Mamdani plans pied-a-terre tax
Mayor Zoran Mamdani announced plans to tax luxury second homes owned by absentee residents in New York City.
Zoran Mamdani has responded to Ken Griffin’s comments after the mayor of New York used a billionaire’s home in a video promoting a new tax on expensive second homes.
Last week, Mr. Griffin’s company, Citadel LLC, issued a statement to employees condemning the use of the CEO’s $238 million home in a video explaining Mr. Mamdani’s new pied-à-terre tax. The new tax plans to impose “an additional annual tax on one- to three-unit homes, condominiums, and co-ops valued at more than $5 million if the owner has another primary residence outside of New York City,” the city said.
“It’s shameful that he used Ken’s name as an example of people who don’t seem to be paying their fair share of the burden of New York City’s often costly and wasteful spending,” Citadel Chief Operating Officer Gerald Beeson said, as reported by the Wall Street Journal.
In an email to employees, Beeson also hinted that Citadel might not pursue the multibillion-dollar project in the city.
Mamdani has now said he is open to speaking with Griffin. Here’s what you need to know about the ongoing exchange.
Statement from Ken Griffin and Citadel
Griffin is known as one of the richest people in the world, with a net worth of more than $50 billion, according to Forbes magazine. He bought the penthouse at 220 South Central Park in 2019 for about $238 million, WSJ reported at the time, setting a record for the most expensive home ever sold in the United States.
Beeson said in the letter that by using Griffin as the subject of the video, “the mayor has once again exposed the elite political class’s ignorance and contempt for the people who have consistently worked to build one of the world’s greatest cities.”
“We are about to begin redeveloping 350 Park Avenue, which will create 6,000 good-paying construction jobs and support the creation of more than 15,000 permanent jobs in Midtown New York,” Beeson said.
“If we move forward with this project, we will need to spend more than $6 billion.”
According to Reuters, Griffin also spoke out against the video during the meeting, saying, “The mayor of New York’s willingness to turn this into a policy debate just shows a serious lack of judgment.”
“Is New York going to fix its finances and run itself from a position of strong, pro-business government? Why do Americans think we can achieve socialism? It’s simply not in our DNA.”
Mamdani’s reaction to Griffin
At a separate news conference about deed theft, the mayor addressed the Griffin controversy and said, “We all want this city to succeed.”
“As mayor, I will continue to work with business leaders, including Mr. Griffin, as partners in building a city that continues to be an economic engine not just for this state but for this country,” he said in response to a reporter’s question.
“None of that negates the fact that our tax system is fundamentally broken, which is part of the reason why we live in both the richest city in the richest country in the history of the world, and a city where one in four New Yorkers lives in poverty.”
Mamdani struck a similar chord earlier this month when President Trump attacked a new wealth tax.
“Sadly, Mayor Mamdani is trying to destroy New York! No chance! America should not be complicit in New York’s failures,” Trump posted on Truth Social after the announcement. In response to the post, Mamdani said: “Both the president and I want the city to succeed. This is how you do it.”
At a press conference, Mamdani said he would be “happy to talk” with Griffin.
“That’s because regardless of our disagreements over fiscal policy or whether the state should tax nonresident New Yorkers’ secondary homes worth more than $5 million, we all believe in the same city.”
Griffin is currently scheduled to meet with Gov. Kathy Hochul on Thursday.
