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Rebuilding Roundup Archive: June 2004
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Previous Roundups
- June 25, 2004
- June 18, 2004
- June 11, 2004
- June 4, 2004
- May 28, 2004
- May 21, 2004
- May 14, 2004
- May 7, 2004
- April 30, 2004
- April 23, 2004
- April 16, 2004
- April 9, 2004
- April 2, 2004
- March 26, 2004
- March 19, 2004
- March 12, 2004
- March 5, 2004
- February 27, 2004
- February 20, 2004
- February 13, 2004
- February 6, 2004
- January 30, 2004
- January 23, 2004
- January 16, 2004
- January 9, 2004
- December 19, 2003
- December 12, 2003
- December 5, 2003
- December 1, 2003
- November 21, 2003
- November 14, 2003
- November 7, 2003
- October 31, 2003
- October 24, 2003
- October 17, 2003
- October 10, 2003
- October 3, 2003
- September 26, 2003
- September 19, 2003
- September 12, 2003
- September 5, 2003
- August 29, 2003
- August 22, 2003
- August 15, 2003
- August 8, 2003
- August 1, 2003
- July 25, 2003
- July 18, 2003
- July 11, 2003
- July 3, 2003
- June 27, 2003
- June 20, 2003
- June 13, 2003
- June 6, 2003
- May 30, 2003
- May 23, 2003
- May 16, 2003
- May 9, 2003
- May 2, 2003
- April 25, 2003
- April 18, 2003
- April 11, 2003
- April 4, 2003
- March 28, 2003
- March 21, 2003
- March 14, 2003
- March 7, 2003
- February 28, 2003
- February 21, 2003
- February 14, 2003
- February 7, 2003
- January 31, 2003
- January 24, 2002
- January 17, 2003
- January 10, 2003
- January 3, 2003
- December 27, 2002
- December 20, 2002
- December 13, 2002
- December 6, 2002
- November 29, 2002
- November 22, 2002
- November 15, 2002
- November 8, 2002
- November 1, 2002
- October 25, 2002
- October 18, 2002
- October 11, 2002
- October 4, 2002
- September 27, 2002
- September 20, 2002
- September 13, 2002
- September 11, 2002
- September 6, 2002
- August 30, 2002
- August 23, 2002
- August 16, 2002
- August 9, 2002
- August 2, 2002
- July 26, 2002
- July 19, 2002
- July 12, 2002
- July 5, 2002
- June 28, 2002
- June 21, 2002
- June 14, 2002
- June 7, 2002
- May 31, 2002
- May 24, 2002
- May 17, 2002
- May 10, 2002
- May 3, 2002
- April 26, 2002
- April 19, 2002
- April 12, 2002
- April 5, 2002
- March 29, 2002
- March 22, 2002
- March 15, 2002
- March 8, 2002
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Rebuilding Roundup for Friday, June 25
Mayor Michael Bloomberg displayed his unhappiness with the federal
government's reluctance to give more homeland security funding to New York
this Monday. The mayor refused to let Ohio Representative Bob Ney inside his
house for a fundraiser, after Ney helped vote down a bill that would have
shifted almost $450 million in security funds to high-risk cities. The
fundraiser was then cancelled. Bloomberg says he's battling pork-barrel
politics; Ney accused him of playing "silly press games." Yesterday,
Bloomberg continued to pressure his fellow Republicans, saying that he would
consider contributing money to Democrats who he sees helping the city secure
the funds.
Last Friday, the National Institute for Standards and Technology reported
that the engineers who built the Twin Towers may have underestimated the
wind forces on the towers, thus making them less able to handle the 9/11
attacks. Extra fireproofing in the north tower during a 1990s upgrade may
explain why it took twice as long to collapse as the South Tower, the
federal agency also found. Its report estimated that between 16,200 and
18,600 people were in the Twin Towers when they were attacked on 9/11, the
first time that such a number has been offiically generated. The
investigation was initiated to determine why the buildings collapsed, and to
use the lessons of 9/11 to improve building codes. A final report is due in
December.
