From left: Governor Andrew Cuomo, Mayor Michael Bloomberg and a rendering of the Sept. 11 Museum
A $300 million dispute has nearly ceased construction at the Sept. 11 Memorial Museum, DNAinfo.com reported, and might need to be resolved in court. Now, it seems all but certain that the museum won’t open by its September 2012 target.
After initially making claims of being owed $156 million, the Port Authority of New York & New Jersey recently updated the figure, saying the National September 11 Memorial & Museum Foundation actually owes it $300 million for cost overruns at the site. But Mayor Michael Bloomberg, who is chair of the foundation, said the foundation believes the Port Authority is the indebted party at the site. He said it is owed around $140 million.
The mayor said that construction has halted as the Port Authority cut off payments to workers, but Port Authority denies that claim. DNAinfo cited sources who said that while construction is still ongoing, the number of workers has declined to several dozen from several hundred.
The dispute has been brewing for some time, and Governor Andrew Cuomo said yesterday it has become so bitter that the two sides are “on the verge of litigation.” [DNAinfo]