A nonprofit in Washington Heights that sur vives largely on the government grants secured every year by Assemblyman Adriano Espaillat has employed his sister-in-law, his local Democratic district leader, and several consultants who also worked in his political campaigns.
A spokesman for Espaillat, now running for the state Senate, insisted Espaillat doesn’t get involved “in the process of hiring any staff in any of the nonprofits he has assisted in his district.”
But records show that the Northern Manhattan Coalition for Economic Development has been a prime source for contracts and jobs for the legislator’s allies:
* Amarilis Madera, Espaillat’s sister-in-law, served as a $20,000-a-year “child-care training coordinator” between 2000 and 2007. Officials of the nonprofit said she helped oversee classes to help residents become child-care providers.
* Maria Morillo, the local district leader, was on the payroll between 2001 and 2008 as a part-time “community outreach coordinator” earning $10 an hour. “I do many things, different things,” she told The Post. Asked what those things were, she said she informed local residents of “what program we have.”
* Elizabeth Rodriguez, who collected $3,280 working in Espaillat’s campaigns, was coordinator of a two-year program leading school kids on museum trips. Officials said the program was subsidized by a $5,000 grant from the City Council.
* Wilfredo Soriano, who received $1,000 when Espaillat’s 2002 and 2004 campaigns placed ads on his cable-TV show, operated a basketball school under the aegis of the nonprofit.
* Nurys de Oleo, who made $53,000 in 2007 as the nonprofit’s salaried director, had previously served as Espaillat’s chief-of-staff, and is currently on the board of directors of his political club.
In one sense, Espaillat and the Northern Manhattan Coalition couldn’t be closer — they share the same address, 210 Sherman Ave.