Green Room

Zuccotti Park owners ‘threatened’ by pols over planned cleanup

posted at 2:45 pm on October 14, 2011 by

It appears the decision to bag this morning’s cleanup of Zuccotti Park wasn’t merely largesse on the part of the Brookfield Office Properties, which owns the park.

The Associated Press quotes New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg as having said during his weekly radio show:

My understanding is that Brookfield got lots of calls from many elected officials threatening them and saying … ‘We’re going to make your life more difficult.’

My copy of Rules for Radicals is on loan, so I’m afraid I can’t quote you the specific chapter where Saul Alinksy advocates using your friends in high places to effect the illusion of populist will.

Putting aside entirely the strong arm tactics on behalf of a supposedly “grass roots” initiative, doesn’t allying with the political power base run counter to everything the Wall Street Occupiers claim to stand for?

The Blaze asks the question this way:

If the Occupiers [sic] friends can control a massive multinational corporation (Brookfield), a powerful billionaire mayor, and defy the largest, most well-organized police department in the country, what will they consider outside their reach?

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It wouldn’t surprise me to learn that the W.H. had a hand in this. Their energy department recently gave $180 million to a Brookfield company (GraniteWind) part of Brookfield Renewable Power. Perhaps they were reminded of this generosity (kinda a twist on the old let me make you an offer you can’t refuse routine). There are many links available on this topic. Here’s a randomly chosen one:

Unlike other DOE loan guarantee programs, Granite’s guarantee is backed by funds from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009.

The debt financing includes a 20-year, $120 million bond — about $40 million in direct cash grants — which kicks in at the end of the year when the project is scheduled to go live. Also included in the funding package is a letter of credit of up to $20 million, our source explains.

Another write up here at this NH based blog.

Buy Danish on October 14, 2011 at 8:24 PM