CNYB 12-01-08 A 1 11/26/2008 8:26 PM Page 1 INSIDE Saying TOP STORIES goodbye Jets and Giants flex to many marketing muscle greats —Alair in winning seasons ® Townsend PAGE 3 Page 11 Boutique banks cash in on Wall St.’s VOL. XXIV, NO. 48 WWW.CRAINSNEWYORK.COM DECEMBER 1-7, 2008 PRICE: $3.00 implosion PAGE 3 Loan modification Economy companies promise a lot, deliver little PAGE 3 puts chill SPECIAL REPORT SEXTON MAKES RIGHT MOVES into NYC Poll respondents CRAIN’S POLL President’s pre-crash efforts keep say city’s economy How would you rate the New York University on course is in poor condition; state of the economy in 40% fear for jobs New York City? BY AMANDA FUNG ’03 ’08 BY MATTHEW SOLLARS REAL ESTATE REPORT luck or prescience? Excellent 1% 1% Developers pushed into wall street’s worst collapse Good 22% 7% frontier neighborhoods at In March,New York University embarked on a plan to reduce administrative costs by 10%, putting it on track to since the Great Depression has put Fair 40% 31% the height of the bubble. a scare into New Yorkers, with Now what? save more than $25 million within 18 months. A few nearly 40% believing their jobs are Poor 34% 59% PAGES 17-29 months later, the university completed a seven-year at risk, a new Crain’s New York Don’t know/ capital campaign that raised close to $3.1billion,exceeding Business poll shows. refused to answer 3% 1% Harlem: A renaissance fails A growing fear that job losses to reach the commercial See SEXTON on Page 8 will ripple throughout the city is G sector P. 17 More poll results Page 8 also causing residents to pull back G Williamsburg: Luxury on their spending—nearly 80% Most say Bloomberg can condos sit unsold P. 17 say they have already done so— lead city out of crisis Page 12 L.I.City: Buyers unmoved by just when the city’s retailers are a pricing edge P. 20 entering the critical holiday sell- ing season. firm that conducted the poll. “New Yorkers are hurting and “These numbers are startling and scared,” says Craig Charney, pres- far worse than anything we’ve ident of Charney Research, the See ECONOMY on Page 8 ➚➚ ON THE WEB @ WWW.CRAINSNEWYORK.COM Read all results from our latest poll on New York’s economy BUSINESS LIVES CHASING NEW DREAMS Zombie retailers’ Laid-off Wall Streeters take exotic trips, plan alternative careers PAGE 35 debt in the junk bin It’s no secret that the recession INDEX Burlington Coat, has been especially harsh on retail- ers, claiming as its victims home NEW YORK, NEW YORK Claire’s among _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _6 goods purveyor Linens ’n Things, THE INSIDER _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _12 sector’s walking dead West Coast department store NEIGHBORHOOD JOURNAL _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _14 chain Mervyn’s and, most recently, CLASSIFIEDS _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _30 Long Island-based discounter BY ADRIANNE PASQUARELLI Steve & Barry’s. But the string of WEEK IN REVIEW _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _32 LETTERING IN CAPITAL: liquidations is far from over. With SMALL BUSINESS _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _33 NYU completed a massive heart-encrusted bangle Black Friday ushering in what is CORPORATE LADDER _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _37 capital campaign and pared bracelets and cheap plastic earrings expected to be one of the worst THE WEEKS AHEAD _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _38 spending this year, giving it aren’t the only things in the holiday sales seasons in a comfortable cushion. SeeTABLE AT TALK DEADLINE _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _on _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _Page _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _2 _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _39 bargain bin at teen retailer decades, many are won- bloomberg news Claire’s Stores Inc. With $2.4B dering which companies the accessories chain’s LONG-TERM will be next. DEBT for Claire’s, 48 bonds trading at junk level, which was “There have been a 5 COMINGNEXT WEEK investors are signaling their virtually debt-free number of [bankruptcy] Crain’s SMALL BUSINESS REPORT lists belief that the company is in in March ’07 filings already this fall,and the top SBA lenders and looks at how danger of going bankrupt. it is conventional wisdom businesses that used to cater to the And Burlington Coat Factory, that there will be a slew more for ELECTRONIC EDITION superrich are dialing down their pitch. which specializes in off-price ap- retailers before the end of the year,” NEWSPAPER parel, may not be far behind. See ZOMBIE on Page 33 71486 01068 0 CNYB 12-01-08 A 2 11/26/2008 8:02 PM Page 1 But at the University of Chicago, Dr. IN BRIEF John Marcinak is a believer.He says the drug Bioresearch firm last year saved the life of a toddler who was IN ANOTHER SIGN THAT RESIDENTIAL near death with a smallpox-like infection. CONSTRUCTION IN THE CITY IS APPROACHING “We tried acyclovir; we tried im- a virtual standstill, the number of building munoglobulin. Nothing was helping until permits authorizing housing units in October counts on a cure we got permission to use ST-246,”he says. fell 70% compared with a year earlier. Developers say the leading factors in the Potential threat decline are the credit crunch, which has made it Chief Executive Dr. Eric Rose, a well- though smallpox has been virtually all but impossible for developers to obtain SIGA could reap known surgeon and drug researcher who eradicated,leading to the 1977 discontinu- construction loans; the end of the 421-a subsidy got involved with SIGA in 2001 at the re- ation of mass vaccinations, it is still seen as program; and a glut of units already on the millions from quest of Ronald Perelman, chief executive a potential threat. Both the U.S. govern- market as a result of the bad economy. of cosmetics maker Revlon and a major in- ment and Russia have samples of smallpox smallpox drug vestor in the company. virus in high-security laboratories. Other ARAMARK, THE $12 BILLION FOOD SERVICE A small publicly held company, SIGA countries may have clandestine stockpiles. CONGLOMERATE, IS INTRODUCING A lists total assets of $10 million but so far has Further,says SIGA’s Dr.Rose,“the genome corporate catering service here early next year. BY GALE SCOTT been losing money as it waits for its major for smallpox is on the Internet.Anyone can The new business, called 1st & Fresh, will product to come to market. Losses for the Google it.” A scientist with the right train- operate out of a 4,000-square-foot facility at 132 smallpox has been all but wiped off the quarter ended Sept.30 totaled $2.1 million ing might be able to recreate it. W. 31st St. with a fleet of trucks, emblazoned planet, but that doesn’t mean the deadly on net revenues of $1.8 million. For those reasons,having a drug to fight with the brand name, to deliver catered meals in disease is not a threat. When it comes to SIGA is not widely followed by Wall smallpox is a top priority of biodefense of- the city.There will be no bioterrorism,it is still considered a danger- Street analysts. Shares have traded this ficials, both in the United shortage of competition ous weapon, primarily because countries year between $1.93 and $4.One New York States and abroad. for 1st & Fresh. have built up stockpiles of the virus and biotech analyst familiar with the company When he came on Online grocer there are no known cures. says that SIGA’s success depends heavily board at SIGA seven FreshDirect After nearly a decade of research and on what the government does. See SIGA on Page 8 launched a similar testing, Manhattan-based SIGA Tech- “It’s all a matter of when they buy it, service last year, and nologies, a research firm focused on bio- how much they purchase and what price DR.