Gov: WTC church work to resume
ALBANY — Work is slated to resume on the long-stalled replacement of a Greek Orthodox church destroyed on 9/11.
Gov. Cuomo on Thursday unveiled the formation of the Friends of St. Nicholas, a new nonprofit organization that will work to ensure the St. Nicholas National Shrine at the World Trade Center site is completed within a new twoyear target.
“The rebuilding of St. Nicholas Church that was destroyed on September 11 is a moment of coming together and healing not only for the Greek Orthodox community but for all New Yorkers who lived through that horrific day,” Cuomo said after meeting Thursday with Archbishop Elpidophoros, the American head of the Greek Orthodox Church.
The shrine, like the nearby Oculus, was designed by Spanish architect Santiago Calatrava. The building’s dome is meant to glow at night and provide “a spiritual beacon of hope and rebirth.”
Instead, the partially-built church’s concrete shell has become an eyesore hulking near the south end of the 9/11 Memorial after the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America ran out of money for the $80 million project in 2017.
Allegations that the Archdiocese had misappropriated funds eventually led to the resignation of Archbishop Demetrios last May and the appointment of Elpidophoros, who will serve as an honorary chairman on the board of the Friends of St. Nicholas.
Elpidophoros vowed that “we will be ready; we will be on time; and we will be open to all women and men of good will who wish to honor the memory of all who perished on September 11th.”
Both the governor and the Port Authority, which leases the land to the church for $1 a year, have taken steps in the past to assist the Archdiocese in completing the project.
The new nonprofit, whose 13-member board will be chaired by Dennis Mehiel, the former chairman of the Battery Park City Authority, will continue to raise money and oversee construction as well as conducting audits of the project.
“This house of worship will serve as a reminder that our collective faith is something we can always count on to move past our painful memories and build a better tomorrow,” Cuomo said.