This document summarizes the findings of the Civic Alliance Planning and Design Workshop, held from December 13 - 17, 2002, at the South Street Seaport in Lower Manhattan.

The Civic Alliance to Rebuild Downtown New York is a coalition of more than 80 civic, labor, business, academic and community groups convened in October 200 I to provide a civic voice in rebuilding plans for Lower Manhattan in the aftermath of the 9/11 attacks on the World Trade Center. The Alliance was convened by Regional Plan Association in partnership with the New School University, Pratt Institute and NewYork University.

CONTEXT

The Planning and Design Workshop concept emerged from Civic Alliance Steering Committee meetings beginning shortly after the Listening to the City forum in July 2002. At that forum the public clearly rejected the official redevelopment program, which called for up to 11 million square feet of office space and 600,000 square feet of retail, focused solely on the 16 acres at Ground Zero, and was based on lease agreements held by the Port Authority (PA). The public called for a planning process that would examine all of Lower Manhattan and be driven by what is best for our future, not by lease agreements. Based on this public input, the Civic Alliance determined that a broader rebuilding discussion was needed.

In that spirit, the Civic Alliance focused on alternative scenarios for the economic future of Lower Manhattan that had been devised by its Economic Development Working Group. When the Lower Manhattan Development Corporation (LMDC) released its program for their seven new design teams in October, it became clear that the designs would still be restricted to a narrow range of program requirements and would not address issues extending beyond the 16-acre site. It was at that time that the Civic Alliance decided to host this workshop to examine a range of alternative visions for the site, the district and the region. The workshop is a direct reaction to the continuing need for a public dialogue on alternative futures for Lower Manhattan.

Coincidentally, the workshop took place the same week that LMDC released the work of its seven design teams and the week after the Mayor released his vision for Lower Manhattan. In many ways it was the ideal moment to bring new ideas into the planning process, with the public’s attention focused on rebuilding.