Real Estate Conflict Ridden, Non-Resident, Non - Elected Child School Executive Director Sal Fererra Intends to Stay on Roosevelt Island Operating Corp (RIOC) Board of Directors - First Sought Appointment To RIOC Board This Month, June 2011
Image of Maple Tree Group Meeting With Mr. Fererra (hand on chin)
A post earlier today stated:
Mr. Fererra still has not stated publicly whether he will resign or stay on as a RIOC Board member as he had previously promised to do by last Monday.Roosevelt Island Residents Association (RIRA) President Matt Katz just forwarded this response he received from Mr. Fererra:
To the Editor,After receiving the letter, I inquired of Mr. Fererra to confirm if he first sought appointment to the RIOC Board this month - in June. Mr Fererra responded with a "Yes".
I would like to begin by thanking everyone who has called or emailed me regarding my appointment to RIOC. Your thoughts and opinions are deeply appreciated; indeed, they are much needed in order for us to continue to enhance Roosevelt Island together. I also want to address the concerns recently expressed by The Wire regarding my motivations in seeking to be appointed to the RIOC board.
I have rigorously devoted my professional career to education and ethical public service. Over the years I have led or participated in community enhancing projects. These projects were always developed in partnership with the community, very well received and have proven to be highly successful. Not surprisingly, shortly after arriving on Roosevelt Island as the new president of the Child School, I sought to continue my 30+ years of public service. I immediately opened up the facilities of the Child School to residents. I encourage Child School employees and students to become more engaged in the life of our community regardless of whether or not they are full time residents. I also applied in June to be appointed to the RIOC board. I sought appointment hoping that I could, in a more direct way, assist in enhancing the life of our beautiful island. I did not seek to be appointed by the Governor in order to engage in unethical conduct or to promote my own interests or return some phantom political favors.
As a member of the RIOC board, I will work tirelessly to enhance the resources that should be improved or made available to our community. From the very first day I begin my tenure of service on the RIOC board, I will also insist upon a culture of responsiveness and transparency so we can achieve our common cause together. I agree that the voice of the residents on Roosevelt Island is and should remain the most powerful decision-making body on the RIOC board; six out of the nine currently appointed members are residents of the island. The democratic process on the Island remains, and will continue to remain intact. "I will, of course, recuse myself from any RIOC board decision involving the Child School."
The Wire article was correct in saying that I will be doing favors for people. Unfortunately, the article did not specify for whom. So let me state for the record that the only "favors" I will do are favors for the Roosevelt Island community, namely, the New Yorkers who live, study, work and enjoy the beauty of this island. Please remember that we—child and adult, resident, employee and visitors—all contribute to the creation of a vibrant, open and healthy community.
I sincerely look forward to collaborating with everyone to achieve the goals of the community, namely, making Roosevelt Island the best place to live, work and enjoy life.
18 comments :
Leave him alone already! You people ar trying to stress the man out before he even sits in his first Board Meeting. What are you, a bunch of bullies?
His letter is demonstrative of the type of person he is and the type of Board Member he will be. Give the man a chance.
Stop the nonsense, and dumb articles about the Governor and Sal Ferrera. These pictures and video clips are childish!
Establishing "precedent" means nothing if you don't change the law. Right or wrong, this guy was lawfully appointed. If we are to expect successive administrations in Albany to allow us democratically-elected representation for this island, we need to change RIOC's authorizing legislation to require that.
I congratulate Mr, Ferrara for not caving in to the self-serving "demands" of RIRA.
Why is his appointment being labeled "undemocratic"? Why is it being labeled "conflict ridden"? Did anybody in the RIRA ever read what he is saying?
He took the legal channels to pursue his goal of becoming a director in the RIOC board. There is absolutely nothing wrong, illegal, or even undemocratic about this. He promised to recuse himself from any votes that impact his school. That's more than any of the resident directors ever have done.
Unfortunately, I wouldn't be surprised if Mr. Fererra will look down at the RIRA and not care about it anymore because of these childish tantrums the RIRA is throwing. Did you guys see the flyers? Good luck with your protest....
Btw, the track record of the current resident directors is not really that great anyway. Mr. Kalkin, for example, is more fluff than anything else. And what did the others ever do? Oh, yeah. They kicked out one of the best RIOC presidents this island ever had.
Thank you, Mr. Ferrera. I've lived on Roosevelt Island for many years now, and I look forward to seeing you implement your ideas.
Just out of curiosity, do any of the current resident members of the RIOC board run businesses on Roosevelt Island?
Dr. Grimm is a pediatrician with a practice on the Island, as well as serving as Medical Director for the New York Center for Children.
http://www.rioc.com/directors.htm
What's with all the certification titles behind Mr. Shinozaki's name? None of those tech certification have anything to do with his director position. I hope it's just to make fun of Mr. Polivy and all his accountant memberships/certifications. They definitely not make him more qualified to be on the board, that's for sure.
