As a candidate last year, Mayor Eric Adams denied being a co-owner of a Brooklyn co-op with a close friend – claiming he had given her his shares more than a decade ago.
He did not disclose the existence of the one-bedroom apartment on Prospect Place, or its 50% stake in it, in financial disclosure forms filed as President of the Brooklyn Borough at least by -2016 to 2020.
But last fall, the day before the general election, Adams changed his story completely – he amended his disclosure forms for all those years to admit that he kept half of the shares in the stock market. co-operative with a “good friend,” Sylvia Cowan. , a review of records by THE CITY shows. He did not publicly disclose the change at the time.
The change in Adams’ narrative came on Wednesday as the city’s Conflict of Interest Board issued financial disclosure forms for city officials covering the year 2021.
Adams’ amended wording contradicts the story he told THE CITY in early June last year, days before the June 22 Democratic primary where he would eventually win by less than 7,200 votes.
On Wednesday, Adams failed to answer multiple questions directly from the press about his co-op ownership. But spokesman Fabien Levy reiterated Adams’ past statements that ownership had been “transferred” to Cowan years ago.
However, Levy admitted that ownership has not yet been “fully transferred,” and THE CITY confirmed that Adams still owns a 50% stake in the apartment.
Adams is still a co-op co-owner in Prospect Heights, Brooklyn.
Levy claimed that the failure to submit proper documentation was due to the actions of Adams’ former accountant, adding, “Once he got a new accountant, the mayor realized that not all the proper paperwork was filled in. past and that new act. it had not been presented by the other owner of the property. “
Levy said the financial disclosure forms were amended after Adams “proactively and personally called COIB before he took office and asked what amendments had to be made to past files.” And he stated that Adams has not received any rental income from the property since 2007, when Adams said the transfer was initiated.
Shifting Story
On June 15, 2021, THE CITY reported evidence that Adams continued to participate in the unit. At that time, he insisted that he had given his shares to Cowan back in 2007, and provided a letter to that effect dated February 9, 2007. To see also : ‘Badger Books’ on the way to Stoughton Education stoughtonnews.com. Cowan did not sign the letter, although the signature of Cowan ‘Adams is there.
Eric Adams’ letter states that he transferred his shares to a free Brooklyn cooperative in 2007.
THE CITY found records indicating its continued ownership and noted that it had never filed a gift tax form with the IRS as required for such a transaction. In response, Adams blamed Cowan for not filing paperwork that he said would set the record.
His story did not change until November 1, the day before the general election, when he quietly tabled amendments to the disclosure forms of the Brooklyn borough president dating back to -at least until 2016, according to the COIB.
The original disclosure forms that Adams submitted for 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019 and 2020 are no longer available on the Conflict of Interest Board’s website but have been obtained from THE BELT. In each of those years, there is no reference to the Prospect Place co-op on the original forms.
In the amended forms, his ownership of the unit appears at once for each of those years. It also appears on its 2021 form, which was released Wednesday.
COIB said the amended forms were posted online “a few days” after they were submitted – suggesting they were made public only after the general election.
Multiple years of amended disclosure raise questions about the truth of his original files.
As THE CITY was asking about co-op ownership, Cowan asked the co-op board for approval to transfer Adams’ share of ownership to it in May 2021 – and received it. But she never filed paperwork to complete the transfer, according to a source familiar with the co-op’s operations.
Adams, who has served in the NYPD for over 20 years and has earned a master’s degree, also owns a 4-unit townhouse in Bedford-Stuyvesant and is a co-owner of a co-op in Fort Lee, N.J., along with his partner, Tracey Collins. .
Cowan bought an apartment in the same building as Fort Lee, THE BELT reported last year.
Tax Errors
The financial disclosures required by the city government are not the only files Adams has had to amend in recent years. Read also : Branches of local libraries are becoming more high-tech and offering services such as the use of 3D printers..
Last year, Adams amended his federal tax files from 2017 to 2019 with the IRS after PoliticoNY and THE CITY wrote about his failure to report rental income for the townhouse that has in Bedford-Stuyvesant – even as he reported that entry in the city revelation.
His campaign initially said the revenue was not reported because it was offset by costs, but later said it would amend the files.
When those changes were publicly shared a few months later, THE CITY identified further errors in those amended tax forms: Adams claimed the townhouse on Lafayette Avenue was his primary address but reported “zero.” days of living there to the IRS.
At the time, the mayor’s campaign spokesperson for Adams again promised that amended forms would be submitted.
To date, neither the 2021 campaign nor City Hall have confirmed whether the tax forms have been amended a second time, and Adams has not issued any of his tax forms since becoming mayor. .
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Where is mayor Eric Adams from?
Who is Eric Adam’s partner? Tracey Collins is an American educator and author who is the first de facto woman in New York City to be the domestic partner of New York City Mayor Eric Adams. This may interest you : City of Charlotte Arts Board Awards $ 2.01M to the Arts & Science Council. New Orleans, Louisiana, U.S.
Where did Eric Adams grow up?
Adams grew up in a rabbit-infested fund in Bushwick, Brooklyn, and his family was so poor that he often brought a school bag with him in case of a sudden eviction from his home. By 1968, however, his mother had managed to save enough money to buy a home and run a family in southern Jamaica, Queens.
What’s the smallest borough in NYC?
Manhattan. More than 30 million tourists visit New York each year, but many of them rarely see far beyond the 22.6 square miles (58.5 square miles) of Manhattan Island, the city’s smallest borough.
What is the poorest borough of NYC? The Bronx has the highest poverty rate in New York City, and the largest South Bronx is the poorest.
Is Staten Island the smallest borough?
It is the third smallest county in New York by land area and the fourth smallest by total area. Although Staten Island is a borough of New York City, the island is topographically and geologically part of New Jersey.
What is the 2nd smallest borough in NYC?
The Bronx is the second smallest borough in New York, occupying only 42 square miles, but with a lower population than Manhattan.
Does Manhattan have a mayor?
The current mayor is Eric Adams, who was elected on November 2, 2021, and took office shortly after midnight on January 1, 2022.
How long is the term of the mayor of NYC?
Is Manhattan a city in New York?
Manhattan, a borough of New York City, coextensive with New York County, in the southeastern state of New York, United States. on the mainland and includes a number of islands in the East River.
Who is the leader of New York City?
Eric L. Adams is the 110th Mayor of New York City. Mayor Adams has served the people of New York City as a NYPD official, State Senator, President of the Brooklyn Borough, and now as the 110th Mayor of New York City.
