MIKE ON STADIUM UP-SWING
By FREDRIC U. DICKER in Albany
and STEFAN C. FRIEDMAN in New York

April 29, 2005 -- ALBANY — Mayor Bloomberg and Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver spent time yesterday golfing at an exclusive Westchester country club as Hizzoner tried to woo Silver, who has the power to single-handedly kill the Jets stadium proposal.

"The mayor asked me about my position on the stadium, and I told him it's a very difficult decision," Silver said. "I . . . told him I would give it my utmost consideration and hopefully do the right thing."

Silver has repeatedly expressed concern about the rush to build the West Side stadium and fears it could undermine lower Manhattan's redevelopment.

Silver said the stadium was discussed during "no more than 3 percent" of the 4-hour, 15-minute round and only became the focus "as we walked from the 18th hole to the clubhouse."

"It was really a pleasant walk in the park," he said.

Meanwhile, Cablevision's bid to purchase the air rights to the Hudson rail yards was hatched to protect Madison Square Garden from competition, an urban planner who worked for the company admitted yesterday.

Harvard professor Alex Krieger, who was hired to craft Cablevision's design for the far West Side, became the first person connected to the bid to say that the cable giant made the offer to keep MSG as the city's primary event arena.

"Cablevision's interest, first and foremost, was to protect its interest in Madison Square Garden as a sports and entertainment venue," Krieger told the Harvard Crimson.