nb36p01.qxp 8/31/2007 8:11 PM Page 1 TOP STORIES BUSINESS LIVES NYSE puts a big Book clubs, bet on its new tech New York-style guru’s software as PAGE 43 it seeks to expand PAGE 2 ® WNBC seeks to shake up local TV scene with VOL. XXIII, NO. 36 WWW.NEWYORKBUSINESS.COM SEPTEMBER 3-9, 2007 PRICE: $3.00 7 p.m. newscast PAGE 2 The Plaza Bikini babes hand out freebies for delays Riese Restaurants NEW YORK, NEW YORK, P. 6 reopening Looking for fallout from credit crisis? until ’08 Just wait until next year Construction woes; GREG DAVID, PAGE 13 questions loom Slow growth pays on rehiring workers off for real estate MEN AT WORK: Jerry BY LISA FICKENSCHER information firm Gottlieb just got back SMALL BUSINESS, P 34 into his office, which is still a construction the much-anticipated reopen- zone, near the steam ing of The Plaza hotel has been pipe blast site. pushed back until next year, dash- ing a plan to celebrate the hotel’s david neff david 100th anniversary in grand style. “Oct.1 is such a significant date BUSINESS INTERRUPTION for us,” says the hotel’s general manager, Shane Krige. “It would have been fantastic to open then.” The hotel is now accepting reservations for Jan. 1. REPORT One disastrous summer As The Plaza gears up for its re- REAL ESTATE opening, tensions are simmering of them have yet to recover from a to return—to gutted offices.Walls, between the hotel union and new G Condo developers Around the city, series of random disasters, from the flooring, furniture and equipment management over who will work struggle to finance affected businesses steam pipe explosion in July to the had been removed by cleanup there. Some former employees new projects Brooklyn tornado and the Deut- crews because of concerns about have been asked to return to their PAGE 19 struggle to reopen, sche Bank building fire in August. asbestos. MGL’s Chief Executive jobs, while others have been of- G The steam pipe blast is a fading Jerry Gottlieb says it will cost at fered incentives not to. New stadium spurs face major expenses memory for most New Yorkers, least $1 million and take at least Mr. Krige blames the delayed housing, retail in the but not for tenants of 370 Lexing- three weeks to rebuild the 14,000- debut on the slow pace of construc- Bronx PAGE 19 BY AMANDA FUNG ton Ave.,the building hit the hard- square-foot office. tion. The job has already cost the G New York’s largest est by flying debris. “Half of our office looks like hotel’s owner, Elad Properties, at REITs PAGE 28 as many New Yorkers reluctantly McCaffery Gottlieb Lane, an Ground Zero,” Mr. Gottlieb says. least $50 million more than the bid the summer farewell,thousands advertising agency on the second Many of the building’s tenants company had earmarked for the of businesses can’t wait to put the floor, was one of at least a dozen are still retrieving personal items, extensive renovation, now in its season’s havoc behind them. Many firms that just last week were able See ONE DISASTROUS on Page 8 See PLAZA on Page 8 AT DEADLINE EVEN THOUGH THE ORGANIZERS OF FASHION WEEK have been CUNY adds dorms to its course list searching for a new home for the past year, insiders say the twice-annual event will remain at Bryant Park for at least two First residence at City College a big hit; more years. (See related story on Page 3.) The sources also lures students from outside of city say that one potential site Towers,a year-old residence hall at under discussion is a roof space BY SAMANTHA MARSHALL The City College of New York. at the Port Authority Bus “I was so happy, because I real- Terminal on Eighth Avenue. starting school wasn’t scary for ly wanted the experience of being Located near the new 17-year-old Hunter College fresh- in a dorm with a bunch of kids my headquarters of The New York man Grace Zinnel. But finding a age going to college,”says the Nas- Times Co., the spot would be place to live in the city was so sau County native. large enough to house the daunting that the media arts major After decades as a strictly com- See AT DEADLINE on Page 2 almost switched schools—until muter-college system, the City she landed a coveted spot in The University of New York is planning to create housing for thousands of students in the next few years. Of- 36 5 ficials are aiming both to recruit students who live outside the city and to accommodate the demands ELECTRONIC EDITION of city residents who want to live on campus. neff david The success of The Towers at JUST WHAT THE DOCTOR ORDERED: City College biomed student Kamara Aseme was among the NEWSPAPER See CUNY on Page 8 first to move into The