A donation by Syracuse, N.Y., mall developer Robert Congel to former President Bill Clinton's foundation in 2004 may have caused a headache for Sen. Hillary Clinton's confirmation as U.S. secretary of state, but giving to politicians is nothing new for Congel.
The developer has also lobbied for changes to New York law that could benefit his firm's Destiny USA project, the $1.9 billion expansion of an existing mall in Syracuse.
The New York Times reported Saturday that Congel had donated $100,000 to the William J. Clinton Foundation in 2004, around the same time Sen. Clinton was helping to authorize a "green" bond program under which the mall expansion was allocated the authority to sell $1.04 billion of tax-exempt bonds by the Internal Revenue Service. Both Clinton and Congel denied any connection between the donation and the federal legislation.
The Syracuse Industrial Development Agency sold $228 million of tax-exempt bonds backed by payments in lieu of taxes and $97.6 million of taxable bonds in 2007 for the $1.9 billion project, which promises to expand an existing mall, the Carousel Center, into a larger, multiuse, environmentally friendly facility to be known as Destiny USA.
Congel has given generously to state and local politicians on both sides of the aisle for years, according to campaign finance records. Since 2000, he has given $278,640 to politicians and campaigns including former Gov. Eliot Spitzer, a Democrat, and former gubernatorial candidate John Faso and former Gov. George Pataki, both Republicans.
Destiny USA Holdings LLC, a subsidiary of Congel's real estate development firm Pyramid Company of Onondaga, has lobbied the state for some changes that could affect the development's finances as well as its future borrowing. A woman answering the phone at Pyramid said that Congel and others knowledgeable about the project were unreachable yesterday.
In the first six months of last year, Destiny USA paid the lobbying firm Patricia Lynch Associates Inc. $30,000 to lobby for three bills that could provide a tenant for the development as well as additional financing. The firm separately reported that it had spent $27,692 directly lobbying the Legislature and governor's office for those bills.
One bill, A1176/S8527-B, would amend an existing law to establish an upstate tourism council that would be a tenant at Destiny USA. The tourism council would be funded by a 4% sales taxes collected from vendors and operators at the center.
They have also lobbied for two changes to the Empire State Development Corp., also known as the Urban Development Corp. One bill would create a bridge loan program while the other would establish a program to allow use of bonds backed by payments in lieu of taxes for some projects, including certain buildings that have a gold Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design certification.
A group of developers, not just Destiny USA, supports the ESDC bills that would help them during the credit crunch, Patricia Lynch spokesman Darren Dopp said. The bills did not pass the Legislature last year but are expected to be reintroduced this year, he said.
Assemblyman William Magnarelli, D-Syracuse, sponsored the bills. Congel has been a frequent contributor to Magnarelli's political career. Congel donated $11,500 for Magnarelli's failed 2007 bid for Onondaga County Executive, and since 2000 has donated $1,750 to his Assembly campaigns.
Magnarelli's chief of staff, Sue McSweeney, said that there was no quid pro quo between the donations and the bills sponsored by the Assemblyman.
"Absolutely not," she said.
