The Battle For Ground Zero, Part 101

Tom Suozzi, a candidate for governor, thinks that residential apartments might work at Ground Zero. More importantly, Larry Silverstein has blinked in the ongoing negotations about the development of buildings two and three at Ground Zero:

Ground Zero developer Larry Silverstein yesterday backed away from his long-stand ing refusal to give up control of two towers that will one day rise as part of a rebuilt World Trade Center.
The city and the Port Authority want to wrest the key sites, known as buildings 3 and 4, from Silverstein , and it's become a major sticking point in negotiations about the future of the site. Asked by reporters about the possibility of the Port Authority taking over the two sites, Silverstein for the first time didn't rule it out - in sharp contrast to his usual adamant insistence that he would be developing all 10 million square feet of commercial space lost to the terror attacks.

"There have been several ideas floated at different times," Silverstein said.

Does this mean that Silverstein is going to give up control? Not exactly. It just means that if the developer is provided sufficient economic incentives, he'll let someone else take control of the development of those buildings. Whether that's the Port Authority or some other private real estate developer, it remains to be seen.

Also, note yesterday's coverage of Take Back the Memorial's statements on building codes as applied to the 9/11 Memorial and Museum.

UPDATE:
The New York Sun has a far more comprehensive article about rebuilding at Ground Zero, Silverstein's change of heart, and how those two items relate to the proposed construction of an additional rail tunnel to midtown. Go forth and read.

Technorati: World Trade Center, WTC, Pataki, LMDC, urban policy, Freedom Tower, IFC, International Freedom Center.