October 11, 2005
Friends in high places, cont'd
As a candidate for New York mayor in 2001, Freddy Ferrer was an outspoken opponent of public stadium subsidies (I once shared a TV green room with him and his handlers, in fact); as the Democratic mayoral nominee this year, he's been mostly silent on Mayor Michael Bloomberg's $1-billion-and-change tripartite stadium plan. There are plenty of possible reasons why - the Bloomberg plan puts somewhat more of the cost on team owners; Bloomberg would build a new Yankees stadium in Ferrer's home borough of the Bronx, not Manhattan; Ferrer's protege, Bronx borough president Adolfo Carreon, is a firm backer of the Yankees plan - but it's certainly interesting to note the report in today's Newsday that Leo Hindery, chair of the Yanks' cable TV arm, is Ferrer's top fundraiser (and campaign finance manager).
