Latest news with #RobertMcGee
New York Post
20-07-2025
- Entertainment
- New York Post
Bizarre NYC rotisserie chicken-eating contest ends with belly-busting twist
It's a real game of chicken. Nearly two dozen people gobbled up entire rotisserie chickens at a bizarre and messy Brooklyn sidewalk competition Sunday – and the winner washed down the poultry with an entire pizza pie. 5 Nearly two dozen participants and scores of on-lookers at the 2nd annual rotisserie chicken-eating event on Seventh Avenue in Park Slope. Michael Nigro The second annual rotisserie chicken-eating contest, organized by viral TikTok account Old Jewish Men of New York, took place outside Roma Pizza and had attracted a crowd of onlookers on Seventh Avenue who gawked at the 22 men and women chowing down on $4.99 bagged Costco birds. 'It's the meat of the people, it's great because you can get it for $5,' Noah Rinsky, the 36-year-old Park Slope resident behind the Old Jewish Men of New York lifestyle brand, told The Post. 5 Contestants gobbling down chicken off the bone in Park Slope. Michael Nigro 'There seems to be kind of a rotisserie chicken fandom in general: we've been making all these videos online, and people love rotisseries,' Rinsky said of the contest's inspiration. 'One thing led to the next, and I feel like this was the logical next place to take it — to the streets of New York.' Rinsky even corralled sponsors like antacid brand Quellix, next-door neighbor Petco and online betting app Kalshi for this year's event — though 'the SEC didn't approve' of chicken eating-related bets in time. 'At Costco, it's five bucks: it's an excellent price. People don't realize a rotisserie chicken can serve your whole family,' said David Roffe, a Brooklyn-based actor featured in Old Jewish Men of New York who was sporting a tee shirt with Costco's barcode for a rotisserie chicken at the event. The 73-year-old micro-celebrity even launched his own Chicken Show interview series on YouTube earlier this year, featuring the likes of New York City comptroller Brad Lander, local social media personality New York Nico and even former US Rep. Anthony Weiner. 5 Robert McGee, 35, of Far Rockaway, told The Post he was originally waitlisted for the contest after finding out about it on Instagram. Michael Nigro After a grueling six minutes and 44 seconds of gullet-cramming, Far Rockaway resident Robert McGee was crowned the contest champ — winning a golden chicken trophy, $500 dollars and a piping hot cheese pie from Roma Pizza. 'I think I'll put it into my savings,' said McGee, 35, of the prize money, claiming that he prepared by eating a steady regimen of chicken wings 'all week.' 5 Phil Castellano (left), owner of Roma Pizza, poses with contest winner Robert McGee. Michael Nigro While McGee couldn't beat last year's winner Danny Moriarty's record of finishing a bird at under five minutes, he did devour the pizza prize immediately. 'It might be the heat: the white meat I've heard was more intense this year,' Rinsky said, 'but they're all supposed to be standard.' 5 Robert McGee was crowned the winner of the 2nd annual rotisserie chicken eating contest. Michael Nigro Phil Castellano, whose family has owned Roma Pizza for 42 years, told The Post that the strange affair was not only fun, but also provides a real boost for local businesses on the block.
ABC News
04-06-2025
- Politics
- ABC News
Queensland police officer faces serious assault charge
A Queensland police officer charged over an alleged excessive use of force incident has faced court for the first time. Senior Constable Robert Kevin McGee, 55, was stood down and charged with one count of assault occasioning bodily harm after the incident which occurred while he was on duty on the Gold Coast. Police prosecutors will allege the incident happened on the Gold Coast Highway at Miami in January. Mr McGee is accused of injuring a man who was under arrest and being taken to the Southport Watchhouse. He was charged in May after a four-month investigation. He appeared without legal representation when his matter was mentioned briefly in the Southport Magistrates Court on Wednesday. He did not enter a plea and was granted bail. The case was adjourned until August.
Yahoo
31-01-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Obama Presidential Center subcontractor sues over cost overruns, alleges discrimination
CHICAGO — A federal lawsuit filed earlier this month alleges one of the main companies involved in managing the construction of the Obama Presidential Center racially discriminated against one of the project's Black American-owned local subcontractors, leaving them $40 million in the red and at risk of bankruptcy. But the company in charge of engineering and professional design services for the center pointed the finger right back, saying in an attached memo that construction costs and delays 'were all unequivocally driven by the underperformance and inexperience' of that subcontractor, II in One. Robert McGee, the owner of II in One, a South Side company that provided concrete and rebar services for the center starting in 2021, sued New York-based Thornton Tomasetti in federal court earlier this month, seeking to be paid back for roughly $40 million in construction costs the local company covered itself along with its joint venture partners. II in One blamed Thornton Tomasetti for changing standards, saying the company made an 'improper and unanticipated decision' to impose new rules around rebar spacing and tolerance requirements, subjected the company to 'excessively rigorous and unnecessary inspection,' and extensive paperwork that 'impacted productivity and resulted in millions in losses.' The suit alleges race discrimination, claiming the engineering company falsely singled out the minority-owned II for One for its errors, while 'stating the non-minority-owned contractors were sufficiently qualified,' causing 'extreme financial loss and reputational harm' for II for One. The former president's namesake museum campus already weathered a yearslong pause during separate legal challenges to its plans to build in a public park. The main museum building's opening was pushed back to 2026, while its athletic center is scheduled to open this year. The Wall Street Journal reported Obama's center set a modern record for the time elapsed between the end of a presidency and the opening of a namesake museum. Former President Barack Obama visited the construction site last June for the 'topping off' of the museum building, and the foundation announced concrete work wrapped up in October 2024. Obama Foundation spokeswoman Emily Bitter said in an email Thursday that, 'If the Foundation believed that any vendor was acting with a racist intent, we would immediately take appropriate action. We have no reason to believe that Thornton Tomasetti acted with racist intent.' Attorneys for II