Spitzer Calls Off Sale Of Land Near Javits Center

Bowing to pressure from the mayor and the City Council speaker, Governor Spitzer is reversing his decision to sell a plot of land just north of the Jacob Javits Convention Center.

Mayor Bloomberg and Speaker Christine Quinn opposed the sale, arguing it would end any future expansion possibilities on the far West Side for the convention center, which has long been considered undersized and outdated. Last month, Mr. Spitzer decided to scrap expansion plans after new cost estimates showed it would have exceeded $5 billion.

"I made the hard decision to say we could not afford it," Mr. Spitzer said yesterday morning to the Association for a Better New York in Manhattan.

The decision to suspend the proposed land sale was disclosed during testimony at a public hearing of the state's Committee on Corporations, Authorities and Commissions by the co-chairman of the state's Empire State Development Corp., Patrick Foye.

Mr. Foye said a task force comprising city officials, including Ms. Quinn, state legislative leaders, and hotel and tourism executives would be set up to address the future of the convention and trade show industry in New York.

The move to suspend the sale should now avoid what observers predicted could be a protracted fight between Albany and City Hall. Some officials see it as a further sign of a more conciliatory Governor Spitzer who has been criticized in the past for his stubbornness and refusal to play nice. Mr. Foye said the state would now be seeking a long-term lease on the plot of land situated between 39th and 40th streets and Eleventh and Twelfth avenues. The sale of the second parcel at the south end of the center located between 33rd and 34th streets will go forward and is expected to net around $350 million.

"We need to responsibly prepare for the future, and look forward to envisioning an appropriate site for a real world-class convention center in New York City," Mr. Foye said in his testimony.

Ms. Quinn said she was "gratified that the state has heeded our call" to defer the sale.

In his testimony, the deputy mayor for economic development, Robert Lieber, yesterday said that he was in support of the suspension and made clear to the committee that the city and state were not in agreement when the sale was announced by Mr. Spitzer last month.

"The announcement of the proposed sale came as a surprise. We hadn't been consulted," Mr. Lieber said.