Towers. “This is a demanding program; I need to be here to focus,” she says. 71486 01068 0 CNYB 09-03-07 A 2 8/31/2007 7:13 PM Page 1 AT DEADLINE Continued from Page 1 CooperBricolage. He is seeking large Fashion Week tents, which sponsors to cover expenses. now use more than 200 feet of runway.To help guide IFC FILMS IS PUTTING THE fashionistas around Fashion BRAKES ON its year-old plan to Week—and expand its Women’s distribute bigger-budget Wear Daily features, sources say. Instead of franchise— adding films with $10 million Fairchild production budgets to its Publications portfolio, IFC will keep to its is launching longtime focus of distributing WWD Scoop movies with budgets up to $3 Insider, a 24- million.The films will be page booklet released under the IFC First with tips on Take label simultaneously in where to cinemas and on cable systems dine, shop and hang out in New pay-per-view services.The York, London, Milan and Paris. move by IFC, the independent The guide will be inserted in film subsidiary of Rainbow WWD on Wednesday and also Media, comes as more film handed out at Fashion Week distributors are competing for events and at the European movies with budgets in the $10 shows next month. million to $20 million range. IFC couldn’t be reached for COOPERBRICOLAGE, A WORK comment. SPACE for the city’s tech entrepreneurs, is expected to RCA MUSIC AND ZOMBA LABEL RAWHIDE: The launch on Wednesday. Café GROUP, divisions of Sony BMG exchange is looking to Sam Johnson, head of Fuego in the East Village will be Music Entertainment, are NYSE TransactTools, to transformed during weekday joining forces to create whip up new revenues business hours into an office international and sales divisions and cultivate industry where innovators can work and for the BMG Label Group.The relationships. collaborate on their next great restructured units will combine neff david idea for a fee: $15 for one day, marketing, digital sales and $60 for five days or $200 for a support for all RCA Music and month.The fee, which Zomba artists. John includes Wi-Fi access, will be Fleckenstein, meanwhile, has shared with the café’s owners. been named senior vice Sanford Dickert, a Cooper president of international affairs NYSE turns on to tech Union professor of electrical at BMG and will run marketing engineering and social in international territories for software design, founded both RCA and Zomba. I Starts creating, selling systems as trading business flags CORRECTIONS BY AARON ELSTEIN The source of the material in the Page 1 chart about office leasing in the Aug. 27 issue was CB Richard Ellis. as floor traders clad in jackets and ties vanish from the New York Stock Exchange, they are Architecture firm Simplex Studio, based in Manhattan, chose the sustainable methods and materials used in the construction of the Crazy for Animals store in Glendale, Queens. The being replaced by people like Sam Johnson, a tech whiz kid who goes about his business wrong design firm was named in the Aug. 27 “Neighborhood Journal” column. wearing jeans and cowboy boots. Larry Velez is the founder of technology firm Sinu. His name was misspelled in the Aug. 27 “Small Business” column. Mr. Johnson is helping to lead NYSE Euronext’s new effort to develop trading technology that it can sell to other exchanges and brokers. Mr. Johnson, who joined the NYSE when it acquired his software firm in January, is quickly making inroads. Last week, he and his crew of THIS WEEK IN CRAIN’S 90 techies won a mandate to assist the Tokyo Stock Exchange, Asia’s largest marketplace, in revamping its antiquated systems. NEIGHBORHOOD “We’re just getting started,” promises 37-year-old Mr. Johnson. “Selling technology is going See NYSE on Page 9 JOURNAL------------------------------------------11 GREG DAVID ------------------------------------13 THE INSIDER------------------------------------14 WEEK IN REVIEW -----------------------16 WNBC’s 7 p.m. news bid to REAL ESTATE REPORT ----------19 TOP REITS LIST --------------------------28 tution Live at 5, replacing it with casts. In 2007, with four newscasts, 45 Low-rated Live at 5 syndicated entertainment news show only 28% of that audience is watch- DEALS-------------------------------------------------- 31 is history as station Extra, which has run at 7 p.m. ing local news. The station’s executives call their Even so, the competition doesn’t SMALL BUSINESS ------------------- 34 puts entertainment bold gamble an overdue response to seem likely to follow Channel 4’s THE WEEKS AHEAD ----------------37 program in its place changes in media consumption lead.