October 31, 1998

Development that would include as many as 11 Off Broadway theaters and about 250 new apartments is being planned for heart of West 42d Street's Theater Row; some of theaters would replace ones currently on block, and most would be no larger than 99 seats; centerpiece would be 499-seat theater jointly sponsored by Shubert Organization that would be first new commercial stage ever built expressly for Off Broadway theater in New York; large theater and perhaps four smaller ones would occupy base of new mixed-income rental apartment tower; Port Authority of New York and New Jersey has agreed to sell key parcel of land to 42d Street Development Corp to advance project; Brodsky Organization has been selected as project's builder; rendering (M)

When election year began in California, big political questions were whether Republican nominee for governor, State Atty Gen Dan Lungren, staunch foe of abortion, was too conservative to appeal to swing voters in state and whether Sen Barbara Boxer was too liberal; Lungren trails his Democratic opponent, Lt Gov Gray Davis, by double digits in polls as campaign winds down; Boxer finally appears to have opened solid lead over her Republican challenger in Senate race, State Treas Matt Fong, but only by outspending him 2 to 1 in television advertisements; photos (M)

David Gonzalez About New York column on Abraham Goldstein, adjunct professor at Baruch College who will celebrate his 100th birthday on Nov 7; Goldstein comments; photo (M)

US economy is holding up far better than most experts expected despite months of financial turmoil and heightened anxiety about contagion from rest of world; Commerce Dept reports that nation's economic output grew at surprisingly solid 3.3 percent pace during summer; increase in nation's gross domestic product for July-Sept quarter was nearly twice 1.8 percent annual rate of spring; inflation rate hits its lowest point since 1963; most comprehensive measure of inflation, GDP deflator, rose mere eight-tenths of 1 percent annual rate; graphs (M)

Amusement parks, including Universal Studios Florida and Walt Disney World Resort, both in Orlando, Fla, are using Halloween, traditionally not a big tourist holiday, to boost business in October; some main events noted; graph; photo (M)