Even the politicians don't like it, at least not the Tea Partiers, and while that has Henry Elghanayan worried about what D.C. might do to New York, most of his colleagues argued today that Washington is a great place to invest, now and for the foreseeable future.

Fried Frank's Jonathan Mechanic: "I don't think people are afraid of the Washington market just because of the change in Congress. We still have big government and a split government, and there's a lot of problems to be worked out still, so there will be plenty going on."

John Catsimatidis: "Washington will not stop growing, no matter who's in control. It's a disease they have there. If there will be cuts, it will be in different parts of the country."

David Levinson, who said his L&L Holdings just got outbid for a project on Connecticut Avenue:  "The government has a tendency, they fire 500 people and then go hire 500 consultants, so there is always high demand. ... The average price is in the mid-40s gross, but it's 58 net on new buildings, almost double the rent on new buildings there."

Richard LeFrak: "The thing I worry about the most are that the GSEs [Government-sponsored enterprises] are natural targets, both for the Republicans and the Democrats. Freddie Mac? Who is it? Most people just know it as something bad that happened to their mortgage. That makes for an easy target. ... That could change the rezzies [residential developers] quite a bit. We're benefiting from rates that are very low."

mchaban [at] observer.com | @mc_nyo

The successful developer and not-so-successful media mogul came to the New York Public Library today as part of the Bloomberg Real Estate Briefing, where he just finished giving a talk (more on that later from The Observer's Zeke Turner). Greeting him this morning were not only Patience and Fortitude but also about 100 angry laborers from Local 46--who also have a lot of patience and fortitude to stand out in the rain like that.

They have been harranging Zell for months now over 500 West 23rd Street, a 96-unit apartment building overlooking the High Line. The down-and-out Shaya Boymelgreen had been working on the project, which Zell picked up for a little under $12 million. The plan is to finish it by next year, but that work is being done without union labor. Hence the protests.

This was an interesting one, as the flyers being handed out pointed not only to issues that Zell's Equity Residential had been having--collapsing garages, illegal fees and class action lawsuits--but also his losing battle with the Tribune company. "As members of Metallic Lathers Union Local 46, a 100-year-old NYC construction union, we feel obligated to educate the real estate and business communities about Mr. Zell's track record," the flyer read in part. No mention was made of 500 West 23rd Street.

But something tells The Observer that the protest won't take. On the way inside, one attendee was overheard saying, "The guy comes to New York and this is the shit they give him. Some welcome."

Actually, that sounds about right for a New York hello.

mchaban [at] observer.com | @mc_nyo