WPCNR  CAMPAIGN 2007. By John F. Bailey. September 15, 2007 UPDATED 5:40 PM EDT: In a news conference at City Hall this morning incumbent Councilman Arnold Bernstein called his colleagues Benjamin Boykin, Rita Malmud, Dennis Power and Thomas Roach to account for secretly voting to kill the RFQ proposal for station plaza, delaying submission of the half-percent sales tax increase to the legislature, and failing to protest the 85 Court Street Drop In shelter for the homeless for political reasons.

Arnold Bernstein, news conferencing at City Hall today, (center) said, "if you are going to deceive your constituents, then lie BIG in the hopes that if you say it long enough it will be accepted as truth." (Power and Boykin are running in the Democratic Primary Tuesday with Milagros Lequona and Candyce Corcoran against Mr. Bernstein.) He cited as example the council letter to the press last week announcing a 4-vote majority in opposition to the RFQ as evidence that "although they say they are a force for open government, their actions clearly show otherwise."

Bernstein in questions from the media, said he would support including all neighborhoods in making decisions on the railroad station; that he was for the RFQ with that exception. He said he felt development of the station area and the West Side Lexington Avenue strip and Post Road did not have to be "mutually exclusive," (one area at a time), and that he favored increasing income eligibility levels for the affordable housing program, but limiting the size of new apartments to 50 units as the lowest number of units that had to be held to the 10% limit proposed by the council.

Bernstein also said Louis Cappelli's offer to keep the Corner Nook restaurant in business if the council extended the date when affordable housing had to be built for the second Ritz-Carlton tower to open by one year, was an offer Cappelli made "tongue-in-cheek," (not serious.) Rita Malmud, Common Council President has yet to comment to WPCNR on how she as President feels about taking Louis Cappelli up on his offer to save the Nook.

(More details to be published later today