Posted Jul 16, 2009, 1:49 PM
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New Yorker for life
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Join Date: Jul 2001
Location: Borough of Jersey
Posts: 51,890
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^ They weren't working on Tower 3.
Some reference to the larger tower...
Quote:
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/05/23/ny...on&oref=slogin
Merrill Lynch Weighs Putting Headquarters at Ground Zero
By CHARLES V. BAGLI
May 23, 2008
Merrill Lynch is negotiating a deal to build a 70-story headquarters at ground zero, a plan that would make it the first financial firm to return to the 16-acre former World Trade Center site since the terrorist attack destroyed the complex in 2001.
A major step toward a deal was taken Thursday, when the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey voted to change the construction schedule for the towers at ground zero, enabling the developer Larry A. Silverstein to continue talks with Merrill Lynch about the building.
Officials of the Port Authority, the state and the city are optimistic about a Merrill deal, which the officials and the developer hope will spark other corporations’ interest in moving to the site. But the company is also looking for a sizable government subsidy, officials say, which could prompt some stormy bargaining sessions.
Merrill is considering a move to what would be a 3 million square foot skyscraper at the northwest corner of Cortlandt and Church Streets. A tower that size would allow Merrill to consolidate 10,000 employees now at 2 and 4 World Financial Center and 222 Broadway. Merrill would prefer to own the building, rather than lease it from Mr. Silverstein, who would nevertheless build it.
Merrill Lynch’s lease at the World Financial Center, across West Street from ground zero, expires in 2013.
Mr. Silverstein’s development agreement with the Port Authority required him to complete the two office towers along Church Street by the end of 2011. The Port Authority moved the completion date for Tower 3 to June 2012, to allow him time to redesign the foundation for the proposed Merrill tower, which is larger than the building originally planned there. The deadline for Tower 4 was extended to April 2012.
“The six-month schedule adjustment approved today by the Port Authority clearly makes sense," said Janno Lieber, who oversees the trade center project for Silverstein Properties. "Merrill Lynch is downtown’s largest private-sector employer. This extension gives us the time to design and construct a modified building foundation that could accommodate Merrill’s specialized requirements."
Last fall, Merrill was in serious negotiations to move its headquarters from its longtime downtown home to the Penn Station area, where Vornado Realty Trust offered to build a skyscraper on the site of the Pennsylvania Hotel.
But the company abandoned the move after suffering billions of dollars of losses in the subprime mortgage crisis. It appeared that Merrill’s fallback plan was to remain as a tenant at the World Financial Center.
But in recent weeks, Merrill began talking in earnest with Mr. Silverstein about a new tower. There are a number of tax breaks and other incentives available at the trade center site. But Merrill wants a more generous deal, similar to the one given to Goldman Sachs — a deal that state and city officials have vowed never to repeat.
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A little more...
Quote:
Originally Posted by NYguy
http://www.reuters.com/article/domes...17096020080522
Merrill restarts talks to move to WTC site: WSJ
Thu May 22, 2008
Merrill Lynch & Co has restarted talks to move its headquarters to a planned skyscraper at the World Trade Center site, the Wall Street Journal said on Thursday, citing people familiar with the matter.
The board of the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, the agency that owns the site, is expected to discuss the matter Thursday and could vote to authorize a pause in the construction process to allow Merrill's design needs to be accommodated, the newspaper said.
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