Queens City Council

Rep. Joseph Crowley was unanamously elected the new Democratic county leader of Queens at 8:30 this morning, even securing a vote from City Councilman Hiram Monserrate, Crowley called to say.

As I noted before, the real story here isn't the continuation of the city's most effective political machine, which was built under Crowley's predecessor and mentor Tom Manton. It's the fact that the position went to Crowley, a federal official who has to operate under strict federal fundraising guidelines known as the McCain-Feingold law.

The law prohibits federal office holders from raising and spending soft money, which comes from sources not regulated by federal guidelines. Money from local clubs, which are a major source of county fundraising, is soft. Meaning that Queens is going to have to draw its influence in future from patronage, not money.

Also worth noting are the political deals and problems Crowley inherrited from his mentor. Nearly the entire Queens City Council delegation is term-limited in 2009, leaving many of them to run for a handful of offices. Who the county backs or gets kicked off the ballot could determine which officials in Queens has under the new Queens regime.

-- Azi Paybarah

Matthew Farrell, the former City Council director of administration and Queens City Council candidate, died unexpectedly today at 36. He had just started work at the lobbying firm Davidoff Malito & Hutcher, where Sid Davidoff confirmed his death.

Who really would want to set a record for paying the most ever for a condo in New York? Hedge-fund manager Daniel Loeb apparently doesn’t mind. He’s signed a contract for a $45 million penthouse at 15 Central Park West. Across Central Park, Sherry-Netherland residents want the hotel to go co-op—they have to go next door to the Pierre to get a decent meal now-- while Queens City Council members claim their constituents are getting scared away by something far worse: upzoning.

At Ground Zero, the Mayor and Governor both think they can save money by putting the Port Authority in charge of constructing the Sept. 11 memorial while New Jersey Transit is going to help out the Moynihan Station redevelopment with a little cash.  read more »

-Matthew Schuerman