The arguments began long before the last of the 1.8 million tonnes of Ground Zero rubble was carted off to the eerily named Fresh Kills landfill on Staten Island. How to rebuild the World Trade Centre site and ensure the dead were honoured in a fitting manner?
Five years of wrangling resulted in ground being broken just three weeks ago on the foundations of a memorial, museum and visitors centre that are scheduled to open on September 11, 2009.
Two huge reflecting pools with cascading waterfalls will fill the footprints where the towers once stood and the names of the dead will be inscribed in a viewing wall that will surround the entire 35 hectare site. 'Reflecting Absence', by designers Michael Arad and Peter Walker, was selected as the winner from a competition that attracted more than 5,200 entries.
Yet from the outset the process was mired in controversy, lawsuits and delays. Families of the victims complained they were cut out of the consultation process.
The cost of building the memorial soared to almost US$1 billion, forcing a rethink of the original design. And there was tension between the WTC Memorial Foundation and the Lower Manhattan Development Corporation, charged with overseeing construction.
Anthony Gardner, executive director of the WTC United Family group, who lost his brother Harvey on September 11, 2001, says the politicians involved in the process, including Mayor Michael Bloomberg and Governor George Pataki, had the wrong priorities.
'These elected officials were more concentrated on rebuilding office space,' he said. 'Because of their focus on a political and economic agenda they overlooked the main purpose, and the irony is that their focus on schedule led to more delays.