Electric Zoo Lobbying Mayor de Blasio Aides For Randall's Island Return After Fiascle

Two officers stand watch at the Ward's Island footbridge  the day the city finally cancelled the event in the wake of two deaths, a rape, and after nineteen people were treated for drugs,  and  31 people were arrested.   (Photos: Geoffrey Croft/NYC Park Advocates) 

The NYPD blanketed Randall's Island after the Electric Zoo event was abruptly cancelled. 

Organizers of the concert have hired high-powered lobbyist Mike McKeon and Patrick Jenkins to lobby Mayor de Blasio's aides in an attempt to make a 2014 return.

Randall's Island

By Geoffrey Croft

The organizers of the controversial Electric Zoo rave event have been quietly lobbying Mayor de blasio's top aids in an effort to be allowed back on Randall's Island.

Organizers hired high-powered lobbyist Mike McKeon, whose firm, Mercury Public Affairs, raised $32,520 for Mayor de Blasio’s campaign and inauguration to secure a permit after last years debacle according to the New York Daily News.

Two concertgoers died from overdoses, nineteen other attendees were treated,  a 16-year-old girl was raped,   and thirty-one people were arrested including two felonies over two days of the planned three-day dance music rave festival.

Arrest charges ranged from drug sales, disorderly conduct, resisting arrest and possession of controlled substances.   A lack of security and screening for under age concert goers also came under fire from several sources working at the event.

Electric Zoo area after the cancellation. Randall's Island's largest unprogrammed area of the park has been allowed to be converted into commercial uses for up to five months a year by the Randall's Island Park Alliance in cooperation with the city.

The 16-year-old teen woke up on the first day of the three day event under a van in a parking lot with her pants undone and bruises and scratches on her legs.  Medical personnel at Cornell Medical Hospital later determined she was sexually assaulted.

Electric Zoo’s Long Island City-based organizer, Made Event, hired its own doctor and ambulances so “they wouldn’t have to call 911, which would bring the cops,’’ according to published reports. 

The city finally cancelled the event on the last day in the wake of the incidents. 

“Due to serious health risks, the Electric Zoo music festival on Randall’s Island on Sunday, September 1st has been cancelled," the city said in a statement. 

"The City recommended cancellation and the event promoters have agreed.”

Electric Zoo co-founder Mike Bindra, 44, the former manager the drug-plagued Twilo club in Chelsea,  also employed a private ambulance outside the club.   The club was shut down by the city in 2001 after unconscious patrons were found hidden by employees and several fatal ODs.  City officials charged that Twilo used its own private ambulances for overdoses to remain off the NYPD radar. A lawsuit alleged that management hid dozens of sick patrons rather than calling for help.  

After the debacle, Mayor Bloomberg praised Mr. Bindra.

In November SFX Entertainment announced it had acquired Made Event the creators of Electric Zoo Festival.

(from l) Mike Bindra,  Aimee Boden - President & Park Administrator of the Randall's Island Park Alliance RIPA -  Bindra's wife - Laura Tigz De Palma, and Anne Wilson,  Director of Planning & Public Funding for RIPA.  Bindra and his wife Laura are the founders of the Electric Zoo.  RIPA reportedly received a $600,000 fee from event organizers.  (Image: NY Daily News)

Elecric Zoo came on the heels of another controversial event held a few months earlier in the same location, Governors Ball which jeopardized public safety and wreaked havoc on the field.  

City officials decided to allow the concert to go on under tropical-storm conditions and  despite a severe weather advisory. 

Twenty-eight acres of public parkland were destroyed,  turned into a mud bowl when more than 100,000 feet combined with torrential rains from Tropical Storm Andrea demolished the giant lawn after the city refused to cancel the concert.

In a rare public airing of differences between the City and the Randall's Island Park Alliance,  Manhattan Parks commissioner  Bill Castro said they regretted not canceling the Governors Ball amid such inclement weather.

"We'll consider it a learned lesson," he told the Wall Street Journal.

Organizers of the Ball however,  along with Aimee Boden,  Executive Director of the Alliance and a Parks Department employee,  disagreed with Mr. Castro.

Apparently the incessant coverage of the impending Tropical Storm Andrea the week leading up to the event was not cause enough for concern, or even a tip off to the possible storm conditions or potential public safety hazzards for the organizers or the city,  to insist the event be cancelled earlier. 

Tom Russell,  a partner in Founders Entertainment,  said heavy rain or extreme mud weren't reasons to halt the festival. 

