Commentary/Opinion Profile of the Lower Manhattan Development Corporation Good Jobs New York has produced the first comprehensive person-by-person profile of the eleven members of the Lower Manhattan Development Corporation. Find out who on the commission is a film financier; a community activist; the "ultimate power broker;" and a one-time dinner guest of a Taliban leader. (The report is in PDF format) The Make-Up Of The Lower Manhattan Redevelopment Corporation Gotham Gazette - January 2002 Tom Angotti takes a look at what he calls the "top-heavy" makeup of the Lower Manhattan Redevelopment Corporation. Three Alternatives To An Independent Authority For Lower Manhattan Gotham Gazette - January 2002 Land Use columnist Tom Angotti comes up with three alternatives to the state authority to insure a community-based approach to rebuilding downtown: ULURP, SEQR, and 197-A. More Resources Press Release - Lower Manhattan Development Corporation Announces Appointment Of Three Executives - Apr 04, 2002 Read about the new staff members of the rebuilding authority appointed today: Irene Chang was named Vice President for Legal Affairs, Patrice Derrington was named Vice President for Corporate Development and Amy Peterson was named Program Administrator. Draft Assistance Plan For Individuals The Lower Manhattan Development Corporation presents a plan in draft form for providing assistance to individuals. Includes information on the housing grants available to downtown residents or prospective residents. Contact Information For the Lower Manhattan Development Corporation Address: One Liberty Plaza, New York, NY 10038 Phone: 212-962-2300 Website: http://www.renewnyc.com Advisory Councils A list of the members of the Lower Manhattan Development Corporation's advisory councils. List of Members of the Lower Manhattan Development Corporation John C. Whitehead (Chair), the former chairman of the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, deputy secretary of state under ex-President Ronald Reagan, and former co-chairman of the investment firm Goldman Sachs & Company Roland W. Betts, the lead owner of Chelsea Piers and the former lead owner of the Texas Rangers baseball team, whose fellow owners from 1989 to 1998 included his friend and Yale University classmate George W. Bush Paul A. Crotty, who was corporation counsel in Rudy Giuliani's first term and who is now a public affairs executive for Verizon Communications. Lewis M. Eisenberg, who to join this redevelopment corporation has resigned as chairman of the board of commissioners of the Port Authority ofNew York and New Jersey, a position to which he was appointed by Gov. Christie Whitman of New Jersey Richard Grasso, the chairman of the New York Stock Exchange Robert M. Harding, a deputy mayor for economic development and finance Ed Malloy, president of the Building and Construction Trades Council of Greater New York. Madelyn G. Wils, the chairwoman of Community Board No. 1, which includes the financial district and TriBeCa. Howard Wilson, the chairman of the School Construction Authority Deborah C. Wright, the chief executive of Carver Federal Savings Bank in Harlem and a member of the transition team of Mayor- elect Michael R. Bloomberg. Sally Hernandez-Pinero, an attorney in private practice and on the boards of Con Edison, Dime Savings Bank of New York, the American Museum of Natural History, and the United Way of Greater New York. Thomas S. Johnson, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of GreenPoint Financial. E. Stanley O'Neal, President and COO of Merrill Lynch & Co., Inc. Billie Tsien, architect and designer Carl Weisbrod, President of the Alliance for Downtown New York, Inc. Frank G. Zarb, the former chairman of Nasdaq

News Stories

Political Considerations Lead To Current Vision For Ground Zero - Mar 3, 2003
The creation of the Lower Manhattan Development Corporation set off what could have been any government operation -- a plodding, obtuse process run by bureaucrats with little public participation. Instead, it evolved into a grand public discussion about architecture, public space and the nature of memory. (New York Times)

Insider Expected to Head LMDC - Feb 25, 2003
Gov. George Pataki has selected another Albany insider to lead the lower Manhattan rebuilding effort when the current president leaves this week, sources say. Pataki has chosen Kevin Rampe, the Lower Manhattan Development Corp.'s executive vice president and general counsel, to become president of the agency overseeing the World Trade Center site redevelopment, say sources familiar with the process. (Newsday)

Mayor Declines Question On Whether Taylor Should Head LMDC - Feb 4, 2003
Mayor Bloomberg had few words yesterday when asked if his girlfriend - Diana Taylor - should be named the next president of the Lower Manhattan Development Corp., an idea floated by Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver. (New York Daily News)

Small, Unofficial Committee Will Make Decision on WTC Site Plan - Jan 24, 2003
A small, unofficial committee has quietly been given responsibility to choose an architect and site plan for Ground Zero, officials said yesterday. The eight-member Òsteering committeeÓ includes representatives of the two agencies responsible for downtown redevelopment, and of the governor and the mayor - although City Hall controls just one seat. (New York Post)

President of Rebuilding Agency To Step Down In February - Jan 17, 2003
The president of the agency charged with overseeing reconstruction at Ground Zero will step down at the end of next month, sources said yesterday. Lou Tomson had been expected to leave his post at the Lower Manhattan Development Corp. once the agency chooses the site's master plan. That's expected to happen next month, when the LMDC will pick from among nine rebuilding proposals. Although he is now in good health, he has been bothered by the lingering effects of kidney and prostate cancer, and he often said he was not fond of his weekly trip to and from his home on 16 acres in Voorheesville, east of Albany. (New York Post)

Development Corporation Ready for Next Step - Dec 13, 2002
The Lower Manhattan Development Corporation yesterday authorized $300,000 to pay for the work of whichever teams are picked to refine their designs for the World Trade Center site. A final site plan, to be negotiated between LMDC and the Port Authority, is due Jan. 31. (Newsday)

Many Concerned About Public Input for New WTC Plans - Dec 9, 2002
As lower Manhattan rebuilding officials move toward finalizing a new master plan for Ground Zero, concern is growing among civic leaders about how much input the public will have. The Lower Manhattan Development Corp. will release seven new designs for the World Trade Center site next week - and a final plan is scheduled to be selected by February. But the agency has no intention of holding a forum similar to the summer's sprawling Listening to the City event at the Javits Center. (New York Daily News)

Planners Vow to Cooperate in Rebuilding Trade Center - Dec 1, 2002
Stung by criticism that interagency fights have slowed the pace of the rebuilding in Lower Manhattan, officials overseeing the planning are taking a new tack: acknowledging their previous disagreements while also promising that the effort will soon pick up speed. In a speech to a municipal finance conference tomorrow, Louis R. Tomson, the president of the Lower Manhattan Development Corporation, is expected to outline an aggressive schedule for completing a plan for the World Trade Center site, rebuilding officials said last week. (New York Times)

