Among contributors to Fix the City, super PAC backing Andrew Cuomo's mayoral candidacy, is... Bruce Ratner

So, original Atlantic Yards developer Bruce Ratner is helping--a bit--to "Fix the City," the super PAC backing former Gov. Andrew Cuomo for Mayor, and raising money from various corporate bigwigs.

The former Forest City Ratner CEO and Chairman, now known more as a philanthropist and advocate, nonetheless identified himself as a real-estate developer in his May 8 contribution of $36,000. 

Why that unusual figure? Probably because it's "twice chai." 

It's well less than that contributed by others, many of whom have active business in the city.

Why'd he even give? Well, he's not out of the real-estate game, given personal holdings, and as Chairman of the Museum of Jewish Heritage, where Cuomo is listed as an Honorary Chair, it's wise to stay connected.

Update: Ratner has a history of support for Cuomo. For example, in 2014,, Ratner and his then-wife, Pamela Lipkin, gave a total of $29,000 to Gov. Cuomo's re-election campaign. After all, he controlled Empire State Development (ESD), the state agency overseeing and shepherding Atlantic Yards, which was about to approve changes to the Atlantic Yards plan.

Not long before that,  Forest City Ratner gave $25,000 to a Housekeeping account run by the New York State Democratic Committee, to the benefit of Cuomo.

Big ambitions for PAC

As the New York Times reported Feb. 26, Fix the City aims to raise up to $15 million. By May 13, it had raised more than $8.7 million, already a record, according to Politico.

As of today, Fix the City has raised more than $9 million and spent more than $4.9 million, focusing on TV and digital advertising. It's all about name recognition, especially for less-informed voters.

No wonder Cuomo's rivals in the Democratic primary are allying against him, recommending he not be included in ranked-choice voting. Gothamist noted that the PAC "has collected at least $410,000 from real estate executives and companies currently being sued by the city that Cuomo hopes to lead."

The leading contributor is Door Dash, spending $1 million to (take your pick) advance its interests or support "leaders who prioritize practical, pro-local economy solutions."

The real-estate angle

Among those giving $250,000 are a host of real-estate firms or executives, including Two Trees and RXR's Scott Rechler, as well as the Build New York Fund of the Laborers International Union of North America. The New York City District Council of Carpenters gave $100,000.

Note that the building trades are allied with Cirrus Workforce Housing, which is aiming to take over the six Atlantic Yards/Pacific Park railyard development sites, and who likely have Cuomo's ear.

Fix the City's TV and digital ads, which portray a city in crisis but promise improvement, including "more cops on the subways" and more (undefined) "affordable housing," are here.