"There's not much planning you can do for six inches of rain in 36 hours," he said.

The  Randall's Island Park Alliance received  $ 600,000 dollar fee for the event.

The field was closed to the public for months and some subsequent events were canceled. 

Bloomberg LP's annual rental of the public park land for his lavish corporate company party had to be rescheduled later later in the summer. 

The Electric Zoo music festival is lobbying to return Randalls Island after being shut down last year when two college students died of a drug overdose and a host of other incidents. 

Promoters of a Randalls Island electronic music festival — unplugged by the city last year after two drug deaths — are pressing top mayoral aides for a permit to stage the event again, according to the NY Daily News.   

Organizers of the Electric Zoo hired high-powered lobbyist Mike McKeon, whose firm, Mercury Public Affairs, raised $32,520 for Mayor de Blasio’s campaign and inauguration. 

McKeon and another Electric Zoo lobbyist, Patrick Jenkins, recently reached out to key de Blasio aides, contacting Emma Wolfe, director of intergovernmental affairs; Dominic Williams, chief of staff to First Deputy Mayor Anthony Shorris, and Avi Fink, Wolfe’s deputy, city lobbyist disclosure records show.  

The lobbyists are seeking a Parks Department permit so their client, EZ Festivals LLC, can operate the huge techno-music event at Randalls Island over Labor Day weekend.  Last year, the city shut down the final day of the show after college students Jeffrey Ross, 23, and Olivia Rotondo, 20, died from overdoses of a dangerous drug known as Molly.  

There were four other nonlethal overdoses during last year’s festival, and critics blasted event organizers for lax security that allowed drugs to flow freely.  

“I’m disappointed that the city is even considering the application considering what happened last year,” said Marina Ortiz, of E. Harlem Preservation Inc., whose neighborhood abuts the festival.   

Geoffrey Croft, of the NYC Park Advocates, said that last year the city ignored pleas to shut down the party during a wild electrical storm on the first day of the three-day event.  

“They’re back, and they’ve  not be allowed anywhere near our public parks,” Croft said.  

De Blasio’s press secretary Phil Walzak declined to comment, and Parks Department spokesman Arthur Pincus said the application “is under review.” 

Electric Zoo is already claiming online it has two “expected” dates on Randalls Island in late August. 

Mercury’s Stefan Friedman emphasized Tuesday that organizers have already taken steps “to bolster what was already an extremely robust safety apparatus.” 

Read More:

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New York Daily News - September 9, 2013 - By Barbara Ross  

Debate Flares Over Private Funding for New York's Public Parks

Some Question Whether Parks Should Be Reserved for Private Events

Wall Street Journal - June 28, 2013 - By Josh Dawsey 

Electric Zoo Attendees Stricken At Randall’s Island Rave - $600,000 Paid To Randall's Island Park Alliance

A Walk In The Park - September 4, 2013

Clueless Bloomberg Defends Electric Zoo Founder After Deaths, Rape and 31 Arrests at Event
A Walk In The Park - September 4, 2013  

Electric Zoo Founder Mike Bindra Once Ran Drug Club Shut By City After Fatal ODs
A Walk In The Park -  September 3, 2013

City Probing Randall's Island Electric Zoo Drug Deaths - NYPD Assisting
A Walk In The Park -  September 3, 2013

Electric Zoo Debacle - Teen Sexually Assaulted - 2 Deaths, 31 Arrests
At Randall's Island Music Festival
A Walk In The Park -  September 1, 2013 - By Geoffrey Croft 

Controversial Randall's Island Tennis Concession Looking to Expand

Players enjoy court time at fancy tennis center at Randalls Island Park. (Photo: Craig Warga/New York Daily News)

The Sportime Tennis facility on Randall's Island is looking to add nine courts to its existing 20 as part of a $ 5 million to $ 7 million proposed expansion. Although located only a few hundred yards from the South Bronx, the facility charges exorbitant fees. Critics of the pay-to-play concession have long complained they are being allowed to operate a private business on what is supposed to be public parkland at the exclusion of the public.

Sportime charges between $72 to $105 per hour for indoor courts, on top of fees of $500-750 to join, in addition to monthly dues as high as $ 286 for a family. (They have more than 2,000 members) Tennis lessons run as high as $ 5,950 for one hour lessons for 34 weeks. One camp charges $ 500 a day for non-members (transportation and food is extra).

