6.20.07by David D. Kirkpatrick
WASHINGTON -- Campaign contributions sometimes lead to lucrative official favors, but seldom are the tradeoffs as obvious as in the case of Coconut Road.
The road, a stretch of pavement near Fort Myers, Fla., that touches five golf clubs on its way to the Gulf of Mexico, is the target of a $10 million earmark that appeared mysteriously in a 2006 transportation bill written by Rep. Don Young, R-Alaska.
The Coconut Road money is a boon, however, to Daniel J. Aronoff, a Bloomfield Hills real estate developer who helped raise $40,000 for Young at the nearby Hyatt Coconut Point hotel days before he introduced the measure.
Aronoff owns as much as 4,000 acres along Coconut Road. The $10 million in federal money would pay for the first steps to connect the road to Interstate 75, exponentially increasing the value of Aronoff's land.
A Republican commissioner of Lee County, Ray Judah, is campaigning against the interchange, calling it an example of congressional corruption that is "a cancer on the federal government."
Young may have first learned of Coconut Road on Feb. 17, 2005. That is when he flew to the region on a plane owned by a Waterford, Mich., charter company that is associated with the Aronoff family, which is based in Bloomfield Hills, Mich. The Aronoffs are among the company's biggest clients, its general manager, Tom Hector, said.
Young's re-election campaign reimbursed the company $3,422 for the flight, according to his campaign filings.
At the invitation of Mack, Young visited Florida Gulf Coast University for a meeting on the Interstate and other transportation questions. Afterward, Young went directly to the fundraiser at the Hyatt Coconut Point.
His campaign records show that he received more than $40,000 in contributions on one day around that time, mostly from southwestern Florida developers and builders.
Aronoff, whose family is a major contributor to Republicans, gave $500 to Young's campaign and later gave $2,500 to Young's Midnight Sun political action committee.
The Aronoffs gave more than $200,000 to Republican candidates and political committees in 2006. Their business, the Landon Cos., is best known for building mobile-home parks. But it also operates a real estate development business in Florida.
Daniel Aronoff has taken over management of the company from his father, Arnold Y. Aronoff, who had a checkered career in Florida real estate. In 1979, Arnold Aronoff was sentenced to two years in prison after pleading guilty to mail fraud in a scheme to sell Florida swampland at an inflated price.
NOTE: The Aronoff owned Landon Companies and Michael J. Malik's MJM Enterprises & Development share the same D.C. political operative, Richard Alcalde. Alcalde owns the Potomac Partners D.C. lobbying firm. MJM Enterprises is one of the entities Malik uses in syndicating various Indian Casino proposals backed by members of the Ilitch Family (his partners). But the similarities don't stop there:
WASHINGTON -- Campaign contributions sometimes lead to lucrative official favors, but seldom are the tradeoffs as obvious as in the case of Coconut Road.
The road, a stretch of pavement near Fort Myers, Fla., that touches five golf clubs on its way to the Gulf of Mexico, is the target of a $10 million earmark that appeared mysteriously in a 2006 transportation bill written by Rep. Don Young, R-Alaska.
The Coconut Road money is a boon, however, to Daniel J. Aronoff, a Bloomfield Hills real estate developer who helped raise $40,000 for Young at the nearby Hyatt Coconut Point hotel days before he introduced the measure.
Aronoff owns as much as 4,000 acres along Coconut Road. The $10 million in federal money would pay for the first steps to connect the road to Interstate 75, exponentially increasing the value of Aronoff's land.
A Republican commissioner of Lee County, Ray Judah, is campaigning against the interchange, calling it an example of congressional corruption that is "a cancer on the federal government."
Aronoff and Michael J. Malik share the same D.C. political operative: Richard Alcalde, founder of the lobbying firm Potomac Partners D.C.
Young may have first learned of Coconut Road on Feb. 17, 2005. That is when he flew to the region on a plane owned by a Waterford, Mich., charter company that is associated with the Aronoff family, which is based in Bloomfield Hills, Mich. The Aronoffs are among the company's biggest clients, its general manager, Tom Hector, said.
Young's re-election campaign reimbursed the company $3,422 for the flight, according to his campaign filings.
At the invitation of Mack, Young visited Florida Gulf Coast University for a meeting on the Interstate and other transportation questions. Afterward, Young went directly to the fundraiser at the Hyatt Coconut Point.
His campaign records show that he received more than $40,000 in contributions on one day around that time, mostly from southwestern Florida developers and builders.
Aronoff, whose family is a major contributor to Republicans, gave $500 to Young's campaign and later gave $2,500 to Young's Midnight Sun political action committee.
The Aronoffs gave more than $200,000 to Republican candidates and political committees in 2006. Their business, the Landon Cos., is best known for building mobile-home parks. But it also operates a real estate development business in Florida.
Daniel Aronoff has taken over management of the company from his father, Arnold Y. Aronoff, who had a checkered career in Florida real estate. In 1979, Arnold Aronoff was sentenced to two years in prison after pleading guilty to mail fraud in a scheme to sell Florida swampland at an inflated price.
NOTE: The Aronoff owned Landon Companies and Michael J. Malik's MJM Enterprises & Development share the same D.C. political operative, Richard Alcalde. Alcalde owns the Potomac Partners D.C. lobbying firm. MJM Enterprises is one of the entities Malik uses in syndicating various Indian Casino proposals backed by members of the Ilitch Family (his partners). But the similarities don't stop there:
- Rep. Young (R-AK) flying around in Detroit Casino Developers' private jet
- Rep. Don Young's Top 10 donor list includes prominent Great Lakes area families bankrolling 'off-reservation' casino projects
- Ilitch/Malik & Troha families responsible for 70% of the money Rep Don Young (R-AK) took in on his best fundraising day of the entire 2006 campaign
- Casino developer indicted on charges he laundered political contributions via his family
- There can be no question why Michael Malik found Rep. Don Young to be such an attractive political figure
- Tribe hoped language slipped into 2004 Transportation Bill would grant approvals for Port Huron casino
- UPDATED: Tribal leader admits lobbyists were trying to sneak casino plans through Congress without alerting opposition
No comments:
Post a Comment