Lower Manhattan Development Corporation
Encyclopedia
The Lower Manhattan Development Corporation (LMDC) was formed in July 2002, after the September 11 attacks to plan the reconstruction of Lower Manhattan
and distribute nearly $10 billion in federal funds aimed at rebuilding downtown Manhattan.
It was founded by then-Governor
George Pataki
and then-Mayor
Rudolph Giuliani. The LMDC is a joint
State-City corporation
governed by a 16-member Board of Directors
, half appointed by the Governor of New York
and half by the Mayor of New York. As a result, Pataki and Giuliani appointees dominate the LMDC. Its original chairman was John C. Whitehead
, a former Deputy Secretary of State and head of Goldman Sachs
.
LMDC does not own the World Trade Center site
and this has created problems in its dealings with the owner — the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey
and Larry Silverstein
who has a lease to the site. It is a subsidiary of the Empire State Development Corporation
, which is a state authority which is used to implement various projects in the state that are not subject to Legislature or voter oversight.
The LMDC was funded through the disbursement of Community Development Block Grant
s-amounting to $2.783 billion—approved by the federal government in the aftermath of the 9/11 attacks and resultant destruction of much of lower Manhattan's economic and structural base.
In February 2003, the LMDC chose Daniel Libeskind
's master plan for the reconstruction of the World Trade Center
complex. The organization also sponsored the international design competition
for the World Trade Center Memorial
, which resulted in Michael Arad
and Peter Walker's Reflecting Absence being chosen as the winning design in January 2004.
Having distributed its funds, the LMDC in July 2006 announced plans to dissolve and transfer its responsibilities to other existing agencies and foundations, including the W.T.C. Memorial Foundation
, and the Lower Manhattan Construction Command Center.
At times, the LMDC has been the subject of intense public criticism. Reasons for criticism include:
Two members of the LMDC's board have asserted that up to $45 million allocated to the LMDC from a "community enhancement" fund in May 2005 has not been directly accounted for, and that up to $15 million from that stipend might have been spent in areas other than those it had been explicitly stipulated for.
In May 2006, New York's Attorney General, Elliot Spitzer unequivocally condemned the LMDC as an "abject failure" in its capacity as an agent for rebuilding lower Manhattan. He also attributed the departure of Gretchen Dykstra
from a group raising money for the World Trade Center memorial to a process where "there was nobody willing to make decisions."
Spitzer has had a longstanding feud with LMDC chairman John Whitehead
.
Spitzer became Governor in 2007, rethought his condemnation, and announced a "reinvigorated LMDC" that would continue the revitalization of Lower Manhattan. Mayor Bloomberg welcomed the Governor's renewed interest at the time. However, in September 2008, Mayor Bloomberg condemned the LMDC as a contributor to the slow progress in rebuilding and he demanded dissolution of the LMDC.
LMDC in an effort to expand tranparency has begun twitter
ing.
Julie Powell
worked for LMDC in 2002, as portrayed in the movie Julie & Julia
.
The LMDC obtained an engraving for its 9/11 Memorial endeavors in 2005. Listed as U.S. Patent D506,860, it is an Engraving for a National Memorial registered with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office.
Lower Manhattan
Lower Manhattan is the southernmost part of the island of Manhattan, the main island and center of business and government of the City of New York...
and distribute nearly $10 billion in federal funds aimed at rebuilding downtown Manhattan.
It was founded by then-Governor
Governor of New York
The Governor of the State of New York is the chief executive of the State of New York. The governor is the head of the executive branch of New York's state government and the commander-in-chief of the state's military and naval forces. The officeholder is afforded the courtesy title of His/Her...
George Pataki
George Pataki
George Elmer Pataki is an American politician who was the 53rd Governor of New York. A member of the Republican Party, Pataki served three consecutive four-year terms from January 1, 1995 until December 31, 2006.- Early life :...
and then-Mayor
Mayor of New York City
The Mayor of the City of New York is head of the executive branch of New York City's government. The mayor's office administers all city services, public property, police and fire protection, most public agencies, and enforces all city and state laws within New York City.The budget overseen by the...
