Ground Zero: Controversy Amidst Pain

1
New York, New York
By Shaun Woo
2
Ground Zero A New Beginning Democracy? (sort of)
3
History

• The area now known as New York City first
  attracted settlers after Henry Hudsons voyage of
  1609.
• The settlement was named New Amsterdam in 1626.
• On September 6, 1664, Charles II seized New
  Amsterdam and renamed it New York.
• New York City was under British occupation until
  1783.
• New York City was the capital of the United
  States from 1785 to 1790.
• Since 1800, New York City has been ranked 1
  among the largest U.S. cities.

Eisenstadt, Peter. Encyclopedia of New York
State. 2005
4
New York City Today

• NYC is the most populated city in the United
  States (Eisenstadt, Peter. Encyclopedia of New
  York State. 2005, p.1062).
• Annual budget of over 40 billion dollars
  lthttp//www.ibo.nyc.ny.us/iboreports/understanding
  budget.pdfgt
• In 2001, 20 million tourists spend at least one
  night in the city (Eisenstadt, Peter.
  Encyclopedia of New York State. 2005, p. 1570)
• In 2002, international and domestic visitors to
  the city spent more than 14 billion (Eisenstadt,
  Peter. Encyclopedia of New York State. 2005,
  p.1570)
• There are over 2,000 bridges in the city, 76 over
  water (Eisenstadt, Peter. Encyclopedia of New
  York State. 2005, p. 208)

5
Demographics

• As of 2000
• New York Citys population 8,008,300.
• New York States population 18,976,500.
• Manhattan is the third largest borough behind
  Brooklyn and Queens.
• 1,668,938 people below the poverty line.
• Unemployment rate in New York City is 8.3.

• (Nathan Gates, 2005 New York Statistical
  Yearbook)

6
Demographics (cont.)

• Caucasians 3,576,385
• Hispanics 2,160,554
• African Americans 2,129,762
• Asians 787,047
• Other ethnic groups (not including American
  Indian and Alaskan Native or Native Hawaiian and
  other Pacific Islander) 1,074,406

• (Nathan Gates, 2005 New York Statistical
  Yearbook)

7
Voters!

• 4,507,433 registered voters in NYC (Nathan
  Gates, 2005 New York Statistical Yearbook)
• 2,991,140 registered democrats
• 566,782 registered republicans
• 2,459,653 votes cast in the 2004 Presidential
  election (Nathan Gates, 2005 New York
  Statistical Yearbook)
• 33.3 voter turnout in 2002 (Encyclopedia of New
  York State, p.1646)

• (Nathan Gates, 2005 New York Statistical
  Yearbook)

8
Government Structure

• Mayor-council form of government
• Mayor
• Chief executive
• Elected to four year terms
• Appoints department heads and deputy mayor
• City Council
• Legislative body of the city
• Composed of 51 council members, who represent the
  number of districts in NYC
• Two year term

http//24.97.137.100/nyc/charter/entered.htm
9
Government Structure
lthttp//www.nyc.gov/html/om/html/orgchart/org_char
t.htmlgt
10
Thesis

• The reconstruction of Ground Zero is a poignant
  reminder of the tragedy of September 11th for New
  Yorkers and Americans alike. The project must
  inevitably appease the public because the events
  affected so many people. However, the World Trade
  Center site is privately owned by a government
  corporation and a private real estate investor,
  which nullifies public opinion. In the end, the
  decision-making process falls into the hands of a
  multifaceted group, which includes the mayor of
  New York City and governor of New York State.
  Although the citizenry will not have an
  opportunity to vote, by pressuring the government
  officials involved through various nonpartisan
  and nonprofit organizations coalitions media
  outlets and the prospect of negative publicity,
  the public will without a doubt influence the
  rebuilding of Ground Zero.

11
World Trade Center a short history

• Construction began in 1966 and officially ended
  in 1973.
• Designed by Minoru Yamasaki (1912-1986)
• Constructed and operated by the Port Authority of
  New York and New Jersey.
• Six weeks before 9/11, Larry Silverstein signed a
  99-year commercial lease
• Both towers stood 110 stories high (1,350 ft.)
• In the beginning, the towers were criticized
  vehemently by the public and by elite architects.
  Overtime, the public began to warm up to the
  towers.
• 1.2 million cubic yards of excavated rubble from
  World Trade Center site was used to create the
  landfill that now lies underneath Battery Park
  City.
• More than 40,000 men and women worked at WTC
  (Height of Ambition, NY Times, p. 1)

