Someone sent me a copy of a column from the New York News entitled, “Atlantic Yards gets a deal so sweet it’s sick.”

Welcome to Cleveland, all you New Yorkers.

The project involves Cleveland’s Ratner family and Forest City Ratner Cos., formed for this $4-billion deal, including, of course, a new basketball arena. (We build Roman Colosseums in all our cities, not for the rabble but for those who can afford the price of admission.)

Sometime ago, Forest City Enterprises Chairman Al Ratner, at a meeting where his firm was first presenting its plan for Cleveland’s new Convention Center, engaged me in conversation.

He told me that I’d have a ball observing Forest City’s operations around the country. He said that they were getting federal subsidies all over the country. I guess his comments emanated from my reporting over the years about his and Sam Miller’s local hunger for government handouts.

The New York piece started, “Bruce Ratner, developer of the $4 billion Atlantic Yards Nets arena and mega-housing project in Brooklyn, is about to get another special, secret, sweetheart deal from our state politicians.” It’s called, as Al hinted, standard procedure.

The Ratners work the feds, state and local officials for goodies. They also ply them with campaign dough, bagels and cookies – whatever does the job.

I noticed in a recent PD promotional report – called news at the PD – that the city is going to pour more money into Euclid Avenue buildings. The $200 million plus beautification by the Regional Transit Authority isn’t enough of a subsidy for property owners along Euclid Ave. They need a more direct boost.

The N.Y. News report noted a “gift” quietly inserted into a state bill.

“How sweet is the deal?” wrote Juan Gonzalez of the News.

“It’s worth at least $100 million in real estate exemptions and possibly as much as $170 million for the market-rate condos Ratner plans to build on one site, one housing expert estimated.” It also allows Ratner to charge higher rent for “affordable” housing than a developer is normally allowed. Oh, they know how to work the corners.

These secretly inserted gifts can be added, says the piece, to “The new tax exemptions (atop)…of the $300 million in direct subsidies that city and state officials have already showed on Atlantic Yards.

“There’s more coming, Ratner has applied for a $1.4 billion in state-authorized tax-exempt bonds to finance his 16 high-rise towers.”

Other parts of the deal allow the Ratners to get more dough from tenants also.

Hell, this is standard operating procedures for the wealthy Cleveland family. You’re not talking millions of dollars in New York City. You’re talking hundreds of millions of dollars.

Back home, the PD – without a blink of the eye – ran a piece recently that a number of buildings along Euclid would get city and other subsidies to help them. Help again, that is, for the Ratners.

One of the buildings is the Halle’s building at 1228 Euclid Avenue.

No mention was made by the newspaper that the Halle’s building already has had its share (and more) of subsidies. Subsidies of all kinds.

I guess the Pee Dee is so short of actual reporters these days that they don’t know how to go to the file to check any background.

Back in the 1980s, the Ratners got a 30-year, $7 million UDAG (Urban Development Action Grant) from the city. Along with that the State of Ohio contributed $6 million from its liquor profits (oh, there’s always a lot of loose change in government kitties for special people) and another $10 million in industrial revenue bonds.

All for the Halle’s building.

Now, the Ratners are back in line and the city’s ready to bestow more handouts on the same building. One suspects that the state will be right behind the city with gifts.

What’s interesting about such deals are the quid pro quos.

Members of the family of then Mayor George Voinovich – his administration opened the spigot – seemed to benefit from the Halle’s project. Well, wouldn’t you expect that? Think only George Forbes could play that game?

(An aside: Voinovich escaped Cleveland leaving behind a deader city.  Then he went to the state and left behind corruption and more decline. Now he’s a Senator and look what’s happened to the nation. Lately, he’s been baiting and switching us on the War in Iraq. Opposing the war in talk but voting with Bush for no changes. Do you think he’s breaking on the war with some notion of being an Ohio-necessary “anti-war” Republican on the 2008 ticket?)

Victor Voinovich was hired to be the leasing agent for Halle’s. Victor earned $84,240 for an 11-year lease signed by the then politically powerful Climaco, Climaco, Seminatore & Leftkowitz law firm.

Now, the law firm knew in those days whose bread to butter. So Climaco et al spent $413,000, including $40,000 in carpeting, for its office layout. Of that sum, $90,500 was paid to another firm – oh guess – related to the Voinovich family - George S. Voinovich - the then family architectural business.

Victor also got a commission of $47,762 for a lease for Smythe-Cramer and a $55,000 commission on a Nationwide Advertising company lease, both in the Halle’s building.

Easy go, easy come.

Victor was also named the leasing agent about that time for Tower City, a Forest City/Ratner development.

The Voinovich administration through its economic development director at the time, Andy Udris, insisted to the city council that the $7 million loan would pay off handsomely for the city. The city, said Udris, claimed a share of the profits as part of the deal.

By 1987, unfortunately, the Halle’s building was looking at a $10 million overrun in its fix up. No profits. Not then, not ever.

The Ratners know how to the play the game.

