| Contact: | Sunny Mindel/Curt Ritter 212/788-2958 |
Mayor Rudolph W. Giuliani announced today that Randy L. Levine, Deputy Mayor for Economic Development, Planning and Administration, will resign effective January 9, 2000. Mr. Levine has held the position of Deputy Mayor since June 1997. Prior to his appointment as Deputy Mayor, he served as the Commissioner of the Office of Labor Relations.
"Randy has been a valued member of my Administration and a very good friend," Mayor Giuliani said. "During his tenure as Deputy Mayor for Economic Development and as Labor Relations Commissioner, Randy helped bring about some of the fundamental reforms that have changed the direction of the City. His negotiating skills have played a significant role in the City's success in labor negotiations over the years. He was instrumental, as the lead negotiator, in the recent labor agreement that ended Principal Tenure. Randy also negotiated the first five-year labor contracts, which contain groundbreaking productivity and pay performance provisions for sanitation workers, school custodians, firefighters, transportation workers and others.
"As Deputy Mayor for Economic Development, Randy was directly involved in creating legislation to build the new Hudson River Park; negotiating the transaction to provide new headquarters for the New York Stock Exchange and NASDAQ; redevelopment of the New York Coliseum site; and chaired the Task Force responsible for creating a Master Plan for Governor's Island," the Mayor added. "I want to thank Randy for his time and commitment in serving my Administration and wish him the best of luck in the future," the Mayor concluded.
Mr. Levine also negotiated other groundbreaking contracts for the City, including: The Workfare Agreement with the City's Municipal Unions; the Severance and Redeployment Agreement; the Transitional Labor Finance Agreement, as well as the Health Insurance Rate Freeze Agreement.
Mr. Levine also served as the Mayor's mediator in resolving disputes in the hotel, commercial real estate, and broadcasting industries, as well as assisting the Mayor in averting last month's transit dispute.
Additionally, as Deputy Mayor for Economic Development, Mr. Levine contributed to the continued expansion of Times Square and Silicon Alley; led the City's development team that brought about unprecedented growth in Harlem and East Harlem and assisted the Mayor during the largest private sector job expansion in the City's history.
Mr. Levine is also credited with helping to develop capital expansion programs at the Museum of Modern Art, the Metropolitan Museum of Art, Carnegie Hall, the Museum of Jewish Heritage, and other cultural institutions, including the construction of a new home for Jazz at Lincoln Center.
"It has been the highest honor to serve the greatest Mayor in the City's history and to have contributed to the revitalization and resurgence of New York City as The Capital of the World," said Deputy Mayor Levine. "Under the Mayor's leadership, New York City has attracted unprecedented business growth and development, stability and job creation. The accomplishments and initiatives that we have put in place have made the City stronger and assured that we enter the new millenium as a global economic leader. I am honored to have served the Administration and the City of New York during this historical time."
In the future Randy will play an important role in evaluating a United States Senate race and any Senate campaign. He will also serve as a strategist in the City's upcoming labor negotiations.
Mr. Levine is married to Mindy Dale Franklin. They reside in Manhattan with their Labrador Retrievers, Mr. Reid and Vesper.
