Tuesday, June 17, 2008

The Rebuilding of Ground Zero, Part 35

Well, once again, the future of the Freedom Tower is in doubt. The Port Authority, already behind schedule and watching costs soar, is looking to unload responsibility for the Freedom Tower on some developer.

Steve Cuozzo reports that Brookfield Properties and Related Cos., have both been approached to take over the construction.
PA Chairman Anthony Coscia and Executive Director Chris Ward have recently had talks with Related Cos., the Stephen Ross-led giant that created the Time Warner Center and has been chosen to develop the West Side rail yards.

Earlier this year, sources said, the PA, advised by Deutsche Bank, made a similar pitch to Brookfield Properties, the publicly traded company that owns the World Financial Center. Reps for Related and Brookfield did not return calls.

With Brookfield, a source said, "The PA was a bit vague as to how it would work, but they basically wanted to privatize the Freedom Tower. But Brookfield didn't regard the project as economically viable."

PA officials declined comment. But insiders said the agency wants a developer to form a "partnership" that would reduce its risk while bringing in a company "fully knowledgeable in their core business of real estate development."

Because the PA owns the land, a transfer would likely take the form of a long-term lease.

It was understood that any developer jumping in would not start from scratch, but complete the $3 billion tower as it's currently designed.
You know, there is one guy who will probably step forward and get the job done, though he goes relatively unmentioned in the Cuozzo article. He's the same guy who the Port Authority ousted from that job even as work was starting to get underway.

That would be Larry Silverstein.

So far, he's the only one to get anything permanent built downtown on Ground Zero land. He built 7WTC, which is highly regarded, and is still awaiting the Port Authority to turn over land so that he can build 2, 3, and 4 WTC along the Eastern side of Ground Zero.

Watch for Silverstein to come to the rescue once again.

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