$20 Million Queens College Building Job Focus of Charges by Labor Council

The contract to renovate Powdermaker Hall on the Queens College campus was awarded to Trataros by the Dormitory Authority. Its spokesperson, Claudia Hutton, said state laws require the agency to retain the lowest bidder. The construction job totals $50 million in its entirety.
"They have compiled a good safety record and we have been satisfied with their work," she said.
Nicos Trataros, the founder and former CEO of Trataros, was indicted and later pleaded guilty to charges that he attempted to bribe a government official to secure a contract for the construction of a Post Office building in The Bronx. As a result of the plea bargain, Trataros resigned from the company, paid a $75,000 fine, and was sentenced to eight months in prison, with three years supervised release.
Gail H. Gordon, Chair of the Dormitory Authority, revealed in a letter to City Councilman Kenneth K. Fischer, obtained by The Queens Courier, that the Authority would not contract with Trataros until the company signed an integrity certification statement requiring quarterly reports to the authority of all ethical and criminal matter. The company also had to hire an independent private inspector general to monitor its activities and instituted a corporate compliance program covering internal corporate ethics.
Queens College had no voice in selecting Trataros. The bidding was conducted by the Dormitory Authority.
The labor demonstration against Trataros was one of several conducted throughout the City by the Central Labor Council and its president, Assemblyman Brian McLaughlin.