In a letter dated June 11, State Senator Brian Kavanagh, U.S. Congressman Jerrold Nadler, Manhattan Borough President Gale Brewer, State Assembly members Deborah Glick and Yuh-Line Niou, and City Council member Margaret Chin begin by noting the passage of two laws affecting the composition of the Authority’s board.
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City Council member Margaret Chin and Manhattan Borough
President Gale Brewer
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The first measure, enacted last December, requires that two places on the BPCA’s seven-member board be filled by appointees who reside within the 92 acres of Battery Park City. The second bill (which amended the first) was ratified at the end of May, and requires that these residents have experience is area such “all board members appointed under the provisions of this section shall have relevant real estate, corporate board, financial, legal, urban planning and/or design, architectural, governmental or security experience.”
The June 11 letter goes on to argue that, “to make the Board’s composition consistent with this legislation, we respectfully request two of the three Board members currently serving with expired terms be replaced by residents of Battery Park City, in accordance with the new statute.”
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| State Assembly member Yuh-Line Niou | |
Three of the BPCA’s seven board members are currently serving beyond expired terms. They are chairman Dennis Mehiel (whose term expired December 31, 2015), Hector Batista (whose term formally closed on December 31, 2016), and Donald Cappocia(whose tenure lapsed on February 7, 2016). As a practical matter, board members at State authorities often continue to serve after their terms have expired, until they are reappointed or replaced by the Governor.
Three other BPCA board members, George Tsunis, Louis Bevilacqua, and Catherine McVay Hughes, were appointed in June, 2017, days before the law requiring that Battery Park City residents be appointed to the Authority’s board passed both houses of the State legislature.
“As you know,” the June 11 letter from the elected officials continues, “the Board makes decisions that influence the daily lives of thousands of our constituents, and having residents’ voices on the Board will present an important opportunity for the community to participate in its own governance.”
It concludes, “we are glad that the right of this community to have its voice heard with two seats on the Board has been enshrined in law. In the spirit of that law, we urge you to appoint two residents as soon as possible.”