Rudolph Giuliani. The LMDC is a joint
Joint venture
A joint venture is a business agreement in which parties agree to develop, for a finite time, a new entity and new assets by contributing equity. They exercise control over the enterprise and consequently share revenues, expenses and assets...
State-City corporation
Corporation
A corporation is created under the laws of a state as a separate legal entity that has privileges and liabilities that are distinct from those of its members. There are many different forms of corporations, most of which are used to conduct business. Early corporations were established by charter...
governed by a 16-member Board of Directors
Board of directors
A board of directors is a body of elected or appointed members who jointly oversee the activities of a company or organization. Other names include board of governors, board of managers, board of regents, board of trustees, and board of visitors...
, half appointed by the Governor of New York
Governor of New York
The Governor of the State of New York is the chief executive of the State of New York. The governor is the head of the executive branch of New York's state government and the commander-in-chief of the state's military and naval forces. The officeholder is afforded the courtesy title of His/Her...
and half by the Mayor of New York. As a result, Pataki and Giuliani appointees dominate the LMDC. Its original chairman was John C. Whitehead
John C. Whitehead
John Cunningham Whitehead is an American banker and civil servant, currently a board member of the World Trade Center Memorial Foundation and, until his resignation in May 2006, chairman of the Lower Manhattan Development Corporation.-Biography:He was born in Evanston, Illinois...
, a former Deputy Secretary of State and head of Goldman Sachs
Goldman Sachs
The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. is an American multinational bulge bracket investment banking and securities firm that engages in global investment banking, securities, investment management, and other financial services primarily with institutional clients...
.
LMDC does not own the World Trade Center site
World Trade Center site
The World Trade Center site , also known as "Ground Zero" after the September 11 attacks, sits on in Lower Manhattan in New York City...
and this has created problems in its dealings with the owner — the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey
Port Authority of New York and New Jersey
The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey is a bi-state port district, established in 1921 through an interstate compact, that runs most of the regional transportation infrastructure, including the bridges, tunnels, airports, and seaports, within the Port of New York and New Jersey...
and Larry Silverstein
Larry Silverstein
Larry A. Silverstein is an American businessman, and real estate investor and developer in New York City.Silverstein was born in Brooklyn, and became involved in real estate, together with his father, establishing Silverstein Properties...
who has a lease to the site. It is a subsidiary of the Empire State Development Corporation
Empire State Development Corporation
The Urban Development Corporation, doing business as Empire State Development Corporation is a public authority of the state of New York in the United States that has financed and operated several ambitious state projects by issuing tax exempt bonds....
, which is a state authority which is used to implement various projects in the state that are not subject to Legislature or voter oversight.
The LMDC was funded through the disbursement of Community Development Block Grant
Community Development Block Grant
The Community Development Block Grant , one of the longest-running programs of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, funds local community development activities such as affordable housing, anti-poverty programs, and infrastructure development...
s-amounting to $2.783 billion—approved by the federal government in the aftermath of the 9/11 attacks and resultant destruction of much of lower Manhattan's economic and structural base.
In February 2003, the LMDC chose Daniel Libeskind
Daniel Libeskind
Daniel Libeskind, is an American architect, artist, and set designer of Polish-Jewish descent. Libeskind founded Studio Daniel Libeskind in 1989 with his wife, Nina, and is its principal design architect...
's master plan for the reconstruction of the World Trade Center
World Trade Center
The original World Trade Center was a complex with seven buildings featuring landmark twin towers in Lower Manhattan, New York City, United States. The complex opened on April 4, 1973, and was destroyed in 2001 during the September 11 attacks. The site is currently being rebuilt with five new...
complex. The organization also sponsored the international design competition
World Trade Center Site Memorial Competition
The World Trade Center Site Memorial Competition was an open, international memorial contest, initiated by the Lower Manhattan Development Corporation , as per the specifications of architect Daniel Libeskind, to design a World Trade Center Site Memorial on a portion of the World Trade Center site...
for the World Trade Center Memorial
World Trade Center Memorial
- Fundraising :The Foundation has fundraising responsibilities because of the tasks assigned to it by the Lower Manhattan Development Corporation...
