Citigroup board chairman Richard Parsons really has a full slate. Besides trying to shepherd the troubled financial giant through the economic crisis, the Daily News reports that he "was also wrestling with a personal crisis - how to tell his wife and three children he has fathered a child with another woman." Parsons, 61, and MacDella Cooper, 32, a model, are the parents of a baby girl born last August. They apparently met through her charitable foundation which provides education and food to abandoned and orphaned children in Liberia. Cooper told the News, "My private life is private. I'm sure you can draw your own conclusions." And Parsons, once touted as a possible candidate for Mayor (if Bloomberg didn't get his way with term limits), only said, "This is a private matter, and I prefer not to talk about it at this time." more ›

Time Warner chairman Richard Parsons, rumored to be one of big business’s top hopes to run for mayor in 2009, has definitively denied that he will be throwing his hat into the ring, reports NY Magazine. 'I’ve never woken up a day in my life and said, ‘What I really want to be is mayor,’ ” Parsons said. Among those in favor of a Parsons candidacy was Bloomberg himself. While the mayor has said repeatedly that he has no interest in running for a third term, Parsons refused to let the issue die. The executive, sharing other business executives' sentiments, said, “My view is that Michael Bloomberg should be the mayor again, and we should work with him to change the term limits.” more ›

As New Yorkers are generally happy with Mayor Bloomberg, speculation is brewing about another possible CEO as mayor. As in Time Warner CEO Richard Parsons. Parsons, who is a co-chair on the Mayor's Commission for Economic Opportunity and is on Governor-elect Spitzer's transition team, spoke out about rumors. more ›

There's news about Governor-elect Eliot Spitzer's transition team (which includes El Diario publisher Rosanna Rosado and Time Warner Chairman and CEO Richard Parsons), but you can also visit the spiffy transition website. TransitionNY.org has some bios for Spitzer, Lieutenant Governor David Paterson, the transition team, and links to the state's various agencies. Okay, it's sort of thin on information now, as it's most notably an open call for people to apply for state jobs, but it's a nice idea - let's hope it's a usable resource. more ›

The race for 2009 mayoral is on: The Post reports that City Comptroller William Thompson is holding a big fundraiser on November 15. He apparently already has $2 million on hand, but the "New Yorkers for Thompson" fundraiser at the Waldorf-Astoria won't hurt. Thompson wisely sat out the 2005 election, because it was hard for any Democratic challenger to go up against the Mayor's pretty good record and money (he spent $77.8 million for last year's election!). At this point, we imagine that the other 2009 candidates include Representative Anthony Weiner, who made a compelling showing the Democratic primary, and that the BIG issues will be affordable housing. But by 2009, will the economy and housing market have cooled down? Ah, the fun in store for political forecasters. more ›

Almost two years ago, Governor George Pataki helped to lay the 20-ton, Adirondack granite cornerstone for the Freedom Tower. And it wasn't until just this past month that the financial bickering between Larry Silverstein and the Port Authority were finally sorted out so construction could begin in earnest. more ›

If you're going to do an issue about the 100 People Who Shape Our World, you might as well have a big party, right? Time magazine rolled out the red carpet last night for people on its list, their friends, and the press. Gothamist stopped by the party just ahead of Stephen Colbert. We were not wearing a bear costume, so he wasn't that afraid of us. And perennial favorite, Rachael Ray, showed up all glammy, alternating poses with and without her A.C.H.M. (Arm Candy Husband Meat). more ›

Huh. After the NY Times reported the Mayor's plans to pursue a federal waiver to help childless adults get food stamps (on the front page, no less!), Mayor Bloomberg changed his mind. Well, maybe not change his mind so much as "overrule" two of his aides who were the ones really working on the program. The NY Times called Bloomberg's decision "rare," as he usually gives people under him autonomy (the man loves delegation) but apparently Deputy Mayor Linda Gibbs and Human Resources Administration Commissioner and Verna Eggleston might have leapt before Bloomberg was convinced of the new change in policy. Newsday says that "Bloomberg met with his senior staff and decided against it," according to an anonymous City Hall source. Gibbs issued a statement saying:

"After further consideration, we have decided that this potential policy change is not consistent with the mayor's goal of helping New Yorkers become self-sufficient, and we have asked the [state] not to seek a federal waiver on the city's behalf. Because we believe that every New Yorker who can work should work, we will not pursue a federal waiver for single, able-bodied adults at this time."