Page 27 - Contrast2009

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cont'd from ,17

.,thesi,te, Since 2001, construction and physical change

a,L'econstants of life in the, neighborhood. In almost any

'direction outside these homes, there is upheaval. In a few

years,there will be few remaining elements of the old
'family-based community:

But that is what Lower Manhattan was before the attacks:

'a neighborhood, a community with a small-town feel. We had
ball fields, schools, .pa rks. ,community gardens, and grocery i'

~tores. Kids,rode skateboards on the ledges along the pl~za.
The World Trade Center with its bookstore, drugstor, e, '<"I

clothing'and record stpres, and brand:new donut shop, was

our neighborhood mall. When the Towers fell, the foundation'

of everyday life for thousands 'of people fe~l too. In the

days following the attacks, there was only one matter on the,

minds of the locals: getting back to normal. We wanted too

regroup, to pull together not as a nation or a city, but as

a neighborhood. In June of 2004, nearly three years after

the attacks, downtowners celebrated the return of the local

farmers market. The original had stood in the shadow of the

Towers; it was open and bustling the morning of the attacks.

In 2004, the return of the market was big news. For !;loth

vendors and customers, it was an exciting sign of normalcy,

o~ a return to the old ways. They understand the national '

and world significance of the area, and they respect that.
But it is also their home.

After much discussion and many potential designs, the

future of Ground Zero was finally laid out: a museum and

memorial park, honoring the history of the buildings ,and the

memories of both the victims,of the 1993 bombing and the

9/11 at.t ack . There 'will be an elaborate new subway station

and some new tall office bud.Ldi.nqs , since the 'cfty needs to

financially profit. Soon the nei'ghborhood will aqa i.n be filled,

with businessmen and women. When the tallest build,ings in
,

the city came crashing down, dozens of separate companies

,and ,stores irttegral to the community were destroyed as well~

In a matter of hours, both local mall and center of bu sd.ness

were qone, What is 'best 'for memori'alizing"the, tragedy, but '

~an also serve the'need~ df the city? Many architectural

designs we re submitted and rev.i.ewed,.Committees we re formed'

to oversee the rebuilding of the neighborhood. '

In the last few years, the removal of debris has led

to .offici.aLs moving the anniversary memorial ceremony out /-

of Ground Zero itself, to a ne arby plaza. 'Even t houqh the

site is visible from that spot, it's just not; the same.

It's all about remembering exactly where the tragedy

happened, just standing on that plot of land brings the
memories rushing back. A memorial garden and museum would

be at least peaceful' and respectful to the tragic memory

without recreating a grand structure th~t could prove to