Federal Bill Secures LMDC's Role in Memorial Planning - Nov 26, 2002
The federal government would guarantee the future of the Lower Manhattan Development Corp. under recent congressional legislation to create a World Trade Center National Memorial. Introduced earlier this month by Rep. Jerrold Nadler (D-Manhattan), whose district includes Ground Zero, the bill requires the development agency's public planning process to determine the memorial's design and location, with eventual administration by the National Park Service. (Newsday)

Rebuilding Official Praises Designs For World Trade Center Site - Nov 22, 2002
Seven architecture teams commissioned by the Lower Manhattan Development Corporation to design plans for Ground Zero have created work that is "astoundingly innovative, creative and exciting," according to Roland W. Betts, a Lower Manhattan Development Corporation director. Memorials on the tops of buildings and below ground, a formal 19th-century-style garden and the tallest building in the world are among the elements included in several new sets of plans being drawn up for the World Trade Center site, according to rebuilding officials who have seen them. (New York Times)

Rebuilding Agency To Look At Chinatown Traffic Problems - Nov 22, 2002
State and city officials are asking consulting companies for ideas on how to fix Chinatown's transportation woes, the Lower Manhattan Development Corporation announced last week. The study will identify the major transportation issues in Chinatown and suggest ways to remedy the problems, officials said. Sections of Park Row, a major thoroughfare connecting parts of Broadway to Chinatown, have been closed since Sept. 11 for security reasons. (Downtown Express)

Officials Debate How To Unveil New Ground Zero Plans - Nov 18, 2002
Ground Zero planners are grappling with how best to show the public the new round of World Trade Center designs set to be unveiled next month. The designs, replete with memorial and office spaces, will be completed before the middle of December. The possibilities for exhibiting the new designs include a live broadcast at the glass atrium Winter Garden, which overlooks the site. Each design team would be given about 20 minutes of air time to detail its work. A tape of the broadcast then could be distributed to TV outlets. (New York Daily News)

Two Boards Are Appointed to Guide Sept. 11 Memorial - Nov 15, 2002
The Lower Manhattan Development Corporation appointed two committees this week to oversee the 9/11 memorial effort, as part of what the agency's chairman called a "new phase" in rebuilding downtown. He also said yesterday that the public would be able to see exhibits next month showing the new plans for the World Trade Center site. Advertisement (New York Times)

Whitehead Defends LMDC Record - Nov 15, 2002
Lower Manhattan Development Corp. chairman John Whitehead defended his agency's record yesterday, claiming it has laid a strong foundation for downtown's redevelopment. Site plans being developed by reputable architectural teams will be publicly displayed by year's end and a memorial competition will follow, said Whitehead, fending off reports that he might leave. (Newsday)

WTC Planner Quits in Conflict - Nov 9, 2002
A Ground Zero rebuilding official quietly stepped down from his post this week because of a conflict of interests, the Daily News has learned. Howard Wilson resigned from the Lower Manhattan Development Corp.'s board because his law firm represents twin towers leaseholder Larry Silverstein in his billion-dollar insurance case. (New York Daily News)

Future Role of LMDC in Rebuilding Unclear - Nov 7, 2002
One year after its creation, the Lower Manhattan Development Corp. faces serious questions about its future - from who will head the agency to whether it will continue to exist. While it's unclear whether LMDC president Lou Tomson will leave by next year, critics say that the overall World Trade Center redevelopment effort lacks clear leadership. (Newsday)

LMDC President Likely to Leave After Elections - Nov 5, 2002
Lou Tomson is widely expected to step down as president of the Lower Manhattan Development Corp. after this week's elections. Insiders say the decision would be a personal one: Tomson, a top aide to Gov. George Pataki during his first term, has been commuting on weekends to the Albany area, where he lives. Tomson's departure could set off a turf battle for control of LMDC between Charles Gargano, chairman of LMDC's parent agency, Empire State Development, and Deputy Mayor Daniel Doctoroff, Mayor Michael Bloomberg's point person for rebuilding lower Manhattan. (Crain's New York Business)

WTC Planners Taking International Memorial Tour - Oct 30, 2002
City officials, civic leaders and Sept. 11 victims' families are heading to Europe to look at how cities abroad planned rebuilding efforts - and created memorials. The 50-person trip will come a month after lower Manhattan planners toured memorials around the U.S. (New York Daily News)

Violations by Buildings May Delay Tenant Grants - Oct 20, 2002
Residents of nearly 200 apartment buildings in Lower Manhattan could find their applications for Sept. 11-related housing grants denied or delayed because of outstanding violations of building or fire codes, according to officials of the Lower Manhattan Development Corporation. (New York Times)

With No Single Leader, Rebuilding Officials Fight Private Battles - Oct 16, 2002
The public controversy swirling around the World Trade Center design process is nothing compared to the growing bickering behind closed doors. The lack of a definitive leader has created competing lines of authority, complete with personal and bureaucratic animosities, sources said. (New York Daily News)

Lessons From A Memorial Tour - Oct 13, 2002
Officials who toured memorial sites last week learned about remembering the little things. The five-day, five-city tour of 18 memorials early this month both startled and comforted the officials and the relatives, giving them, they said, fresh perspectives on their efforts to create a memorial to the victims of Sept. 11. (New York Times)

New WTC Airtrain Plan - Oct 11, 2002
Travelers could hop on a train at the World Trade Center and speed to Kennedy Airport, under an ambitious and costly proposal being considered by downtown planners, rebuilding officials said yesterday. The idea, under study by the Lower Manhattan Development Corp. and the city Planning Department, is part of a broader concept to market lower Manhattan as an "international center" that would draw companies wanting quick access to Kennedy and Newark airports. (New York Post)

Rebuilding Official Sleeps Through Meeting - Oct 11, 2002
The World Trade Center design process has been lambasted as a giant snooze - and yesterday, it put a top official to sleep. A Lower Manhattan Development Corp. board member actually dozed off during early morning discussions about planning a permanent memorial to the victims of the Sept. 11 attacks. (New York Daily News)

