Mr. Gallagher's not a stranger to the development world; his City Hall job included work on economic development, PlaNYC and the city budget. He starts his gig at Tishman early next month, according to a person familiar with the situation.

The move comes as the city is tightening its oversight of the construction industry, an industry where Tishman is a giant, responsible for building the Freedom Tower, the new Goldman Sachs headquarters and the Bank of America tower near Bryant Park. Tishman—a separate company from megalandlord Tishman Speyer—also has a development arm, and has plans for a hotel on Eighth Avenue and 44^th Street that needs some city approvals.

Mr. Gallagher, who came to City Hall in 2006, worked previously at the Lower Manhattan Development Corporation, on Jeanine Pirro's campaign for attorney general, for the Senate Republicans and for the Assembly Republicans.

John Hoeffner will get seven to 14 years in prison and must pay $1,420,214.66 in restitution for forging vendor invoices and altering vendor checks related to Tishman work at Yeshiva University in Upper Manhattan.

Full release from the DA's office below.

DISTRICT ATTORNEY – NEW YORK COUNTY

NEWS RELEASE CONTACT: Alicia Maxey Greene August 4, 2008 212-335-9400

Manhattan District Attorney Robert M. Morgenthau announced today that a former project accountant at Tishman Construction Corp. has pleaded guilty to stealing $2.8 million from the company in a phony invoicing scheme.

The defendant, JOHN HOEFFNER, 47, pleaded guilty to Grand Larceny in the First Degree and Grand Larceny in the Second Degree. As a result of his plea, the defendant will receive 7-14 years in prison and pay restitution in the amount of $1,420,214.66.

HOEFFNER forged vendor invoices and altered vendor checks while assigned to the Tishman construction project at the Albert Einstein College of Medicine of Yeshiva University, between March 31, 2006 and May 13, 2008. As a project accountant, HOEFFNER was responsible for receiving invoices for payment from vendors and subcontractors, preparing checks for signature by senior Tishman managers, and distributing the checks to the payees.

The investigation leading to today’s plea revealed that HOEFFNER incorporated a phony company with a name similar to a legitimate vendor to carry out his scheme. He systematically faked invoices and submitted them to Tishman with payment checks to be signed. Once the checks were issued, he modified them, making them payable to his similarly-named company, and deposited them into accounts that he controlled. The defendant altered and deposited a total of 99 such checks. In addition, the defendant changed eight checks issued to another legitimate vendor by adding his own surname “HOEFFNER” to the checks so he could deposit them and steal the money. The 107 checks altered and deposited by the defendant totaled $2,801,578.75. The theft was discovered by a Tishman auditor during a review of the company’s various projects.

The defendant, who was arrested on June 13, 2008, waived his right to appeal. His sentencing is scheduled for September 17, 2008.

Assistant District Attorney Judy Salwen, who is assigned to the District Attorney’s Special Prosecutions Bureau, is in charge of the prosecution under the supervision of Assistant District Attorney Thomas Wornom, Chief of the Special Prosecutions Bureau.

Mr. Morgenthau thanked the Tishman Construction Corp. for its cooperation in this investigation.

Defendant Information

John Hoeffner, 08/19/1960
1467 Burton Street
Beechurst, New York

This afternoon, a horizontal post that was supporting netting fell from the 27^th floor of the 54-story tower, dropping onto the seventh floor, according to the Department of Buildings. No injuries were reported.

Richard Kielar, a spokesman for construction manager Tishman Construction Corporation, said the gusty winds were likely responsible.

In October, a cart fell out of the 53^rd story of the tower, showering glass on the roadway below and injuring eight.

A construction accident at the site of Goldman Sachs’ new world headquarters downtown injured one worker this morning, as a crane dropped a seven-ton cargo load on a trailer, according to preliminary reports from the Fire Department and Department of Buildings.

The crane, located on the 30th floor of the tower-to-be, was lifting a load of metal wall studs when its nylon sling failed, according to a Department of Buildings statement on the accident. The debris fell onto a construction trailer below, injuring a male worker inside.

The incident marks the second high-profile accident within two months for Tishman Construction Corp., the large New York-based contractor that is building the Godlman Sachs tower at 200 Murray Street. In October, a cart fell from the 53^rd floor of Douglas Durst’s Bank of America Tower, under construction by Tishman, showering the streets below with shattered glass and debris. Eight received minor injuries from the accident.

The city ordered a stop to crane activity at the Goldman site, where 30 of the tower’s 45 planned floors have been erected.

That concept is hardly shocking for anyone who’s picked up a newspaper any time since August, but it seems relatively significant that some top members of the industry–a profession normally dominated by bullish, positive statements, at least on the record–candidly acknowledged the rough climate.

Of course, with the possibility of altering perceptions and moving markets on the line, the panelists—L&L Holding's David Levinson, Tishman Construction CEO Daniel Tishman, Newmark Knight Frank CEO Barry Gosin, and Halstead Property President Diane Ramirez—sandwiched any bad piece of news with optimism.

“If you’re in the market for the long hold, it’s fairly easy to even out the peaks and the troughs," Mr. Tishman said. "So there was a great peak at the beginning of this year; and I’m not sure we’re in a trough yet, but the trough is coming." He added that New York is likelier than other cities to shake off any economic troubles.

Between Mr. Tishman and the others, the abridged take on the market seemed to be as follows:

• Rising construction costs = bad
• Weak dollar = good
• Declining availability of credit = bad
• Expected long term growth = good

I got your numbers - right here!

With projected 2006 revenues of $10.4 billion and 22,500 employees, Trump is the only real estate-related company to make the top 10. (Tishman Construction Corporation is the next closest one, at no. 13.)

The list, however, has its potential problems, which Crain's acknowledges. The 200 companies listed are, well, private, and, therefore, provide and verify much of their own information.

Which might render the Trump Organization's top perch a tad shaky as its namesake may have a jones for pumping up his numbers.

- Tom Acitelli