Paul J. Massey Jr., a millionaire real estate executive, took steps on Thursday toward running for mayor of New York City — styling himself in the mold of former Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg, as a wealthy businessman and an outsider to politics with the management chops needed to run the nation’s biggest city.
But if Mr. Massey, a Republican, wanted to project the image of a capable manager, his first act as a declared candidate did little to help that cause.
Although a news release announced that Mr. Massey had filed papers to begin his run for mayor with the city’s Campaign Finance Board, a spokesman for the board, Matthew Sollars, said that officials there were not aware of having received any such filing.
At the same time, John Conklin, a spokesman for the State Board of Elections, said that papers were filed on Thursday to form a political committee called Massey for Mayor 2017 — but that the filing was missing a required document and the papers were returned.
Although Mr. Massey is little known outside the real estate world, and will have to work mightily to achieve the name recognition needed to make a successful run for mayor, he turned down a request for an interview.
“He’s not doing any interviews right now,” a spokeswoman, Jessica Proud, said. “It’s a soft launch.”
A spokesman for Mr. Massey, William F. B. O’Reilly, insisted that the campaign had filed the paperwork correctly. “We did everything right,” he said.
Mr. Massey has been talking for some time about mounting a challenge to Mayor Bill de Blasio, a Democrat, who is expected to run for re-election next year.
“I love this city and I am concerned about where it’s headed,” Mr. Massey said in a statement. “We are currently meeting with New York City civic and thought leaders, as well as with individual New Yorkers to hear their ideas and to listen to their concerns. In the months ahead, we will be sharing our strategic vision for the city.”
The statement from his campaign said that he would not take part in the city’s matching funds program, which caps candidate spending, and that he would finance his campaign himself and with donations from others.
Mr. Massey also created a campaign website and social media accounts that became active on Thursday. They take square aim at the “tale of two cities” slogan that Mr. de Blasio used in his 2013 election campaign to underscore the theme of income inequality.
“This is not a tale of two cities,” said a statement on the campaign website and newly created Twitter, Facebook, YouTube and Instagram accounts. “This is the world’s greatest city and diversity is our strength.”
Dan Levitan, a spokesman for Mr. de Blasio’s re-election campaign, said the mayor would gladly stack his record against any challenger and took a jab at Mr. Massey for being a longtime resident of Larchmont, in Westchester County, and only recently taking an apartment in Manhattan.
“Under Mayor de Blasio, crime just hit another all-time low, jobs are at record highs, the city is building and preserving affordable housing at a record pace, while graduation rates and test scores continue to improve,” Mr. Levitan said. “We are happy to match that record against any resident of New York City or Larchmont.”
Mr. Massey became wealthy by running a real estate firm, Massey Knakal Realty Services, which specialized in selling office and retail properties and apartment buildings. He and his founding partner, Robert A. Knakal, sold the company to Cushman & Wakefield last year.
Bradley Tusk, a political consultant who has formed a “super PAC” to seek to defeat Mr. de Blasio in next year’s election, said in a statement: “Whenever there is a talented, hardworking person who wants to be mayor, we are interested in hearing from them, but we continue to feel that the next mayor will come from winning the Democratic primary, and that’s what we are working towards.”
[Source:- The New Yourk Times]
