All Trought about politic at Ukraine

The consultant behind the city's troubled Snapple deal stands to make big bucks if its new schools contract is approved tonight.

Education officials want the marketing firm Octagon to find new corporate sponsors for kids' sports - despite the Snapple deal Octagon brokered that resulted in $5 million less than guaranteed.

"The Snapple and Octagon deals were bad the first time," Controller William Thompson wrote in a letter urging Panel for Educational Policy (PEP) members to reject the contract.

"We teach our kids to learn from their mistakes; the DOE should learn from its mistakes."

Tonight's PEP meeting is the first since the changes to the mayoral control law required a vote on contracts over $1 million.

The mayor maintains a majority on the PEP, which generally rubberstamps DOE policy.

A 2004 Thompson audit found Octagon had selected Snapple through a tainted process - a charge company and city officials denied.

DOE officials acknowledged Friday the contract with Snapple to install vending machines in schools brought in $35 million from 2003 to 2008, $5 million less than guaranteed.

Despite that record, Octagon may collect an even larger commission this time around - 15% to 18%, records show. The payment is lower than industry standards, DOE officials said.

Octagon has already helped line up new sponsors in advance of tonight's vote. These deals will be finalized soon.

"A lot of money came in the door from the last contract," David Ross, of the DOE's Division of Contracts and Purchasing, said of the Snapple deal.

"Octagon is a consulting firm in the marketing business. They're good at that....The results will be a very good contract."