Almost three years after 9/11, 179 new firefighters a month are seeking help
from the fire department's counseling services unit for trauma related to
the attack. Psychoanalysts say that unrelated events can continue to set off
post traumatic shock syndrome for years.
Rebuilding Roundup for Friday, June 18
The country's air defense plans were insufficient to cope with the speed and
scale of the 9/11 hijackings, the federal commission investigating the
attacks said in a two-day hearing this week. The commission concluded that,
like other responders to the attacks, the country's air defense agency was
marred by bad communications and unprepared for such an unprecedented event.
The commission also examined the 9/11 plot itself, finding no "collaborative
relationship" between Saddam Hussein and Al Qaeda. This hearing was the last
for the commission; it will release a final report at the end of next month.
The federal Victims Compensation Fund also finished its work this week. The
fund took 997� days to give $6.9 billion to people who either lost family
members or were injured themselves on 9/11. Almost everyone who was eligible
for compensation because of a death applied for the fund, receiving an
average of $2.1 million. For those who were injured, compensation ranged
from $500 to $8.7 million.
A major reason the fund was established was to avoid lawsuits; those who
took money from the fund gave up their right to sue. But 108 federal
lawsuits, and an unknown number of personal injury claims, have been filed
by people who were injured in the attacks but were not eligible for the
fund. Many have respiratory problems that did not emerge until after the
deadline to file claims; those who did not see a doctor within 48 hours of
the attacks were also ineligible for the
fund. There are also 89 lawsuits that relatives of those who died in the
attacks have filed.
Rebuilding Roundup for Friday, June 11
Two theater companies will fill one building in the cultural complex at Ground Zero, with two museums sharing the other, rebuilding officials announced yesterday. The Signature Theater Company, the Joyce Theater, the Drawing Center and the newly established Freedom Center were chosen from 113 applicants competing for space in what is being described as downtown's Lincoln Center. It came as a surprise to many that the New York City Opera was not among the winners. Still to be decided is how fundraising responsibilities for the complex will be split between the institutions themselves and the Lower Manhattan Development Corporation.
The Lower Manhattan Development Corporation broke ground this week on an project to reinvigorate the waterfront at the Battery. The development project at the Battery Bosque, being carried out along with the Parks Department, includes planting 70,000 new bulbs and 140 new trees in a 30,000-square foot area. Its $8.5 million budget also allocates funds for a merry-go-round.
Families of 9/11 victims heard recordings of telephone calls made by passengers on the hijacked planes, after protesting at the 9/11 Commission's New York hearings that the tapes had been kept from them. About 130 people attended a somber meeting in South Brunswick, New Jersey to listen to the recordings, which have not been released publicly. While those who attended said they learned more about the last moments of their loved ones' lives, they avoided giving specifics, having signed nondisclosure agreements.
Rebuilding Roundup for Friday, June 4
A "powerful, visible" artifact from Ground Zero should mark the entrance to the underground
memorial center at the site of the attack, a panel of families of 9/11 victims, survivors of the
attack, and historians said at the Lower Manhattan Development Corporation board meeting on
Wednesday. The panel, established by the corporation to advise on the creation of the World Trade
Center Memorial Center, also recommended incorporating the individual stories of 9/11 victims, and
creating exhibits about the spontaneous memorials that emerged around the city soon after the
attacks. Public comments on the panel's recommendations are being accepted until July 1.
At the meeting, the corporation also unanimously approved its project plan for Ground Zero,
signaling that the construction on the site can begin. The plan leaves open the possibility of
restoring Dey and Cortlandt Streets, which ran through the site before the creation of the World
Trade Center. It also brings to an end the environmental review process, which critics say still
does not fully take into account the impact of the multiple, large-scale development projects
involved in the rebuilding.
Squabbling over funds at the site also continues. Daniel Libeskind, who designed the Ground Zero
master plan, is threatening to sue the site's developer, Larry Silverstein. Libeskind claims that
he is not being compensated fairly for his work on the Freedom Tower; Silverstein says that
Libeskind has not produced time sheets that will prove that he deserves the money he is asking
for. The two sides are reportedly about $300,000 apart in what they think Libeskind's compensation
should be.
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