Powerhouse lobbying firm Kasirer still representing developer Greenland USA regarding both Site 5 and (for now) the platform project

Though Greenland USA may seem a zombie developer (link) regarding the six railyard development sites, expected to be lost in a long-pending foreclosure process, it still has a lobbying contract regarding the so-called "platform project."

State records show that a 2019 contract, amended and extended over the years, has been extended for another year, until the end of 2025, unless terminated by the owner. See below. (That termination option was introduced in 2024, suggesting the precariousness of the effort.)

As in 2024, Greenland is paying a monthly fee of $3,750. In 2022 and 2023, when Greenland was apparently moving forward on the platform needed to develop those sites, and also negotiating to supersize the project to make it more financially viable, the fee was $6,000 per month.

 

From 2019 through 2021, the monthly fee was $4,000, and the contract focused not on the platform sites but rather the B4 tower (18 Sixth Ave.), which Greenland developed jointly with the Brodsky Organization.

 

Vague lobbying focus

ADVOCATE ON GPP DEVELOPMENT

EMPIRE STATE DEVELOPMENT (ESD) ARDEN SOKOLOW

In its latest bimonthly report, for January/February 2025, Kasirer reported, as per usual, "Advocate on GPP [General Project Plan] Development" with Empire State Development (ESD) executive Arden Sokolow. That could encompass a range of project changes.

Regarding Site 5

 

My January 2024 coverage of Kasirer lobbying omitted Site 5, focused only on the platform sites.

However, a separate Site 5 lobbying contract, below, indicates a monthly fee of $4,000/month from 2019-2021, $2,000 from 2022-2023, and $1,250/month starting in 2024.

 

That lowered fee now makes more sense, because last year we learned that, in 2021, Greenland achieved a new interim lease on Site 5 that implied support for a larger project from ESD.

 

Another vague lobbying focus

According to Kasirer's latest bimonthly report, from January/February 2025, their focus is similarly "Advocate on GPP development," which could mean a lot.

ADVOCATE ON GPP DEVELOPMENT

EMPIRE STATE DEVELOPMENT (ESD) ARDEN SOKOLOW