Eight Suggestions For The Cultural Future Of Ground Zero

"It once seemed possible that the debate over ground zero's cultural activity would be less contentious than the debate over its office buildings. City planners, commercial interests and creative figures all agreed that art could help bring life back to the site of so much death. But discussions about which kind of programming can attract more visitors or generate more revenue or satisfy more neighborhood residents have obscured a larger burden: the World Trade Center is no ordinary site. What artistic idea would be sufficiently bold and soul-stirring to lead ground zero into its future?

like democracies, depend on a healthy mix of interests, and cities consist of neighborhoods, which, unlike commercial districts, don't shut down at 5 o'clock. Among what keeps a neighborhood going 24 hours a day are students, cultural attractions and the businesses to service them. So far the ground zero memorial looks mediocre, like the Freedom Tower, and who knows how the site's other office buildings will turn out. For the redevelopment to be a civic boon, officials can't now drop the ball, culturally."

Thanks to Abhijeet Chavan