LMDC: Fewer Offices, More Options in Planning for Ground Zero - Oct 10, 2002
Officials overseeing the rebuilding of Lower Manhattan agreed yesterday to give designers more flexibility in planning the future of the World Trade Center site, reducing by 40 percent the amount of the commercial space that must be included in plans for it. The new instructions are to be given tomorrow to six new teams of architects, artists and designers selected last month to work on innovative plans to rejuvenate the symbolic heart of the financial district. (New York Times)

LMDC: Fewer Offices at Site - Oct 9, 2002
The Lower Manhattan Development Corp. expects "a substantial reduction" in office space required for the World Trade Center site to allow for less density and more freedom in redesigning the site, its president said yesterday. (Newsday)

Hundreds of Downtown Residents Paid to Stay - Oct 8, 2002
Checks will go out this month to more than 300 downtown residents who were among the first to be approved for a series of federal grants aimed at keeping people in lower Manhattan, development officials said yesterday. (New York Post)

Memorial Tour Yields Ideas For World Trade Center Site - Oct 7, 2002
A memorial first, a museum later. That was the suggestion of a special panel, which just returned from touring memorials around the country to help plan the future of the World Trade Center site. The group also looked at some of the practical pitfalls of memorial design, such as using material that wears away too quickly, and advised on the need to hear many voices and represent a variety of interests in selecting a jury to judge competing memorial designs. (New York Daily News)

Size Not Important For Memorial, Officials Say - Oct 7, 2002
The memorial to victims of the Sept. 11 terror attacks that rises at Ground Zero must be driven by the power and clarity of its message, and not the amount of land it stands on, rebuilding officials said. "The power of a memorial is not related to its size," said Lower Manhattan Development Corp. President Lou Tomson, sitting in the airport at Montgomery, Ala., after his entourage visited the Rosa Parks Museum and the Civil Rights Memorial - the last stop of a five-day national tour. Anita Contini, who's overseeing the LMDC memorial process, said most people felt "the more simple ones had more power." (New York Post)

Oklahoma City and New York: Two Cities Visited By Disaster - Oct 5, 2002
As Lower Manhattan Development Corp. officials visited Oklahoma City Friday, as part of a six-day memorial-research trip across the country, they found a city with plenty of experience to share. A major piece of advice development corporation officials heard was "include everyone." Oklahoma City lost 168 people when Timothy McVeigh bombed the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building on April 19, 1995. The outdoor memorial, featuring 168 empty chairs and a shallow pond, opened in 2000. A museum opened in 2001. (Newsday)

Women Taking Key Roles In LMDC Rebuilding Effort - Oct 2, 2002
Half the top leadership posts at the Lower Manhattan Development Corporation are held by women, including 21 of the 41-member staff. Four of six vice presidents are women, working on the memorial and cultural programs, community outreach and government relations, and corporate development and legal affairs. Each woman has a distinctly different resume, and they say gender doesn't matter in their workplace. (Newsday)

Rebuilding Officials Begin Tour At Shanksville, Pennsylvania - Oct 2, 2002
In the abandoned coalfield where United Airlines Flight 93 crashed, the wall of impromptu remembrances overflowed with hundreds of flags, police patches, little angels and firefighter caps. It resembled many such tributes that sprang up in New York City a year ago. And it supported one lower Manhattan development official's desire to link somehow the three Sept. 11 memorials -- in Pennsylvania, at the Pentagon and in Manhattan. Lower Manhattan Development Corporation memorial director Anita Contini sees many similarities among how the three Sept. 11 memorial sites will be created -- from talking to the families to including other interested parties. (Newsday)

Rebuilding Officials Set For Tour of Memorials - Sep 29, 2002
As the planning for Ground Zero enters a new phase, rebuilding officials are turning greater attention to the memorial - starting with a five-day tour of permanent tributes around the country. Anita Contini, who is overseeing the memorial process for the Lower Manhattan Development Corporation, and relatives of two Sept. 11 victims are about to begin a whirlwind tour around the nation, meeting with officials at Shanksville, Penn., the Pentagon, the Vietnam Veterans Memorial and Oklahoma City. (New York Post)

Design Teams Are Selected for New Plans for 9/11 Site - Sep 27, 2002
Six teams of architects, artists and designers, including individuals and firms that have created some of the most renowned buildings and public works of the last quarter-century, were chosen yesterday by the Lower Manhattan Development Corporation to create new designs for the World Trade Center site. (New York Times)

Details on the Finalists for Trade Center Site - Sep 27, 2002
A list of the six teams selected by the Lower Manhattan Development Corporation, with excerpts from their application. (Newsday)

Development Corporation Faces Likely Changes - Sep 23, 2002
Sources told The Post that the city-state Lower Manhattan Development Corporation, in charge of rebuilding the World Trade Center site, will face major changes after the election - whether Gov. George Pataki or Carl McCall win the governors race. (New York Post)

300 Firms Competing to Help Remake Downtown - Sep 18, 2002
More than 300 architecture and planning firms, including those of the notable architects Philip Johnson and Robert A. M. Stern, have answered the Lower Manhattan Development Corporation's call for more innovative concepts for the World Trade Center site, rebuilding officials said yesterday. (New York Times)

WTC Panel to Tour Memorials - Sep 18, 2002
Redevelopment officials will visit more than a dozen memorials around the world before selecting the design for a permanent tribute to the 2,801 victims of the World Trade Center attacks, officials said yesterday. (New York Daily News)

Architect and Former Politician Join Group Selecting Planning Firms For Rebuilding Downtown - Sep 13, 2002
A former congressman and the head of the Harvard Department of Architecture have been tapped to help redevelopment officials choose five new planning teams for Ground Zero. Toshiko Mori, a Manhattan architect and Harvard scholar, and Richard Swett, an architect who served two terms as a congressman from New Hampshire and was ambassador to Denmark, will be part of a seven-member review committee to begin work next week. (New York Post)

Architect At LMDC Sketched WTC Vision For Protetch Gallery - Sep 2, 2002
Months before renowned architect Billie Tsien joined the Lower Manhattan Development Corp., she sketched her own vision for the World Trade Center site. This week, the design by Tsien and her husband, Tod Williams - "Buildings in the Form of Trees," first drafted in January - will find a wider audience in the new catalog of the Max Protetch Gallery. (Newsday)

