Senate race heats up

The rematch between Councilman Fernando Cabrera and state Sen. Gustavo Rivera took on a familiar tone of animosity last week when both candidates engaged in a spate of name-calling and comparing each other to Donald Trump.

Mr. Cabrera has spent most of this campaign comparing his incumbent opponent to the Republican presidential nominee, often calling Mr. Rivera a “bully.”

But Mr. Rivera turned his challenger’s tactic against him on Aug. 10 when he called Mr. Cabrera a “Trump Trojan Horse, trying to get inside the State Senate to betray our progressive Democratic values.”

“There’s a super PAC that has already spent hundreds of thousands of dollars on his behalf that is being funded by Republican operatives … this is who we are talking about who is supporting him,” Mr. Rivera said in a phone interview on Aug. 10. “I think that this is an effort by Republicans to keep Republicans in the majority [in the State Senate].”

Mr. Rivera had earlier called out Mr. Cabrera’s fundraising tactics in a July 21 interview with The Press, when he suggested Mr. Cabrera had found new donors interested in his campaign.

Mr. Cabrera’s aide, Michael Olmeida, said he “had to take 20 minutes to laugh,” when he heard about Mr. Rivera’s claims. In an Aug. 10 interview, he reiterated Mr. Cabrera’s claim that Mr. Rivera uses the same political tactics as Mr. Trump.

“In all aspects he is the one who is bullying people,” Mr. Olmeida said. “He is questioning the people who are donating money and asking why they are donating.”

Mr. Olmeida also accused Mr. Rivera and his supporters of interfering with the actions of Mr. Cabrera’s volunteers.

“When he runs into them he basically intimidates them,” he said. “The he asks them ‘How much are you getting?’ and then he acts surprised when we tell him we are doing this out of the goodness of our hearts.”

According to Mr. Olmeida, some volunteers have even stopped knocking on doors and canvassing for the councilman because of Mr. Rivera’s interactions with them.

“He is truly nervous, so he actually has something to worry about – because he doesn’t have a track record of producing in the community, he has to figure out ways where he can get his name in the paper,” he said. “When you’re throwing bombs at a candidate who actually has a track record of bringing dollars to the community that he represents, those are empty shells.”

Mr. Rivera again defended his six-year record in the State Senate, including the efforts to recover from the damage done by his predecessor, Pedro Espada Jr., who was convicted of theft in 2012.

“In the six years that I have been in the [State] Senate, my team and myself have demonstrated … in a very strong way how we serve people,” he said. “I’ve demonstrated that I can be trusted.”

Rodriguez fights rezoning

Councilman Ydanis Rodriguez announced on Monday he will not be voting in favor of the plan to rezone Sherman Plaza in Inwood, after a hectic week that included a Twitter battle with constituents and a delayed vote in the City Council. 

On Aug. 6, Mr. Rodriguez attended a rally held by opponents of the rezoning, the first individual project of Mayor Bill de Blasio’s Mandatory Inclusionary Housing plan. After Mr. Rodriguez got shouted off the stage, reports said the emcee for the event, Joe Vasquez, asked him to leave.

After the rally, Mr. Rodriguez made matters worse by tweeting about the encounter and comparing rally organizers to Mr. Trump.

“Upsetting to see Trump-like actions uptown, playing on peoples fears while spreading lies about development,” the tweet read. “We stand against gentrification.”

Mr. Rodriguez, who spoke in favor of the Sherman Plaza development at the rally, argued that the project does not amount to gentrification. The project’s opponents, who also denounce gentrification, argue that the development plan would amount to just that, by creating what they describe as luxury housing. 

Mr. Rodriguez’s tweet sparked uproar from constituents who oppose the Sherman Plaza development plan.

In the aftermath of the affair, Mr. Rodriguez released a statement on Aug. 8, postponing the vote on the project.

“As we are discussing complex issues which impact our community, it is important that all voices in this community are heard,” the statement read. “I have read your emails, from those of you in support as well as those of you with concerns and fears about what a rezoning could mean.”

Then on Monday, Mr. Rodriguez told reporters on Sherman Plaza that he would not be supporting the rezoning when it came up for a vote.

“To control our future, we are having a community oriented discussion about underutilized land in Inwood,” he said. “It is why I was a supporter and remain a supporter of MIH and the mayor’s housing plan, the strongest city-led plan in decades. We have not been able to get to a point where I feel it is in the community’s best interest to move this spot rezoning forward.”