Wow ...

Bill Moyers' interview with Mark Leibovich, author of:

This Town: Two Parties and a Funeral-Plus, Plenty of Valet Parking!-in America's Gilded Capital

It has been puzzling listening to the praises of Malkin Holdings as long time supervisors of the Empire State Building, only to suddenly feel Malkins crash down on the 50 year ownership group of 2800 people from all walks of life. Surprising, confusing, perhaps uncharacteristic strategies for getting rid of the owners of the building, while charging our accounts millions of dollars to accomplish this. Armed with mis-information and deception, they worked for more than a year to make owners believe that their plan was the only plan for moving into the future with the ESBA investment. And now private bidders who should have been offered the opportunity in the beginning, are creatively offering a much better deal.

Bill Moyers' interview with Mark Leibovich, long time NYT reporter, on his book about the way our financial and political systems have changed seems to go a long way in explaining the unexplainable. Riveting. Makes sense that Merrill Lynch, Goldman Sachs, MacKenzie Partners, and the like are wheeling this deal in the manner described in Mr. Leibovich's book.

At least that is the story I am telling myself at the moment.

You can watch this fascinating interview here: Bill Moyers and Mark Leibovich Video

or listen to it here: Bill Moyers and Mark Leibovitz Podcast

Amazon: This Town: Two Parties and a Funeral-Plus, Plenty of Valet Parking!-in America's Gilded Capital by Mark Leibovich (Jul 16, 2013)

This look at a changed way of doing business and politics in our country ought to appeal uniquely to participants in this investment.

Goliath, do you hear David knocking at your door?

Much Simpler, Much Fairer, Yet No Word from Our Management Team

After more than a year of being cajoled, pushed with unsubstantiated threats, while given no alternative route other than the one our Supervisors dreamed up to roll lots of properties together to form an REIT, we are now being offered attractive bids on the Empire State Building alone (which should have been solicited by management at the beginning of this fiasco). Bidders are coming up with excellent plans for dealing with the complications of this ownership.

Why is management so silent? There are deadlines on these bids. Will this stall endanger the bidding process as (one assumes) efforts are being made to save the REIT, which is now not the only option for owners to consider?

It seems to us that a straight up sale of the Empire State Building is simple enough, fair enough and in the best interests of all of the owners of this investment, yet the deal is again being manipulated by our management team. Presumably they and their friends in high places who'd like some of what they haven't earned nor deserve.

Just watched the movie Inside Job about the financial debacle ... is this more of that?

Just think how this investment could flow into the needs of its many investors (college educations, retirement funds, charities, and so much more), rather than staying in the hands of the already very wealthy.

We, along with many, demand an accounting of this unusual process.