Cornerstone Dedicated at Ground Zero

In a ceremony filled with pride and painful memories, New York officials laid a 20-ton slab of granite Sunday as the cornerstone of a new tower at the World Trade Center site.

As jets soared overhead on a sunny morning, political leaders pledged that construction of the Freedom Tower -- which, at 1,776 feet, would be the world’s tallest building -- would be finished on schedule by the end of 2008.

“The terrorists who attacked us hoped to break our spirit, but instead they broke our hearts,” said New York Gov. George E. Pataki, who along with other officials dismissed doubts that financing problems might delay completion of the tower.

“How badly they underestimated the resiliency of this city and the resolve of these United States,” he said. “In less than three years, we have more than just plans on paper -- we place here today the cornerstone, the foundation of a new tower.”

Pataki, flanked by New York Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg, New Jersey Gov. James E. McGreevey and other dignitaries, held the invitation-only ceremony before several hundred people in the vast concrete pit of ground zero. They entered the site down a long ramp, behind a bagpipe procession playing “God Bless America,” “Yankee Doodle Dandy” and other patriotic songs.

Observers shared mixed emotions. Some said they felt only grief at the site where their loved ones died in the Sept. 11 attacks, while others experienced a bittersweet rite of passage -- as yet another skyscraper began to take shape in the concrete canyons of Lower Manhattan.

“I haven’t been here since the first anniversary [of Sept. 11] and this still causes a lot of anxiety,” said Charles Wolf, who lost his wife, Katherine, in the attacks. “I have to keep it under control this morning, and this walk down here is not an easy walk.”

Indeed, some family organizations have opposed construction of the Freedom Tower, arguing that development plans were drawn up too hastily, and that the site -- which is all that remains of the former twin towers -- is sacred, historic ground that should never be dominated by concrete and new office construction.

“My son’s remains have never been identified,” said Bill Doyle, who watched the ceremony with saddened eyes. “What have I got to remember -- a piece of earth?”

For Richard Pues, a construction worker with the company that helped lay the cornerstone, the holiday ceremony kindled feelings about family and continuity.

His father had worked on construction of the original World Trade Center towers, and had brought him as a little boy to watch the them being built, Pues recalled. Minutes before the ceremony began, Pues brought his three young children to see work begin on the newest tower, and he was briefly overwhelmed by emotion.

“I can’t really tell you what’s in my heart,” he said, as his kids put their little hands on the massive slab of granite from New York’s Adirondack Mountains. “My father would have said that it’s a great day for New York but there’s a lot of sadness here, too. The work just goes on, I guess.”

Soon afterward, a cloth draping the cornerstone was pulled away to reveal a simple inscription: “To honor and remember those who lost their lives on September 11, 2001, and as a tribute to the enduring spirit of freedom. -- July Fourth, 2004.”

Bloomberg acknowledged the pain that ground zero continues to evoke, but also said the construction of a new tower sent a signal to the world that New York -- and America -- could not be defeated by terrorism. “For the 10th time in history, the world’s tallest building will be rising in Manhattan,” he said. “And a spot that has known sorrow will be rebuilt. Today we are reaffirming life at ground zero.”

Officials hope that the Freedom Tower will help spur an economic revival in the area, which went into a slump after the terrorist attacks. The sleek, soaring structure -- which features an upward-thrusting spire that is reminiscent of the Statue of Liberty’s torch -- is planned to be the anchor of a massive rebuilding effort on the 16-acre site.

When completed, the tower will feature 60,000 square feet of commercial space on ground level, plus 2.6 million square feet of office space filling 70 stories overhead. Above those offices will be restaurants and an observation deck, along with higher stories including radio and television antennas and wind turbines.

Construction of the distinctive building -- which is a collaboration between architects Daniel Libeskind and David Childs -- is expected to cost $1.3 billion, according to the Lower Manhattan Development Corp., which has guided the development plan and approved the final blueprint for the site.

Developer Larry Silverstein, who holds a 99-year lease on the property, hopes to construct three other office towers and other developments in the area, which will also include a memorial and museum commemorating the attacks. But he recently suffered a stinging financial setback when a New York court decided he was entitled to $3.6 billion in insurance payments, rather than the $7.2 billion he had been seeking.

As a result, some critics have voiced doubts whether there will be enough money to complete the Freedom Tower and other planned structures. Still others suggest that Silverstein will ultimately be guided by the city’s real estate market -- and its ability to absorb massive amounts of new office space -- instead of architectural blueprints.

“In the days ahead, you will see significant, massive construction here,” Silverstein said. “And when this tower is done, you will be able to look on it with pride and emotion. We’ll be able to say that we have done the best job we can.”