Luana Green, July 20, 2022

Hi all, 

On Thursday, July 21st , ESD directors will vote to approve the Penn Area General Project Plan (GPP). 

We will hold a rally/press conference on 7/21 at 9am in front of ESD, which is also the Governor’ office: 633 3rd Avenue. PLEASE JOIN US! We need to show a good turnout.

We are told that the Public Authorities Control Board (PACB) is set to review (and vote) on the plan on July 27. 

It is therefore very timely to send letters and make calls now to those elected officials identified in the flyer. 

Here is suggested language as well as bullet points for those making phone calls. (Feel free to use as you see fit. Remember that PACB members can only make determination based on financial soundness of the plan. PACB members cannot rule based on proposal merits, or lack thereof.)Link to Public Authorities Law here. (See section 6)https://www.nysenate.gov/legislation/laws/PBA/51

Dear members of the PACB, I urge you to reject the Penn Area GPP. The project is financially unsound. It would create a funding scheme backed by ghost revenue that may never materialize. It is fiscally irresponsible and puts taxpayers on the hook for possibly billions of dollars.
It is a financial boondoggle laced with generous tax breaks to developer Vornado, one of the largest real-estate companies in the country. 
The plan would only fund up to 12.5% of Penn Station improvements, placing a huge burden on one single community while forcing the state to find additional revenue to complete the necessary funding of the project.

The revenue from the upzoning and from the payments in lieu of taxes (PILOTs) is uncertain, may never materialize or may start to materialize years or decades after funds are needed. The state will be left to guarantee the debt backed by the ghost revenues or borrow to bridge the funding needs.
ESD has not explored nor presented any alternative funding schemes. Municipal finance instruments such as the Environmental Bond Act of 2022 ($4.5B) or the Smart Schools Bond Act of 2014 ($2B) should be explored to provide reliable funds to improve Penn Station. The Governor and the legislature should work to create the Equity Infrastructure Bond Act to ($5B) to provide NY State Commitment to Penn Station improvements.  

It is incumbent on the PACB to be disapprove fiscally and financially unsound proposals, especially those that provide a tax incentive to a major publicly traded real estate corporation that has free access to working capital. 
I respectfully ask that you veto ESD’s GPP for Penn Area. 

Bullet Points: 

• Project is financially unsound
• Fiscally irresponsible and puts tax payers on the hook
• The project may never contribute financially to NY State
• ESD and MTA have not explored (nor presented) any funding alternatives 
• The plan would give a massive tax break to a publicly traded corporation that has access to working capital