What To Do With Ground Zero - Sep 2, 2002
One year after the terrorist attacks, the place where the Twin Towers once loomed looks like any big-city construction site. But exactly what will be built there is still anyone’s guess. One of the many remarkable stories of the last year is how public opinion, galvanized by the tragedy, has derailed the business-as-usual development plans that called for replacing the World Trade Center’s 11 million square feet of office space. (Newsweek)

WTC Transit Plans Altered After Victims' Families' Pleas - Sep 1, 2002
Plans for an underground transportation concourse at the World Trade Center site have been altered in response to pleas from family members of victims of the Sept. 11 attacks that the concourse not run beneath the footprint of one of the destroyed towers, officials in the rebuilding effort say. (New York Times)

WTC Designers Giving Up Rights, Money - Aug 29, 2002
Responding to thousands of unsolicited proposals for the World Trade Center site, the Lower Manhattan Development Corp. is asking people to give up any rights to their designs or any payment for their work. (Newsday)

Proposals Pouring In For WTC Site - Aug 29, 2002
More than 2,000 ordinary citizens, artists and great architects have been inspired to put their ideas for the World Trade Center site on paper. The Lower Manhattan Development Corp., the Port Authority, and other government officials have received a wide range of proposals. Anita Contini, the corporation's memorial director, asked people to stop sending any more plans until criteria for the memorial are announced early next year. The agency won't consider any proposals already sent, said Contini, responding to questions at a GothamGazette.com online interview. (Newsday)

Wider Scope in New Plans for Rebuilding - Aug 18, 2002
Plans for the rebuilding of Lower Manhattan, until now focused almost exclusively on the World Trade Center site, have for the first time expanded to encompass all of downtown, according to officials involved in the rebuilding process. The Lower Manhattan Development Corporation hired urban planning firm Peterson Littenberg Architects & Planners last week and is working with the Bloomberg administration to plan a search for other firms to help remake neighborhoods from Chinatown to Battery Park, rebuilding officials said. (New York Times)

Design Competition For 9/11 Memorial Starting Early Next Year - Aug 16, 2002
An international competition to design a memorial to the victims of the terrorist attack of Sept. 11 is expected to begin early next year, with a winning design to be selected by the second anniversary of the attack, rebuilding officials said yesterday. Officials of the Lower Manhattan Development Corporation said that it would conduct a public hearing in each of the city's five boroughs over the next three weeks to gather comments on the concept and design of the memorial. (New York Times)

Seeking Firms to Pitch New WTC ideas - Aug 14, 2002
The Lower Manhattan Development Corp. is launching a worldwide search for five more firms to produce new designs for rebuilding at Ground Zero, sources said last night. Each of the new firms picked will be given specific criteria to meet, but many of the rigid constraints put on the first six designs will be gone. (New York Daily News)

Money for Just Some of a Transit Wish List - Aug 13, 2002
Federal, state and city officials gathered at the rim of ground zero yesterday to celebrate their cooperation in securing $4.55 billion in federal money to overhaul and update the tangle of subway stations, commuter terminals and other transportation outlets in Lower Manhattan. But the money still falls short of the $7.5 billion that officials overseeing the rebuilding have long said would be needed to complete crucial transportation projects, leaving questions about which projects might be scrapped or scaled back as the rebuilding effort progresses. (New York Times)

$4.5B to Be Used for a Ground Zero Rail Hub - Aug 12, 2002
Billions of dollars in federal money will be used to build a new transit hub near Ground Zero, linking the PATH with subway lines in lower Manhattan, Mayor Bloomberg is set to announce today. The federal government has agreed to give the city $4.5 billion for the rail center. (New York Daily News)

Design Ideas Pour Into Office Of Rebuilding Agency - Aug 6, 2002
More than 2,000 unsolicited proposals for a Ground Zero memorial have been sent to the Lower Manhattan Development Corporation since it was established at the end of last year. The corporation, which is charged with overseeing the permanent Sept. 11 memorial, is in the midst of setting up a process for designing the tribute, most likely through an international design competition. The new executive in charge of the project, Anita Contini, started her job only yesterday and has been getting familiar with the issues. Many of the submitted designs will likely be entered into the international competition, LMDC officials said. (New York Post)

At Trade Center Site, a Wealth of Ideas - Jul 28, 2002
A tangle of interests is at work in lower Manhattan, seeking to influence the rebuilding of the World Trade Center and, more broadly, the structure and methods of the downtown economy. The political, aesthetic and commercial interests that are involved in the effort bring with them such a dizzying array of positions and agendas that it is often quite difficult to keep track of who wants what. (New York Times)

Two of the Six Plans Were Switched at Last Minute - Jul 26, 2002
Two of the six World Trade Center site plans unveiled last week were included over the strenuous objections of key planning officials and had been voted down by a rebuilding task force. Several officials at the Lower Manhattan Development Corp. were "furious" about the changes, sources said. (New York Post)

Fresh Visions of Ground Zero Could Delay Lower Manhattan's Recovery - Jul 22, 2002
Officials charged with overseeing the rebuilding of Lower Manhattan said this weekend that the public's call for a slower planning process and less commercial space on the World Trade Center site could delay plans for an expanded transportation center connecting the subway and commuter rail lines downtown. (New York Times)

3,000 To Attend Today's Meeting on WTC Plans - Jul 22, 2002
Another town hall meeting will be held at the Jacob K. Javits Convention Center today for people to express their opinions on rebuilding lower Manhattan in the wake of the Sept. 11 terrorist attack. The meeting, which is expected to draw 3,000 people, comes on the heels of a similar gathering on Saturday at the Javits Center during which officials -- stung by criticism about the initial six proposals for redeveloping the World Trade Center -- said they might extend the timeline for producing a final plan. (Newsday)

Officials Rethink Building Proposal for Ground Zero - Jul 21, 2002
Officials charged with rebuilding Lower Manhattan in the wake of the Sept. 11 terrorist attack on the World Trade Center said yesterday that they would consider new options for the site, including scaling back the amount of commercial space.The changes, the officials said, were in response to a broad array of criticism of the six initial designs for rebuilding the trade center site, including unfavorable appraisals at a town hall meeting in Manhattan yesterday. (New York Times)

Six Plans for Ground Zero, All Seen as a Starting Point - Jul 17, 2002
On the day that six proposals for the redevelopment of the World Trade Center site were unveiled, the chairman of the Lower Manhattan Development Corporation said yesterday that the public could consider a seventh possibility, a new design without some of the requirements for office and retail space that shaped the initial proposals. (New York Times)

