By Heather Grossmann
DNAinfo News Editor
MANHATTAN — Longtime Deputy Mayor Ed Skyler will be leaving the Bloomberg administration in April for greener pastures.
He is reportedly headed to Citigroup, where the pay will likely be substantially more than the comparatively paltry salary he pulls in at his city job.
Sklyer, 35, is the third key player in the Bloomberg administration to announce his departure from City Hall this year, but the first who is not leaving for a Bloomberg-related entity.
Former Deputy Mayor Kevin Sheekey said in early March that he was rejoining Bloomberg L.P. and would be advising the mayor on his personal philanthropic efforts.
Howard Wolfson — Mayor Michael Bloomberg’s third-term campaign manager and communications director for Secretary of State Hillary Clinton’s presidential bid — replaced Sheekey.
The mayor’s Communications Director James Anderson also announced he was leaving in January for a job at Bloomberg’s philanthropic foundation.
The moves are not surprising given that the mayor’s senior advisers, who signed on with him during his first term and many of whom worked with him previously at Bloomberg L.P., had expected their roles in the administration to expire in 2009 because of term limits.
City jobs pay substantially less than what most of the mayor’s close aides would make in the private sector given their qualifications. Skyler made $188,304 in 2007, according to public records.
“Aside from being a great Mayor, he has been the best boss one could ever hope for,” Skyler said of Bloomberg in a statement announcing his resignation on Tuesday. “I have devoted a lot of time and energy to making New York City work better throughout my career in government. Although I am ready for my next step, this experience is irreplaceable.”
As deputy mayor of operations, Skyler was one of the most powerful of Bloomberg’s aides. He helped manage the NYPD and FDNY, and oversaw the Department of Transportation and Department of Buildings, among others.
His fellow departing deputy mayor, Sheekey, once referred to the 6-foot-4-inch Skyler as “Batman” after Skyler chased down a teenager who had stolen a woman’s purse last spring.
The mayor’s office has not yet announced a replacement for Skyler.
"He’s phenomenally competent," Bloomberg said of Skyler at a morning press conference. "He’s going to help me find somebody who will hopefully turn out to be even better."
