The Real Deal Ranks NY’s Top Lobbyists
The industry doesn’t always speak the language of politics, but developers increasingly need to: politics now influences real estate at least as much as simple supply and demand. From City Hall to Albany, developers look to New York’s top government relations and lobbying practices to translate their interests to lawmakers.
In turn, these lobbyists shape the long legislative process behind zoning changes, tax incentives and land use policies that allow new developments to rise. Firms like Kasirer, Bolton-St. Johns and Greenberg Traurig have helped major projects, from Gotham’s Monitor Point to Cirrus and LCOR’s Pacific Park, pencil out.
The Real Deal’s first roundup of top firms working with the industry spells out the key lobbyists influencing land use and housing agendas across city and state legislatures. The ranking, compiled from legislative activity between Jan. 1, 2024 and June 30, 2026, covers instances where a lobbying subject was related to real estate.
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Capitalizing on pro-housing platforms
For today’s lobbyists, some of the groundwork is already laid. Housing is a top priority for many of New York’s politicians, and winning lawmakers over now means aligning proposed developments with their platforms.
“I’m really appreciative of the fact that we don’t have a lot of convincing to do that more housing is good,” said Eldad Gothelf, senior vice president for real estate at Kasirer. “Five or more years ago, that was not the case. We had to fight that battle first to say, ‘No, more housing is a good thing.’”
Kasirer tops TRD’s ranking with more than $38 million in lobbying compensation related to real estate matters. The firm helped deliver projects like the OneLIC Neighborhood Plan, which is slated to deliver nearly 15,000 new units, the highest volume generated by a neighborhood rezoning in at least 25 years.
“Previously in zoning and land use, it was like 80 percent technical work and 20 percent politics, and now that ratio has shifted dramatically,” Gothelf said.
Kasirer also helped complete what Council member Lincoln Restler described as the “first big hairy ULURP of the Mamdani administration” on the controversial Monitor Point project. The development, which faced vocal opposition for years over affordability concerns, ultimately saw Gotham bump up the share of affordable units to 662, or 50 percent of the project. That gave local lawmakers a chance to claim a win on the Greenpoint development.
For Gothelf, the mayor’s embrace of ambitious housing production targets is a welcome force for the industry and local stakeholders alike. He said he is looking forward to “capitalizing” on charter reforms that made the Expedited Land Use Review Process, along with the Affordable Housing Appeals Board and 12-district fast track, possible.
One-stop shop
Law firms with government relations practices like Akerman, Fried Frank and Greenberg Traurig hope to be their clients’ go-to for legal and legislative concerns.
Fried Frank, which generated more than $8 million in compensation for its real estate government relations work, has lobbied on behalf of Steve Cohen’s New Green Willetts LLC. The entity lobbies for land use approvals in the Willets Point area, where Cohen’s Metropolitan Park casino project is set to rise alongside Citi Field.
As government affairs counsel to REBNY for 20 years, Greenberg Traurig assists the organization’s state-level advocacy, while also representing members on individual developments. “Clients like having attorneys that can give them real counsel, keep them out of grey areas, give them political advice and campaign contribution advice, and we run the whole gamut,” Samir NeJame, chair of Greenberg Traurig’s New York State Government Law & Policy Practice, said.
REBNY Chair Jed Walentas’ Two Trees turned to the firm to shepherd the River Ring project, which has faced a minefield of zoning and tax complications, including the untimely expiration of 421a.
“Last year, on behalf of Two Trees in Brooklyn, we got a grandfathered piece of legislation for a mixed-use development that has affordable housing,” NeJame said.
The Williamsburg waterfront development will ultimately benefit from an extension to 421a, under a budget housing bill Gov. Kathy Hochul and state lawmakers approved in May. Greenberg Traurig has brought in more than $6 million in compensation from real estate government relations work over the two-and-a-half-year period TRD’s list covers.
Albany will look different next session, when a new slate of left-wing lawmakers who nearly swept their primaries arrive, solidifying a sizable bloc of seats held by electeds aligned with the Democratic Socialists of America and the Working Families Party. But NeJame is undaunted.
“There’s going to be more left-leaning numbers [in Albany], but I don’t know that to us that’s a concern,” NeJame said. “On the River Ring project, Senators Gonzalez and Salazar, who are two left-leaning members, were our champions. We’ve worked phenomenally with the two of them and a lot of their colleagues.”
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