6 Plans for Ground Zero Share Striking Similarities - Jul 11, 2002
The six official proposals for rebuilding the World Trade Center site, which will be released next Tuesday, all took as a given the need for office space, a hotel, and retail shopping. None of the plans, which will be released to the public next Tuesday, include residential apartments. Although all of the designs set aside space for a memorial, four of them call for construction on the site of the south tower, which goes against the wishes of many family victims groups and Governor George Pataki. (New York Times)

Executive to Handle 9/11 Memorial Construction - Jul 2, 2002
A Merrill Lynch executive long involved in downtown cultural events will oversee the building of a memorial to the victims of Sept. 11. Anita Contini, 58, will be named vice president and director for memorial cultural and civic programs today by the Lower Manhattan Development Corp. (New York Daily News)

Hundreds Attend Public Hearing On Future of World Trade Center Site - May 24, 2002
A crowd of more than 800 people packed a downtown auditorium last night to sound off and listen to a multitude of plans and ideas for rebuilding the World Trade Center site and its surroundings. Many complained that the LMDC, which is charged with overseeing the redevelopment of downtown, had not given enough consideration to the revitalization of Chinatown and the Lower East Side, affordable housing and assistance for displaced workers. Many speakers called for constructing buildings as high or higher than the Twin Towers, while some described ideas for memorial designs and held up drawings of their designs. (Newsday)

Rebuilding Officials Emphasizing Fast Paced Schedule In Selection Of Design Group - May 23, 2002
Sources told the New York Post that officials from the Port Authority and Lower Manhattan Development Corporation focused heavily on the fast-track schedule in approving a planner for the redevelopment of the World Trade Center site. "They were quite interested in how the team was organized and how it would manage itself. These are big teams and a very tight time frame," said Graham Wyatt, a partner at the Robert A.M. Stern architectural firm, one of six finalists interviewed for the design post. (New York Post)

Decision On Group For Redeveloping Downtown Coming This Week - May 20, 2002
As recovery efforts are wrapping up, officials overseeing the site will decide this week which group of consultants will help shape plans for the 16-acre former World Trade Center site. The Port Authority, which owns the site, and the Lower Manhattan Development Corp. - the city-state agency charged with revitalizing the area - spent last week interviewing the six finalists, sources told the New York Post. (New York Post)

Public Hearing Announced For Rebuilding - May 16, 2002
For the first time this year, officials overseeing rebuilding at Ground Zero will hold a major public hearing at which people can speak out about what should replace the former World Trade Center. The hearing - organized by the Lower Manhattan Development Corporation and the Port Authority, and planned for next Thursday, May 23 at Pace University at 6 p.m., is the first opportunity the public will have to speak directly to the rebuilding planners. (New York Post)

Housing Subsidies To Extend To Chinatown - May 15, 2002
The Lower Manhattan Development Corporation is expected to announce today that families who commit to living in Chinatown for at least a year can get a one-shot $750 bonus from a federal pot of cash earmarked to help lower Manhattan. (New York Post)

Thirteen Groups Submit Proposals For Rebuilding World Trade Center Site - May 7, 2002
When the deadline to apply for one of the most crucial urban design jobs in city history expired yesterday, a total of 13 groups had submitted applications to the Port Authority to craft a development plan for the World Trade Center site. Because no single company has all the expertise needed for the vast job, the proposals came from teams of firms that pulled together to vie for the contract. The applications include more than 50 urban design, architecture and transportation planning firms, said officials from the Port Authority and Lower Manhattan Development Corporation. No comprehensive master plans were submitted. Instead, the teams offered development outlines, listed their qualifications and pegged their fees. (New York Daily News)

Blueprint for Ground Zero Beginning To Take Shape - May 4, 2002
Although public deliberations have only recently begun over the future of the site known as ground zero, crucial components of what will occur there appear to have already been settled upon by city and state officials. No 100-story office towers are likely to grace the former site of the World Trade Center. Nor is it probable that the entire 16-acre parcel will be set aside for a memorial to victims of the attack on Sept. 11. (New York Times)

Head of City-State Rebuilding Authority Maintains Everyone Has Final Say - Apr 25, 2002
The head of the downtown rebuilding agency yesterday insisted his board has equal say in what gets built at Ground Zero - a day after the Port Authority said it alone will make the final call. "I think everybody has the final say," said John Whitehead, chairman of the Lower Manhattan Development Corp., adding that "both boards" will approve the plans for the 16-acre World Trade Center site, which is owned by the Port Authority. Whitehead spoke just a day after the Port Authority board approved a memorandum of understanding with the Lower Manhattan Development Corporation that clearly laid out each agency's role - with the Port Authority having "primary" responsibility over the site and the Lower Manhattan Development Corporation doing outreach and overseeing the permanent memorial. (New York Post)

Timeline Set For Development Of World Trade Center Site - Apr 24, 2002
The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, which owns the trade center site, and the Lower Manhattan Development Corporation, which is overseeing much of the downtown redevelopment, jointly issued a request for proposals for a design for the site, including space for offices, a hotel, retail stores and services, and an analysis of transportation projects. A deadline of July 1 was set for initial plans, and a final proposal for the development of the site is due by Sept. 1, according to the timetable laid out yesterday. Final transportation plans and an urban design for the broader downtown area are to be completed by Dec. 1, the agencies said. Would-be planners must apply by May 6, less than two weeks away. (New York Times)

Rebuilding By Autocracy Less Likely For Downtown Than In The Past - Apr 14, 2002
Today, it is less likely that a plan for rebuilding downtown will emerge by autocratic fiat, as might have been the case a generation or two ago, when master builders like Robert Moses presented the fruits of their wisdom with little room or patience for criticism. The master builder is out. Consensus and process are in. (New York Times)

Plans for a Makeover of Lower Manhattan in a Blueprint of Downtown - Apr 10, 2002
The Lower Manhattan Development Corporation yesterday made public a blueprint for a commercial and cultural makeover of downtown Manhattan, an outline that includes a new Freedom Park with memorial and museum, and a transit hub connecting subway, commuter rail and ferry lines. While the outline issued yesterday was only a general document, with few specifics or timetables, John C. Whitehead, chairman of the development corporation, said the proposals should serve as evidence that the rebuilding process has begun. (New York Times)

