United Nations expansion plan is delayed by angry politicians

Real Estate Weekly, Nov 24, 2004 by Daniel Geiger

Approval of a recently completed bill, which would allow the United Nations to submit to the city's ULURP process plans to develop an office tower adjacent to its landmark Secretariat building, were delayed during a senate meeting last Thursday. Expressing the outrage toward the UN that many have felt in the wake of the recent food for oil scandal and also in response to the UN's perceived recent anti-U.S, track record, Senator Martin Golden, of Brooklyn, spearheaded a postponement of the bill.

Both the Senate's and State Assembly's approvals are necessary for the bill to pass, and while Thursday's postponement was far from an outright rejection, it foiled what was an attempt by the city to expedite the process. According to East Side city councilman Steve Sanders--who was instrumental in drafting the bill with the help of the Mayor's and Dan Doctoroff's offices--the project depends on time sensitive loans that will soon be decided on in Washington DC. The city had urged the deliberation in a bid to secure half of the approval before a Senate and Assembly joint session.

Sanders said that he understood Golden's and other senators' reluctance to support the UN, giving credence to their critiques of the international peacekeeping organization. But he also underscored that the bill was far from a commitment to development and stressed that the UN could be a prominent target for terrorism and that, at the very least, significant renovation was necessary to shore up security and strengthen the Secretariat Building so that it could withstand a potential attack.

"I see this as a reasonable request by the United Nations that it needs these things," Sanders said. "This building is more than just offices, it's a target. It needs to be made more secure. Senator Golden has legitimate complaints against the UN's conduct, but that frankly, that doesn't speak to the structural integrity of the of the building."

According to the plan, the UN would develop an office tower--as big as 35-stories and up to 950K s/f--adjacent to the Secretariat Building and partially on land in neighboring Robert Moses Park. UN personnel would occupy this space upon its completion, allowing significant refurbishment to take place on the 50 year-old Secretariat Building. When the Secretariat Building's renovation is complete, the building would be reoccupied and the neighboring "swing" tower would be used to consolidate the UN's plethora of offices scattered throughout Midtown.

No timeline has officially been set for the development.

Roy Goodman, head of the United Nations Development Corporation, which is charged with managing and executing UN construction projects, insisted that the development plan was not an expansion of UN space, but rather a consolidation and adamantly denied reports that the push to realize the project was secretive, as reported in the Post.

"This bill is designed to allow for a ULURP process which would publicize the development, not make it secret," Goodman said. "Additionally, if this development is realized it will pump $2.5 million into the city's economy."

Goodman further stated that the plan would mitigate any parkland consumed by the development.

Sanders indicated that the construction might be necessary to ensure that the UN continues to call New York City its home.

The State Senate and Assembly could meet on December 6 and both Goodman and Sanders expect the bill to pass when they convene.