Governor Andrew Cuomo's backroom moves to give the powerful Satmar voting bloc the Williamsburg Armory at well below its market value continues.
A Satmar source close to the situation tells me that there are “big” negotiations going on between the Zalman Faction of Satmar and the governor’s office.
John Percoco, representing Governor Cuomo, is pushing for a deal that would see the Zalman faction paying for 2/3 the cost of acquiring the Williamsburg Armory and the Aharon faction paying 1/3. As part of that deal, the Zalman faction would get the four disputed upstate children’s camps and the matzo bakery.
If the Zalman faction does not agree to this deal, the governor will allow the Aharon Faction to lease the armory for 99 years (for an inexpensive price).
The Zalman faction responded by saying that we already have the camps and the bakery, and it hired lawyers to prepare a lawsuit to block the deal that would allow the Aharon faction to lease the armory.