The Freedom Tower

The on again, off again demolition of the former Deutsche Bank at the World Trade Center seems to be off again.
The Lower Manhattan Development Corporation (LMDC) was expected to resume the demolition earlier this month. It didn’t happen.
A fire that broke out in the building last August and two firefighters were killed in this building which was severely damaged during the September 11 attacks. LMDC chairman Avi Schick was quoted by Crain’s New York Business today as saying he expects the demolition to resume in a few weeks. He had hoped it would have begun earlier this month but would not detail the reasons by an earlier start date was missed.
Dismantling was halted in August after the firefighters died. “Numerous safety violations at the building, including a broken standpipe that was supposed to bring water to firefighters, allowed the blaze to rage uncontrollably,” Crains reported.

“Various factors stand in the way of restarting the demolition, sources say, including the failure to fully implement new fire safety strategies, the lack of a contractor to tear down the tower and a criminal investigation into the firefighters’ deaths.

For now, leaving the scarred structure standing is more psychologically damaging than an impediment to rebuilding the area, sources say. It remains an eyesore that’s a reminder of the attacks and the long, convoluted process to finally begin building on the World Trade Center site.”

“It is a symbol of the past and that is what makes it so frustrating,”  Liz Berger, president of the Alliance for Downtown New York was quoted in Crains as saying. “It is not a symbol of the current state of Lower Manhattan.”