Eisenstadt, Peter. Encyclopedia of New York
State. 2005
12
September 11, 2001

• The worst terrorist attack ever to occur on US
  soil (Eisenstadt, Peter. Encyclopedia of New
  York State. 2005, p. 1395)
• 2,749 people were killed (Eisenstadt, Peter.
  Encyclopedia of New York State. 2005, p.1396).
• An estimated 14,000-16,500 persons who had been
  in the WTC at the time were able to escape
  (Eisenstadt, Peter. Encyclopedia of New York
  State. 2005, p. 1396).
• 343 New York City firefighters, 84 Port Authority
  employees, and 23 New York City police officers
  lost their lives (Eisenstadt, Peter. Encyclopedia
  of New York State. 2005, p. 1397).
• Canton Fitzgerald, a brokerage firm, lost 658
  employees Marsh and McLennan, a financial
  services, lost 295 employees (Eisenstadt, Peter.
  Encyclopedia of New York State. 2005, p.1397).
• 9/11 destroyed 13.4 million square feet of office
  space.
• 4 of Manhattans total office space was
  destroyed
• 1,300 businesses were affected.
• 4 of these 31 businesses occupied 1,000,000
  square feet of office space or more (e.g.
  American Express, Merrill Lynch, Morgan Stanley).
  

• lthttp//www.buildings.com/Articles/detail.asp?Arti
  cleID341gt

13
Rebuilding Ground Zero

• The rebuilding of the WTC site will be among the
  most closely watched and widely debated
  construction projects in the nations history,
  and one in which the general public has had, if
  not a vote, certainly a voice. (Eisenstadt,
  Peter. Encyclopedia of New York State. 2005,
  p.1401)

14
Whos Behind the Rebuilding Process?

• Governor Pataki
• Mayor Bloomberg
• Lower Manhattan Development Corporation (LMDC)
• Created by Governor Pataki and then-Mayor
  Giuliani to help plan and coordinate the
  redevelopment and revitalization of Lower
  Manhattan
• The LMDC is a joint State-City corporation
  governed by a 16-member Board of Directors, half
  appointed by the Governor of New York and half by
  the Mayor of New York.
• Port Authority of New York and New Jersey
  (PANYNJ)
• Founded by New York and New Jersey in 1921
• 12 member board of commissioners 6 appointed by
  each state governor
• In 2001, it had a a budget of 4.6 billion dollars
  and 7,200 employees (Eisenstadt, Peter.
  Encyclopedia of New York State. 2005, p.1225)
• Larry Silverstein, the commercial leaseholder of
  the WTC site

15
WTC site plan

• Freedom Tower
• 1,776 ft.
• 2.6 million square ft. of office space
• Tower 2
• 78 stories, 1,254 ft.
• Tower 3
• 71 stories, 1,115 ft.
• Tower 4
• 61 stories, 947 ft.
• 7 World Trade Center
• 52 stories, 741 ft.
• Tower 5
• T.B.A.
• World Trade Center memorial
• Reflecting Absence

http//www.wtc.com/inner_page.aspx?id12
16
Listening to the City Democracy In-Action!

• On July 20, 2002, 4,300 people attended a town
  meeting that gave participants an opportunity to
  help shape the redevelopment of Lower Manhattan
  and the creation of a permanent memorial to the
  victims of 9/11
• Organized by the Civic Alliance to Rebuild
  Downtown New York, a coalition of more than 85
  civic, business, environmental, community,
  university and labor groups.
• Supported by the Lower Manhattan Development
  Corporation

http//www.listeningtothecity.org/
17
Listening to the City (cont.)

• Organization of event
• Participants sat in a 10-to-12 person round-table
  discussion, each led by a trained facilitator.
• Each table had a networked, wireless laptop
  computer that served as electronic flip-charts
  that recorded ideas generated by the table.
• These ideas would then be transmitted to a theme
  team, which was composed of volunteers and
  AmericaSpeaks staff that identified the strongest
  ideas and reported them back to all the
  participants.
• Each participant was given a wireless polling
  keypad to vote on questions and the results were
  displayed immediately on an overhead screen.
• 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.
• Participation was free included breakfast, lunch
  and beverages. Kosher and vegetarian meals were
  available.
• First 5,000 to register were admitted.
• Services included
• Sign language and simultaneous spoken
  translations facilitators who spoke Spanish and
  Chinese foreign language, Braille and
  large-print copies of important discussion
  materials
• Day-care center available

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Listening to the City (cont.)

