Election Forecast 2009: Stark Choices
City finance commissioner is interested in the office, but not in campaigning for it
February 11th, 2008
If her father had still been alive when she joined Mayor Michael Bloomberg’s administration in 2002, City Finance Commissioner Martha Stark jokes, he probably would not have survived the news.
“If he was still alive and knew I was interviewing to work for a Republican, it would have killed him,” she said.
This ability to thrive as a Democrat and as the first African-American woman to hold her job in what was then a Republican administration earned her bipartisan support in her strange bid for state comptroller last year. One of three people recommended by the comptroller screening panel, Stark was the choice of 56 legislators, coming in a distant second to Tom DiNapoli. At the time, she said she might consider entering the 2009 race for comptroller, when Bill Thompson (D) will be term-limited out, but these days she is hesitant to even comment on whether she will throw her hat into the ring.
A corporate and tax attorney by training, Stark previously ran policy and budget operations for then-Manhattan Borough President Ruth Messinger (D). While not exactly a household name for everyday voters, she has tried to bring the public into the sometimes wonky workings of her office, publishing a booklet entitled “Got Tickets?” to help navigate the legal process of disputing parking tickets.
By stepping out of the confines of behind-the-scenes bureaucracy, Stark has earned kudos from both politicians and potential voters.
State Sen. Bill Perkins (D-Manhattan) said he was impressed when Stark joined him at the State Office Building on 125th Street in the winter of 2006 to discuss property tax policy with Harlem homeowners.
“Usually people in her position will just deal with you over the phone,” said Perkins, who later endorsed her for state comptroller. “But she came up to Harlem, into the lion’s den.”
After renovating multi-family homes, these Harlem residents found their property taxes jumping as much as 45 percent of the refurbishing costs.
“It was a cold day, but incredibly warm in the room, packed to the rafters with angry people,” Stark recalls.
After hearing their complaints, Stark, a native of the Brownsville housing projects, helped support tax code changes that reduced the fees on renovating four-to-five-family houses by two-thirds.
But Stark resisted the idea that this will translate into a citywide run next year.
“I am not a candidate for elected office at this time,” she said, “nor do I anticipate that I will be soon.”
While she admits feeling tempted by the prospect of state comptroller last year, the thought of engaging in a full-out campaign to become city comptroller keeps her timid.
“I don’t think of myself as a politician,” Stark said, using the term a little warily, and mentioning her unwillingness to “have people digging around in your life.”
Despite her prowess with financial figures, she is also concerned about raising money. Declared candidates Council Member Melinda Katz (D-Queens) and Borough President Adolfo Carrión lead the cash race, with almost $2 million and $1.7 million respectively.
A late entrance into an already crowded field, which also includes Council Members David Weprin (D-Queens), David Yassky (D-Brooklyn), Simcha Felder (D-Brooklyn) and Assembly Member James Brennan (D-Brooklyn)—who may be joined by Council Member John Liu, among others—means that Stark would lag not only in funds, but in endorsements and support.
But as an African-American lesbian, Stark may be able to carve her own niche. However, some politicians who have backed her in the past have already gone to other candidates. Former State Comptroller Carl McCall, a member of the commission that pushed for her nomination in 2007, has thrown his support to Carrión. And Bloomberg has hosted a fundraiser for Felder, though he has made no endorsement.
Others seem receptive to the idea of backing her.
“There are a lot of qualified people who could run,” says State Sen. Ruben Diaz (D-Bronx), who supported Stark’s bid for state comptrolle, but has yet made no endorsement in the city race. “Martha Stark is prepared, but she isn’t a candidate yet.”
Putting together a campaign for next year would require her to move quickly to capitalize on the relationships she has built with other leaders. However, her years spent under a Republican mayor, even one who has since shed his party affiliation, could complicate her prospects in a Democratic primary.
But next to the comptroller contenders who have so far declared their candidacies or indicated their strong interest in running, Stark has the distinction of a career focused purely on finances. This could give her a boost, according to Hank Sheinkopf, Thompson’s 2001 consultant.
