Mamdani kneels to REBNY

Mayor elect Mamdani pulls the plug on tens of thousands of business owners on life support! Mamdani allows a lobby to hand pick the new Commissioner of SBS, with the goal to keep a status quo destructive real estate oligarchy economy.

Zohran Mamdani as the newly elected Mayor sounds promising with the focus on new major reforms claiming to benefit working families, especially immigrant families. But should working families trust him? He already has broken a major campaign pledge he made to the voters. He challenged the voters to choose a democracy or an oligarchy. The voters chose a democracy, and yet he betrayed them by enabling a powerful lobby, through their loyalist Maria Torres Springer, to hand pick pro real estate pawns that would keep the status quo real estate oligarchy economy in place for NYC.

With proven lobby loyalists soundly entrenched in key agencies, Mayor Mamdani will continue an “in plain sight”, proven failed economy for entrepreneurs and working families. An economy that was the genesis that helped spawn three citywide crises: the small business crisis, empty store blight crisis, and the affordability crisis. An economy that favors only the wealthy. If the full negative consequences of this oligarch economy to society, and to our neglected distressed business owners were ever honestly fully exposed, and not covered up by lobby shills at City Hall then: no business owner, nor their workers and especially New Yorkers who have been paying heavily for it for the past decade, would never want. Voters did not elect Mamdani to keep a status quo economy continuing in destroying their beloved mom and pop merchants.

For their own blind political ambitions, Mayors de Blasio and Adams, both sold out the city’s business owners and their workers when they turned over full control of the city’s economy to their campaign donors and powerbrokers, led by a real estate lobby, the Real Estate Board of New York, REBNY. What was the “deal” that candidate Mamdani made with big real estate to keep an oligarchy economy that was destroying the American Dream for countless business owners and their workers?

Is Mamdani so “clueless” on economic issues that he is ignorant that a major catalyst for three purposely unchecked crises: small business, empty store blight, and affordability crisis were the outcome of the unchecked greed from a hyper real estate oligarchy economy? Yes, shameful but true that three lobby orchestrated purposely ignored crises that negatively impacted every New Yorker were the result of a lobby manipulated City Hall that had a stranglehold over our elections and economy. Three crises, and their negative outcomes to society, that will continue to be unchecked because Mayor Mamdani was hoodwinked by a desperate lobby who had backed their loyalists for Mayor and lost.

While we cannot confirm the exact details of the “deal” he made with the real estate lobby or their loyalists, we do know what the real estate lobby got from him when he wins. They got to keep their destructive real estate oligarchy that was responsible for “ripping off” and wreaking havoc upon 200K plus hard working entrepreneurs and their millions of workers.

The City Hall power brokers got the same “great deal” they received from former Mayor’s de Blasio and Adams. They got to have their loyalist appointed head of the transition teams for the key Committees selecting Commissioners with oversight authority on economic/property/real estate policy in NYC. Especially control over those critical appointments that are the foundation needed to promote and protect a real estate oligarchy economy. They also got to continue to define “economy” as only meaning BIG BUSINESS.

Besides the EDC, the top agency that REBNY must control in order to continue to coverup the destruction their landlords and real estate speculation machine caused to small business owners, as well as, to stop any vote on legislation giving business owners real rights in the landlord controlled and highly profitable commercial lease renewal process, is the Commissioner of Small Business Services, SBS.

The SBS is an agency that REBNY has influenced every appointment of since its inception. A SBS Commissioner is mandated by statue to be an honest voice for the welfare and prosperity of “the backbone of our economy,” but instead, has led a crony agency for big real estate by willfully deceiving and lying to protect their windfall profits. An agency that willingly empowered property owner controlled BIDS and developer friendly Big Chambers to be a Machiavellian voice to keep a “knee on the neck” of every business owner when their leases expired and keeping only a status quo landlord friendly economy. A pro real estate agency that refused to recognize and address a growing citywide small business crisis caused by insane rent demands and oppressive lease terms. But instead, colluded with a lobby to successfully stop any real rights given to long established business owners needed to survive and make a reasonable profit when their leases expired. SBS is the most corrupted anti small business agency in America. A walk down any main street in NYC, with empty storefronts where once thriving businesses were is the verification of SBS’s betrayal of business owners and their workers.

The SBS’s most shameful and reprehensible act of betrayal of business owners was in hiding the truth of the SBS’s key role in the conspiracy with a lobby and the Speaker’s Office. An over decade long conspiracy to stop good government from working for small business owners. An anti-democracy act of collusion and discrimination against business owners that would be repeated, year after year, over the next decade directed by the hand picked REBNY Commissioners. This sinister appalling partnership between the SBS, a lobby and Speaker’s Office would repeatedly stop a vote on the Small Business Jobs Survival Act, Jobs Survival Act. A bill that was the only real lifeline to give business owners a real fighting chance to negotiate fair lease terms that would protect their investment and the jobs of their workers. The only legislation to restore the American Dream for all business owners.

