, 2010 PRICE: $3.00 PAGES 2, 19 Liz Claiborne is still FAMILY RULES: Inside the Douglas (left) and dressed in red. Can Jody Durst are the it get back to black? third generation to radical steer the firm. PAGE 3 Finally: a state reinvention budget. Who wins, who loses of Forbes PAGE 3 New pooh-bah morphs Guess who’s sitting print and website, on $120B in cash editorial and marketing PAGE 4 BY MATTHEW FLAMM recession and the digital transforma- tion have already cost Forbes Media its Fifth Avenue headquarters—sold at a bargain to New York University—and the use of its famed Highlander yacht, which the Forbes family has had to put into dry dock. But the biggest changes to the 93-year-old publisher are hap- pening now. Under its new leader, Lewis D’Vorkin, who has taken the unusual BUSINESS LIVES title of chief product officer, the Forbes brand is undergoing a radical reinven- GOTHAM GIGS tion aimed at exploiting the changes in Even baseball players See RADICAL on Page 22 have a Plan B P. 25 G ANNE FISHER on how shopping locally helps small businesses P. 25 G MOVERS & SHAKERS While A&P Nancy Lublin still dressses for success P. 26 buck ennis sinks, rivals G GAEL GREENE gives Nuela props P. 27 salivate INDEX DARING TO DIFFER Grocer’s four chains, THE INSIDER _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _8 48 city locations, draw VIEWPOINT Creative opportunism pays off for Dursts _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _10 widespread interest GREG DAVID _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _11 foot signature tower. REAL ESTATE DEALS PLUS _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _14 continue to grow throughout a BY THERESA AGOVINO Last week, his firm agreed to recession that has sidelined many BY LISA FICKENSCHER CLASSIFIEDS _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _20 invest up to $300 million in that of its rivals. FOR THE RECORD _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _23 three years ago, developer same building and take primary In the past year alone, the de- the financial free fall of The EXECUTIVE MOVES _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _25 Douglas Durst took out a full- responsibility for outfitting, leas- veloper has been busy. Along Great Atlantic & Pacific Tea Co.— THE WEEK AHEAD _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _27 page ad in The New York Times to ing and managing it. with partner Bank of America, it owner of A&P,The Food Emporium, WHAT HE’S READING _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _27 criticize the design and cost of “Downtown has become not only recently completed the Pathmark, Waldbaum’s and other Ground Zero’s planned 1,776- much more acceptable to ten- city’s second-tallest building—1 chains—has its local rivals salivating. ants,” says Mr. Durst, chairman Bryant Park—it also refinanced “We are just observing right now,” of the Durst Organization, in ex- the $1.3 billion property twice, insists billionaire John Catsimatidis, 32 5 plaining the about-face. despite the worst credit crunch in who owns the Gristedes chain. But in- Durst’s ability to radically decades. The company also lined dustry-watchers say the one-time may- change course is part of an oppor- up a $200 million credit line to oral candidate is keen to take over some tunistic, trailblazing approach purchase distressed real estate as- of the ailing supermarket giant’s real es- ELECTRONIC EDITION that for years has made it one of sets and has already used some of tate. So, too, are at least a half-dozen the city’s most successful devel- it to snap up mortgages on two others, including Fairway Market’s co- NEWSPAPER opers. Its methods have helped it See DURSTS on Page 22 See RIVALS on Page 22 71486 01068 0 20100809-NEWS--0002,0003-NAT-CCI-CN_-- 8/6/2010 7:13 PM Page 1 low the level of wealth in a community, IN BRIEF and New York has concentrated levels of Will the giving be as wealth,so we should see more funds mov- THE DRAWING CENTER HAS ABANDONED ITS ing into New York nonprofits over the PLAN TO BUILD A COSTLY NEW HOME IN coming years.” Lower Manhattan, looking to add space in its Executives at some of the city’s largest longtime SoHo neighborhood instead.The 33- good as the getting? nonprofit organizations declined to com- year-old art institution had been planning to ment on whether they were already sitting build a $60 million home in the South Street around counting their future millions. Seaport, but the recession forced executives to But it seems safe to assume that San- rethink their plans. In the past four years, the How billionaires’ billions could stay local ford and Joan Weill—who signed the Giv- center’s operating budget has shrunk to $1.7 ing Pledge—will continue their generosi- million from $2 million as fundraising dried up. perts say the donors will likely continue to ty to longtime favorites like Carnegie At the same time, the institution’s space at 35 BY MIRIAM KREININ SOUCCAR fund those causes. Hall, where Mr. Weill is chairman; Alvin Wooster St. has become the center of a reborn “When people step up the level of their Ailey American Dance Theater, where arts neighborhood, with more than 75 with a quarter of the 40 billionaires giving,they usually support places they’ve Mrs. Weill is chairwoman; and Cornell commercial galleries and a number of other who pledged last week to give at least half University,to which the couple has already nonprofits moving in.The new foot traffic in of their wealth to charity hailing from donated more than $250 million. the area has helped the center increase its New York, local nonprofit organiza- “Education and partnership are at the attendance by 35% this year, to around 45,000. tions are likely to get a major wind- heart of everything we do philanthropical- Brett Littman, executive director of The fall in the coming years. ly, and we make long-term commitments Drawing Center, says he is close to making an The group of New York- to the organizations we lead,” Mr. and announcement about the organization’s real ers—which includes well- Mrs. Weill wrote in a public letter estate plans. known philanthropists such to Mr. Buffett. as Michael Bloomberg and Others on the Giving LANDLORDS MAY START ROLLING BACK RENTS David Rockefeller, as well Pledge list include: ON SOME UNITS AFTER LAST WEEK’S COURT as boldface names less as- Mr. Rockefeller, chair- ruling, which said some market-rate tenants at sociated with giving, like man emeritus of the Museum Stuyvesant Town/Peter Cooper Village were Barry Diller and his of Modern Art, who has already entitled to rebates for overcharges. The latest wife, Diane von pledged $100 million to the muse- decision begins to clarify some of the Furstenberg—was the um for its endowment, to be payable uncertainty left after last year’s court ruling, second-largest contin- after his death. which said units couldn’t be regulated if gency after donors Elaine and Kenneth Langone, landlords were receiving a certain tax break. from California. who have made major gifts to New The initial ruling didn’t address retroactivity, so They all signed on to a cam- York University’s medical and business some landlords didn’t adjust their rents, but the paign called the Giving Pledge, schools, the Ronald McDonald House new decision could encourage landlords to at the request of Warren Buffett and the Harlem Children’s Zone.