World Trade Center delays mount

NEW YORK, July 1 (UPI) -- The agency responsible for rebuilding the area of New York's World Trade Center says it has thrown out its timetable for completing the project.

Port Authority officials said they need two more months to comply with New York Gov. David Paterson's call for a realistic assessment of costs and how long it would take for the overdue project to be completed, the New York Post reported Tuesday.

Recently appointed PA Executive Director Chris Ward declined to talk about new timetables but acknowledged that the Ground Zero site's $500 million memorial won't be ready by the 10th anniversary of the terrorist attacks, Sept. 11, 2011.

"The memorial will not be fully completed and available for the public in 2011," he said. "We're hopeful that, working with the memorial, there will be an opportunity for an appropriate remembrance at that time but we are not going to set new dates until we know exactly where this project stands."

The news isn't likely to please Paterson after years of delays and increasing costs.

"The results of the work on this site is nothing less than unacceptable," the governor said in the Post article, calling for a report "with no spin, no phony optimism and, certainly, no gloss."