NEW YORK—Operators of New York City's publicly financed,
privately run charter schools are bracing for changes promised
by Mayor-elect Bill de Blasio—including the possibility of
having to pay rent—that they worry could reverse 12 years of
growth enjoyed under Mayor Michael Bloomberg.  De Blasio has
pledged to charge rent to "well-resourced" charter schools and
has called for a moratorium on allowing new charters to share
buildings with traditional schools, taking aim at a Bloomberg
policy that helped the schools grow from 17 to 183 during his
time in office. The policy has also led to complaints that the
charters draw an unfair amount of resources.  "It is insult to
injury to give them free rent," de Blasio said last summer,
while campaigning for the Democratic nomination.  Charter school
backers around the country are watching to see what happens in
New York—which they consider an incubator for the charter school
movement—while de Blasio supporters hope that the changes help
fulfill his campaign promise to