Charles Bagli

This Tuesday, the Donald & Paula Smith Family Foundation wil be holding a discussion on the Javits Center, moderated by Charles Bagli, of the New York Times. Participants include Kent Barwick (President, Municipal Art Society), Henry Wollman (Director, Steven L. Newman Institute Baruch College), and David Weprin (Chair, Finance Committee New York City Council).

Full release is after the jump.  read more »

A very optimistic day today all around. In addition to the Yankees, more "ayes" were heard over on Third Avenue, where both the Convention Center Development Corporation and Empire State Development Corporation approved the latest plan for Javits, the one with the hotel across 11th Avenue, a six-story staging area to the north and the sale of the southern parcel to raise more money to finish the deal. This all despite Charles Bagli's 11th hour missive on how trade show planners--the guys who rent the space there--think the vertical orientation will make conventions more expensive to produce. -Matthew Schuerman

So the Port Authority shut down talks with Larry Silverstein Wednesday, demanding he come back with an offer “more in the public interest.” Silverstein came back Friday with an offer that, knowing Larry Silverstein, probably wasn’t that much more in the public interest but it was at least a little bit better. (The Daily News reported he is willing to give the Port Authority a proportion of the insurance money equal to the square footage the agency will develop. ) But whatever, the Port Authority rejected the offer point blank a few hours later and said it will call the shots from now on.

Why such hyperkinetics on the part of the Port Authority? Charles Bagli reports that at least two commissioners were not enthusiastic about the deal on the table Tuesday, but that Governor Pataki was. Maybe now that the Port Authority upset the whole apple cart, these commissioners will push for a fresh new deal that could further diminish Silverstein’s role at Ground Zero. All of which is to say that before Silverstein and the Port Authority agree, the Port Authority and Pataki have to make a deal.

-Matthew Schuerman