The issue is whether Mr. Ferrera's real estate entanglements as the Executive Director of the Child School, which leases 50 Thousand Square feet of space on Roosevelt Island at an incredibly low $6 sq ft with publicly announced plans for additional Roosevelt Island real estate holdings, constitutes a conflict of interest in his role as a RIOC Director making decisions on the disposition of that real estate.
Mr. Fererra's dual role as RIOC Director and Child School Executive Director is both a conflict of interest in reality and perception and he should resign from the RIOC Board.
This has nothing to do with whether any current Directors operate businesses on Roosevelt Island. To my knowledge only Dr. Grimm does so.
Take a look at the NY State Authorities Budget Office Model Code of ethics and then tell me whether Mr. Ferrera's RIOC appointment is a conflict of interest.
Yes, Rick, I've read the code. Please point out in what way Mr. Fererra violated any of the responsibilities outlined in the document you linked to? The closest I can find is "Directors [...] shall not use or attempt to use their official position [...] to secure unwarranted privileges for themselves, [...]" and "Directors [...] shall not directly or indirectly, make, advise, or assist any person to make any financial investment based upon information available through the director's [...] official position that could create any conflict between their public duties and interests and their private interests."
Do you have any evidence that this will happen or if this has happened in the past? Any evidence whatsoever in regards of his past performances in public positions? The way I read the code none of Mr. Ferrera's affiliations are a stumble block to become a state official. You can cry and complain once he actually does anything that goes against the code of ethics. Until then we have absolutely nothing to complain about. Also, if you read to the end, you will notice that it is suggested to name one of the directors the Ethics Officer. I do not know if the RIOC has one already and if not, maybe that's an angle the RIRA could take.
I don't know that guy besides the things I read about him here and somewhere else. He seems to be a person of ethical character and nothing comes up as a red flag that his appointment should not be made. He has his school, the children, and this island at heart. His past shows that he will be a very capable director. Let's give him a chance. That's what we teach our children, too, no?
Read the ABO Code of Ethics a bit more carefully Yet Another.
The Code of Ethics does not require any bad conduct or past performance issues to be violated. It only requires the appearance that a conflict could occur while carrying out the duties of a Public Authority Director.
Section 1
..."could impair independence of judgment"...
Section 2
"... that could create any conflict between their public duties and interests and their private interests....
Section 3
"would permit the inference that"...
Section 5
"... must conduct themselves at all times in a manner that avoids any appearance that they can be improperly or unduly influenced,"...
Mr. Ferrera's position at the Child School with all of it's RIOC real estate entanglements certainly gives the overwhelming appearance that a conflict of interest exists in Mr. Fererra's appointment to the RIOC Board.
Again, I read it and none of the sections say that he shouldn't be appointed. It just says that he must not do any of these things while holding the position. You guys make the assumption that he will not be able to follow the ethics code. You really think that Mr. Fererra cannot stay fair, balanced, and ethical while he is on the board as well as running a school on Roosevelt Island? Do you think that most of the issues he is going to bring up or decisions he is going to vote on will be good for his school only and bad for the rest of the island?
I must ask again... how is this so much different from some other directors on the board who also have interest in some of the decisions the RIOC makes because it could make them a lot of money down the road (privatization). How about Dr. Grimm who is also running a business on this island. How is she different than Mr. Fererra.
This is not about ethics, is it? This is about principals. This is about the fact that Mr. Fererra was not voted for by the residents (the very few who actually do cast votes).
Yes, because we should all take legal analysis from internet comment trolls who don't even use their name.What educational background do you have to back this up? Grimm doesn't have an office in any of RIOC's properties. Sal does and he wants even more and the places he wants is RIOC property.
My legal analysis is just as valid as Rick's, Matt's, or yours, e3.
Your last sentence, e3, probably boils down the issue to one point: "Sal [...] wants even more and the places he wants is RIOC property." You guys don't trust Mr. Fererra. I have no idea why but maybe somebody could explain to us what evidence you have to backup those fears you have. Let me hear it. What has he done and said in the past that you don't want to give him a chance?
e3e6b174-a27b-11e0-bfd5-000bcdcb5194 speaks of Internet Comment Trolls who don't use their name... What kind of name is he going by?
Duh!!!!
By the way, my son is an honor student who will be going to College on a scholarship and he couldn't get a summer job here, but Fay Christian's son always does. Anyone looking into that?
yes my son has gone to rioc for a summer job for the last 10 years , and he never gets called for a job by rioc , its aLWAYS SAME KIDS GETTING THE jobs what is the rira going to do about coming up with a fair way for kids to get a job for maybe one summer
hang in there sal do not give up . 99 percent of the people on the island ,back you ,the rira means nothing to the people of this island .
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