A Subtle Reminder That May Be Rehabilitated Away

The bridge is owned and maintained by Brookfield Properties, as part of the giant Brookfield Place office and retail complex at the span’s western terminus. It is currently undergoing renovation as a prelude to the opening of Liberty Park, the elevated plaza and green space that will extend 300 feet from the bridge’s eastern end, continuing to Greenwich Street. (This park is slated to open as soon as next week.)

At its May 24 meeting, CB1 passed a resolution urging, “the preservation community and New York City officials to insist that Brookfield Property Partners leave at least those Liberty Street Pedestrian Bridge panels most visibly apparent and dented in their current position and affix appropriate signage explaining the significance.”

The resolution notes that CB1, “believes that not every intact, in-place physical memory of that tragedy need or should be commercially wiped clean, and indeed, very few such artifacts remain in situ.” It also insists that, “that these panels not be removed, not donated to a museum or other outside institution, not even the National September 11 Memorial Museum,” and observes that, “we regard these small scars as commemorations, and that removing these panels would be an effacement.”

Anthony Notaro, chair of CB1’s Battery Park City Committee, said of the bridge’s battle scars, “the Liberty Bridge that bears the marks of the September 11th tragedy. They are noticeable when you look at them, but don’t intrude in daily activity. They are a witness to the events of that day and what was lost and what we have gained back.”

Catherine McVay Hughes, chair of CB1, said, “the residents want to keep a visible, tangible form of the history of what happened here. Fraunces Tavern, the historical South Street Seaport, and other landmarks Downtown, do just that. The World Trade Center and its neighbors are new, modern and beautiful. The marks on Liberty Bridge are reminders of what came before that teach us how we got to where we are today.”

Lynn Ellsworth, a founder of Tribeca Trust, who is a leading local activist on preservation issues, said, “we are always selective in choosing the history we want to preserve and remember, and that which we want future generations to remember. In this case, I am not keen on the excessive memorialization of a violent, uncreative, unhappy event I am happier let slip into the dim recesses of my mind.” She added that, “in the bigger picture, however, far more important preservation battles are all around us in New York, especially Downtown, with significant swathes of the City at risk for demolition. Compared to those other causes, this is a tempest in a teapot.”

Bruce Ehrmann, the co-chair of CB1’s Landmarks Committee (who also wrote the resolution), said, “not every square inch of the City needs to be retouched all the time. There are very few artifacts left from that horrible day left still in place. This one is not so obtrusive or in-your-face that it will disturb people. So it doesn’t need to be sanitized. It’s a small pentimento.”

A spokesman for Brookfield Properties was not immediately available for comment.

This debate recalls a similar decision to preserve the damage from the Lower Manhattan terrorist attack of another era. On September 16, 1920, as the streets of the Financial District were crowded with lunchtime throngs, a horse-drawn wagon pulled up in front of the J.P. Morgan offices at the corner of Wall and Broad Streets. Seconds later, an flash of light and deafening roar shredded the wagon and horse, as explosives concealed in the vehicle were detonated. Thirty people were killed outright, and another eight died of their wounds in the days to come. Hundreds more were seriously injured. Among the millions of dollars in damage, the facade of the J.P. Morgan building at 23 Wall Street was pockmarked by debris from the explosion.

In the wake of the attack, executives at the company chose never to refinish the damaged surface of their headquarters, instead leaving dozens or small craters and cavities as a mute memorial to the devastation and loss. So if Brookfield reaches a similar decision in the wake of prodding from CB1, it will not be without precedent.