nb25p01.qxp 6/15/2007 7:47 PM Page 1 TOP STORIES Econ As Topps takeover 101 looms, question is: Greg David on how Can anyone save journalists the American icon? botched PAGE 2 ® hotel story Page 13 Warnaco CEO hears complaints, successfully turns VOL. XXIII, NO. 25 WWW.NEWYORKBUSINESS.COM JUNE 18-24, 2007 PRICE: $3.00 firm inside out PAGE 3 SINKING FEELING A $7 MILLION JOB: Of the concrete and Canadians Combined state and city allocations to Hudson River Park Trust. In millions. steel piles that hold NBC’s iVillage Live up Pier 40, 34% must be replaced to get new host, immediately. go on NY executive producer $422004 $202005 $302006 $332007 $102008 NEW YORK, NEW YORK, P.6 For fiscal years ending March 31. Source: Hudson River Park Trust spending City transportation chief orders agency spree to switch gears THE INSIDER, PAGE 14 Favorable exchange NYC finds a cause rate brings tourists, in global health; business travelers; largest benefits major acquisitions consulting firms HEALTH CARE, PAGE 19 BY SAMANTHA MARSHALL forget the euro. A currency BUSINESS LIVES closer to home is making waves in WHEELER-DEALERS buck ennis New York’s economy: the Canadi- an dollar. More New Known as the “loonie” for the Yorkers waterfowl embossed on its coin, hopping on the Canadian dollar has taken the bike-to- Cash crunch threatens flight over the past two years, clos- work trend. ing Friday at 94 cents to a U.S.dol- PAGE 31 lar, up 16% in the past two years and just off a 30-year high. With Hudson River Park project parity expected by the end of the year—for the first time in Street to West 59th Street, with cash, the trust lacks the financing decades—Canadian companies Development winding car-free paths where New to complete construction of the are going on a spending spree,buy- of Pier 40 in limbo; Yorkers can run, bike or TriBeCa segment of the park. In ing billions of dollars worth of Rollerblade and public piers or addition, one of its most critical businesses and property here. AT DEADLINE no one at helm lush lawns where they can enjoy projects, the creation of an in- Canadian banks, insurers and sunsets over the water. come-producing development at lawyers are also growing their THE ROUNDABOUT THEATRE But nine years after its incep- Pier 40, is in limbo. presence, while a steady flow of COMPANY will open a 65-seat BY JULIE SATOW tion, the trust is facing a crisis.The These problems come as the business travelers and tourists theater in October to present city and state, which finance the trust drifts leaderless.Its chairman, are boosting New York’s local experimental work.The the hudson river park trust is trust and jointly appoint its board Charles “Trip” Dorkey, is a lame- economy. theater, to be located in responsible for creating a unique of directors, have awarded it just duck George Pataki appointee “I’d expect a boon for retail,” Roundabout’s Harold and waterfront esplanade that will $10 million this year—the smallest with little power.Gov.Eliot Spitzer says Tom Benfer, vice president of Miriam Steinberg Center for stretch five miles from Chambers amount in its history. Short on See HUDSON PARK on Page 8 See CANADIANS on Page 8 Theatre on West 46th Street, will be the company’s fourth performing area.The space will be used to stage productions stemming from Roundabout Underground, a Publisher’s hot revenue story new initiative headed up by producer Robyn Goodman aiming to serve as a breeding Simon & Schuster grows by double digits ground for talent. First up will be Speech & Debate, a play by in flat market, gets respect from owner CBS Stephen Karam, about three teenage misfits in Oregon. On an earnings conference call BY MATTHEW FLAMM with analysts last month, the pub- THE NEW YORK SOCIETY OF lisher’s latest guardian, CBS Corp. SECURITY ANALYSTS will hold a after a decade as the unwanted Chief Executive Leslie Moonves, networking event on June 25 child of its corporate parent, Si- singled it out with words of ap- See AT DEADLINE on Page 2 mon & Schuster is finally getting proval every division longs to hear: some love. “Simon & Schuster had an incred- ible quarter.” In fact,it is having an incredible 25 5 year. At a time of low growth in the book industry, its revenue rose 27% in the first quarter, to $229 JACK ROMANOS, million. With the help of best sell- SImon & Schuster’s ELECTRONIC EDITION ers like Walter Isaacson’s Einstein CEO, says CBS and Rhonda Byrne’s self-help “gets us.” NEWSPAPER See PUBLISHER’S on Page 8 buck ennis 71486 01068 0 CNYB 06-18-07 A 2 6/15/2007 6:33 PM Page 