I have been reading a bit about the land aquisition in the LSU/VA footprint. The name Pincus Freidman comes up but trying to research him is a seeming dead end. This “is”:http://www.campaignmoney.com/political/contributions/pincus-freidman.asp?cycle=08 about all you can find in a regular Google search. Perhaps he is the “Keyser Soze”:http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Keyser_S%C3%B6ze of real estate. It seems that someone heavily involved in real estate would have left an internet trail.
In the meanwhile “Indy media”:http://neworleans.indymedia.org/news/2008/12/13396.php has put together some analysis.
According to the La Secretary of State, he’s the manager of NORA:
http://www400.sos.louisiana.gov/cgibin/?rqstyp=CRPIC&rqsdta=pincus+friedman
Nevermind, looks like I mispelled the named as “Pincus Friedman” instead of “Freidman”
Actually, Karen, I think you might have reversed the letters. That’s probably why you didn’t get any results. This NOLA article says “Pincus Friedman” is a real estate investor from New York:
http://www.nola.com/news/index.ssf/2008/02/plans_for_lsuva_hospital_compl.html
Great work! But there’s another big landholder.
What about the late Henry Herdmann’s holdings within the LSU footprint? Who is the recently-formed California-based Henry Herdmann Properties?
Something doesn’t smell right. Has the public been paying for Friedman’s real estate whenever he flies NORA’s flag?
Here’s a good question for you.
Have FEMA or other recovery funds been applied, in any way, to any Friedman properties? Furthermore, has Friedman obtained building permits to repair any properties within the hospital footprint?
The same questions apply to Herdmann.
Keyser Soze? Try Connor (or Duncan) MacLeod. Back in 1918 a bookseller in N.Y. was involved in some kind of scheme involving sugar from New Orleans. God, they really are the developer illuminatti.
Just joking, but I figured Celcus might be reading this. I couldn’t even find much about the current guy using LexisNexis or searching the New York Times. The NORA that’s involved doesn’t seem to be the city agency, it has a different address and seems to be a private company. A real estate speculator could have looked at the area and seen the same potential as Paul Ikemire of Phoenix-NOLA. It seems to me that land adjacent to the development might have more potential value than land within the actual footprint, but I don’t know the real estate business and I don’t know exactly where Friedman’s holdings are in relation to the proposed site. Although I do find it odd that an out-of-town investor focused so heavily on one area, I’m not sure how significant it is.
I find the number of different LLC’s that he formed more interesting. Is it SOP for a real estate developer to form that many enterprises?
Not THIS Henry Herdman, right?
http://www400.sos.louisiana.gov/cgibin?rqstyp=crpdtlC&rqsdta=29921030D
Yes, that’s the same man. Note the corporate address. It’s now listed as being owned by Henry Herdman of Chula Vista, California. That corresponds with this new LLC:
http://www400.sos.louisiana.gov/cgibin?rqstyp=crpdtlC&rqsdta=36697606K
Someone with plotting skills may want to map Herdman’s landholdings. Don’t they seem to encircle LSU’s Roman Street facility which was built in the 60s or 70s?
i knew h. herdmann pre-k. i met him in the tax office and we became coffee buddies, talking about the absurdities of living here (and city hall). he inherited the properties from his father. i don’t know if he went to california but i wish him the best. he always wanted to take me to a show at harrahs! sadly i never went. 🙂
Herdman died in Beverly Hills not long after Katrina.