EDC head Seth Pinsky went before a City & State Newsmakers breakfast on Tuesday to tell some tall tales about the fact that the NY Stae AG had slapped down the agency for illegal activity:
" Seth Pinsky discussed Attorney General Eric Schneiderman‘s finding that EDC had overstepped its particular nonprofit status as a Local Development Corporation (LDC) by engaging in lobbying. Pinsky explained that city attorneys argued the land use and review process did not count as legislation. Attorney General Eric Schneiderman disagreed, but did not assess any penalties.
“There were no allegations of corruption or industrial enrichment,” said Pinsky, adding, “We did not argue with the AG.”
Pinsky's correct but only because the AG shied away from simply doing his damn job-because the entire scheme involved a massive amount of evidence that corruption was rife in this land use deal-an observation given greater credence when the city gifted Sterling Equities, one of the co-conspirators, $200 million of land and the development rights to the never envisioned new phase of the Willets Point project.
Pinsky went on to discuss EDC's proposed reorganization-and without any knowledgeable reporters present was able to lie through his teeth:
"Pinsky’s solution to the problem? The Economic Development Corporation is exploring its options to restructure so it will no longer be categorized as an LDC but remain a nonprofit with a status that would allow them to promote certain projects. “This will allow us not only to develop land use plans but say why it’s important,” he said."
Exploring options? There's a court hearing Friday on the EDC proposal to restructure so this has gone way past the exploration phase. So, why lie about it? Maybe because it has become a habit with Pinsky and the rest of the tawdry cast of characters that have populated this project from jump street. And when the press allows you to continue with impunity, why stop?