Port Authority Has to Pay Out Millions More in WTC Fines

As if any government agency needs to go deeper into debt these days, it has been announced that despite protest, the Port Authority will in fact have to pay Ground Zero developer Larry Silverstein (pictured) a total of $64 million. The money is being paid for fines stemming from missing deadlines in preparing the site for its turnover. The authority was fighting the fines and claiming that they had prepared what they were supposed to by October 5, but arbitrators agreed with the developer who said that the remaining wall at the site known as "The Berlin Wall of Ground Zero" impeded building and warranted the fines. The daily fines will continue into the new year, when the Port Authority has already announced it will miss its next December 31 deadline. There has been no estimated date given for completion of the work. The Daily News points out that the $64 million owed by the PA is equal to 7.9 million trips across the George Washington Bridge.