Beekman Tower's 76 Stories Are Back On

Back in March, the economy forced developer Bruce Ratner to scale back plans for a 76-story Frank Gehry-designed building called Beekman Tower to just a 38- (or 40-) story structure. Now, the NY Times reports that a deal between Ratner's company and labor unions will help save "as much as 20 percent on labor costs" and allow construction to resume at Beekman Tower. Forest City Ratner executive MaryAnne Gilmartin said, "We’re thrilled to be going back to work. It’s a great project and a great building." Beekman Tower, which will be the tallest residential building in the city at 867 feet, was originally planned as a condominium, but FCR made it a rental (given the economy). Gilmartin also said, The savings we achieved go a long way toward insulating the project from any dip in rents or any protracted period of time required to lease up the building. We’re really bullish on this building."