In Aug 2009, the Jobs Survival Act, with its 32 sponsors of which the entire Small Business Committee members were sponsors should have been voted on and easily passed by the full Council. But no vote was allowed when a bogus legal roadblock was cooked up by then Speaker Quinn’s legal staff. This meritless claim would be soundly debunked a year later by a legal review of the bill organized by then Bronx Borough President Ruben Diaz Jr.. But, led by the SBS, this legal lifeline bill to end the small business crisis and restore the American Dream for most business owners would be purposely suppressed, year after year, until this every day.

Why is this background on the SBS relevant to today’s Mamdani’s appointment of the new Commissioner of SBS? It is very relevant because the pro lobby SBS played a key role in preventing a vote on the Jobs Survival Act in Aug 2009 and three more times: Jan 2011, Nov. 2018, and Mar. 2022. Any vote on the Jobs Survival Act would have resulted in easy passage in the full Council and put an end to the small business crisis! If the small business crisis ends, then this would have prevented the “empty store blight crisis and the affordability crisis.” Yes, shamefully true, that a lobby, corrupted Speaker’s Office and SBS are fully responsible for our city’s three unresolved crises: small business, empty store blight, and affordability.

Every business owner and their workers, along with every New Yorker will continue to be victims of a real estate economy until the SBS honors its mandate and allows good government to work for business owners. Every New Yorker will continue to pay higher prices until the small business crisis ends. The only way to end this crisis is to give every business owner the right to renew long term leases with an arbitration process to encourage bargaining in good faith and equal rights to owners to negotiate fair lease terms that would allow them to remain in business and make a reasonable profit. The hard earned profits of the backbone of our economy, who are our job creators, must matter in the commercial lease renewal process.

A Mamdani SBS must change course and protect the city’s job creators and not its job destroyers.

Even more relevant is that REBNY picked all the SBS Commissioners with the goals of covering up the destruction of the American Dream caused by their landlords while keeping the landlords in full control of the commercial lease renewal process. The SBS was the epicenter to deny economic justice and rights to all business owners. The SBS, following a lobby orchestrated charade of political theater promoting disinformation: generated fake studies, useless initiative, and worthless programs, all pretending to help business owners while denying business owners even one honest hearing in the Council to address their crisis.

A lobby controlled SBS, has never and will never admit that our business owners face a crisis due to the high rents. They will never offer a rational solution to stop the closing of long established good businesses when their leases expire. Nor will they ever offer any rational reason for not giving business owners rights in the critical commercial lease renewal process, especially the vital right to renew their leases. Rights that they earned and deserve.

When Mayor Mamdani praised the record of lobby loyalist Maria Torres Springer and welcomed her successful reputation for guidance of his economic policy team, he answered the question, “can the new Mayor be trusted to stand up to the powerful special interest’s old guard that has been ruling City Hall and robbing New Yorkers for decades?” The answer is a resounding NO! The robbing and ripping off will continue unchallenged under a Mamdani administration. He will never begin to keep his campaign pledge to address the affordability crisis when he is so naive to what the root cause of it is in the first place.

The proof that Mayor Mamdani has no real commitment to promoting an economic policy that is fair and will serve our city’s entrepreneurs and their workers, is when he empowered Maria Torres Springer to oversee the transition committee to select the new Commissioner of Small Business Services, SBS. A shameful decision when she was handpicked by the real estate lobby for two administrations, de Blasio and Adams, with the goal to promote and protect only a real estate oligarchy economy for NYC.

She played a KEY ROLE in both administrations to successfully promote a lobby orchestrated sham misinformation campaign designed to look and sound like government was on the side of small business owners. But instead, supported a lobby’s false narrative, misinformation and distractions to coverup a growing crisis and its negative outcomes to all New Yorkers. By fooling Mamdani into empowering Maria Torres Springer, the lobby wants to keep the commercial lease renewal process solely in the hands of the landlords.

Her reprehensible record of disrespect and blatant discrimination against business owners, produced the most unstable business environment in America and the only empty store blight crisis during a nationwide robust economic recovery. Faced with a growing small business crisis, record court evictions and record forced closings of good businesses, she did absolutely nothing, year after year, to save even one business owner or one job. Mamdani’s appointment of Maria Torres Springer is unconscionable and indefensible.

