As a result of the Port Authority's intransigence in these latest negotiations we are now faced with the possibility of arbitration and, as a result, many more months of delay.

That the Port is willing to accept yet another standstill at the World Trade Center site nearly seven years and ten months after the attacks is an embarrassment to our city, our state and to the nation.

The Port's rhetoric fails to recognize that the World Trade Center site is not merely another project to be pitted against other priorities, but rather a symbol to the world of our faith in our city, in this community and our commitment to rebuild after the worst terrorist attack on American soil in our nation's history.

I am extremely disappointed and I am urging the parties in the strongest possible terms to come back to the table with a willingness to compromise and work to break the current impasse in time to avert arbitration.