The World Trade Center complex of seven buildings, according to Wikipedia, was initiated by David Rockefeller in 1961 to revitalize lower Manhattan. Groundbreaking for the Twin Towers happened Aug. 5, 1966. Tower One was completed in 1970. Tower Two accepted tenants in January of 1972. It took a little over ten years to conceive and construct two 110-story buildings. Today’s politicos can hardly finish a WTC Memorial in that same time span. That is outrageous.The Times blames Mayor Michael Bloomberg, former Governor George Pataki and the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey for giving “overly ambitious completion dates that were probably inaccurate from the day they were announced.” They wanted to “convey the sense that this most politically, economically and emotionally significant of projects would be completed quickly.” In other words, they wanted good PR.
Disgraced former New York Governor Eliot Spitzer also takes his lumps. Last April, Spitzer refused to make public an internal Lower Manhattan Construction Command Center report that stated the memorial and museum could be four years behind schedule and over budget. It was just swept under the rug.
There is a huge amount of face-saving going on. Joe Daniels, president of the National Sept. 11 Memorial & Museum, wrote a letter to supporters promising to do all that he can to have the facility open to the public on 9/11/11.
Chris Ward, executive director of the Port Authority, suggests that parts of the memorial will be open to the public on the tenth anniversary. It would make a nice photo-op to cover up the fact that the place isn’t finished yet.
It’s beyond belief that dithering politicians can’t get their act together to honor those killed in the attacks in a somewhat timely fashion.
That should be their sacred duty.
(Photo: Wikimedia Commons)