Players at the John McEnroe Academy pay between $3,600 to $4,800 for 34 weeks of two-hour lessons, according to an Associated Press article last year.

Sportime members also get discounted court time and the right to book courts before nonmembers and enjoy access to "members only" locker rooms with steam baths and a massage therapist.

The enormous 160,000 sq. ft., $ 19 million dollar project - spearheaded by the Randall's Island Sport Foundation (RISF), Michael Bloomberg is a long-time board member - avoided ULURP which is required for a “new building of more than 15,000 square feet ... located on park land.”

Sportime advertised a "20 thousand Sq. feet of club house and support facilities include a performance-training center, comfortable lounge areas providing fill viewing into all the courts, full-service locker rooms for adults and juniors, a pro-shop, a bar/cafe, class rooms and more."

"The new facility will also feature a unique and intimate 4,000 seat tennis stadium, specifically designed to house SPORTIME"S World Team Tennis franchise, The NY Sportimes," a Sportime poster read.

Officials have repeatedly claimed that Uniform Land Use Review Procedure (ULURP) was not required because a facility already existed at this location. This is inaccurate. The current facility does not occupy a single inch of a former tennis facility's foot print. A much smaller tennis facility was in a different location.

Sportime also got a great deal on the electric bill. According to the license agreement between Island Tennis, L.P. d/b/a Sportime, the RISF, and the City, the "Licensee's sole responsibility

with respect to electric costs shall be $ 655 per month."

Long-time Bloomberg friend Elizabeth Smith - head of DPR Revenue and Marketing - head of Sportime, Claude Okin, and RISF's head Aimee Boden signed the amended October 13, 2007 agreement.

Adding to the controversy, tennis concession fees - expected to be $ 1 million dollars this year alone - are being diverted from the city general funds to the Randall's Island Sport Foundation under a December 31, 2001 agreement with the city. RISF collected approx. $750,000 last year.

RISF is expect to pocket an additional $ 400,000- $ 500,000 annually if the project is approved according to Sportime. - Geoffrey Croft

The $ 5 to $ 7 million dollar proposal seeks to add nine additional courts in this parking lot located directly across the street. The enormous new tennis facility which had NOT previously existed at this location was allowed to be built last year avoided going through the Uniform Land Use Review Procedure (ULURP). Officials have repeatedly claimed that ULURP was not required because a facility already existed at this location. This is inaccurate. Ironically the proposal to build these new courts will go through the review process. (Photos: Geoffrey Croft/NYC Park Advocates) Click on images to enlarge

Randall's Island

Park and community advocates are raising a racket over the continued privatization of public parkland on Randalls Island, according to the New York Daily News.

The private company that runs a swanky tennis center at Randalls Island Park has announced plans to expand the facility at no cost to taxpayers.

But advocates claim poor players from the South Bronx and East Harlem won’t benefit, because the center operates like a high-priced club, with members shelling out thousands of dollars for lessons and perks.

“The public is losing access to Randalls Island inch by inch and year by year,” said Marina Ortiz of East Harlem Preservation, who in 2009 helped defeat a $50 million deal between the city and private schools for field time at the park.

(Photos: Geoffrey Croft/NYC Park Advocates) Click on images to enlarge

Built and paid for by Sportime, a company with clubs in the Hamptons, the $18 million tennis center opened in 2009 and boasts 20 indoor and outdoor courts, a cafe and a tennis academy run by pro legend John McEnroe.

Sportime now wants to build nine more courts, a $5 million to $7 million project, said spokesman Ben Schlansky. It pays a percentage of its revenue to the Randalls Island Sports Foundation, the nonprofit that manages the park, but none directly to the city.

The new courts would generate an additional $400,000 to $500,000 per year for the park and “allow Sportime to offer additional adult and youth programs,” said Schlansky, adding that Sportime plans to build on an existing parking lot.

Sportime has vowed to renovate surrounding property as part of the project and Schlansky said four of the nine new courts would be reserved for the public from May to October.

But the tennis players who live nearest to Randalls Island will be shut out from the rest of the courts, said Geoffrey Croft of NYC Park Advocates.

Courts rent for $72 to $105 per hour for non-members, more than most Bronx and Harlem players can afford. Sportime members pay $500 to $700 to join plus monthly dues. “The city is giving away public parkland for private business,” said Croft.

The existing facility was never approved by Community Board 11 in East Harlem but the expansion proposal will undergo the official land use review process. Board 11 will hold a public hearing for December or January, said Matthew Washington, chairman.

