Gifford Miller Lashes Out At Unfair Treatment of NYC

Gifford Miller, speaker of the New York City Council, lashed out at the unfair treatment that New York City receives from the State and Federal governments.

Speaking at the Construction Industry Breakfast Forum, cosponsored by New York Construction News and the New York Building Congress Inc., Miller said that New York City cannot continue to be the "cash cow" for the rest of the state and country and called on Albany to pass the commuter tax.

Citing Medicare as an example, Miller pointed out that there are numerous federal programs that are mandated but are not funded by the federal government.

"Our entire income tax receipts are $5 billion," said Miller. "New York City has to foot the entire $4 billion cost of Medicare."

Miller also said that New York was getting stiffed on security money. "The federal government promised us $33 million in security funds. Operation Atlas is costing us more that $5 million a week."

"We are always at a disadvantage in every funding formula in Albany," Miller explained. Elaborating on the unfair treatment from Albany, Miller pointed out that of seven empowerment zones set up in New York State after the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks, none have been set up in the city.

Ward Pushes for Filtration Plant in The Bronx

The General Contractors Association of New York Inc. and the New York Building Congress Inc. joined forces recently to provide a forum for Christopher Ward, commissioner of the New York City Department of Environmental Protection, to present his case for the building of water filtration plant under the Mosholu Golf Course in Van Cortland Park.

Addressing a breakfast audience of several hundred contractors at Club 101 at 101 Park Avenue, Ward argued that the Bronx park is the best site for the filtration plant, which is mandated by the federal government's Clean Water Act.

The two other possible sites are in Mount Pleasant in Westchester County, where the city owns 30 acres, and at 207th Street on the Harlem River. Ward said that building the plant in Mount Pleasant would not only take construction jobs out of the city, it would mean that city residents would have to "pay millions in property taxes every year to Westchester County, a wealthy suburb." He called the Harlem River site, with a need for extensive pile work and pumping, "an engineering nightmare."

The Mosholu community has long opposed the building of the $1.5 billion water plant in Van Cortland Park, despite the DEP's promise to put the plant underground and restore the golf course after construction is completed in five years.

Ward went further in his talk to the GCA and Building Congress, pledging to use DEP money to improve parkland in the Bronx. "The size of this project allows us to be creative with water money," he said. "The link between water and parks is a historic one. What would Central Park be without the reservoir?"

In response to a question from former Bronx Assemblyperson Israel Ruiz, Ward said the DEP would be willing to "make a legally binding commitment" to improve parks in the Bronx in exchange for community support for the plant.

Richard Anderson, president of the Building Congress, and Frank McArdle, managing director of the GCA, urged their members to pressure the state legislature to support building on the Mosholu site.

AGC Responds to Criticism of Post-War Iraq Contracts

The Associated General Contractors of America (AGC) has said that the contracts awarded for reconstruction work in Iraq followed proper procurement policy.

In a letter to Representatives Henry Waxman and John Dingell, AGC Chief Executive Officer Stephen Sandherr said: "Your [Waxman's and Dingell's] letter to the General Accounting Office ... regarding contracts for the protection of oil wells and for repairing Iraq's infrastructure piqued our interest. We have begun to ask the same questions ... While it appears that GAO will conduct an in-depth investigation ... our initial observation is that appropriate procurement policies have been followed."

Sandherr continued, "Admittedly, the fact that only a handful of firms were invited to bid on these projects raises concerns. However, our experience demonstrates that there are very few American firms that have the capacity, expertise and wherewithal to absorb the overhead and scope of the work that will be contracted for in post-war Iraq."