Executive director of the M.T.A. between 2007 and mid-2009, Mr. Sander Thursday was elected chairman of the Regional Plan Association, the prominent advocacy organization that pushes for greater transit investment and rational urban planning.

Mr. Sander, pushed from his M.T.A. job amid a restructuring by Governor Paterson, with whom he never had a close relationship (Governor Spitzer appointed Mr. Sander), used to work closely with RPA. Mr. Sander, now an executive at AECOM, was co-founder of the Empire State Transportation Alliance, along with RPA president Bob Yaro.  

RPA’s board is a collection of planners, architects and former government officials. Among others: Paul Francis, Mr. Spitzer’s chief of operations; Pat Foye, former chairman of the Empire State Development Corp. under Mr. Spitzer; and Charlie Maikish, head of the Lower Manhattan Construction and Command Center.

ebrown@observer.com

"It's too bad it's only an interim appointment, because I think she'd be great," said Neysa Pranger of the Regional Plan Association. "She does well in terms of balancing the needs of the community, politics, and the needs of the transit system."

Williams has served as president of the Long Island Railroad since 2007. Two Democratic sources say she fills two very important criteria: she would be able to hit the ground running, and is not politically objectionable to anybody. State Senator Martin Malave Dilan, whose public skepticism about Marc Shaw as a contender for the post created a tiff, underscored that second point.

"I haven't heard anything officially and I don't know her, so I look forward to meeting her, seeing who she is, and hopefully work together," Dilan just told me by phone. "I don't know her so I don't have anything either way. I look forward to the governor making his announcement and then proceeding with whatever the process is."

His departure has been the subject of some speculation for weeks, as the restructuring of the M.T.A. that accompanied its bailout—finally agreed upon Wednesday night—called for the consolidation of the executive director and chairman positions. 

Mr. Sander's resignation does not appear to be of his own volition, given that he said just Wednesday that he had no plans to leave. If so, the Paterson administration is pushing out a man who was widely viewed by both transit advocates and the construction industry as a highly competent transit professional—a policy wonk whose political skills were apparently not quite good enough.

The M.T.A.'s press release did not name a successor, but the name most widely discussed among transit advocates is Marc Shaw, a Paterson adviser who was the agency’s executive director during the Pataki administration.

In a statement, Mr. Sander hailed a long list of accomplishments during his tenure and added:

“There is more work to be done, but I leave confident knowing the M.T.A. is headed in the right direction. I am grateful to Governor Paterson and Governor Spitzer for this wonderful opportunity. I wish Governor Paterson the best of luck in choosing a successor who will build on the progress the M.T.A. has made over the past two and a half years." 

Elliot “Lee” Sander, the M.T.A.’s executive director since January 2007, is leaving the freshly bailed-out authority. According to a release from the M.T.A, he submitted his resignation to Governor Paterson today, effective May 22.

His departure has been the subject of some speculation for weeks, as the restructuring of the M.T.A. that accompanied its bailout—finally agreed upon last night—called for the consolidation of the executive director and chairman positions. Current chairman Dale Hemmerdinger, also, is widely expected to cede his post.

Sander's resignation does not appear to be of his own volition, given that Sander said just yesterday that he had no plans to leave. If so, the Paterson administration is pushing out a man who was widely viewed by both transit advocates and the construction industry as a highly competent transit professional—a policy wonk whose political skills were apparently not quite good enough.

The M.T.A.'s press release did not name a successor, but the name most widely discussed among transit advocates is Marc Shaw, a Paterson adviser who was the agency’s executive director during the Pataki administration.

In a statement, Sander hailed a long list of accomplishments during his tenure and added:

“There is more work to be done, but I leave confident knowing the MTA is headed in the right direction. I am grateful to Governor Paterson and Governor Spitzer for this wonderful opportunity. I wish Governor Paterson the best of luck in choosing a successor who will build on the progress the MTA has made over the past two and a half years." 

It’s official. With no bailout from Albany, the M.T.A.’s board has approved the “doomsday” budget that would hike fares by about 25 percent—the base subway fare would be $2.50—and impose major service cuts.

Still, the drama continues, as this was not actually the drop-dead deadline for avoiding the fare hike. As many M.T.A. board members noted, the board can take back the action should Albany agree on a new funding package. The fare hikes are slated to go into effect in June, while the service cuts would start earlier.

Fingers were pointed clearly at the Capitol.

“This is an extremely difficult day for everyone,” Lee Sander, the M.T.A.’s executive director, said in his prepared remarks before the board vote. “The fare increases and service cuts that the board must approve today are the only major tools Albany has given the board.”

Jeff Kay, a mayoral appointee on the board and director of the mayor’s Office of Operations, was rather pessimistic, suggesting that even if there is a rescue, it will only be a short-term fix that doesn’t get at the root of the problem (not enough long-term reliable funding).

It’s possible, Kay said, that “they’ll come through with what’s politically expedient, which is, make sure fare hikes don’t go into effect.” But even so, “we will be back in two months saying we still have a problem if they just do the politically expedient thing.”

Speaking before a New York Building Congress luncheon at the Mandarin Oriental in the Time Warner Center, Mr. Sander implored the construction executive-filled ballroom to keep pushing the state Legislature for action on the M.T.A.

“Bottom line is, I think you should be really nice to Dick Anderson and tell him you’ll see him in eight weeks after he is done schlepping around Albany and down here, working the Senate and the Assembly,” he said, referring to the Building Congress’ president. “It is very close. I think we have a terrific shot.

“That’s a result of the work in general that you have done, that we have done,” he continued. “It is ours to lose, I would say.”

Mr. Sander and the industry are pushing the Legislature to adopt a new regional payroll tax and put tolls on the East River bridges, the latter being a highly controversial measure that has failed many times before. Mr. Sander was not specific about what portion or portions of the plan were getting a good reception in Albany, though the rhetoric from key lawmakers suggests that the payroll tax is being better received than the bridge tolls.

With that said, Mr. Sander emphasized that the fight was not over, asking for more support still as he closed his speech.

“We cannot lose,” he said. “The future is at risk, so off we go.”

“I’m loath to engage in hypotheticals, even though you guys do,” he said in response to a question from Crain's editorial director Greg David on the potential collapse of the deal. “I suspect that we would be able to deal with it, but it would not be pleasant, but that’s not an outcome we’re looking forward to.”

Related faces a key deadline at the end of this month to execute a contract to develop over the M.T.A.’s 26-acre rail yards. Related executives have been expressing concerns about financing the deal in today’s economy (more on that in a story I wrote in today’s print edition) and Mr. Sander certainly didn’t make a point to offer reassuring words.

“We are involved in very sensitive negotiations with Related, basically, as we speak, with Steve Ross, and it would not be very good for me to go further than that,” he said. “We certainly are aware of what’s going on in the real estate market, and some of the pressures that all the real estate companies have encountered. At the same time, we feel very good about what we achieved with Related and so we are having a conversation with them and we will see where that goes.”

The M.T.A. is also in negotiations with developer Forest City Ratner, which wants to change the terms of its payments to the agency as part of its planned Atlantic Yards development in Brooklyn. Should that project collapse, the M.T.A. would not get an expected $100 million in payments from Forest City.