He said Board 11 will likely demand more scholarships for East Harlem youngsters.

“Tennis is often seen as an exclusive activity,” he said, noting that Sportime’s license agreement with the city is also under review. “We want to make sure the facility is accessible to everyone.”

Sportime has already provided “hundreds of hours” of free tennis to poor, “under-resourced” children and doled out $300,000 in financial aid, Schlansky said. It reserves 50% of outdoor court time for the general public.

But Councilwoman Melissa Mark-Viverito (D-East Harlem) called the privatization of Randalls Island “a concern.”

Read More:

Advocates slam new bid to expand swanky tennis center on Randalls Island

Sportime plans $7 million project on parkland

New York Daily News - November 8 2011 - By Daniel Beekman

Plan To Expand Randall's Island Tennis Courts May Bubble Over

NY 1 - November 8, 2011 - By Rebecca Spitz

Randall's Island Tennis Court Expansion Worries Advocates

DNAinfo - November 7, 2011 - By Jeff Mays

Private Tennis Club Operating On Randall's Island - Critics Charge

A Walk In The Park - January 26, 2011

Randall's Island $ 120 Million Ballfield's Go Largely Unused - Private Sports Camp Scraped

Built at enormous taxpayer expense, as expected the fields go largely unused during the Summer when the public would normally be expected to use them the most. Critics of the Randall's Island Sports Field development plan have long pointed out the lack community based planning and consultation before investing these funds. (Photos: Geoffrey Croft/NYC Park Advocates) Click on images to enlarge.

Manhattan

On April 27th, in a subject line, IMG Academies - Not Moving Forward this Summer, Randall's Island Sports Foundation head Aimee Boden sent an email out informing people that a pay-to-play private sports camp had been cancelled.

" I am sorry to announce that IMG Academies recently informed us that they have decide not to hold a summer sports camps ( IMG Academies) in New York this summer. It is our understanding that it was a business decision based on their low enrollment numbers and finances. "

The deal called for Florida-based IMG Academies to operate a private sports camp on Randall's Island after donating $200, 000 to the Randall's Island Sports Foundation. The camp was to be given exclusive access during the day to approximately twelve fields during the Summer for six weeks. Costing between $ 495 - $ 895 per week per child, IMG was to offer soccer, lacrosse, football and baseball. They projected a capacity of hosting 100 children per sport per week. But plans fell through in April, with IMG citing low enrollment.

In a January 13th, 2011 letter to Melissa Mark- Viverito Chair of the Parks and Recreation Committee, Parks Commissioner Adrian Benepe cited the low traffic to justify plans for a private sports camp.

"Fields on Randall's Island have gone largely unused during weekday daytime hours in July and August, and thus availability should not be an issue," he wrote.

The Parks Commissioner agreed to allow IMG to bypass getting a concession agreement for the "pilot program."

"With regard to how the arrangement shall work, there will be no concession agreement. Just like any other park user, IMG will apply to Parks for field permits."

The Parks Commissioner went to pains to avoid the appearance of a pay-to-play scheme.

"With regard to IMG donating to RISF, while we should all hope and expect that IMG will support the community and RISF by making a generous contribution toward park maintenance, there is no agreement that obligates them to make such a donation," the Commissioner wrote.

"That is not accurate," said a city source familiar with the agreement. "The deal was always contingent upon them (RISF) getting a "donation." – Geoffrey Croft

The City installed the largest concentration of artificial turf fields in the country in order to accommodate the private school pay-to-play scheme. (The deal was struck down by two judges) Heat and odor are just two reasons sited for the lack of use, poor planning to accommodate community needs, and a lack of access to the island, are among the others.

If you build it, they will come - but not to Randalls Island.

Dozens of new ballfields in the sprawling park beneath the RFK-Triborough Bridge went unused last summer by the kids who need them most, the city parks boss admits, according to the New York Daily News.

And with school almost out for summer, advocates are complaining the $120 million revamp of Randalls Island Park in early 2010 created a playground for the rich and took crucial dollars from neighborhood ballfields.

Parks Commissioner Adrian Benepe cited the low traffic earlier this year to justify plans for a private sports camp.

"Fields on Randalls Island have gone largely unused during weekday daytime hours in July and August, and thus availability should not be an issue," he wrote City Councilwoman Melissa Mark-Viverito in January.

