Wednesday, May 18, 2005
Departure of Man in Charge of Ground Zero's Revival
May 3, 2005
Departure of Man in Charge of Ground Zero's Revival Won't Stall Progress, Officials SayBy ROBIN POGREBIN
t would seem to be a bad time for Kevin M. Rampe to resign as the man in charge of rebuilding at ground zero.
Plans for the Freedom Tower, considered the most significant new building in the works at the World Trade Center site, have been turned upside down by the recent security concerns raised by the Police Department and other security officials. Questions about how those worries will affect the tower's location, design and cost now need to be resolved.
At the same time, uncertainty reigns about the 9/11 memorial and two cultural buildings planned for the site.
But architects involved in the rebuilding effort and executives at those cultural organizations yesterday played down the significance of Mr. Rampe's departure as president of the Lower Manhattan Development Corporation. "This is such a major commitment, people will step forward who I think will continue the process," said Daniel Libeskind, who designed the master plan for ground zero.
Michael Arad, the architect who designed the memorial, said, "This is a long process, and I'm sure we'll move past it."
Yet both Mr. Libeskind and Mr. Arad are known to be have been frustrated and even angered by the changes that have been imposed on their designs by the development corporation in tandem with Larry Silverstein, the developer who has the rights to the site.
Mr. Rampe, who was appointed in 2003, has been the person making most of the day-to-day decisions on the project.
In an interview yesterday, Mr. Rampe said he had been planning to move on for some time. In an arrangement that has evidently long been in the works, he is to become global ethics and compliance officer at an insurance firm at the end of the month.
Mr. Rampe disputed the notion that his departure would throw a wrench in the works. "The process was never about one person. There are many hands, and I'm proud of the role I've been able to play," he said.
He also emphasized that he would continue to be involved in the rebuilding effort as a director and executive committee member of the World Trade Center Memorial Foundation, which will eventually assume control from the development corporation of the memorial and the cultural buildings on the site.
Despite their difficulties, architects who have worked with Mr. Rampe offered praise yesterday for his efforts.
"He deserves our gratitude for everything he has done until now, and I wish him well," Mr. Libeskind said.
Mr. Arad, who is known to be vexed by changes imposed on his ground zero memorial, said, "I think it will be difficult to replace him, but I'm glad he'll be involved in the process."
Frank Gehry, who is to design a performing arts center at the site, called Mr. Rampe "personable and very supportive."
Fund-raising for the building Mr. Gehry is to design has been deferred indefinitely, raising doubts about whether it will be ever be built.
Mr. Rampe, a lawyer, was first deputy superintendent and chief operating officer of the New York State Insurance Department under Gov. George E. Pataki before joining the development corporation in February 2002 as an executive vice president and general counsel.
Mr. Rampe and other downtown officials said his departure should have no effect on the timing of ground zero's building projects. Still, the design for Mr. Arad's memorial remains unresolved. And, the development corporation has made clear that the performing arts will not be part of the initial $500 million fund-raising effort by the Memorial Foundation.
The two organizations that are to share Mr. Gehry's performing arts center - the Joyce Theater, which presents dance, and the Signature Theater Company, an Off Broadway company - recently sent a letter to the development corporation seeking assurances that the foundation's fund-raising effort would make the performing arts center viable.
A design of the other cultural building, a museum complex, has also been complicated by the plan for it to be shared by the International Freedom Center, an institution that will focus on human rights, and by the Drawing Center in SoHo. Some people who lost family members on Sept. 11 want the complex to be devoted to memorial activities.
But Mr. Rampe emphasized yesterday that complications at ground zero were nothing new.
"Things have been in flux since day one," he said. "We don't ignore these issues. We address them."
Departure of Man in Charge of Ground Zero's Revival Won't Stall Progress, Officials SayBy ROBIN POGREBIN
t would seem to be a bad time for Kevin M. Rampe to resign as the man in charge of rebuilding at ground zero.
Plans for the Freedom Tower, considered the most significant new building in the works at the World Trade Center site, have been turned upside down by the recent security concerns raised by the Police Department and other security officials. Questions about how those worries will affect the tower's location, design and cost now need to be resolved.
At the same time, uncertainty reigns about the 9/11 memorial and two cultural buildings planned for the site.
But architects involved in the rebuilding effort and executives at those cultural organizations yesterday played down the significance of Mr. Rampe's departure as president of the Lower Manhattan Development Corporation. "This is such a major commitment, people will step forward who I think will continue the process," said Daniel Libeskind, who designed the master plan for ground zero.
Michael Arad, the architect who designed the memorial, said, "This is a long process, and I'm sure we'll move past it."
Yet both Mr. Libeskind and Mr. Arad are known to be have been frustrated and even angered by the changes that have been imposed on their designs by the development corporation in tandem with Larry Silverstein, the developer who has the rights to the site.
Mr. Rampe, who was appointed in 2003, has been the person making most of the day-to-day decisions on the project.
In an interview yesterday, Mr. Rampe said he had been planning to move on for some time. In an arrangement that has evidently long been in the works, he is to become global ethics and compliance officer at an insurance firm at the end of the month.
Mr. Rampe disputed the notion that his departure would throw a wrench in the works. "The process was never about one person. There are many hands, and I'm proud of the role I've been able to play," he said.
He also emphasized that he would continue to be involved in the rebuilding effort as a director and executive committee member of the World Trade Center Memorial Foundation, which will eventually assume control from the development corporation of the memorial and the cultural buildings on the site.
Despite their difficulties, architects who have worked with Mr. Rampe offered praise yesterday for his efforts.
"He deserves our gratitude for everything he has done until now, and I wish him well," Mr. Libeskind said.
Mr. Arad, who is known to be vexed by changes imposed on his ground zero memorial, said, "I think it will be difficult to replace him, but I'm glad he'll be involved in the process."
Frank Gehry, who is to design a performing arts center at the site, called Mr. Rampe "personable and very supportive."
Fund-raising for the building Mr. Gehry is to design has been deferred indefinitely, raising doubts about whether it will be ever be built.
Mr. Rampe, a lawyer, was first deputy superintendent and chief operating officer of the New York State Insurance Department under Gov. George E. Pataki before joining the development corporation in February 2002 as an executive vice president and general counsel.
Mr. Rampe and other downtown officials said his departure should have no effect on the timing of ground zero's building projects. Still, the design for Mr. Arad's memorial remains unresolved. And, the development corporation has made clear that the performing arts will not be part of the initial $500 million fund-raising effort by the Memorial Foundation.
The two organizations that are to share Mr. Gehry's performing arts center - the Joyce Theater, which presents dance, and the Signature Theater Company, an Off Broadway company - recently sent a letter to the development corporation seeking assurances that the foundation's fund-raising effort would make the performing arts center viable.
A design of the other cultural building, a museum complex, has also been complicated by the plan for it to be shared by the International Freedom Center, an institution that will focus on human rights, and by the Drawing Center in SoHo. Some people who lost family members on Sept. 11 want the complex to be devoted to memorial activities.
But Mr. Rampe emphasized yesterday that complications at ground zero were nothing new.
"Things have been in flux since day one," he said. "We don't ignore these issues. We address them."
# posted by "Faces of the Brave" @ 4:07 PM 