Look carefully and you find that the Ratners charged off part of the salaries of some top officials. No wonder a $10 million overrun.

William Harris of Forest City had a salary of $230,000. Some 30% of the salary was to be charged off on the Halle’s account in the first year with a dropping percentage in future years.

Alan Ellett, then executive VP, was making $340,000. His salary at different percentages of five to 10% a year was charged off for the next five years on the Halle’s account.

In other words, one business – highly government subsidized – help cut the costs of another business, Forest City Enterprises.

These Cleveland vultures also know how to throw a party.

They bought “white linen” napkins for the event at $10 apiece with 1,000 guests, Cleveland’s finest. Sorry you didn’t get an invite.

In case it rained, they bought eight umbrellas at $15.95 each. They charged off hundreds of dollars in water, Minnehaha. Ha, ha.

Also, cocktail party, advertising for “media contacts,” lunches and dinners. All deductible.

They even tried to pawn off the cost of an Ebony Grand Piano at $4,451. The city finally put down its foot. No piano on the public tab.

Of course, this information was available to the Pee Dee but the info was never seen in the pages of our morning mouth.

Cleveland, Cleveland, what a hell of a town! If you can make it here, you can make it anywhere.

 

Too Embarrassing to Not Notice

Will the Plain Dealer ever again consider itself a serious newspaper?

Last Thursday on the Metro Page, the newspaper produced another of its deceptive pieces on the Medical Mart by Joan Mazzolini and Sarah Hollander. It started with a two-line headline: “Should These People Pay to Bring a Medical Mart Here?”

Beneath the headline was a shot of nine young happy people around a table, quaffing up some beverages in a restaurant. Should these people be paying for a convention center with a beverage tax?, the Pee Dee asks.

Now there’s some resourcefulness. No indication is made whether these laughing people even know why their photo is being taken.

Surely, a reporter can find in Cleveland’s impoverished city some people who might object to any increase in any sales taxes. That must be too much trouble and go against the party line. (By the way, all three County Commissioners – the three blind mice – will vote for this tax.)

The Mazzolini-Hollander “article” is 181 words, with nothing new in it and essence of it devoted to a quote by Fred Nance of Squire, Sanders & Dempsey, and hired gun of the usual downtown gang members.

Beneath the fake article are sections citing possible taxes for the Medical Mart and convention center. All of them are regressive taxes.

Judging by the space it gives, the newspaper feels the matter is crucial for the public, yet it adds absolutely no new information to meet the public’s needs.

You’d think maybe the reporters and photographer might show some resourcefulness and seek out some possible opponents or offer even-handed analysis.

Even reporting on the public hearing, Mazzolini leads with, not public comment, but the pitch from the self-interested Medical Mart advocate.

The headline follows the propaganda slant: “Medical Mart executive warns area could lose out of it (should be “if”) it doesn’t act fast.

Let’s, by all means, rush to judgment.

It’s also entertaining to observe editorial page deputy director Kevin O’Brien trying to wend his conservative path on the medical mart issue. Mr. No Tax Increase and Mr. Free Enterprise seems to be having a difficult time backing up his newspaper’s give-away and add more taxes editorial stance.

“I doubt our public officials are driving the hardest possible bargain,” avers our staunch conservative voice. You can do better than that, Kevin.

Don’t blame the pols, Kevin, when you and your newspaper are putting the full court press on them to get it done – no questions asked. Quick and dirty, if possible.

“I’m sick to death,” writes Kevin, “of paying taxes to fund government programs that waste my money.” Yet, as I read the column, Kevin lines up with the downtown gimme boys with only some mealy-mouthed and fake protestations to cover his ass with his bosses.

The Pee Dee today better fits the description I used in 1983...

“It’s like a giant whale, beached in shallow water.

“Too embarrassing not to look at, too big to give it much help, and too obvious to ignore.”

Newspapers are worried about their relevancy in this new day of newer media. Looking at the Plain Dealer, you don’t have to wonder why.

Irrelevancy isn’t a good banner but the Pee Dee seems to be waving it high.

 

“Sicko” Makes You Ashamed of America

I went to see Michael Moore’s “Sicko” and found myself ashamed of and angry at my country.

It screams out the question, “Why do we allow it?”

Life should be so wonderful in a young – and we are still young – nation with all the natural resources and wealth we have.

The movie is about the health system but so much more.

It cries out for us to learn how to live, share, and protect each other, as it is clear it happens in other nations.

We hear a lot about the crudity of inner city youth these days. What about the coarseness of our society with its grasping upper class? Moore brings that home with great impact. His talk with a group of Americans in France instructs us of our serious shortcomings in real living, not the false consumerism here.

Everyone should see “Sicko” and begin to understand what Democracy should be, as described by an interviewed English conservative, I believe, a former Member of Parliament. He contrasts the condition of democracy in the U.S. to elsewhere. Here citizens live in fear of losing jobs and benefits and so much else that they accept so much less. In European nations, people demand and get humane living benefits. They don’t fear vigorous protesting to defend their human and economic rights. The latter is democracy; the other is a mere sham.