T
he Department of Citywide Administrative Services' general counsel expressed concerns about a leasing deal brokered by Jesse Hamilton, a top real estate official in Mayor Adams' administration. The deal gave a multi-million dollar contract to Alex Rovt, a billionaire donor to Adams, despite another company having won the bid through a formal process.
At a City Council oversight hearing on Tuesday, DCAS Commissioner Louis Molina said his agency's lawyer felt that the optics of awarding the lease to 14 Wall St., a building owned by Rovt, might be troubling. However, Molina stated that the deal was not found to be illegal and saved the city millions of dollars.
Manhattan Councilwoman Gale Brewer questioned DCAS' decision to relocate the Department for the Aging's headquarters to 14 Wall St., citing unclear savings figures. Hamilton did not appear at the hearing despite being asked to testify.
Hamilton's phone was seized by Manhattan DA agents last month as part of a corruption investigation into possible bribery, money laundering, and other crimes related to DCAS' commercial property leasing operation. The investigation is ongoing, but no one has been accused of wrongdoing.
Brooklyn Councilman Lincoln Restler grilled Molina on why Hamilton's duties haven't been restricted given the probe. Molina replied that his general counsel and human resources team determined Hamilton hadn't violated any internal protocols. However, Restler expressed concern about the lack of review or guardrails for Hamilton's decisions.
Molina also faced questions about a trip to Japan involving Hamilton and Diana Boutross, an executive at a real estate firm with business interests before DCAS. Molina testified that he didn't know beforehand that Boutross was on the trip and saw nothing inappropriate since it was a personal vacation. However, Restler protested that the trip was unseemly given their professional entanglement.
In a previously unknown detail, Molina met with Boutross and Hamilton in his office to discuss a possible acquisition of a logistics center in the Bronx by DCAS after the phone seizures.
