MOYNIHAN STATION VIGIL: Vornado Victim?

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By Tom Acitelli

February 25, 2008 | 4:18 p.m

Maura Moynihan

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James Hamilton

The Observer's Eliot Brown broke the news on Friday that the Dolans may balk at moving Madison Square Garden a block west, a necessary component of the grand Moynihan Station plan. The Times' Charles Bagli on Saturday reported on the general problems now threatening the entire plan, including a softening real estate economy.

Crain's now reports that a failed Moynihan Station plan could mightily impact Steve Roth's Vornado Realty Trust. The publicly traded landlord is one of two developers--Stephen Ross' Related Companies is the other--working with the state and other entities, including the Dolan family, on the project.

If the project falls through, Morgan Stanley said it might be forced to re-examine its “overweight” rating on Vornado’s stock, according to Morgan Stanley analyst David Cohen... [I]n a worst-case scenario, a failed Penn Station, coupled with a lack of other high-profile developments in the area, would knock $11 off Morgan’s $94 price target for Vornado stock.

Last November, The Observer talked with Maura Moynihan, daughter of the plan's namesake, the late Senator Daniel Patrick Moynihan, about the station, of which she has been a vocal proponent. We also profiled Mr. Ross of Related last summer.