Retailers Hit by CIT Fallout Exec's Crack Habit Damages L.I. Hospital
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20090727-NEWS--0001-NAT-CCI-CN_-- 7/24/2009 9:39 PM Page 1 INSIDE DOUBLE ISSUE An Agenda TOP STORIES to Fix Albany—Now Broadway’s hot Kathryn Wylde on spurring growth new hand annoys Carol Kellermann on cutting costs Dick Dadey on gerrymandering the old guard ® Joseph Mercurio on electioneering PAGE 2 Pages 10-11 Pressure mounts on Joe Moinian as VOL. XXV, NOS. 30, 31 WWW.CRAINSNEWYORK.COM JULY 27-AUGUST 9, 2009 PRICE: $3.00 big payments loom PAGE 3 Surprise! City restaurants see big THE ORGANIZATION MAN summer crowds PAGE 3 How union big SPECIAL REPORT Dennis Rivera REAL craftily shaped ESTATE G Banks bring Obamacare Park Avenue back to earth BY DANIEL MASSEY P. 15 G Small retailers find silver dennis rivera, the indomitable labor lining in property bust P. 15 leader, was on Capitol Hill in late June G Top first-half office leases to persuade members of a powerful and property sales Pgs. 18 & 20 House committee to include a public G Current crop of deals pales in insurance option in its massive over- comparison to last year’s P. 21 haul of the nation’s health care system. Karen Ignagni, perhaps the most feared lobbyist on the Hill,was there to BUSINESS LIVES sway the lawmakers in the opposite di- rection. Yet during a break in the hearing, Ms. Ignagni—whose group of insurers served up the “Harry and Louise” ads that helped kill the Clinton health care reform effort—walked over to Mr. Rivera, greeted him with a warm em- brace and asked to meet the following week. It’s an unlikely friendship, but not GOTHAM GIGS one that would surprise any New York- er who observed Mr. Rivera’s adroit Urban farmer likes the leadership of 1199 SEIU, the city’s city’s social life P. 27 health care workers union. In his 17 G ANNE FISHER on years at the helm, he forged alliances recruiters’ tactics P. 27 See THE ORGANIZATION MAN on Page 26 buck ennis G MOVERS & SHAKERS Showtime’s chief chats about HBO P. 28 THE BREAKDOWN G GAEL GREENE Retailers Exec’s crack habit gets a bellyful at Gus and Gabriel’s P. 30 hit by CIT damages L.I. hospital NEW! G CHEAT SHEET This week:a bluffer’s guide to H1N1 P. 31 fallout In a memo to staff on Tuesday, Addiction news puts LIJ noted that Mr. Steel, who had Long Island Jewish been on a leave of absence for sev- Vendors are already eral weeks “to focus on personal is- INDEX Medical Center sues,” had resigned in order “to fo- halting shipments cus on his recovery.” NEIGHBORHOOD JOURNAL in dicey position _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _14 over pay worries What the memo did not say SMALL BUSINESS _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _22 was that Mr.Steel is suffering from BY BARBARA BENSON an addiction to crack cocaine. EXECUTIVE MOVES _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _27 BY ADRIANNE PASQUARELLI “This is really an extreme situ- RÉSUMÉ REVIEW _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _28 it’s not every day that the chief ation,”says Georgia Cristimilios,a THE WEEKS AHEAD _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _30 as commercial lender CIT The vice president at Vault executive of a company is discov- vice president at Corporate Coun- WHAT HE’S READING _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _30 Group Inc. teeters on the brink of Sportswear uses CIT to insure his ered to be a crack addict.But when seling Associates, which special- SeeTHE ATWEEK DEADLINE ON THE on WEB Page _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _2 _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _31 insolvency, women’s apparel ven- shipments to stores. If a store goes the company happens to be a hos- izes in personnel issues. dor Nouri Chaya is tottering, too. out of business, CIT guarantees pital—an institution devoted to Mr. Steel’s addiction places LIJ that Mr. Chaya gets paid for his wellness—the shock is especially in a difficult position.The hospital 30 goods. But Mr. Chaya has been great. itself runs drug abuse treatment 5 thrown by CIT’s turmoil and has That is precisely the position programs, and it depends heavily been forced to halt several back-to- that Long Island Jewish Medical on its good name to draw both pa- school shipments. Center finds itself in, one week af- tients and financial donations. LIJ “We’re not taking the advice of ter announcing that John Steel has has rightly been supportive of Mr. ELECTRONIC EDITION CIT very seriously,” says Mr. resigned as executive director of Steel as he entered rehabilitation Chaya, one of the few CIT clients the New Hyde Park-based institu- in recent weeks.It has also respect- NEWSPAPER See RETAILERS HIT on Page 25 See EXEC’S CRACK HABIT on Page 2 71486 01068 tion that boasts 500 doctors. 