It is absolutely inexcusable that, nine years on, that there are still no plans to rebuild the Orthodox Christian Church building that was destroyed on September 11, 2001. The parish still exists, but the New York/New Jersey Port Authority has made it impossible for the priest and parishoners to rebuild either on their original site or on any alternative neighboring site. The rebuilding of this church is being tied up in red tape, while at the same time, Mayor Bloomberg has been lobbying for 9-11 tax dollars to be used for building the Ground Zero Mosque.
(h/t: Pam Geller)
WSJ: St. Nicholas Church Begins Legal Action Against the Port Authority
By JOSH BARBANEL
The leaders of St. Nicholas Church, the small whitewashed Greek Orthodox Church destroyed by falling debris on Sept. 11, 2001, have begun legal action against the Port Authority demanding that the church be rebuilt under the terms of a deal worked out several years ago.
A claim filed against the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey by church leaders and the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America on Monday accused the agency, which is overseeing Ground Zero’s rebuilding, of engaging in “arrogance, bad faith and fraudulent conduct” and “shabby and unlawful treatment.”
Under state law, the church is required to file a notice of claim against the Port Authority for some of its claims, and wait 60 days before it can go to court, according to Mark. G. Cunha, a lawyer for the church.
In 2008, after years of discussions, the Port Authority and the church announced an agreement to rebuild the church, which was originally located on Cedar Street, on a nearby site on Liberty Street. As part of the deal, the Port Authority said it would pay $20 million toward the cost of the new church.
But in March, the deal fell through. The Port Authority accused the church of making excessive demands, while church leaders say the Port Authority unilaterally withdrew from negotiations.
John Kelly, a spokesman for the Port Authority, said officials hadn’t yet seen the filing and couldn’t comment on it. But he said: “We very much hope the Orthodox Church rebuilds on their original site.”
In papers served on Monday the church is now seeking to compel the Port Authority to live up to the terms of what the church said is a “binding preliminary agreement.”
It said that even after the Port Authority backed away from the agreement, the authority began digging in the site of the old church and is trespassing “without permission, notice or any legal justification.” The underground portion of the old church site is part of what is to become an underground vehicle security center, where trucks entering the site would be searched…
USA Today: Church left out of 9/11 renewal
NEW YORK — Towers are rising again at the site of the World Trade Center, a place of devastation turned into a construction hub. But the cross-topped belfry of St. Nicholas Church isn’t among them.
Nine years after it was destroyed in the 9/11 terrorist attacks, the little Greek Orthodox church that stood across the street from the twin towers is farther away than ever from being rebuilt.
Slow progress toward a new home halted last year when the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, which controls the Ground Zero site, broke off discussions with the church over where and how a new church would be built.
On Sunday, the eve of St. Nicholas Day, 70 families of the congregation gathered near the site to light candles and pray for a way to rebuild their spiritual home amid the office towers and memorial plaza taking shape. “It’s not a political statement. This is our place, and we belong there,” says Mark Arey, a priest and director of interfaith relations for the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America…
