nb14p01.qxp 4/4/2008 8:07 PM Page 1 TOP STORIES BUSINESS LIVES Volunteer Credit crisis forces execs find NYC’s largest hotel a new way builder to retrench togiveback PAGE 2 ® PAGE 35 ‘For sale’ sign goes up on 7 VOL. XXIV, NO. 14 WWW.CRAINSNEWYORK.COM APRIL 7-13, 2008 PRICE: $3.00 Macklowe buildings FILM FESTIVAL PAGE 3 Big bankers Bad economy In search is slowing venture capital flow chase small PAGE 3 of a hit Must-see movie Tribeca revamps to focus on being M&A deals that’s hard buyer-friendly, finding a breakout to sit through VALERIE BLOCK, PAGE 13 BY MIRIAM KREININ SOUCCAR Even midsize pool is crowded as the tribeca film festival is desperately seeking a hit. megamergers REAL The popular event, which actor Robert De Niro launched after Sept. 11 to help revitalize lower Manhattan, become memories ESTATE has drawn A-list celebrities to its glamorous opening nights REPORT and attracted thousands of moviegoers. A few of its entries BY AARON ELSTEIN have gone on to win Oscars, including Transamerica, starring Construction Felicity Huffman. in the cohen family’s 80 years costs slowing Even so, the seven-year-old event hasn’t managed to in the eyewear business, about the make a name for itself as a competitive marketplace on the closest it ever came to Wall Street Ballfields in was the Lower East Side, where film festival circuit, whereas bidding wars at Sundance and Jack Cohen started out, selling short supply See TRIBECA on Page 10 spectacles from a pushcart. lindström bekka Q&A: job safety But that RECESSION changed last and First Data—thought it could Ranking of largest fall, when find a buyer for the company if Mr. architecture firms WATCH Robert Co- Cohen was interested in selling. hen, president “I was surprised to hear from Ranking of top of Cohen’s Fashion Optical Inc., Deutsche Bank,” Mr. Cohen says. property-sales firms got a call from someone at “Normally, I think they look for Deutsche Bank’s U.S. arm. The much larger clients.” PAGE 21 Frankfurt-based giant—best known How the mighty have fallen. for financing such multibillion- Nine months after the credit dollar buyouts as Hilton Hotels See BIGBANKERS on Page 8 AT DEADLINE DESPITE FEARS THAT THE THREE-MONTH STRIKE BY THE Traffic plan pared Writers Guild of America would permanently hurt the city’s film industry, New York in effort to save it is having a robust spring pilot season. Seven television pilots are filming at studios in the was changed by the Spitzer admin- city—five of them at Silvercup Fees would pay for istration so that the revenues it Studios.The shows include small improvements; generated would pay for a $4.5 bil- Nurse Jackie, an Edie Falco lion bond issue. But many legisla- comedy for Showtime, and back to a pilot tors want the option of canceling Exit 19, a detective drama the plan after three or five years. starring Geena Davis for CBS. As a result, driving fees would Last year, a record 11 pilots BY ERIK ENGQUIST pay for smaller, politically popular were filmed in New York. REEL TIME: enhancements such as new express New co-executive last-ditch efforts to save con- buses for underserved areas and THELADDERS.COM, A directors Nancy gestion pricing focus on making it subway service improvements, not MANHATTAN-BASED CAREER Schafer (left) and a temporary measure that would multibillion-dollar projects such as Paola Freccero lead site for jobs paying $100,000- the team making fund short-term transit improve- a new tunnel connecting the Long plus, has seen an increase of at changes at the ments rather than major projects Island Rail Road to Grand Central least 40% in traffic and new seven-year-old like the Second Avenue subway. Terminal. Congestion pricing is See AT DEADLINE on Page 2 festival. The Legislature must approve expected to generate close to $500 buck ennis the plan—which would charge million annually for mass transit. drivers to enter Manhattan’s cen- “I think it’s become clear that this 14 NEXT WEEK CRAIN’S tral business district between 6 has to be enacted as a pilot so that 5 a.m. and 6 p.m. weekdays—by people know that if it doesn’t work, SMALL BUSINESS Monday or the city will lose $354.5 it will sunset,” says plan proponent REPORT: CHRONICLE million in federal aid. Kathryn Wylde, president of the ELECTRONIC EDITION Initially proposed a year ago by Partnership for New York City. OF A SPEEDY SUCCESS Mayor Michael Bloomberg as a Gov. David Paterson, who suc- NEWSPAPER three-year experiment, the plan See CONGESTION on Page 8 71486 01068 0 CNYB 04-07-08 A 2 4/4/2008 7:57 PM Page 1 AT DEADLINE Continued from Page 1 money would help pay for the Credit crunch slows membership from its 10-week new hospital.The Rudins would national-TV-ad campaign, replace the old buildings with an which concluded Sunday.The apartment building and campaign, created by ad agency