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WTC Site So Close To Being Ready For Silverstein
By
Jen Chung
Published Aug 20, 2009
Modified Aug 20, 2009
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aka Freedom Tower
By
Jen Chung
Published Aug 20, 2009
Modified Aug 20, 2009
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The Port Authority says it will turn over the World Trade Center site to developer Larry Silverstein in the next few days. Which means that the Port Authority, which owns the site, is within its target handover period the agency mentioned last month—yet it's still over a year past the various deadlines set to turn the land over. These delays have resulted in tens of millions in penalties (they rack up at $300,000/day) the Port Authority must pay to Silverstein.
Of course, the Port Authority and Silverstein are locked in a battle of wills, political egos (courtesy Governor Paterson, Assembly Speaker Silver, and Mayor Bloomberg) and money over the fate of additional, non-Freedom towers at the site—Silverstein wants the PA to finance it, the PA doesn't want to. Here's Silverstein's letter noting the binding arbitration.
In other WTC news, the Port Authority says the WTC Memorial's waterfalls for Reflecting Absence will be ready for the 10th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks near year. PA Executive Director Chris Ward told the City Council, "It's not a pit anymore. With all the progress that is taking place on the site, it's not even Ground Zero anymore."
Tagged
ground zero
larry silverstein
port authority
reflecting absence
world trade center
Jen Chung
Jen Chung is a former WNYC and Gothamist editor.
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Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
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