According to the NY Times, in 2006 as the fight to rezone Willets Point was heating up, then-Deputy Mayor for Economic Development Dan Doctoroff had a meeting with Claire Shulman, who had been the Queens Borough President from 1986-2001. At that meeting, they agreed to create a Local Development Corporation (LDC), with some of the funding coming from the Economic Development Corporation (EDC).

According to Shulman, this LDC hired lobbyists, specifically the Queens lobbying firm Parkside Group, to lobby city officials for the mayor's plan. She is quoted in the article as saying, "We hired lobbyists from the time we began, because we were told it was something we were supposed to be doing." The Times also reports that a Parkside Group spokesperson "said Ms. Shulman hired it to lobby, among other duties."

The problem is, LDCs aren't allowed to lobby. Neither is the EDC, or (apparently) anyone funded by the EDC.  read more »