• Participants
• Ethnicity
• 67 Caucasian
• 12 Asian American
• 7 African American
• Age
• 45 65 years and older
• 27 20-34 years old
• Income
• 17 earned less than 25,000
• 21 earned between 25,000-49,999
• 13 earned more than 150,000
• Location
• 46 Manhattan
• 5 out of state
• 1 out of country
• Other facts
• 8.9 had a family member who was a 9/11 victim
• 19.7 are survivors of the events of 9/11

http//www.listeningtothecity.org/
19
Listening to the City (cont.)

• It looks like Albany
• The LMDC and PANYNJ unveiled six concept plans
  for the rebuilding of WTC site and the
  surrounding area
• The public quickly refuted all the designs.
• Designs were scraped.
• Public suggestions
• Office space and retail development needed to
  boost the neighborhoods economy
• I worry that decisions about space allocation
  will be made based in a 99-year lease agreement
  the Port Authority signed, and this does
  notmeet the actual needs of New Yorkers A
  participant
• WTC site designs need to be memorable
• Improved transportation to attract people to
  downtown
• Provide low, moderate and middle-income housing
• Environmentally friendly
• Reduce car and traffic. Encourage alternative
  vehicles such as bicycles and public
  transportation
• Public involvement directly led to second design
  of WTC site and memorial

http//www.listeningtothecity.org/
20
Democratic Process?

• LMDC, PANYNJ, and Mr. Silverstein have rights to
  rebuilding site.
• Governor and Mayor have veto-like power over
  those who are rebuilding site.
• Public influences all of the above
• Listening to the City
• Nonprofit and nonpartisan organizations such as
  VOICES, WTC United, Take Back the Memorial,
  Septembers Mission, and Families of September
  11.
• Coalitions such as the Civic Alliance.
• We cannot and will not allow profit margins and
  financial interests to be put ahead of public
  interest in expediting the rebuilding of the site
  of the greatest tragedy on American soil.
  Governor Pataki (Cooper)

21
Reasons for reconstruction delays

• The combination of big money, prime real estate,
  bottomless grief, artistic ego, and dreams of
  legacy transformed ground zero into a mosh pit of
  stakeholders banging heads over billions in
  federal aid, tax breaks and insurance proceeds.
  Daniel Libeskind, master planner of WTC site
  (The Hole in the Citys Heart, p. 2)
• Conflicting interests
• Larry Silverstein and PANYNJ wants to make area
  profitable, develop an area that will succeed in
  the long-term, and also appease the public
• Governor Pataki and Mayor Bloomberg trying to
  appease public and private investors
• Creates turmoil by overruling LMDC, PANYNJ and
  Larry Silverstein
• Disputes over designs
• Entities involved hardly ever come to a consensus
• Governor, mayor, PANYNJ and Mr. Silverstein all
  have different visions
• Designs have undergone three changes
• First change because of public discontent i.e.
  Listening to the City
• Second change because of safety concerns
• Third design unveiled in 2005/2006

22
Reconstruction delays (cont.)

• Mourning families
• Some want entire site dedicated to 9/11
• Name issue hinders construction of 9/11 memorial
• Former Mayor Giuliani endorses bigger memorial
  site
• Costs
• Memorial designs were temporarily discarded by
  Bloomberg because cost were 1 billion.
• Insurance Companies
• 9 companies owe 2.1 billion to Silverstein
  Properties and PANYNJ (www.builditnow.com)
• A lot of money invested
• Freedom Tower2.2 billion
• World Trade Center PATH Terminal2.2 billion
• World Trade Center Memorial Complex740 million
• Symbol of post 9/11 America

23
New York and Athens Two Great Democratic
Metropolises

• New York City
• Representative government
• Mayor-council form of government
• Mayor has executive authority
• Big Budget
• Over 40 billion annually
• Ethnically diverse
• Great Architecture
• Empire State Building
• Statue of Liberty
• Rockefeller Center
• Freedom Tower?
• Center of modern world

• Athens
• Direct Democracy
• Boule consisted of 500 persons from 10 tribes
• Under Pericles, what was nominally a democracy
  became in his hands government by the first
  citizen. (Thucydides, History of the
  Peloponnesian War 2.65.1-11)
• A man who wanted to direct Athenian policy had
  to persuade the citizensif he held office as
  generalthat might add weight to what he said,
  but it gave him no advantage beyond that
  (Robinson, p. 203)
• Delian League
• Money via tribute and taxes from Athens allies
• We throw open our city to the world, and never
  by alien acts exclude foreigners Pericles
  (Thucydides, History of the Peloponnesian War
  2.37-42)
• Parthenon
• Center of Greek world
• Evident through the enormous amount of
  information we have about Athens i.e. primary and
  historical documents, arts, architecture, etc.

