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Most of the upper "floors" are mechanical.

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That sounds like an argument a banker would make.

The problem with the "everyone is to blame approach" is that it is factually incorrect, and it makes no one responsible.

It is a false claim that the government forced banks to make sub-prime loans.

If you need a single explanation of the mess, let's just go with the true statement that the system got to a place where the incentives were all screwed up, and rewards were surgically removed from risks. That includes the fact that virtually no one has been prosecuted, so a major incentive to commit fraud is still out there. If you can take the money and run, whether as a bank, an investor, or a homeowner, you will keep doing it until stopped.

The government is to be equally blamed here. They forced the banks to provide sub prime loans. And the greedy people, who bought houses that they could not afford, should be blamed too.

It was inept corporations exactly like Goldman Sach that put us in this financial national dilemma / crisis.
I for one would like to see them collapse not subsidized for relief - 'Natural Selection' should be the norm for all businesses without government intervention.

When will 'joe citizen' get a financial break instead of increased taxes ?

How does an 876 foot tall building have only 42 stories??

Does the city have any way of enforcing or building in guarantees/clawbacks when developers don't deliver what they promised in exchange for tax breaks?

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Are these guys for real? They're already claiming credit for an accomplishment, when the only new is that Goldman is coming to grips with the reality that it's got a lot of vacant space that it will not be filling any time soon.

Mr. Redevelopment Agency- a "major coup" is when you do something extraordinary. Maybe you can think about claiming a "major coup" when you help lease the space at good rates and bring jobs and revenue into the city. Call us back when the lease is signed and the new tenants move in - not when you put the "space available" ad on Craig's list.

But I guess "major coup" for the Healy Administration is another day without a major disaster. Good job, guys.

They originally planned to put a major division of the firm in the JC tower, but there was too much resistance to the move.

This is understandable. GS has a new headquarters and the company has shrunk since the financial crisis.

I look at the building and see 8+ wasted years.

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"City officials don't see a negative" that one of the centerpieces of its economic development "success stories" can't use 20% of its building. "The discount Goldman will be offering on this prime space offers a great opportunity for small business startups, and will finally allow traditional mom 'n pop enterprises to have that waterfront presence they have been lacking."

"City officials don't see a negative" in the spike in the murder rate since the first of the year, noting that it is really quite small when viewed against the huge increase in gun and ammunition sales.

"City officials don't see a negative" in Superstorm Sandy, citing all the positive economic activity the storm left in its wake.

"City officials don't see a negative" in anything, unless Steve Fulop said it, did it, or is working to make it happen.

Goldman Sachs seeks to sublease portion of its Jersey City tower

By Terrence T. McDonald/The Jersey Journal
March 07, 2013 at 5:14 PM

Goldman Sachs is exploring whether to sublease about 20 percent of its Downtown Jersey City tower, the tallest building in New Jersey and the centerpiece of the city's Waterfront financial community.

The 42-story tower, which rises 876 feet, was originally set to house nearly 6,000 employees, but has fallen far short of that plan. The Star-Ledger in 2011 reported that more than 4,500 Goldman employees work there.

The financial giant is exploring whether to lease 300,000 square feet of office space in the tower?s upper floors. There is 1.5 million square feet total in the $1.3 billion building, which sits at 30 Hudson St.

A Goldman official said the building is not at maximum capacity but objected to any characterization that it is largely vacant.

City officials don't see a negative behind Goldman's decision. City spokeswoman Jennifer Morrill said Goldman has assured the city the move would have nothing to do with its ?commitment? to Jersey City, while Jersey City Redevelopment Agency chief Bob Antonicello called a sublease arrangement ?great? news.

?It?s space that has been vacant ? so now they're going to put it into productive space, and that?s a good thing for Jersey City,? Antonicello said.

Antonicello added that 300,000 square feet of vacant space becoming occupied would be ?a major coup? for any other city. Panasonic will occupy less space in its much heralded new location in Newark, he noted.

Goldman had been leasing some space temporarily to a New York insurance company that wasn't able to use its usual location after Hurricane Sandy led to flooding and power outages in Lower Manhattan.

"We were pleased to be able to help our neighbors who were displaced by Hurricane Sandy, and we're evaluating potential opportunities to continue this effort with a long-term tenant and help bring more jobs to Jersey City," said Goldman spokeswoman Tiffany Galvin. "Goldman Sachs is committed to Jersey City and an active member in the local business community."

The City Council in 2000 voted unanimously to award Goldman Sachs a 20-year tax break after city officials said the new tower would lead to 5,500 jobs. Absent Ward D Councilman Bill Gaughan, none of the members of that council still sit on the nine-member body.

Ward E Councilman Steve Fulop, who is challenging Mayor Jerramiah Healy in the May 14 city election, said Goldman?s move to lease space in Jersey City is ?another example? of city taxpayers ?subsidizing promises that never materialize.?

?The city needs to hold these companies accountable for the jobs and commitments they made to residents,? Fulop said. ?In this case they reap of the benefits of the abatement and then are trying to pass the responsibility of their commitment to Jersey City to someone else who possibly will lease the space."

Fulop, 36, is a former Goldman Sachs associate who left the company in 2004 before he first won a seat on the council.

The council in 2007 awarded Goldman a 20-year tax break to build a 30-story building at 50 Hudson St., though that plan never came to fruition. Fulop at the time abstained from voting, citing his former employment with the firm.

Since 2009, Goldman Sachs' global headquarters has been located at 200 West St. in Lower Manhattan. New York City provided more than $200 million in tax breaks and grants toward that building, according to the Wall Street Journal.

http://www.nj.com/hudson/index.ssf/20 ... chs_seeks_to_subleas.html