Content area
Full Text
Donald Trump has obtained last minute assurances from the Giuliani administration that smooth the way for his completion of a deal with a group of Hong Kong investors to finance his Riverside South project.
The Hong Kong group, Polylinks International Ltd., has tentatively agreed to pay about $110 million for some $220 million in claims on the 56-acre site, mostly held by Chase Manhattan Bank. Mr. Trump, in turn, has agreed to make Polylinks his partner in the development, which ultimately will line the Hudson River along the Upper West Side with a phalanx of apartment buildings.
The agreement, scheduled to be signed this Friday, would put back on track a project that was fought over by developers and community groups for more than 15 years. It also would be a major step out of the financial problems that brought Mr. Trump to the brink of financial ruin four years ago.
Mr. Trump has sought city commitments to assure Polylinks officials that the new apartment buildings will be able to hook into the city sewer system. Because the North River Sewage Plant that treats Upper West Side waste is operating at overcapacity, the project has to obtain an unusual city certification before construction can begin.
Giuliani administration officials said last week that Mr. Trump has been informed that certification is likely. They said that a city program to reduce the flow of sewage into the North River plant has been successful.
"I'm very confident...