Head of Rebuilding Authority Asks For Money To Keep Tribute In Light Going - Apr 10, 2002
Downtown rebuilding czar John Whitehead yesterday asked businesses to donate $100,000 to keep the Tribute of Lights burning beyond this weekend, when it is scheduled to go dark. (New York Post)

Mayor Appoints Four Members To Board of City-State Rebuilding Authority - Apr 9, 2002
Mayor Bloomberg announced today four of his appointees to the Board of the Lower Manhattan Development Corporation. Two of Bloomberg's appointees are women, including an Asian-American (architect Billie Tsien) and a Latin-American (attorney Sally Hernandez-Pi–ero). E. Stanley O'Neal, President and COO of Merrill Lynch, will be the second African-American on the Board. Bloomberg also named Carl Weisbrod, President of the Alliance for Downtown New York. Their appointments signal a response to criticisms of the Board's lack of gender and ethnic diversity. (Gotham Gazette)

City-State Rebuilding Agency Approves Preliminary Blueprint For Redevelopment - Apr 9, 2002
The Lower Manhattan Development Corporation on Tuesday morning approved a preliminary blueprint for rebuilding lower Manhattan. The board -- charged with distributing roughly $2 billion in federal aid and with overseeing downtown rebuilding -- approved a redevelopment plan that includes proposals for Òa museum of freedom and remembranceÓ near the World Trade Center site and a redesign of the downtown street grid to improve pedestrian access and link neighborhoods. (Associated Press)

Rebuilding Authority Set To Expand Incentive Program For Downtown Residents - Apr 9, 2002
A cash-incentive program designed to entice people to live near Ground Zero is expected to get sweeter today, as a state-city agency is set to increase the total payouts and widen eligibility. There will be new one-time payments, including funds for those living as far north as Delancey St., and bonus grants to families with children under 18. And the maximum grant will be available to more people, as the boundaries in the immediate impact zone have been expanded. (New York Daily News)

Five More Appointees Will Balance City and State Power In Rebuilding Authority - Apr 8, 2002
The board of the state-city agency charged with rebuilding lower Manhattan will expand this week by five people -- two more than had been expected, a source said yesterday. Mayor Bloomberg will name four new members to the Lower Manhattan Development Corp. and Gov. Pataki will add one, a source close to the decision said, giving the city and state an even share of appointees on the board. At least one of the new appointees is expected to be a victim's family member. (New York Daily News)

Downtown Rent Subsidy Plan To Expand Coverage Area - Apr 4, 2002
Downtown planners have revised a proposal for rent rebates for lower Manhattan residents in a way that would expand coverage to hundreds of apartment dwellers affected by the Sept. 11 terror attack. The new plan enlarges the boundaries of the so-called immediate-impact zone of residents near the demolished trade center by pushing the eastern line from Broadway to Nassau Street, said sources familiar with the proposal. (New York Post)

Three New Staff Hired For Rebuilding Authority - Apr 3, 2002
The Lower Manhattan Development Corporation, the joint State-City corporation formed to oversee the revitalization of Lower Manhattan, announced today the appointment of three key executives to its staff. Irene Chang was named Vice President for Legal Affairs, Patrice Derrington was named Vice President for Corporate Development and Amy Peterson was named Program Administrator. (Gotham Gazette)

Rebuilding Authority Opens Space For Victims' Families To Oversee Ground Zero - Mar 30, 2002
The city-state agency overseeing Ground Zero rebuilding yesterday turned over part of its office space at One Liberty Plaza near Ground Zero as a private viewing room where victims' families can look at the entire site. (New York Post)

Years of Work Underground Before Steel Reaches Skyward - Mar 27, 2002
Nothing will be built above ground for several years at the site of the World Trade Center because of the extensive underground construction that must be completed first, the chairman of the group overseeing the rebuilding of Lower Manhattan said yesterday. Corporation officials also said yesterday that they will lay out details of major components of their building proposals in a yearlong series of publications beginning in May. Those publications will focus on individual subjects, like transportation, residential and commercial development, and the attraction of arts and cultural institutions. (New York Times)

Rebuilding Head John Whitehead Says Consensus Emerging, Supports Biotech Downtown - Mar 26, 2002
Speaking Tuesday at the Grand Hyatt Hotel in Manhattan, head of the rebuilding authority John Whitehead said there is general agreement that the two 110-story towers destroyed on Sept. 11 should not be duplicated but should be replaced by smaller, mixed-use buildings. However, Whitehead would not answer specific questions about plans for the site. The head of Lower ManhattanÕs rebuilding effort also threw his support behind a downtown bio-technology hub proposed by the New York City Partnership and a coalition of the cityÕs leading medical institutions. (Newsday)

Rebuilding Head John Whitehead Speaks At Business Forum - Mar 26, 2002
Speaking at a Crain's New York Business breakfast forum on Tuesday, Mr. Whitehead gave an update on rebuilding. He acknowledged that the rebuilding of 7 World Trade Center should begin as soon as possible, because construction must start this year on a Con Ed substation on the lower floors of the building to ensure that lower Manhattan has enough power in the summer of 2003. He also said that he expects his agency to have the major components of a plan for rebuilding downtown completed in June. (Crain's New York Business)

Bloomberg Defends Whitehead After Fundraiser Flap - Mar 25, 2002
Mayor Bloomberg yesterday defended John Whitehead, chairman of the Lower Manhattan Development Corp., who was forced to drop out as headliner of a GOP fund-raiser. Bloomberg said yesterday the suggestion that Whitehead's role as the event's honoree had business and real-estate leaders feeling pressured to make donations to the fund-raiser was "laughable." (New York Post)

Rebuilding Authority Head Pulls Out Of Republican Party Fundraiser - Mar 24, 2002
Lower Manhattan Development Corp. chairman John Whitehead pulled out of a fundraiser after questions about the appropriateness of his appearance. Whitehead's role as an honoree at a Republican party fundraiser - at a time when his agency is set to award lucrative contracts and approve rebuilding plans - had business and real-estate leaders feeling pressured to make donations to the fund-raiser. Democrats were also voiced concern about the Republicans using Whitehead to play politics. (New York Post)

