Joel Eisdorfer, a Hasidic senior adviser to New York City Mayor Eric Adams and his liaison to Jewish communities, is reportedly eyeing a lobbying job after announcing on Thursday that he would step down from his role at City Hall, the New York Daily News reported.

Frank Carone, Adams’s former chief of staff and the founder of the lobbying firm Oaktree Solutions, told the Daily News that he was in talks with Eisdorfer and another Adams official, Kevin Kim, about potentially working at Oaktree.

“Anyone would be lucky to have either or both as they both have character, work ethic and loyalty,” Carone told the news outlet.

John Kaehny, executive director of the government watchdog group Reinvent Albany, told the Daily News it’s an ethical concern when government officials switch to working as lobbyists.

“What they’re doing is cashing in on their access to the mayor and City Hall,” Kaehny said. The Daily News said Oaktree is currently lobbying city agencies other than the mayor’s office on behalf of real estate and hospitality interests.

Eisdorfer and Kim did not respond to the Daily News’s request for comment, but Adams spokesperson Fabien Levy said the two will do “whatever is best for them and their families” and they will continue to support the mayor “in other ways.”

According to the Forward, which first announced Eisdorfer’s departure, he is leaving City Hall to improve work-life balance.

Eisdorfer told the Forward he would volunteer on Adams’s reelection campaign and continue to chair the mayor’s Jewish advisory council. 

While at the mayor’s office, Eisdorfer has also arranged briefings and other meetings for Jewish leaders. He is often seen at events in which the mayor meets with Haredi leaders, such as a recent celebration of the establishment of a Bobov Hasidic boys’ yeshiva, during which Adams reaffirmed his support for Hasidic schools dictating their own curricula, according to Hamodia.

“Joel has been an empathetic public servant during one of the most trying times for Jewish New Yorkers,” Adams wrote on X, formerly Twitter. “He's reached across communities to make them feel heard and seen. I'll miss him day to day, but I'm happy he'll keep working with us in new ways.”

Fellow high ranking Orthodox official, Richie Taylor, a deputy chief at the New York City Police Department, also praised Eisdorfer’s work for the mayor. "Joel is a consummate professional who has brought tremendous positivity to government and to all communities in New York City,” Taylor wrote. “I look forward to continuing working with Joel in his role as Chair of the Mayor’s Jewish Advisory Council and I know that the best is yet to come!”

Before working for the mayor’s office, Eisdorfer ran his own lobbying firm, the Daily News said. He has also served as a board member for the Borough Park Jewish Community Council and a member of Brooklyn Community Board 12, which includes Borough Park, according to Hamodia. Eisdorfer previously worked for the now-mayor during Adams’ time as state senator and Brooklyn borough president.

In March, Eisdorfer was the target of a lawsuit that claimed he failed to pay the broker’s fee after signing a contract to buy a restaurant in South Brooklyn. Eisdorfer’s attorney argued, among other things, that that contract was not fully executed by both parties.

He was recently added to a list of city employees with “substantial” influence over public policy, a list that includes employees who have “major responsibilities and [exercise] independent judgment in connection with determining important agency matters,” according to the city’s Conflict of Interest Board.

When Eisdorfer leaves the mayor’s office, his current duties will be shared among his remaining coworkers, the Forward said.

This article was edited to include comments by Richie Taylor.

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