Goldman Sachs has selected Pei Cobb Freed & Partners Architects LLP as design architect for the project, according to a spokeswoman. It has not selected other project team members in the early going. Current plans call for the tower to be 740-ft. tall with six trading floors at its base and about 2 million sq. ft. overall. In addition to the trading facilities, the tower will also house the company's investment banking, commodities, and related financial operations. The building will comply with sustainable development guidelines required for all development in Battery Park City, including water and energy conservation and construction waste recycling.

The Battery Park City Authority designated the global brokerage company as developer for Site 26, the only remaining undeveloped commercial lot in the district. The building - the first new headquarters to go into the downtown area since a J.P. Morgan facility 16 years ago - will be on West St. between Vesey and Murray Sts. The authority is a public benefit corporation created in 1968 to develop the entire 92-acre Battery Park City site.

Both the state and city governments are supporting the Goldman Sachs project, primarily by financing $1 billion via the Liberty Bond program, a joint city-state vehicle. The guts of the deal include the company's negotiation of a ground lease for the site through 2069, sales tax exemptions tied to job-creation targets, and discounts on real estate tax and utility costs.

130 Liberty Characterization Complete, Deconstruction Plan Starts

The disposition of the Deutsche Bank Building at 130 Liberty St. in lower Manhattan - damaged on Sept. 11, 2001 - appears clearer, after having been the subject of litigation between Deutsche Bank as its owner and insurers for the property.

The Lower Manhattan Development Corporation had acquired the building from Deutsche Bank last August, and is currently planning to clean and deconstruct it. LMDC engaged the services of the Louis Berger Group as environmental consultant to conduct environmental testing and characterization of the building materials, dust, and mold. The testing and characterization process is ongoing, with initial results released on Sept. 14, 2004. Gilbane Building Company is slated to take on cleaning and deconstruction of the building.

The LMDC had solicited questions and concerns from the public regarding the characterization results and building deconstruction earlier in the fall. Its goal is to have deconstruction work on 130 Liberty Street start in the fall as well. The organization and its contractors will finalize the actual timeline and plans for the remediation, as well as specifications for deconstructing the building, after they receive and analyze results of the characterization.

The next phase for 130 Liberty Street will entail remediation and preparation of the building for deconstruction, the actual deconstruction and related environmental monitoring, and the transport and disposal of all waste and debris from the building. The job also entails backfilling, grading, and paving the site as appropriate, following remediation and deconstruction work.

The LMDC is working with various other consultants and contractors on the deconstruction assignment, including TRC, Ecology & Environment, Inc., Ambient Group, Inc., LVI Environmental Services, Inc., CDI, and Weston Solutions.