MTA, Tishman Speyer Miss Deadline on West Side Rail Yards

The Metropolitan Transportation Authority and Tishman Speyer have missed their first deadline in the project to develop the West Side rail yards, as the date for the MTA to officially designate Tishman Speyer as the developer has come and gone.

In an agreement approved by the MTA board late last month, the MTA had until yesterday to issue a “conditional designation letter” to Tishman, which bested four other teams of the city's biggest developers for the right to build.

As of this afternoon, no letter has been issued.

The reason: ongoing negotiations, both parties say.

"An agreement is currently being negotiated with the MTA and we expect to conclude those negotiations soon,” Tishman Speyer spokeswoman Viriginia Lam said in a statement.

The MTA issued a similar statement.