Mayor Giuliani yesterday rejected two offers from the landlord of a Harlem building where Bill Clinton wants to rent an office – and said the ex-president may have to hit the road.
“The first two offers haven’t come close to working it out, but you never know,” Giuliani said.
The city has rented, but not moved into, five floors in the building, including the prime top floor – about 7,000 square feet and a private elevator – in which Clinton has expressed interest.
The mayor, sounding less optimistic about a deal than he did on Tuesday, said security concerns must be addressed and the city must be “adequately compensated” if it gives up the 14th floor in favor of a lower floor in the building at 55 W. 125th St.
Giuliani said it would be difficult for the city to find another location for its child-welfare agency’s field office, and added it would be much easier for Clinton to change his plans.
“There are a lot of places where the ex-president can go,” the mayor said.
“There are not a lot of places where these children can go . . . Somebody should be thinking about them.”
City officials said they want to make sure abused kids and their families who visit the Administration for Children’s Services office would not be forced to wait because of any Secret Service arrangements.
The mayor’s chilly remarks came as a source close to the Clinton camp charged that the ex-president and his staff were kept in the dark about the city’s lease until the day the ex-president showed up to cheering crowds.
The source said Clinton would not have toured the building on Tuesday had the building owner been upfront with them.
The landlord “did not tell us about the lease,” the source said, referring to Cogswell Realty Group.
But Cogswell’s chief executive officer, Arthur Stern, denied he blindsided Clinton, and insisted he would never pitch space that was leased to someone else.
A source familiar with the events insisted a top Clinton staffer was told about the lease when she toured the building on Monday with Harlem officials, who assured her the hitch could be worked out.
The Giuliani-Clinton office dance began when the former president said he wanted to take space in Harlem after coming under fire for plans to set up shop in the pricey Carnegie Hall Tower on West 57th Street.