Kenneth Lovett, New York Post
Despite owning a house less than 20 minutes from the state Capitol, Gov. Paterson, as lieutenant governor, routinely used taxpayer money to stay at nearby hotels, The Post has learned.
Credit-card records obtained from the state Comptroller’s Office covering Paterson’s nearly 15 months as lieutenant governor showed he charged his state credit card for 13 Albany hotel stays totaling more than $2,500 between Jan. 1, 2007, and this past Feb. 18.
“It’s a bit odd, and it’s the kind of thing that certainly raises eyebrows,” said Susan Lerner, of Common Cause New York, a government watchdog group.
While their primary residence is in New York City, property records show that Paterson and his wife, Michelle, purchased a house in Guilderland, a suburb of Albany, in late 2001.
Yet, since last year, Paterson charged his state credit card for 12 stays at the Clarion Collection Hotel and one at the Crowne Plaza Hotel, both of which are down the street from the Capitol.
The Clarion Collection Hotel, known as 74 State, describes itself on its Web site as a “full-service boutique hotel set in Albany’s historic State Street district.”
Despite having a state driver to chauffeur him the 20 minutes home, Paterson, as lieutenant governor, sometimes chose to stay downtown because of a busy schedule, spokesman Errol Cockfield said.