Over a decade ago, a successful conspiracy was schemed at City Hall with the collusion between a powerful lobby and the Democratic leadership to rig the system to stop any passage of legislation giving rights to business owners in the grossly one sided, “take it or leave” commercial lease renewal process. An obviously destructive unfair landlord controlled process that has been, and will continue to be, the “root cause” of those long established successful businesses with a loyal customer base and whose owners were willing and able to pay reasonable rents if given fair lease terms, but instead were forced to close. In many cases, close even while still growing on busy main streets, and many once thriving businesses were left empty for sometimes years! All under Maria Torres Springer’s watch.

Her disgraceful record to deny economic justice and rights to desperate business owners during a prolonged purposely ignored citywide small business crisis caused by manipulated sky high rents, landlord abuses, and pure greed can be viewed in these links*. *https://www.savenycjobs.com/stringer-rebny-puppet

https://www.savenycjobs.com/withdraw-support-for-mamdani

Mamdani giving Maria Torres Springer oversight of the SBS Committee will mean, another lobby lackey who had to first pledge to be a voice for big real estate interests. One that will never promote legislation that would regulate commercial landlords in their windfall profit grab commercial lease renewal process. Every business owner in NYC will continue to be treated as only second class citizens who are extendable collateral damage to a hyper real estate speculation economy.

Not surprisingly, after being given economic policy oversight power by Mayor Mamdani, she handpicked many members*of the transition teams with a known history of being loyal to big business interests in NYC, especially real estate. Also, members with a public record of opposing legislation giving rights to business owners in the vital commercial lease renewal process. Likewise, handpicked members who have benefited greatly, financially or politically, under a real estate oligarchy economy. Several members acted as willing lobby shills for years promoting a false narrative on the true state and needs of business owners. Lastly, members who, at the beseeching of a lobby, publicly supported status quo legislation inspired by the real estate lobby to keep a destructive real estate oligarchy economy. In reality, it was the Real Estate Board of New York, REBNY, who influenced several committee members’ selection and their predetermined outcome of a new pro lobby Commissioner of SBS.

* https://www.savenycjobs.com/rebny-fake-committee

The outcome from REBNY’s stacked SBS Committee is Mayor Mamdani’s appointment of Kenny Minaya as the new Commissioner of SBS. He is very far from what advocates had hoped for, but with Maria Torres Springer’s oversight, not a surprise. Small business advocates hoped that if Mayor Mamdani lived up to his progressive values and pledges, and seriously wanted to address the affordability crisis, then finally an independent small business owner, one who had built a successful business in NYC and had no political or special interests’ loyalty or ambitions, would have been selected.

Instead, Mamdani signed off on a clear REBNY pick who was a career attorney bureaucrat who rose up the ranks under the pro real estate de Blasio and Adams administrations. Also, he rose up in a pro real estate agency, Department of Consumer Affairs, which later was renamed Dept. of Consumer and Worker Protection. An agency that consistently and purposely ignored the most serious threat to worker’s jobs and futures, which is a landlord controlled lease renewal process. An agency that consistently served only a lobby’s play book and false narrative concerning small business owners. An agency that used its small business platform to give credibility to all of the lobby inspired fake studies, useless legislation, worthless programs and initiatives, and outright lies all pretending to help small business owners. Year after year, an agency who willingly gave credibility to the lobby’s BIG LIE, that the major problems faced by business owners were the nonsensical, to many fines and too many regulations.

The SBS and DCA agencies teamed up to block any call for an honest hearing to find a real solution to stop the closing of good businesses and protect the jobs of their workers when their leases expired. DCA willfully avoided any forums or media calling for legislation desperately needed to find a real solution to end the city’s small business crisis. The DCA never once acknowledged that a crisis caused by high rents even existed for business owners. If the employers of the majority of our city residents face a potential crisis to survive when their leases expire, then their workers’ futures were also in jeopardy. The shameful truth is that neither the SBS nor DCA has a serious job retention program in place during the greatest threat to job security for workers in over the past decade.

There is no need to evaluate the public record of Kenny Minaya to determine his experience, competency and commitment to business owners and their workers. While working as Executive Counsel of Consumer and Worker Protection, and making $244K a year, he was complicit to the agency’s purposely ignoring taking any real actions to protect the jobs of all the workers of small business employers.

True small business advocates know if Minaya pledged to uphold his oath of office, serve the will of the people and stand behind our business owners and workers for a change, he would never have been appointed Commissioner. He will serve the same oligarchy that picked all other SBS Commissioners! When Mamdani allowed special interests to hand pick the SBS Commissioner, he betrayed every business owner and their workers.