in One and the Concrete Collective joint venture of which the company is a member declined comment. Representatives for Thornton Tomasetti did not immediately respond to requests for comment. In the February 2024 memo attached to the lawsuit, Thornton Tomasetti shared images of cracked slab and exposed rebar, telling Obama Foundation leadership that the Concrete Collective submitted hundreds of requests to correct its work in the field, that Thornton Tomasetti spent 'hundreds of hours reviewing, analyzing, re-designing and responding to corrective work,' and that contractors caused 'a multitude of problems in the field.' Concrete Collective submitted an initial 'request for equitable adjustment' for additional costs it incurred in May 2023 but was rejected, the suit claimed, based on Thornton Tomasetti's 'defamatory and discriminatory statements.' By the time it finished, the collective claimed it self-funded about $41 million in work. Thornton Tomasetti's criticism, the suit said, was 'unfair' and falsely accused II in One of 'lacking sufficient qualifications,' despite its experience on dozens of high-profile public projects like Millennium Park, McCormick Place, Midway and O'Hare airports, Wrigley Field, the Chicago Riverwalk, Northwestern Memorial Hospital and several Chicago Housing Authority buildings. The criticism, the suit said, led the Obama Foundation to deny covering those extra construction costs, potentially forcing the company's owner to seek bankruptcy and close up shop. This flare-up also 'directly undermined the Obama Foundation's DEI (diversity, equity and inclusion) goals and commitments and mission to bring transformative change to the construction industry and local community,' the suit claimed. Obama pledged to hire local workers, contractors, and companies owned by minorities, women, veterans, LGBTQ individuals and people with disabilities. Work was briefly halted at the site in 2022 after officials reported finding a noose, an incident condemned as an act of hate but that did not result in arrests. Federal health and safety officials are also investigating a fall at the site earlier this month.
Chicago Tribune
30-01-2025
- Business
- Chicago Tribune
Obama Presidential Center subcontractor sues over cost overruns, alleges discrimination
A federal lawsuit filed earlier this month alleges one of the main firms involved in managing the construction of the Obama Presidential Center racially discriminated against one of the project's African-American owned local subcontractors, leaving them $40 million in the red and at risk of bankruptcy. But the company in charge of engineering and professional design services for the center pointed the finger right back, saying in an attached memo that construction costs and delays 'were all unequivocally driven by the underperformance and inexperience' of that subcontractor, II in One. Robert McGee, the owner of II in One, a South Side firm that provided concrete and rebar services for the center starting in 2021, sued New York-based Thornton Tomasetti in federal court earlier this month, seeking to be paid back for roughly $40 million in construction costs the local firm covered itself along with its joint venture partners. II in One blamed Thornton Tomasetti for changing standards, saying the company made an 'improper and unanticipated decision' to impose new rules around rebar spacing and tolerance requirements, subjected the company to 'excessively rigorous and unnecessary inspection,' and extensive paperwork that 'impacted productivity and resulted in millions in losses.' The suit alleges race discrimination, claiming the engineering company falsely singled out the minority-owned II for One for its errors, while 'stating the non-minority-owned contractors were sufficiently qualified,' causing 'extreme financial loss and reputational harm' for II for One. The former president's namesake museum campus already weathered a yearslong pause during separate legal challenges to its plans to build in a public park. The main museum building's opening was pushed back to 2026, while its athletic center is scheduled to open this year. The Wall Street Journal reported Obama's center set a modern record for the time lapsed between the end of a presidency and the opening of a namesake museum. Former President Barack Obama visited the construction site last June for the 'topping off' of the museum building, and the foundation announced concrete work wrapped up in October 2024. Obama Foundation spokeswoman Emily Bitter said in an email Thursday that, 'If the Foundation believed that any vendor was acting with a racist intent, we would immediately take appropriate action. We have no reason to believe that Thornton Tomasetti acted with racist intent.' Attorneys for II in One and the Concrete Collective joint venture of which the company is a member declined comment. Representatives for Thornton Tomasetti did not immediately respond to requests for comment. In the February 2024 memo attached to the suit, Thornton Tomasetti shared images of cracked slab and exposed rebar, telling Obama Foundation leadership that the Concrete Collective submitted hundreds of requests to correct its work in the field, that Thornton Tomasetti spent 'hundreds of hours reviewing, analyzing, re-designing and responding to corrective work,' and that contractors caused 'a multitude of problems in the field.' Concrete Collective submitted an initial 'request for equitable adjustment' for additional costs it incurred in May of 2023 but was rejected, the suit claimed, based on Thornton Tomasetti's 'defamatory and discriminatory statements.' By the time they finished, the collective claimed it self-funded about $41 million in work. Thornton Tomasetti's criticism, the suit said, was 'unfair' and falsely accused II in One of 'lacking sufficient qualifications,' despite its experience on dozens of high-profile public projects like Millennium Park, McCormick Place, Midway and O'Hare Airports, Wrigley Field, the Chicago Riverwalk, Northwestern Hospital and several Chicago Housing Authority buildings. The criticism, the suit said, led the Obama Foundation to deny covering those extra construction costs, potentially forcing the firm's owner to seek bankruptcy and close up shop. This flare-up also 'directly undermined the Obama Foundation's DEI goals and commitments and mission to bring transformative change to the construction industry and local community,' the suit claimed. Obama pledged to hire local workers, contractors, and firms owned by minorities, women, veterans, LGBTQ individuals and people with disabilities. Work was briefly halted at the site in 2022 after officials reported finding a noose, an incident condemned as an act of hate but that did not result in arrests. Federal health and safety officials are also investigating a fall at the site from earlier this month.