24
Listening to the City vs. Saratoga Springs
charter reform some similarities and differences

• Listening to the city process
• The six concept plans were unveiled several days
  before event
• Two day event (July 20 and 22, 2002)
• Altogether 4,500 people attended
• Between July 29 and August 12, 2002, there was a
  online dialogue that allowed people to express
  opinions. Total participants 818 people.
• Participants were informed and could vote at the
  event.
• 9 a.m.- 4 p.m.
• Anyone could attend. Though limiting spacing
  available (5,000 people)
• Participants diverse in age, race, income,
  occupation, and hometowns.

• Charter reform process
• Reform proposed in August 2006.
• Between September and October, three meetings
  (9/5/06, 10/3/06 and 10/12/06) were held to
  inform the citizens about the charter reform.
• One meeting was held at Skidmore College on
  October 30, 2006.
• The meetings were used to inform. Participants
  could not vote.
• Meetings usually lasted for a couple of hours.
• Open to the public.
• On November 7, 2006, only citizens could vote.

25
Conclusion

• Progress after five years?
• PANYNJ now has responsibility to build Path
  station, memorial and two of five towers, which
  includes the Freedom Tower
• Mr. Silverstein unveiled designs of Towers 2, 3,
  and 4 in 2006
• Memorial cost impedes construction
• LMDC disbanding by January 2007 PANYNJ to take
  over responsibilities
• Governor Patakis tenure ending January 2007
• Mayor Bloomberg to take over as chairman of the
  World Trade Center Memorial Foundation

26
Conclusion (cont.)

• Democracy Effective?
• Listening to the City productive and led to
  change
• But there has not been a similar town hall
  meeting since, while two new designs have been
  revealed
• Project is a government and private affair
• Rebuilding has not started because of layered
  bureaucracy and number of entities involved.
• Public has powerful voice
• Patakis plan to use rebuilding of Ground Zero to
  gain momentum for possible presidential campaign
  may backfire.
• Yet to be seen if publics interests will be
  appeased (depends on rebuilding and final designs
  are not fully complete)
• The process of reconstructing Ground Zero
  compares to a representative government. The
  government represents the publics interests in a
  process that involves private entities.
• So far, the process has been ineffective because
  construction has not started on any of the
  projects other than on Tower 7, which was built
  by Larry Silversteins company without government
  interference.

27
References

• Bagli, Chalres V. Ground Zero Still in Limbo as
  Talks Fail. New York Times 31 March 2006 B1.
• Bagli, Charles V. and Cardwell, Diane. Bloomberg
  is Set to Take Reins of 9/11 Memorial
  Foundation. New York Times 4 October 2006 A1.
• Build It Now Campaign. lthttp//www.builditnow.com/
  main.cfm?actionIdglobalShowStaticContentscreenKe
  yinsuranceshowbackgroundgt
• Christine Lidbury and Frank Posillico.
  Understanding New York Citys Budget A Guide
  lthttp//www.ibo.nyc.ny.us/iboreports/understanding
  budget.pdfgt
• Cooper, Michael. Square One at Ground Zero. New
  York Times 16 March 2006 B4.
• Eisenstadt, Peter, ed. The Encyclopedia of New
  York State. Syracuse Syracuse University Press,
  2005.
• Dunlap, David W. Downtown Rebuilding Agency Says
  it is no Longer Needed. New York Times 26 July
  2006 B2.
• Dunlap, David W. 9/11 Faces Setback Over Names.
  New York Times 27 June 2006 B1.
• Government Chart lthttp//www.nyc.gov/html/om/html/
  orgchart/org_chart.htmlgt
• Lower Manhattan Development Corporation
  lthttp//www.renewnyc.com/default.aspxgt
• Lipton, Eric Glanz, James. The Height of
  Ambition. New York Times 8 September 2002
  Section 6, p.1.
• Listening to the City. lthttp//www.listeningtothec
  ity.org/gt
• Nathan, Richard P., and Gais, Thomas L. 2005 New
  York State Statistical Yearbook 30th Edition.
  Albany The Nelson A. Rockefeller Institute of
  Government, 2005.
• New York City Charter. lthttp//24.97.137.100/nyc/c
  harter/entered.htmgt
• Robinson, Eric W., ed. Ancient Greek Democracy.
  Malden Blackwell Publishing, 2004.
• Saratoga Springs website. http//www.saratoga-spri
  ngs.org/docs/bpwebsite.asp
• Sontag, Deborah. The Hole in the Citys Heart.
  New York Times 11 September 2006 F1.
• Four Percent of Manhattan's Total Office Space
  Was Destroyed in the World Trade Center Attack.
  Buildings.com September 2001. lthttp//www.building
  s.com/Articles/detail.asp?ArticleID341gt