How suite it is.
Gov. Kathy Hochul had the state shell out $2 million to provide herself a spacious state-of-the-art executive office in a Buffalo building whose landlord is a big campaign contributor, according to documents obtained by The Post.
Hochul’s ramped-up new digs in her hometown include access to a balcony, a snazzy mural called “Go!” painted on one side of the building and a rooftop garden, published reports have said.
“When she became governor, she ordered that her office be made bigger by taking down a wall and that she be given access to a balcony,” said a source familiar with the office expansion.
The extensive renovations on the fifth floor of the mixed-use building at 95 Perry St. in Buffalo’s historic Cobblestone District began shortly after Hochul replaced tarnished Andrew Cuomo as governor in August and continued through this past April, records show.
She is heavily favored to win the Democratic primary on June 28 and face off against a Republican in five months.
Developer Samuel Savarino of Savino Companies — who built, owns and manages the renovated warehouse — has donated $62,500 to Hochul’s campaign kitty. The majority of that dough, or $37,500, was contributed after Hochul became governor, according to her campaign records filed with the state Board of Elections.
Hochul, who was born and bred in Buffalo and lives there, used the same building for a much smaller office when she was lieutenant governor, sources said.
Her public schedule since becoming governor shows she has spent about 12 days in Buffalo, mainly in aftermath of the horrific shooting massacre there last month.
Neither Cuomo nor his gubernatorial predecessor, George Pataki, had a third office in addition to the ones they had in the state Capitol building in Albany and the governor’s traditional New York City office on Third Avenue in Manhattan.
Critics slammed the under-the-radar spending for Hochul’s new digs while also noting the building owner’s contributions to her political war chest.
“It absolutely reeks and should be investigated,” state Republican Party Chairman Nick Langworthy seethed to The Post of the situation.
Long Island Rep. Tom Suozzi, one of Hochul’s opponents in the upcoming June 28 Democratic primary, also blasted the project.
“[She] has reneged on her promise that an ‘ethical government would be a hallmark’ of her administration,” Suozzi said.
The “executive chamber renovation” project was paid by the Empire State Development Corp., the chief state leaseholder for office space in the building.
A breakdown of the spending on the renovations at the leased building includes:
- $413,793 for electrical work
- $362,400 for architectural and engineering work
- $240,349 for doors and frames
- $179,689 to landlord/general contractor Savarino Companies for supervision, cleaning, providing temporary facilities
- $172,955 for finishes;
- $137,309 for heat, ventilation and air conditioning and $118,745 for specialty construction
The spending also includes $67,820 for demolition and debris removal; $1,380 for appliances; $17,595 for furnishings; $88,317 for fire suppression; $20,700 for plumbing; $67,289 for communications; $15,000 for electrical safety and security; $10,925 for exterior improvements and $18,143 for insurance.
The total value or cost with change orders comes in at $2,002,831.42, according to invoices filed by the contractor and subcontractors.
The Hochul administration claims the renovations and expansion were done mainly for security purposes, not for “convenience or luxury.
“For the safety and security of the Governor, renovations were made to one floor of a building that is leased by Empire State Development,” ESD said in a statement. “All work was done in accordance with State Police requirements to ensure the well-being of the Governor when working in Western New York.”
But the ESD also said the renovations were done to accommodate the need for additional executive staff as well as security personnel, in addition to other security measures and upgrades.
The agency added that the balcony has been a feature of the building since 2008, when the economic development agency first leased space there and that the offices located near it were not altered to create greater access for the governor. It noted that the mural and rooftop garden already existed before the Hochul office renovations, too.
The State Police also issued a statement saying it “conducted a review of existing facilities and determined that changes were required to support the security needs of the Governor.
“These were not changes for convenience or luxury, but were vital upgrades to protect the safety and security of the Governor as deemed necessary by State Police,” the statement said.
The Office of General Services, responsible for handling leases for state agencies, said in a separate statement that it is reimbursing ESD for the cost of renovations for upgrades “necessary for security reasons related to the Governor’s occupancy.”