One would think the New York Mets and its related companies would be more than gratified at receiving for $1 the Willets Point property acquired by the city for tens of millions of dollars, a taxpayer subsidy of $99 million and the right to construct a 1.4-million-square-foot shopping mall on the Citi Field parking lot, which is part of Flushing Meadows Corona Park, without having to replace parkland or undergo a Uniform Land Use Review Procedure proceeding.
Not so. In addition to the above, they now seek what they claim is a $43 million tax break from the city. When added, the actual value of the Willets Point property is about $250 million, sewer construction costs about $35 million, the Van Wyck Expressway construction costs $66 million and the loss of real estate taxes paid by Willets Point owners over a 25-year period is $42 million.
So the total cost to the city for Willets Point will be about $530 million — a taxpayer subsidy that may break all previous records.
At a time when poverty and homeless levels in this city are increasing, a demand by multibillionaires for $43 million in tax breaks is outrageous.
In seeking a multimillion-dollar tax break, the Mets and its related companies are now qualified for admission to the Chutzpah Hall of Shame. If the Bloomberg administration and the City Council agree to this further outrageous raid on the city treasury, and if Mayor-elect Bill de Blasio and Borough President-elect Melinda Katz remain silent, they should all be charged with malfeasance in office.
Benjamin M. Haber
Flushing
