February 6, 2006

March 30 deadline set by New York Gov George E Pataki approaches concerning settlement of differences between developer Larry A Silverstein and Port Authority of New York and New Jersey over rebuilding of World Trade Center site; authority wants Silverstein to build Freedom Tower and relinquish control of major portion of site so work can proceed more quickly; financial analysis shows Silverstein could exhaust his money for project, default on lease in 2009 and still walk away with half a billion dollars (M)

Once a week, Lyn Forester gets down on her knees, clears the cigarette butts, candy wrappers and beer cans away from the base of a stark wooden cross and holds a quiet vigil for her daughter, who was killed here in a car accident eight years ago. Her ankles dangling from the curb as tractor-trailers hurtle past just feet away, Mrs. Forester says she knows it is both dangerous and illegal to visit this three-foot-wide median along Highway 141 near Wilmington, Del. But she cannot stay away.

American International Group, the insurance giant, is expected to announce a settlement with federal and state regulators later this week that will require the company to pay about $1.6 billion to settle charges covering a wide range of regulatory issues, according to two people briefed on the negotiations. The regulators have been looking into violations at A.I.G. that they say included improper accounting, bid-rigging and skipped payments to state workers' compensation funds.

In November, Activision released True Crime: New York City, a video game that seemed to have all the makings of a hit. It was the sequel to a well-received game, it had the violent aesthetic of the popular Grand Theft Auto series, and it featured licensed songs from name acts like DMX and Public Enemy. Activision promoted the game heavily, with full-page advertisements in mainstream magazines. By the end of December, however, the game had sold only 348,000 copies -- more than the 210,000 that the first game in the franchise sold in the same time period when it was released in 2003, but significantly below expectations.

Planned helicopter service from Wall Street to Kennedy International Airport promises to screen passengers and luggage and take them to airport in nine minutes, where they will bypass other passengers waiting to clear security; service is joint effort between private company and federal government; photo (M)