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Of Course: Deputy Mayor Prefers Connecticut Mansion Over 4-Bedroom Manhattan Apartment
By
Garth Johnston
Published Sep 21, 2011
Modified Sep 21, 2011
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By
Garth Johnston
Published Sep 21, 2011
Modified Sep 21, 2011
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Our diminutive billionaire mayor from Boston likes to recruit wealthy folk to come work in his administration, and they seem to like the challenge (we miss your antics, Cathie Black!). But apparently they aren't so big on actually, y'know, living in the Big Apple. Take Robert Steel: he's been our deputy mayor for economic development since August 2010, takes a $1 salary, and has a four-bedroom Chelsea apartment. But as far as Daily News reporters can tell he's really more Greenwich, Connecticut than Greenwich Village. After all, why stay in a luxury apartment near noisy streets when you can relax with your wife in a "five-bedroom, five-bath, 7,438-square-foot manor—tucked into 7 acres of rolling hills?"
While there is nothing wrong with a person wanting to live comfortably, Steel appears to be breaking the rules. City law requires all top city officials to live in the city, unless they've been granted a waiver, and Steel appears to merely be giving that law lip service. Sure, he's got that apartment where he registered to vote last year, but his life is clearly not that of a New Yorker. A car service drives the former Goldman Sachs and Wachovia executive into the city each day (at his own expense).
Other evidence that Steel is not really a Chelsea boy? His dogs are all licensed at the Greenwich clerk's office (when asked about that he told the tabloid "Why would I bring my dogs to New York?" Clearly he has not walked around his "neighborhood" much), Steel apparently still lists his CT address when making campaign contributions (as does his wife) and he only recently got around to getting a New York drivers license (despite the law saying you need to update your license within 10 days of moving here). Luckily there is a really simple solution for Steel: Just ask Bloomie for a waiver. He's already given out 32.
Meanwhile, Steel isn't the only city official whose whereabouts are of interest to the News. Eagle-eyed Juan Gonzalez notes today that Glen (Skip) Funk, who is getting paid $200,000-a-year to help upgrade our 911 system, appears to be a very-long-distance manager. He and his wife live and vote in Florida, nearly 900 miles from Manhattan, but the city says he does have a waiver for it. And for the record? Bloomberg's Bermuda digs are only 769 miles from the city. Anyway, we may not have to worry about Skip Funk much longer though, in July the city announced he was resigning at the end of August (though now his exact final day is up in the air).
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connecticut
glen skip funk
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mayor bloomberg
robert stell
Garth Johnston
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