Under-fire New York mayor Eric Adams moved his bodybuilder ex-girlfriend into a New Jersey apartment just one floor below his current love, DailyMail.com can reveal.
The party boy mayor — now facing federal fraud and bribery charges that carry a possible prison sentence of up to 45 years — told Sylvia Cowan she would get more bang for her buck across the Hudson River than on the path where he was supposed to be. donated her in Brooklyn in 2014.
And Cowan, who competed for top bodybuilding titles from 1998 to 2010, followed his advice and transferred to Fort Lee in 2018.
Now she lives just one floor below Adams’ current cramped Tracey Collins — which could lead to awkward moments in the doorman-controlled lobby of the 32-story luxury building — or the pool, sauna, gym or movie theater where it building has.
Eric Adams is known for his luxurious lifestyle. He shares it with the loving Tracey Collins in an apartment one floor above his ex Sylvia Cowan. The couple attended the Met Gala in 2022
Sylvia Cowan in her bodybuilding days
The breathtaking view across the Hudson River to Manhattan that residents of The Colony at Fort Lee can enjoy
A source told DailyMail.com: ‘Eric has always had a unique relationship with his exes, but Sylvia’s move to the floor below is certainly raising a few eyebrows.
“They all keep to themselves in the building, but Eric is still good friends with Sylvia.”
Even before his indictment in September, Adams, 64, had come under fire for apparently living in New Jersey while serving as the Big Apple’s top elected official.
He described his situation during a 2023 interview as “a whole new way of living,” but declined to speak about the details of his love life.
He said he stayed at properties he owned in the city, but admitted he often stayed at his girlfriend’s two-bedroom 22nd-floor apartment.
There, he can “get fantastic panoramic views of New York from the George Washington Bridge to Downtown Manhattan from the oversized terrace,” according to real estate agents who sold it to her.
DailyMail.com spotted Sylvia Cowan walking with a friend outside the Fort Lee apartment complex where she now lives
Adams co-owns a 22nd floor apartment in this Fort Lee building with Tracey Collins. His ex Sylvia Cowan lives on the 21st floor
Ex-bodybuilder Sylvia Cowan lives in this apartment on the 21st floor of The Colony
But it has now emerged that Cowan, 67, lives in the same building – on floor 21.
She bought her one-bedroom apartment, which also offers views of the Eastern River and New York from every room, for $230,000 in March 2018, public records show.
Adams quickly denied that he lived in New Jersey full-time, despite co-owning the property.
But city hall documents show he regularly spends time at the complex visiting his girlfriend, while maintaining a strong bond with his ex.
Adams and Cowan dated for many years and purchased a one-bedroom apartment in Crown Heights, Brooklyn, in 1988.
Although they are still close, their romance fell apart around 2007 when he transferred his interest in the property to her.
But that apartment has also become a problem for Adams.
During his 2021 campaign for mayor, he did not include this on the disclosure forms the state and city require of elected officials. At the time, he claimed it was the right thing to do because he no longer had an interest in it
But last year it emerged that Adams still owns the apartment. He then blamed his former accountant for the error on the forms.
He also owns a multi-family home in the Bedford-Stuyvesant neighborhood of Brooklyn.
Cowan currently earns approximately $180,000 per year as vice president of growth and community initiatives at Amida, a health insurer based in New York.
Social media accounts list Cowan as living in Brooklyn — records show she and Adams still own their Crown Heights apartment — but she has been seen coming and going from her Fort Lee apartment since purchasing it in 2017.
Adams hosted a Fashion Week reception with Collins, which was attended by Vogue editor-in-chief Anna Wintour
Eric Adams invited reporters on a tour of his basement home in Brooklyn in an attempt to prove he was actually living in the city instead of New Jersey during the 2021 mayoral race.
The Adams home can be seen on Lafayette Street in Bed-Stuy, Brooklyn. He said he lives in the basement and rents out the other two floors to finance his son’s college education
Adams called a press conference alongside his son Jordan, 25, to point out that he actually lived in the Brooklyn property
Cowan remortgaged the property twice, once in 2019 and again in early 2024, according to Bergen County records.
Neither Adams nor Cowan responded to requests for comment from DailyMail.com.
Cowan isn’t the only close friend Adams has kept within his close circle as he rose through the ranks.
His office previously admitted that he rented a room from NYPD Deputy Employee Relations Commissioner Lisa White between 2013 and 2017.
A longtime friend of Adams, White landed her role shortly after he took office, at a salary of more than $241,000 per year.
The mayor’s office has denied giving his girlfriend any help with her promotions, but confirmed that the connection with White went beyond just a professional relationship.
The town hall previously characterized it as a decades-long friendship, with an address shared for years.
In 2013, when Adams ran for Brooklyn borough president, he changed his voter registration — to list his residence as the same McKeever Place apartment where White was also registered.
City Council records show Adams maintained he lived at the McKeever Place unit between June 2013 and March 2017.
His efforts to keep his personal life under wraps have consistently raised eyebrows, with Collins accused of taking $45,000 worth of luxury trips with Adams, according to the unsealed federal indictment against the mayor.
Collins, 61, a former teacher, principal and administrator who was promoted after Adams came to power, is referred to as Adams’ “domestic partner” in the 57-page court document.
Legal documents filed by a former education department employee claim Collins has not been seen in person since Thanksgiving 2023 and her work calendar remained empty.
Adams is charged with conspiracy to commit wire fraud, federal program bribery and receiving campaign contributions from foreign nationals.
He is also accused of defrauding city taxpayers of $10 million through allegedly fraudulent campaign funds.
The mayor pleaded not guilty at his arraignment last week and claims he did nothing wrong.
He was arraigned Friday in Manhattan Federal Court as the first New York City mayor to be indicted while in office.