The deal called for Florida-based IMG Academies to operate the camp on Randalls Island after donating $200,000 to the Randalls Island Sports Foundation. But plans for the $895-a-week camp fell through in April, with IMG citing low enrollment.

Mark-Viverito (D-East Harlem/Bronx) slammed the pricey park rehab, claiming thousands of trees were cut down to make way for the artificial turf fields.

"Why would you build so many fields and then have a problem in terms of utilization?" she asked. "It was shortsighted and now we're paying the price."

"From day one, we were concerned there was no need to build so many" new fields, said Geoffrey Croft of NYC Park Advocates. "Now that has come to fruition. The result is the fields are empty."

The park boasts fancy golf and tennis centers, but no basketball courts, he added.

During the rehab, the city took heat for a $2.2 million-per-year pay-to-play scheme involving Manhattan private schools. It was struck down in court after East Harlem and Bronx community groups sued.

"The fields were built mostly to accommodate the private schools," Croft said. And Marina Ortiz, of East Harlem Preservation, called the park "a private playground ... designed to bring in revenue."

There's a move afoot now to try and spread the word about what's in the park. Randalls Island fields go unused partly because they are isolated and more people need to be made aware of the space, said Frances Masrota of Manhattan Community Board 11.

Access Denied. 10-year-old children don't normally apply for permits, nor should they be required to. Ballfields used for pick-up play are the most utilized by the public yet the policy on Randall's Island prohibits such uses.

Read More:

Ballfields at $120 million Randalls Island largely unused, not attracting neighborhood kids

New York Daily News - June 14, 2011 - By Daniel Beekman

Private Tennis Club Operating On Randall's Island - Critics Charge

The Bloomberg administration allowed a $19 million dollar private tennis club to be built on Randall's Island. Sportime charges $72 to $105 per hour for indoor courts, on top of fees of $500-750 to join, and monthly dues paid by its 2,000 members. The December 31, 2001 agreement between the City and the Randall's Island Sports Foundation (RISF) allows the license fees to be paid to the (RISF) instead of to the City's general fund. RISF collected approx. $750,000 last year. The project - spearheaded by RISF - avoided ULURP which is required for a “new building of more than 15,000 square feet ... located on park land.” (Photo: Warga/NY Daily News)

Randall's Island

The city's elite are holding court at a swanky tennis center on Randalls Island, with members shelling out more than $1,000 a year for perks, shutting out poor players from the South Bronx and East Harlem, critics charge, according to the New York Daily News.

Park advocates and local leaders from both sides of the East River have been slamming the Parks Department for allowing a private club to operate on public parkland, and skipping the public review process.

They want Parks to review its contract with Sportime on Randalls Island and force the club, which opened 18 months ago, to lower its rates.

"It is outrageous that our public land has been sold to the highest bidder," said Marina Ortiz of East Harlem Preservation.

The facility is generating cash for the Randalls Island Sports Foundation, the nonprofit that manages the park, but none for the city's depleted coffers.

Sportime charges $72 to $105 per hour for indoor courts, on top of fees of $500-750 to join, and monthly dues paid by its 2,000 members.

"No one I know can afford those rates," said Ortiz.

Sportime members get discounted court time and the right to book courts before nonmembers. They also enjoy access to "members only" locker rooms with steam baths and a massage therapist.

"This private club is for wealthy New Yorkers and private schools," said Geoffrey Croft of New York City Park Advocates.

Councilwoman Melissa Mark-Viverito (D-East Harlem) called the perks "ridiculous."

"What benefits are there for the average Joe off the street?" she said.

Croft said Parks could force Sportime to change its membership system or even revoke the club's contract.

Sportime rents court time to Manhattan private schools. The club's shuttle bus stops only on the upper East Side.

In 2006, private schools offered funding for new ball fields on Randalls Island in exchange for exclusive field time, and advocates blocked the deal arguing Parks bypassed the city's public review process.

Boden said the review was unnecessary for Sportime because there already were tennis courts on Randalls Island.

But Croft said those courts were located elsewhere and noted that the process is required for buildings over 15,000 square feet, such as the tennis club.

The enormous new tennis facility which had NOT previously existed at this location was allowed to be built avoided ULURP. (Photo: Geoffrey Croft/NYC Park Advocates) Click on image to enlarge

Read More:

Tennis, anyone (rich)? It's advantage wealthy at swanky Randalls Island club

New York Daily News - January 25, 2011 - By Daniel Beekman