The City of New Rochelle has cancelled agreements to lease two City-owned property at 2 Pelham Road at the New Rochelle Marina. The City had offered out the properties through an RFP Process. Instead, the two properties will be marketed by a real estate broker.
“The deal is off,” said City spokesperson Kathy Gilwit. “We are submitting these properties and all our properties to a broker who will be selected
through a competitive RFP process.”
Council Member Albert Tarantino had expressed concerns at the November 13th City Council meeting that the RFP Process was not the best way to lease out City-owned property. During the November 13th meeting, no one at the table could recall why the City was using the RFP process to lease City-owned property and no Council members objected to hiring a broker.
Tarantino expressed concern that property currently leased out by the City at the Marina is being done at significantly below-market rates, a fact confirmed by realtors familiar with the local commercial property market and the lease agreements in place at the New Rochelle Marina.
Brokerage Services
Using a professional to operate City properties is an idea long discussed and usually avoided because of the Mayor’s need to take complete control. To engage professional services and utilize a pawn is just a sham and waste of a commission payment. The results will be the same.
The operation of City properties has always been sub-standard. Look at the houses on Ward Acres, the Armory that has decayed to a point of possibly no return, the railroad station, and any other properties the City touches. During the Lawton Street Urban Renewal process, then Commissioner Madonna was smart enough to bid out Property Management to handle the then existing site.
Manage property? The City has not even finished picking up after the storm.
And, how could Council manage property — we are too busy increasing taxes, reducing police and fire protection, worrying about dogs at Ward Acres after 50 years, doing paver crosswalks,allowing friends to develop the Armory, and creating laws to harass and screw the residents that pay the salaries.
And, just as an aside; Tim Idoni won a pay raise on a temporary basis as a “full time” Mayor. Why is Mr. Bramson still taking advantage of that temporary pay raise?
New Rochelle always had its share of politics, people that were liked and disliked, but our current situation has given the Mayor complete and unbridaled control of our future and our operations; decisions that used to be discussed and argued about and compromised over and ultimately resolved in a positive way for our community. Now its the Mayors way or no way.
Of course Real Estate agents think it’s under valued
Just like when they list a house worth 400,000 for 550,000 so they can get the listing. Of course the property doesn’t sell and then they lower the price and it sells for 380,000. The City property in question is below market because the building is in horrible shape with many flaws. Many businesses attempted to make a go of it there and failed. The economy is bad, money is tight. Real estate agents will do nothing but earn a fee for renting the property at the same price the city would have received in an RFP. But if Mr. Tarantino thinks it’s worth more then why not just place a minimum bid on the City RFP?
go further?
This makes me wonder whether the City would be better off turning ALL of their real estate assets over to a real estate company and let them manage all aspects of the property. God knows they could not do worse.
Who will the broker be????
Now the question becomes, who will be the chosen broker???? Anyone willing to make a wager? I will make book that it will be a democratic Bramson supporter much like the folks driving the Good Profits farmer’s market. The front-runner is Mitch, a North End resident working for a North End broker who is a bigwig in the Westchester Democratic Party. Every commission, group or board is chock-full of Bramsonites to allow Bramson to micromanage every aspect of New Rochelle. Doubt it? Explain why the Citizen’s Budget Committee had 12 of 15 members registered democrats? Explain why 9 members came from the 10804 area code (districts 5 & 6)? Does anyone believe it a coincidence that there were only two republicans on the budget committee and it took three opposing votes to issue an opposing opinion?
While the action to use a professional to sell/rent public property is not new and a no-brainer, the “process” to skew the RFP to a favored broker will be entertaining just like the abandonment of “process” to give the New Rochelle Armory to Bramson friends and contributors from Good Profits.
It’s About Time
See what happens when someone asks a question. This just common sense and i am glad they found it. About time they looked at generating some revenue outside of taxes. No one at the table knew why? The Mayor has sat on that council his adult life and he would not question this “standard practice”.