By Gus Saltonstall
For those who followed the saga of The Lucerne hotel’s temporary stint as a homeless shelter during the pandemic, the name Randy Mastro might be familiar.
Mastro, who previously served as chief of staff and deputy mayor for Rudy Giuliani, was hired at the time by the nonprofit West Side Community Organization (WestCo) in an effort to force the city to move the 283 homeless men staying at The Lucerne, on West 79th Street and Amsterdam Avenue, out of the neighborhood.
Four years later, Mayor Eric Adams is now eyeing Mastro as his choice to replace Sylvia Hinds-Radix as Corporation Counsel, which is the city’s top legal position, overseeing the Law Department, as reported by the New York Times earlier this week.
The Times added that the city is in the final stages of Mastro’s hiring process, and that he has already notified his current law firm about his likely departure. Mastro has a reputation as an “aggressive litigator,” and multiple publications have cited sources that characterize him as a “legal pit bull” or “bulldog.”
Mastro’s hiring would come as Adams faces a variety of investigations and lawsuits, including a federal investigation into campaign ties to the Turkish government, and a three-decade old sexual-assault claim, as well as an upcoming re-election campaign.
Adams has denied all accusations.
In terms of Mastro’s Upper West Side connection, he was hired in 2020 by WestCo after the nonprofit raised over $200,000 for legal fees in its push to remove the men staying at the temporary homeless shelter within The Lucerne.
Not long after his hiring, Mastro’s Upper East Side home was vandalized with red paint and graffiti, that included the messages “F*** you Randy,” and “Randy Mastro you can’t displace us.”
All parties involved with The Lucerne saga at the time condemned the vandalization.
Around six months later, Mastro made headlines again when he admitted to sending private investigators dressed as plumbers to the new home of a former Lucerne resident who went by the name “Da Homeless Hero.” The private investigators proceeded to take a shirtless photo of the man without his knowledge — in their words — to prove that he was no longer living at The Lucerne.
At the time, a Department of Homeless Services spokesperson said that the deployment of disguised investigators was an “absolutely egregious invasion of this individual’s privacy.” The move was widely criticized by other parties as well.
Mastro’s actions during The Lucerne case, which came to an end in the summer of 2021 when the city ended the temporary hotel-shelter initiative, is one reason other elected officials say getting his possible appointment passed might be difficult.
The City Council has oversight of any mayoral candidate to run the Law Department, and the legislative body will have to vote and confirm Mastro’s appointment.
“New Yorkers did not elect the most progressive, diverse Democratic supermajority in Council history to rubber stamp a return to the Giuliani era,” progressive Council Member Tiffany Cabán, told POLITICO in a statement this week.
Mastro might be best known for his role in successfully helping clear former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie of any criminal charges in the “Bridgegate” scandal in 2013. He has also represented oil giant Chevron and currently represents the state of New Jersey in its effort to block congestion pricing from going into effect.
West Side Rag will update this story if Mastro is confirmed to the city’s top legal position.
Subscribe to West Side Rag’s FREE email newsletter here.
Good article Gus. Whether you like him or not, Mastro is clearly an effective lawyer and I don’t blame Adams for wanting him to become Corporation Counsel (whatever that means).
Such irony. Goes to show when there is stuff that really needs to get done…..who do they call? When it’s about histrionics and lip service, it’s staunch progressives or anyone affiliated with Open Society. Interesting.
What exactly has Mastro gotten done? This guy reeks Adams is desperate
“Goes to show when there is stuff that really needs to get done…..who do they call? ”
Oh! Do you mean when you have knowingly broken the law, and have nothing to lose, you hire someone loke this odious Mastro character? Because Eric Adams is desperate, and this is what you get when nobody else wants the job.
Will Mr. Mastro be addressing the absurd and archaic Right To Shelter consent decree?
A ‘saga” that exposed the inconvenient truth the UWS as a liberal/progressive enclave is a myth. And the choice of Mastro as Corporation Counsel is a clear signal New York’s failed mayor is very concerned about both his political future.
If Adams were concerned about his political future, the Dept of Sanitation would stop removing trash barrels from incredibly busy corners, and the NYPD would be arresting delivery guys on e-bikes who drive the wrong way at 20 MPH blowing reds.
I can’t help but respect someone who is good at their job. Anyone who got Christie out of Bridgegate. is clearly good at their job. Corporation Council has been a check writer for decades. NYC needs someone in that position who fights for taxpayers, and not cave to anyone suing the city.
Please turn this building back to a luxury hotel.