| Releases
& Statements
Contact: Frank Sobrino
O: (212) 669-4193
For Immediate Release: Thursday, October
19, 2006
Statement
of Public Advocate Betsy Gotbaum
for
City Council Hearing Concerning
Insurance
Companies’ Attempts
to Withhold
Claim
Monies Owed to Silverstein Properties
Thank you Chair Gerson for holding
this important hearing.
One of the most meaningful development
projects of the 21st Century is facing a major obstacle.
The insurance companies Allianz and
Royal are withholding $552 million and $252 million in claim money
respectively—a total of more than eight hundred million
dollars without which the redevelopment of Lower Manhattan will
be seriously compromised.
That’s bad for the carpenters,
painters, plumbers, steel workers, and others who will lose out
on jobs.
It’s bad for residents of this
city, who expect to benefit economically and emotionally from
the revival of downtown Manhattan.
It’s bad for the whole country,
which has suffered long enough from the open wound at Ground Zero.
I understand that there have been
legal issues to work out. But yesterday’s federal appeals
court ruling all but settles the major legal question. Any further
appeal or delay on the part of Allianz and Royal would clearly
be an act of bad faith.
If ever there was a time for good
corporate citizenship to trump legal technicalities, this is it.
Allianz and Royal should negotiate
with Mr. Silverstein now and arrange to make immediate payment.
As a trustee of the New York City
Employees’ Retirement System, I determined that the employees
of this city have invested millions of dollars in the insurance
companies that have contracts with Silverstein Properties.
I contacted the companies to let them know that, as a major shareholder,
NYCERS expects them to honor their contractual obligations. Most
responded positively and have since committed to do just that.
Allianz and Royal are the only hold-outs.
As long as I am trustee of NYCERS,
I will vote to use the pension funds’ leverage to ensure
that the interests of New York City are protected.
The city has a relationship with these
companies. They need to understand that we have a long memory.
If they fail to make fair and full
payment of what they owe, we will never forget. If they tie up
the reconstruction of Ground Zero in legal red tape that takes
years to cut through, they will never live it down.
We will not stand for anything less
than full cooperation. We’ve waited long enough. The time
for restitution is now. The time for rebuilding is now.
Thank you.
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