Cuomo tells Blasio that he "can not forgive taxes" to save a pizzeria



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The war between Governor Andrew Cuomo and Mayor Bill de Blasio has just been decrepit.

Cuomo threw a pie in the face of the mayor Wednesday, saying that if Fizzoner wanted to open his favorite pizzeria in Brooklyn, Di Fara, he could buy back the $ 167,000 in unpaid taxes that the state owes to this place.

"There is no legal authority to forgive the state's taxes," Cuomo said. "Now, if he wants to pay the $ 200,000 in the name of the pizzeria, he can do it. It's very good. And if he wants to buy a pizza worth $ 200,000, that's his business. But he can not forgive the taxes of the state. "

He then added, "I will not pay $ 200,000 for their pizza, even though it's a very good pizza."

The slam of Cuomo came after Blasio had jumped in the fray Di Fara on Twitter earlier on Wednesday.

"Di Fara is THE best pizza restaurant in New York," he wrote. "It MUST be saved. I'm ready to do everything I can to get them reopened – along with thousands of pizza lovers in New York. My team and I are studying how we can help resolve this situation. "

City Hall subsequently issued a statement that the mayor was "contacting the family to determine the extent of their problems and whether we can do anything to help," but still not explained how the city could make a state tax bill. go away.

The state's tax and finance department said the 55-year-old Midwood Institution had unpaid taxes since 2014.

State tax officials showed up Tuesday at 11:30 am and threw everyone outside, padlocked the door and placed a sign stating that the famous pie joint "is now in the hands of the state of New York.

Margaret DeMarco-Mieles, whose family owns the restaurant, told The Post that she had paid her taxes – but not according to the state.

Her father, Domenico DeMarco, opened Di Fara in 1964. Since then she has been ranked among the best pizzerias of the Big Apple, although she has been closed twice by the health service last year. because of a possible infestation by rodents.

Brooklynians living outside Di Fara Wednesday said they did not trust the mayor to do it.

"Saying and doing is a big difference," said Irene, who has lived in the area for 15 years. "I do not believe Blasio."

"I do not know what he's going to do. Pay taxes for them? No, said Alex Joe, a regular at the 71-year-old restaurant. "How can he change it? The place was not clean, of course. But the pizza was excellent. "

"I'll believe it when I see it," said Shawn Reid, a 47-year-old neighborhood resident.

De Blasio certainly could not count on Cuomo to bail him out – the two politicians have been arguing openly for weeks.

The governor categorically refused to invite Blasio to a news conference in Manhattan last week to announce a major national anti-terror initiative, even as city council chairman Corey Johnson and other leaders of Big Apple were present. Earlier in the month, Cuomo had criticized Blasio's administration for the "helpless" reaction of NYPD policemen who had simply left the city after a series of bomb attacks on the water bucket, due to poor training and bad policies in the city.

And last month, the governor criticized Blasio for failing to bring administrative charges against former police officer Daniel Pantaleo during the 2014 death of Eric Garner. Pantaleo was sacked this week by Commissioner James O'Neill following a departmental hearing held in June and July.

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