Rebuilding Authority Head To Appear At Republican Fundraiser - Mar 23, 2002
Lower Manhattan Development Corp. boss John Whitehead is lending his name to a big-bucks Republican fund-raiser next month. Whitehead's starring role in the gala event with Gov. Pataki has some businessmen quaking over whether they'll have to pony up donations if they want to get lucrative contracts related to the reconstruction of downtown. A prominent business leader who received an invitation said Whitehead's presence at the fund-raiser -- and the use of his name to promote the event -- was a "clear signal" to would-be World Trade Center-area contractors, consultants and developers that a contribution was expected. (New York Post)

Head of Rebuilding Authority Pushes for Quick Start for 7 World Trade Center - Mar 13, 2002
A new 7 World Trade Center should rise from Ground Zero as soon as possible now that major differences that threatened the project have been overcome, lower Manhattan's rebuilding czar John Whitehead said yesterday. Whitehead said speed is a concern with 7 WTC because the building will house an electrical substation needed to ensure adequate power supplies by the summer of 2003. (New York Post)

Guidelines for Downtown Rebuilding To Come Next Month - Mar 13, 2002
The group overseeing the rebuilding of Lower Manhattan expects to issue guidelines for the redevelopment project next month and offer detailed plans about many of its proposed projects by June, the group's chairman said yesterday. While not giving details, John Whitehead did acknowledge that there is an "emerging consensus" about several ideas, including restoring at least part of the street grid through the World Trade Center site, converting West Street to a tunnel, and building a transportation hub in Lower Manhattan that might include extensions of the Long Island Rail Road and the Metro-North Railroad. (New York Times)

Rebuilding Will Take 10 Years, Says Head of Rebuilding Authority - Mar 8, 2002
It will take at least a decade to rebuild the World Trade Center site, the head of the agency overseeing the redevelopment of lower Manhattan said yesterday. John Whitehead, chairman of the Lower Manhattan Development Corp., also said his agency will issue broad guidelines next month on how the devastated 16-acre parcel should be revitalized. (New York Daily News)

Rebuilding Authority To Hold Closed Door Meeting With Wall Street Execs - Mar 7, 2002
An advisory committee of executives from top Wall Street corporations will meet in secret today with the state-city agency in charge of redeveloping lower Manhattan - drawing fire from downtown residents and good-government advocates alike. "It needs to be a more open process. I don't see what they have to hide," said Sudhir Jain, president of the Lower Manhattan Tenants Coalition. (New York Post)

Governor Pataki To Share Power With Mayor on Rebuilding Authority - Mar 6, 2002
Gov. George E. Pataki said yesterday that he was ceding to Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg equal control of the agency created last fall to oversee the rebuilding of downtown Manhattan. Bloomberg will be able to appoint three new members of the Lower Manhattan Development Corporation, bringing the total number to fourteen - seven appointed by Pataki, the other seven appointed by Giuliani and Bloomberg. (New York Times)

Diversity of City-State Rebuilding Authority Criticized - Feb 26, 2002
The agency in charge of rebuilding lower Manhattan is overwhelmingly white and male, with almost no women or minorities on its staff or board of directors, City Council members charged yesterday. Lou Tomson, who was appointed LMDC executive director in January, said that of nine employees hired this month, all were white and there was only one woman. "I recognize the necessity of recruiting a staff that more accurately reflects the diversity of the city," Tomson said. He said the staff hired so far was assembled quickly and "there wasn't time" to seek out a more diverse group. Tomson said he expected to hire about 11 more people - filling several "major" positions - and would now take diversity into consideration. (New York Post)

Rebuilding Agency To Determine Indoor Air Quality Standards - Feb 22, 2002
Swamped with complaints about health concerns from people living near Ground Zero, the state-city agency overseeing the rebuilding of lower Manhattan is considering establishing a standard to determine when air in apartments is safe to breathe. Paul Crotty, a board member of the Lower Manhattan Development Corporation, said the agency should consider hiring a consultant to "harmonize" standards for indoor air quality. No legal or regulatory indoor air quality standards exist in the state. Scientists have little idea how people might be affected by the mix of toxins downtown, including asbestos and PCBs Ñ making broad standards difficult to set. (New York Daily News)

Conflict Between Silverstein, Development Authority Over Rebuilding - Feb 18, 2002
In response to residents' and critics' concerns about Larry Silverstein's intentions to begin rebuilding 7 World Trade Center starting this summer, several Lower Manhattan Development Corporation board members have been arguing that rebuilding 7 WTC should be part of an overall plan for the area. "I know how important the redevelopment of WTC 7 is, [but Silverstein] can't have it the way he wants it: in Greenwich Street," said LMDC board member Paul Crotty at a meeting last week. "It will bottle up the planning on the rest of lower Manhattan." Silverstein's fast-track pace has irked some on the LMDC. Sources said Silverstein met with new LMDC master planner Alexander Garvin late last week to start solving the design problem. LMDC executive director Lou Tomson said the board will come up with a set of goals by late May, and its newly hired master planner, Garvin, will then "translate those goals into various plans." (New York Daily News)

Port Authority May Still Overrule City-State Development Authority - Feb 13, 2002
Paul Crotty, one of the 11 board members of the newly-formed Lower Manhattan Development Corporation, said that when it comes to land owned by the Port Authority, which includes the World Trade Center complex, it's still unclear who has the final say. Though the LMDC has been given sweeping powers by Gov. Pataki, the Port Authority does not fall under its direct jurisdiction because it is an agency governed by both New York and New Jersey. (New York Daily News)

Planner Appointed for Lower Manhattan Development Corporation - Feb 11, 2002
Alexander Garvin, an urban planner, city planning commissioner, and teacher at Yale University, was appointed this weekend to be in charge of coming up with such a development plan. His title will be vice president for planning, design and development for the Lower Manhattan Development Corporation. "The revitalization of lower Manhattan presents many complex challenges," Garvin said. "We need to develop an appropriate way to honor those who perished on Sept. 11. The residents, business and property owners of lower Manhattan expect to get back to normal as quickly as possible." (Crain's New York Business)

Advisory Boards Named for Rebuilding Authority - Feb 1, 2002
The commission charged with overseeing the rebuilding of lower Manhattan announced yesterday a long-awaited list of committees for "public input" - but gave scant details on what role they will play or how they will operate. Four citizens' committees with a total of 72 members were created. The so-called advisory councils "will provide valuable public input" as the Lower Manhattan Development Corp. works to form an overall plan for post-Sept. 11 recovery, the agency said in a statement. A General Advisory Committee was also created, composed of 13 state and local politicians and civic leaders, and headed by LMDC's own chairman, John Whitehead. Click here for a list of members of the panels. (New York Times)

