July 11th - July 15th, 2011

Suit Against Islamic Center Tossed Out

July 11 - A judge has dismissed a lawsuit attempting to block an Islamic community center from opening near the World Trade Center site, reported CBS News. The lawsuit by Timothy Brown sought to reverse the city’s Landmarks Preservation Commission denying landmark status to the 150-year-old building. This ruling allows for developers to demolish it for the construction of Park 51 community center, however the project is still years away.

WTC Memorial Online Reservation System Goes Live

July 12 – The World Trade Center Memorial opened its online reservation system with sky-high demand this week. More than 24,000 requests for free tickets were made the first day, reported the NY Post. The demand was more than the website could handle for several hours, although the site was soon corrected and is now fully operational.

Downtown Alliance Provides Free Public Wi-Fi

July 12 – The Downtown Alliance has expanded its free wi-fi service to an additional four Lower Manhattan locations, bringing the total to 13, reports the Battery Park Broadsheet. The locations served 100,000 connections last year and the Alliance anticipates tripling the number of devices connecting to their network over the next two years.

Second-Quarter Report Shows Robust Downtown Real Estate

July 12 – CB Richard Ellis reports a strong downtown leasing market, reports The Real Deal. The overall statistics are viewed as the strongest in more than a decade, despite the news the Bank of America would give up nearly three million square feet. However the company’s research did not include those numbers, or the recent signing of the lease by Conde Nast for 1 World Trade Center, as neither will impact the market within the next 12 months. The downtown availability rate dropped by 1.5 points in June to 11.3 percent. The average asking rent increased to $39.11 per foot, a $0.33 increase.

All Names to Read at 9/11 Memorial Service

July 13 – The 10th Anniversary of the September 11, 2001 attacks will include the reading of all the victims names, reports NY 1. It marks the first time that victims’ names from that day’s disasters at the Pentagon and in Shanksville, Pennsylvania will be read at the annual World Trade Center ceremony.

Concrete Workers Strike Postponed One Week

July 13 – A threatened walkout by 2,700 concrete workers was averted, at least temporarily, when their unions and the Cement League agreed Tuesday night to continue negotiations for another week, according to Crain’s New York. It’s the second time the two sides have extended their talks since the workers’ contract expired on June 30. The workers had said they would strike starting Wednesday if the league, an industry association, did not improve its latest salary offer, but the eleventh-hour extension averts a strike that would have stalled work at 34 sites across the city, including, potentially, the World Trade Center memorial.