townhouses.The plan has Fallon Minneapolis, is set to generated community hotelier’s juggernaut resume in a few weeks on opposition. national cable networks.The company has spent more than $1 million on the campaign so far. Sam Chang scrambles to finish projects in pipeline LOCAL COLLEGES AND UNIVERSITIES SAY THEIR BY LISA FICKENSCHER students aren’t feeling the sting PLAYING DEFENSE: Mr. of the credit crunch on college new york city’s largest yet least-known hotel Chang has 25 properties loans yet, but they are taking developer is hitting the brakes. under construction and steps to prevent problems. WITH A TOTAL OF EIGHT NEW Sam Chang—who has built or is building so another 15 on the drawing Columbia University, for FLIGHTS, AIR TRAVEL CAPACITY board, all in New York City. example, recently expanded to Europe from JFK and many hotels that he has to grab a scrap of paper financial aid for lower- and Newark airports will increase to calculate the exact number when a reporter middle-income undergraduates only about 6% this summer asks—suddenly finds his financial lifelines by replacing loans with grants. compared with last year, City University of New York is according to a report recently fraying.The Wall Street bankers advising families to apply for released by industry watcher who sent his hotel empire into direct federal, state and college- Airline/Aircraft Projects Inc. overdrive five years ago on a funded sources of financial aid Prices for economy seats are rich diet of loans are pulling before seeking out more expected to increase at about the expensive private loans. same rate. Only three of the back. CUNY’s financial aid directors eight new flights out of the New “The tightening credit say that while private education York area are a direct result of market is slowing me down,” loans may become scarcer, their the Open Skies Treaty, which Mr. Chang says. “Right now, students will have plenty of was supposed to ease travel access to loans funded or restrictions over the North we are playing defense, guaranteed directly by the Atlantic and lower prices. trying to finish what we federal government. Also, have in the pipeline.” CUNY participates in a direct RELIGION IS THE BIGGEST loan program that has not been GROWTH AREA FOR CATALOGS, Even that is an scaled back because of the according to Oxbridge enormous task. Mr. financial crisis. Communications, which has Chang’s McSam Hotel just published the 2008 edition Group will build as much as THE LANDMARKS of the National Directory of PRESERVATION COMMISSION Catalogs. Between 2004 and 40% of the 10,000 rooms will question executives from St. 2008, the number of religious expected to be added to the Vincent’s Hospital Manhattan catalogs grew 61%, to 329.The city’s inventory over the next and the Rudin family on April category with the biggest three years, according to PKF 15 about their controversial plan decline was manufacturing, to build a new hospital and which fell 48%, to 244 catalogs. Consulting, which tracks hotel apartment tower in Greenwich Books remained the biggest statistics. McSam owns 25 Village.The proposal calls for subject area of all, with 1,156 properties, seven of them in New St. Vincent’s to sell seven catalogs in 2008, an increase of buildings to the Rudins.The 8% over the number in 2004. York; it has another 25 hotels under construction and 15 more in the pipeline—all of them in the city. Compounding the credit crunch, larry ford THIS WEEK IN CRAIN’S Mr. Chang faces more competition and mounting worries about a VALERIE BLOCK ---------------------------13 37 See HOTELIER on Page 9 THE INSIDER------------------------------------14 WEEK IN REVIEW -----------------------16 SMALL BUSINESS ------------------- 19 REPORT: Crime spike brings worry REAL ESTATE -------------------------------21 beries rose 4.5%, according to the 1990s, says the NYPD may be REAL ESTATE DEALS-------------- 30 Robbery, homicides NYPD statistics. having trouble keeping up with re- NEIGHBORHOOD up from last year; “A low crime rate is one of the cent success. “Last year was a very most important attractions to good year,” he says. “It’s going to be 39 JOURNAL------------------------------------------31 impact on city’s business and visitors and people hard to match those statistics.” living in the city,” says Kathryn The sharpest rise in overall CLASSIFIEDS ----------------------------------32 economy at issue Wylde, president of the Partner- crime, 25.6%, was in Staten Island. BUSINESS LIVES------------------------35 ship for New York City. “Clearly, Criminologists say economic BY DANIEL MASSEY we cannot afford to ignore a warn- downturns don’t necessarily cause CORPORATE LADDER-------37 ing signal.” increases in crime, although neigh- EXECUTIVE MOVES--------------38 first came the mortgage crisis.