Once a three-term mayor of New York City, free-spending Bloomberg offers advice and money to Pugh

The Baltimore Sun reports:

When Michael Bloomberg comes to Baltimore, money tends to follow — most often to his beloved alma mater, Johns Hopkins, to which he’s donated $1.5 billion over the years, the most any living benefactor has given to a single educational institution.

But last week, the finance and media magnate arrived bearing gifts to the town beyond the gown. Along with the Wall Street firm Goldman Sachs, he dropped a $10 million donation to fund a small business initiative in Baltimore for the next five years. That came on the heels of a three-year, $1.5 million grant to City Hall to help reduce violence in Baltimore.

Mayor Catherine Pugh could not be more grateful. Since taking office in December, she has turned increasingly to Bloomberg for advice, and funds. As she comes under increasing pressure from City Council members and community groups to act on the alarming rate of violent crime and other problems wracking Baltimore, Pugh views the former three-term mayor of New York as a valuable resource.

“Bloomberg is someone who’s been there, done that,” Pugh said, “and on top has the resources to make sure you’re as successful as he was as a mayor.”

Baltimore(Democrats-Bloomberg).