City To Withhold Funding For Private Capital Projects

The city is putting a one-year moratorium on funding for private capital projects as part of its next budget.

The decision to freeze funding for the projects, which will include money for hospitals, was pushed by Mayor Bloomberg's office, which says there is an administrative backlog.

The moratorium, which carves out an exemption for projects already in progress and those at museums and other cultural institutions, was met with strong opposition from some council members. Those with few city-owned hospitals in their areas were most vocal.

Mr. Bloomberg and the council speaker, Christine Quinn, announced a deal on the $59 billion budget Tuesday night, but the fine print is still being hashed out.

Yesterday, Ms. Quinn heard last minute pitches from council members looking to get money for discretionary projects in their districts before the budget is officially approved on Friday.