0 20090727-NEWS--0002-NAT-CCI-CN_-- 7/24/2009 9:40 PM Page 1 IN BRIEF B’way producer stirs the plot THE GREAT WHITE WAY WILL BE STUDDED WITH MOVIE STARS THIS FALL SEASON. THE FIRST members of the high-powered roster will appear in September in A Steady Brings crafty off-Broadway Rain, starring both Hugh style, social networking to Jackman and 007 actor Daniel Craig. Soon after, Hamlet with big stage, rankling old guard Jude Law will open, followed by the Broadway debut of Sienna getty images Miller (left) in After Miss Julie, BY MIRIAM KREININ SOUCCAR then Julia Stiles in Oleanna and James Spader in Race. While the large number of celebrities is in february,theater producer Ken a coincidence, the star power should help boost Davenport sent out one of his nu- ticket sales, producers say. Broadway attendance merous Twitter messages, telling is down 8.4% so far this season from the same the universe that he was busy rais- period a year ago, and box-office gross is off 2.4%. ing money for Blithe Spirit, the Broadway revival featuring Angela YELLOW PAGES PUBLISHER AMBASSADOR Lansbury. MEDIA SOUGHT CHAPTER 11 BANKRUPTCY Shortly after, Mr. Davenport protection last week, becoming the third received a message from a total directories publisher to declare bankruptcy in stranger who wanted to invest in the past four months. Online competition and a the show. Seven days later, a downturn in local advertising have put pressure $25,000 check arrived in the mail. the Nielsen Co. on the category. According to the filing, the “A lot of producers in this city, to test ma- private equity-backed company has liabilities of you can’t get on the phone,let alone terial in the between $10 million and $50 million.The e-mail,” Mr. Davenport says. market- Manhattan-based firm publishes Yellow Pages Though Broadway has be- place. A year for every borough, and it has a local listings site come adept at selling tickets on- ago, he creat- on the Web. line, much of the way business ed Broadway is done harks back to the space.com, the A $300,000 LOAN FROM THE EMPIRE STATE 1930s. Big theater owners first social network DEVELOPMENT CORP. WILL EXTEND still rule the roost, and pro- for theater-lovers. a two-year-old commuter ferry service from ducers rely on their passions And he analyzes and lower Manhattan to Yonkers for another three and hunches when putting on questions everything months.The service was scheduled to end this a show,pooh-poohing market the clubby industry does month, once its original $4.2 million grant research for gauging audience ap- on his daily blog, ruffling from the Lower Manhattan Development petite and techniques like online more than a few feathers in Corp. is depleted.The service is adding a stop networking to get the word out. the process. One blog en- at West 39th Street, in an effort to increase its try, for example, takes on number of passengers and secure additional New methods the powerful theater financial support. mr. davenport, a successful off- owners, complaining Broadway producer who jumped on to that they have all the NOTE TO READERS the Great White Way this year, is trying control over who sells bloomberg news photos This summer, we are publishing a handful of double issues. The to change the way business is done be- tickets to the produc- next edition of Crain’s New York Business comes out Aug. 10. For cause he believes Broadway’s future is at ers’ shows, and get a one reads what he has to say.” award-winning local business news every day, visit risk. Grosses are up, thanks to high- kickback from the One practice he believes is ripe for re- www.crainsnewyork.com.