March 2012

Anne Frank Center Opens on Park Place
The legacy of one of World War II's most remarkable victims is now open in its new downtown home. The Anne Frank Center USA opened March 15th at 44 Park Place, between Church Street and West Broadway, after five years in its smaller SoHo space. It serves as a New York partner of the Anne Frank House in Amsterdam.

April 2012

New Hotels Checking In Downtown
In the past decade, Lower Manhattan has seen an unparalleled boom in hotel construction. South of Canal Street alone, nearly 30 hotels have opened or soon will -- including major international chains, smaller boutique-style franchises, privately owned hotels, and extended-stay lodging. Hotels now dot the street grid of the Financial District, Tribeca, Chinatown, and adjacent neighborhoods, opening in converted former office buildings, as well as in new high- and low-rises. The addition of more than 5,000 hotel rooms since 9/11 already is benefitting the local economy.

June 2012

4 World Trade Center Tops Out
Four years ago, 4 World Trade Center was as low as it would go, with excavation nearly 100 feet below street level. In June 2012, the gleaming new skyscraper reached its highest point, as crews lifted the final steam beam into place 977 feet up. The 72-story tower's developer Silverstein Properties marked the milestone with a ceremony, allowing workers, officials, dignitaries, and other guests to sign the special steel beam before crews hoisted it to the building's roof.

August 2012

Liberty Park and WTC Screening Center Take Shape
At the southern end of the World Trade Center site, steel framework is forming both the Vehicular Security Center entrance and future Liberty Park foundation. In the area bounded by Greenwich and West Street, and Liberty and Albany/Cedar Streets, Port Authority crews working to complete the area in mid-2015. St. Nicholas Church will be rebuilt at the Greenwich Street side. Designs for the new park include 17,000 feet of planting beds, pathways, benches, and ledges overlooking the rest of the WTC site, though full details for both the park and church are yet to be finalized.

August 2012

The New Fiterman Hall Opens
With the start of the 2012 school year, a brand-new downtown educational facility is now welcoming thousands of college students. Fiterman Hall opened its doors on August 27, 2012, almost exactly 11 years since the original building was destroyed on September 11, 2001. Located at 245 Greenwich Street, the new building adds 400,000 square feet and 80 much-needed classrooms to the thriving BMCC campus. At 15 stories, Fiterman is unique as a high-rise classroom building.