1 AT DEADLINE TOP OF THE ORDER Continued from Page 1 developer Andrew Farkas for a Baseball cards date back to the 19th Topps this: century, when a New York store distributed to help research analysts and similar concept and is waiting to cards with images of players on one side traders at the Prudential Equity sign a memorandum of and product ads on the other. Group find new jobs. Pru’s understanding with the city. decision to shut its equity unit at 1 SONS OF month’s end will cost about 400 NEW YORKERS ARE LAGGARDS AMERICAN LEAF people their jobs.The move WHEN IT COMES TO buying wine the battle 9 TOBACCO FOUNDER represents the biggest retreat directly from producers.Two 3 Morris Shorin start from Wall Street by a major years after the Supreme Court Topps Chewing Gum firm since Drexel Burnham paved the way for direct ship- 8 Co. of New York. Lambert filed for bankruptcy in ment of wine across state lines, 1990, recruiters say. New Yorkers account for only for an icon TO BOOST gum 4.6% of the direct sales market, sales, Topps issues A JOINT VENTURE BETWEEN ranking fifth behind Florida, 1 first baseball COLLIERS ABR INVESTORS 2 firms vie for big-name company; and Texas, Illinois and California. 9 card set, a AEW Capital Management has The state is the third-largest can either save sinking business? 407-piece shed three of its properties. It consumer and second-largest 5 package that sold the 328,000-square-foot producer, according to MKF 2 includes office tower at 119 W. 40th St. Research and New Vine BY AARON ELSTEIN Mickey Man- and a 15,000-square-foot Logistics, which helps wineries tle’s rookie card. building at 120 W. 41st St. A with direct shipment. growing up, Ben Henry spent whatever money he had on firm called LH Charney 40th Street acquired both buildings, NEW YORK COMEDIAN AND RADIO baseball cards, accumulating 160,000 of them until he 1 TOPPS ACQUIRES which are between Broadway PERSONALITY Steve Harvey will stopped collecting in 1995. One of his favorites is the 1985 9 Bowman Gum Co., and Sixth Avenue, for $182 be the spokesman in American card of Eddie Murray, because he thinks the Hall of Famer’s the only other national maker of million.The joint venture also Airlines’ new campaign Afro, sideburns and moustache resemble a “never-ending 5 sold the 156,000-square-foot targeting African-American 6 baseball cards. building at 229 W. 28th St., travelers.The carrier is pushing Saturn ring of hair.” between Seventh and Eighth to become the dominant carrier “It was a lot of fun to pay a quarter, tear open a new pack 1 UPPER DECK avenues, to Joss Realty Partners in New York, where it trails of cards and see what you’d get,” recalls Mr. Henry, a 28- CO. founded for $48 million. discount rival JetBlue Airways. year-old resident of Forest Hills, Queens, who writes The 9 by Richard McWilliam. THE WITKOFF GROUP, WHICH WAS IT CONSULTING FIRM NET@WORK Baseball Card Blog. 8 AWARDED the right to develop EXPECTS to announce another The days of 25-cent packs are long gone and so, for the 8 Pier 57 at West 17th Street in acquisition next month—the most part, is the baseball card business itself. Sales have Manhattan, may have found Manhattan firm’s fifth in less THE TOPPS CO. two new partners. It had than a year. Last week, it fallen about 80% in the past 15 years, crushing the fortunes 2 reports operating planned to construct a $300 acquired Werkflow, a network of Manhattan-based Topps Co., the industry’s most famous 0 loss of $2.3 million. million Italian-themed complex support service provider, for an name. Indeed, as two firms compete for control of Topps in Dissatisfied share- at the pier with restaurateur undisclosed sum. Net@Work, an increasingly heated takeover fight, the question is 0 holders launch Giuseppe Cipriani, but Mr. which caters to small-to-midsize whether either can revive the storied brand. 6 proxy fight against Cipriani dropped out. Now the businesses, expects to reach $15 management. developer is in discussions with million in revenues this year, up “The business of baseball cards has really shrunk,” says The Related Companies and 20% over 2006. I Scott Kelnhofer, editor of industry publication Card Trade. 2 UPPER DECK and “There are fewer collectors, fewer trade shows. It’s like all private equity group CORRECTIONS 0 the growth the industry saw two decades ago never led by Michael Eis- Some 33,000 individual New Yorkers volunteered last year under the auspices of New York 0 ner battle for control Cares. A June 11 “New York, New York” item misstated the number.