, which resulted in Michael Arad
Michael Arad
Michael Arad is an Israeli-American architect who best known for being the designer of the World Trade Center Memorial. He won the competition to design the memorial in 2004.-Early life and education:...
and Peter Walker's Reflecting Absence being chosen as the winning design in January 2004.
Having distributed its funds, the LMDC in July 2006 announced plans to dissolve and transfer its responsibilities to other existing agencies and foundations, including the W.T.C. Memorial Foundation
National September 11 Memorial & Museum at the World Trade Center
The National September 11 Memorial & Museum at the World Trade Center, formerly the World Trade Center Memorial Foundation, is a 503 non-profit corporation that began operations in 2005. The foundation’s name was changed in 2007 to better reflect the national scope of the September 11th attacks...
, and the Lower Manhattan Construction Command Center.
At times, the LMDC has been the subject of intense public criticism. Reasons for criticism include:
- Questions surrounding the proposed and long delayed September 11 memorial.
- A perception of its questionable handling of billions of dollars in taxpayer funds.
- The holding of a seemingly official design competition for the new WTC site without the authority to do so or the power to actually implement the winning design (Libeskind) as the new design for the project.
Two members of the LMDC's board have asserted that up to $45 million allocated to the LMDC from a "community enhancement" fund in May 2005 has not been directly accounted for, and that up to $15 million from that stipend might have been spent in areas other than those it had been explicitly stipulated for.
In May 2006, New York's Attorney General, Elliot Spitzer unequivocally condemned the LMDC as an "abject failure" in its capacity as an agent for rebuilding lower Manhattan. He also attributed the departure of Gretchen Dykstra
Gretchen Dykstra
Gretchen Dykstra is the previous President and CEO of the World Trade Center Memorial Foundation. The former Commissioner of New York City's Department of Consumer Affairs, Dykstra left that post in April 2005 to head up the foundation, which is entrusted with raising funds for the construction of...
from a group raising money for the World Trade Center memorial to a process where "there was nobody willing to make decisions."
Spitzer has had a longstanding feud with LMDC chairman John Whitehead
John C. Whitehead
John Cunningham Whitehead is an American banker and civil servant, currently a board member of the World Trade Center Memorial Foundation and, until his resignation in May 2006, chairman of the Lower Manhattan Development Corporation.-Biography:He was born in Evanston, Illinois...
.
Spitzer became Governor in 2007, rethought his condemnation, and announced a "reinvigorated LMDC" that would continue the revitalization of Lower Manhattan. Mayor Bloomberg welcomed the Governor's renewed interest at the time. However, in September 2008, Mayor Bloomberg condemned the LMDC as a contributor to the slow progress in rebuilding and he demanded dissolution of the LMDC.
LMDC in an effort to expand tranparency has begun twitter
Twitter
Twitter is an online social networking and microblogging service that enables its users to send and read text-based posts of up to 140 characters, informally known as "tweets".Twitter was created in March 2006 by Jack Dorsey and launched that July...
ing.
Julie Powell
Julie Powell
Julie Powell is an American author best known for her book Julie & Julia: 365 Days, 524 Recipes, 1 Tiny Apartment Kitchen.- Biography :...
worked for LMDC in 2002, as portrayed in the movie Julie & Julia
Julie & Julia
Julie & Julia is a 2009 American comedy-drama film written and directed by Nora Ephron starring Meryl Streep, Stanley Tucci, Amy Adams, and Chris Messina...
.
The LMDC obtained an engraving for its 9/11 Memorial endeavors in 2005. Listed as U.S. Patent D506,860, it is an Engraving for a National Memorial registered with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office.
External links
- Lower Manhattan Development Corporation
- LMDC Memorial Comments
- Shifting dollars, debatable legacy as L.M.D.C. approaches its final days
- http://www.newsday.com/911-anniversary/10-years-after-9-11-downtown-transformed-1.3133771
- NY Times Lower Manhattan Business Aid May Expand
- http://www.nytimes.com/2010/08/12/opinion/12thu4.html