WTC Advisory Groups Set - Jan 27, 2002
On Monday, the group will announce the members of four advisory councils - for the families of victims, downtown residents, restaurants and retailers, and arts, education and tourism - which will make recommendations to the corporation's board by March 15. Beyond the initial four advisory councils, others dealing with a range of downtown industries will be added, each with about 15 members, said John Whitehead, the corporation's chairman. To help the group develop those plans, Whitehead plans to hire a full-time staff of 10 to 20 people, he said. He also said the corporation would sublease office space in One Liberty Plaza, facing Ground Zero. Whitehead made it clear he thought that some of the site should be saved for commercial development, rather than saving it all for a memorial. (New York Daily News)

Redevelopment Committee Wants WTC Debris Removed By May 31 - Jan 25, 2002
The Lower Manhattan Redevelopment Committee met Friday morning to set May 31 as a tentative deadline to remove all debris from the World Trade Center site. The committee also said it will begin moving its offices to One Liberty Plaza and the Battery Park Ritz Carlton Hotel sometime next week. Reports from the meeting indicate that recently two of the committee members made a trip to Oklahoma City to study the memorial built there for the victims of the 1995 terrorist bombing. (NY1)

Pataki Confidant to Direct Rebuilding Effort - Jan 9, 2002
Louis R. Tomson, a former top adviser to Gov. George E. Pataki, has been selected to be the executive director of the state corporation in charge of rebuilding Lower Manhattan, government officials and downtown executives said yesterday. Tomson was Pataki's first choice and beat out a list of candidates that included Carl Weisbrod, head of the Alliance for Downtown New York, the business improvement district for Lower Manhattan; Rebecca Robertson, former president of the 42nd Street Development Project; and Richard A. Kahan, a former state official. He will be officially appointed within a week. (New York Times)

Ground Zero Panel Still Listening - Jan 8, 2002
The head of the ground zero redevelopment panel yesterday said the group won't make decisions about rebuilding for at least "a month or two." At the group's second meeting since the state-city panel was created in November, Lower Manhattan Redevelopment Corp. Chairman John Whitehead also said the search for an executive director should come to an end in about a week. Whitehead said the 11-member board will be in "listening mode" for the next four to eight weeks. (New York Post)

Agency Has $2B, No Plans - Jan 8, 2002
Despite having $2 billion earmarked for the group by Congress, the Lower Manhattan Redevelopment Corporation still has no plans for what to do with the money. "I think we are the only organization in history," said Chairman John Whitehead, "to get $2 billion that we never even asked for." The $2 billion is part of an $11 billion aid package proposed by Congress for emergency aid for the city. (New York Daily News)

Goldman's Ex-Chief, John C. Whitehead, Is Downtown's Czar - Dec 24, 2001
At 79, John Whitehead is facing what his says is his last challenge. As chairman of the Lower Manhattan Redevelopment Corp., it will be his job to determine how billions of dollars will be spent and to mediate among the many groups that want a say in the rebuilding of lower Manhattan. (New York Observer)

Downtown Renewal Head Vows Independent Effort - Dec 20, 2001
John Whitehead, chairman of the Lower Manhattan Redevelopment Corp., has been telling business groups that he will lead a politically independent effort to revitalize lower Manhattan and build a memorial on the scale of the major monuments in Washington, D.C. But many observers question just how independent Whitehead can be, given that he was appointed by Governor George Pataki and his agency is a subsidiary of the Empire State Development Corp. Whitehead got a boost when the House and Senate agreed to give $2 billion of New York's $8.2 billion federal aid to the Lower Manhattan Redevelopment Corp. That decision, though, might not survive the final vote on the aid package. (New York Times)

Silver Raps Downtown Rehab Panel - Dec 11, 2001
Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver criticized yesterday the new joint state-city agency charged with overseeing the redevelopment of lower Manhattan because it hasn't met to discuss construction of a Sept. 11 memorial. (New York Daily News)

Pataki Still Seeking Nominees for Rebuilding Leader - Dec 10, 2001
The Pataki administration is still gathering names of possible candidates for the operations chief position at the Lower Manhattan Redevelopment Corp.

The most often mentioned person is Rebecca Robertson, head of Lincoln Center's rebuilding plan and a former head of the Times Square Redevelopment agency. Others said to be under consideration include Carl Weisbrod, president of the Alliance for Downtown New York, the lower Manhattan business improvement district; Richard Kahan, chairman of the Urban Assembly; and Ross Moskowitz, former executive vice president at the city's Economic Development Corp.
(Crain's New York Business)

Dems Get Picky Over WTC Redevelopment Picks - Nov 30, 2001
Governor Pataki and Mayor Giuliani officially unveiled an 11-member city-state redevelopment corporation, promptly criticized by some elected officials as "political." At a press conference with most of the panel members, along with Giuliani and Mayor-elect Mike Bloomberg, Pataki said the Lower Manhattan Redevelopment Corp. will have the rebuilding process well under way in "a matter of just a few years." The redevelopment panel's appointees - four by the mayor, and seven by the governor - still have to pick a salaried executive director, who apparently will hold much of the commission's power. (New York Post)

Committee Leader Says Victims' Memorial Will Be Main Priority - Nov 30, 2001
John Whitehead, the newly appointed chairman of a commission charged with rebuilding Lower Manhattan, said yesterday that establishing a memorial to the victims of the World Trade Center attacks would be among the first priorities for the panel. As for everything else: "We want it to be done right and we want it to be done well," Mr. Whitehead said of the redevelopment effort. "How quickly it's done is not the primary concern." (New York Times)

Ex-Banker Will Lead Rebuilding Effort - Nov 29, 2001
Governor Pataki will announce members of the Lower Manhattan Redevelopment Corp. at a news conference today. John Whitehead, a 79-year-old former investment banker and deputy secretary of state with strong ties to the Republican Party, is expected to be named to head the 11-member panel. Sources said that New York Stock Exchange chairman Richard Grasso, former National Association of Securities Dealers chairman Frank Zarb, labor leader Ed Malloy and real estate developer Roland Betts are also likely to be appointed. (New York Daily News)