Newsday
January 23, 2004
He Knows His Way Around Politics
Glenn Thrush and Graham Rayman
Donna Henes has no great affection for Bruce Ratner, but she will admit one thing — the millionaire developer is no cheapskate.
Henes was one of 250 residents in downtown Brooklyn whose buildings stood
in the way of Ratner's MetroTech development in the late 1980s. She led a
group of outspoken residents who tried to block the plan for four years,
but eventually they all quietly accepted what she calls "substantial" offers
of cash or co-op apartments.
"I think he's really done some good things for the city and he was fair with
us after we fought him," said the artist and self-described "urban shaman"
who signed a confidentiality agreement barring her from disclosing the amount
of her settlement.
"It was huge pain, but eventually everything turned out OK," said Henes, 54.
The episode illustrated that Ratner, who's hoping to bring the Nets to downtown
Brooklyn, does not fit the stereotype of the high-profile developer.
"He understands that there is something beyond the major development process
besides shiny new buildings there," said City Councilman Bill De Blasio,
(D-Brooklyn). "He's a socially concerned developer, which is certainly not
par for the course."
Ratner served as consumer affairs commissioner under Mayor Ed Koch from 1978
to 1982 before founding Forest City Ratner as the New York chapter of his
family's billion-dollar development business. One of his first projects was
Metrotech, but he also became known for building shopping centers outside
Manhattan.
"He's a no B.S. guy," said George Artz, who runs a leading public relations firm. "He's very much into results."
One trademark of Ratner projects is that they often involve financing or
subsidies from city and state agencies. Some observers have criticized those
deals over the years, but backers say this is because he builds in under-served
areas that won't support fully private financing.
By one estimate, Metrotech cost the city $300 million in tax breaks and infrastructure
improvements, but the city estimates that it saved 7,700 jobs.
Most recently, Ratner received $113 million in Liberty Bonds from the Lower
Manhattan Development Corp. for a skyscraper in downtown Brooklyn, and a
favorable state deal for the New York Times building in midtown. He then
sought $400 million in Liberty Bonds for the Times building.
Bettina Damiani, of Good Jobs New York, opposed Liberty Bonds for the Times
project, but supported the Brooklyn tower. "Midtown Manhattan is the last
place on earth that needs corporate subsidies, but the Brooklyn building
fills the bills in bringing a benefit to an area that needs it," she said.
Government agencies then often moves into his office buildings. The City
of New York, in fact, is the company's largest office tenant, at nearly 816,190
square feet, financial filings from last July show.
Much of that space is in MetroTech Center in Brookyn. The federal government
occupies the third slot, with 580,000 square feet in Metrotech and Pierrepont
Plaza, the filing shows.
Late last year, the Atlantic Center Mall, another Ratner project which received
subsidies, took in two state agencies as tenants when retail stores moved
out.
Ratner's Brooklyn arena project is expected to seek a range of government
subsidies and financing, including discounted land costs and tax breaks.
Though Ratner's company still spends significant funds to lobby City Hall,
Ratner a few years ago sharply cut back on donating funds to political campaigns
— an unusual move for a real estate developer.
"He decided this was getting him into trouble, because every time he won
a project, people would say it was because he gave money," said former city
Parks Commissioner Henry Stern, who has known Ratner for 34 years. "If he
did not give money to someone, that person would be angry. So he told me
at one point that he was out of the contribution business."
He does, however, employ a number of former city officials as key aides,
including Bruce Bender, a former chief of staff to Peter Vallone and several
ex-Economic Development Corp. officials.
© 2004, Newsday