“If Martha Stark gets in here, she would be a very formidable candidate,” Sheinkopf said. “She starts out having extraordinary related experience. She would be out of the gate the most interesting one of them all and the most difficult to beat. ”
Photo by Andrew Schwartz.
“If he was still alive and knew I was interviewing to work for a Republican, it would have killed him,” she said.
This ability to thrive as a Democrat and as the first African-American woman to hold her job in what was then a Republican administration earned her bipartisan support in her strange bid for state comptroller last year. One of three people recommended by the comptroller screening panel, Stark was the choice of 56 legislators, coming in a distant second to Tom DiNapoli. At the time, she said she might consider entering the 2009 race for comptroller, when Bill Thompson (D) will be term-limited out, but these days she is hesitant to even comment on whether she will throw her hat into the ring.
A corporate and tax attorney by training, Stark previously ran policy and budget operations for then-Manhattan Borough President Ruth Messinger (D). While not exactly a household name for everyday voters, she has tried to bring the public into the sometimes wonky workings of her office, publishing a booklet entitled “Got Tickets?” to help navigate the legal process of disputing parking tickets.
By stepping out of the confines of behind-the-scenes bureaucracy, Stark has earned kudos from both politicians and potential voters.
State Sen. Bill Perkins (D-Manhattan) said he was impressed when Stark joined him at the State Office Building on 125th Street in the winter of 2006 to discuss property tax policy with Harlem homeowners.
“Usually people in her position will just deal with you over the phone,” said Perkins, who later endorsed her for state comptroller. “But she came up to Harlem, into the lion’s den.”
After renovating multi-family homes, these Harlem residents found their property taxes jumping as much as 45 percent of the refurbishing costs.
“It was a cold day, but incredibly warm in the room, packed to the rafters with angry people,” Stark recalls.
After hearing their complaints, Stark, a native of the Brownsville housing projects, helped support tax code changes that reduced the fees on renovating four-to-five-family houses by two-thirds.
But Stark resisted the idea that this will translate into a citywide run next year.
“I am not a candidate for elected office at this time,” she said, “nor do I anticipate that I will be soon.”
While she admits feeling tempted by the prospect of state comptroller last year, the thought of engaging in a full-out campaign to become city comptroller keeps her timid.
“I don’t think of myself as a politician,” Stark said, using the term a little warily, and mentioning her unwillingness to “have people digging around in your life.”
Despite her prowess with financial figures, she is also concerned about raising money. Declared candidates Council Member Melinda Katz (D-Queens) and Borough President Adolfo Carrión lead the cash race, with almost $2 million and $1.7 million respectively.
A late entrance into an already crowded field, which also includes Council Members David Weprin (D-Queens), David Yassky (D-Brooklyn), Simcha Felder (D-Brooklyn) and Assembly Member James Brennan (D-Brooklyn)—who may be joined by Council Member John Liu, among others—means that Stark would lag not only in funds, but in endorsements and support.
But as an African-American lesbian, Stark may be able to carve her own niche. However, some politicians who have backed her in the past have already gone to other candidates. Former State Comptroller Carl McCall, a member of the commission that pushed for her nomination in 2007, has thrown his support to Carrión. And Bloomberg has hosted a fundraiser for Felder, though he has made no endorsement.
Others seem receptive to the idea of backing her.
“There are a lot of qualified people who could run,” says State Sen. Ruben Diaz (D-Bronx), who supported Stark’s bid for state comptrolle, but has yet made no endorsement in the city race. “Martha Stark is prepared, but she isn’t a candidate yet.”
Putting together a campaign for next year would require her to move quickly to capitalize on the relationships she has built with other leaders. However, her years spent under a Republican mayor, even one who has since shed his party affiliation, could complicate her prospects in a Democratic primary.
But next to the comptroller contenders who have so far declared their candidacies or indicated their strong interest in running, Stark has the distinction of a career focused purely on finances. This could give her a boost, according to Hank Sheinkopf, Thompson’s 2001 consultant.
“If Martha Stark gets in here, she would be a very formidable candidate,” Sheinkopf said. “She starts out having extraordinary related experience. She would be out of the gate the most interesting one of them all and the most difficult to beat. ”
Photo by Andrew Schwartz.
