Port Authority Wants to Restart Talks with Greek Orthodox Church Destroyed on 9/11

The Port Authority could meet with St. Nicholas Greek Orthodox Church as soon as next week.

By Julie Shapiro
DNAinfo Reporter/Producer

LOWER MANHATTAN — The Port Authority hopes to end a 19-month stalemate with the St. Nicholas Greek Orthodox Church, which was destroyed on 9/11, by returning to the negotiating table as soon as next week.

The Port and the church have been arguing for years over where and how to rebuild the house of worship, which was located just south of the World Trade Center site. The talks hit a snag last year, and the two sides haven’t spoken since.
But as soon as next week, the Port Authority plans to meet with the church and representatives of the mayor’s office “to start the process” of hammering out a deal, said Chris Ward, executive director of the Port Authority, at a Community Board 1 meeting Monday night.

Father Mark Arey, spokesman for the church, said Tuesday that the Port had not contacted him about a meeting, but he would be happy to participate in any “genuine dialogue with results.”

The disagreement started because the Port Authority needs the church’s land at 155 Cedar St. to build a vehicle security center for the World Trade Center, encompassing a belowground parking garage and loading dock. In 2008, the PA offered the church a site farther east, which is 50 percent larger, along with $20 million to rebuild there.

But the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America was concerned about the and money transfers, said Arey, the archdiocese’s ecumenical officer.
As the talks dragged on last year, Ward said he worried that the vehicle security center would fall behind schedule, so he broke off the negotiations and moved forward with the security center construction.

The church’s plight attracted widespread attention over the summer, as politicians and pundits pointed out that the mosque at the nearby Park51 Islamic community center might be built before St. Nicholas had a new home.

Now, Ward hopes to finally settle the issue. He envisions the church rising out of the new Liberty Park, a sloping swath of green space that will sit on top of the Vehicle Security Center.

“Our hope is that we can successfully negotiate appropriate compensation,” Ward said Monday. “If the church fails to negotiate in good faith…we would have to invoke some form of eminent domain.”

Arey said in a phone interview Tuesday that he, too, hopes to reach an agreement that would allow the church to rise at the World Trade Center site.

“That act of hatred cannot be allowed to stand,” he said, referring to the destruction of the church on 9/11. “We’re not just rebuilding a church. It’s a statement of faith, a statement of hope.”

A spokesman for Mayor Bloomberg said the city also wants the church rebuilt at the World Trade Center site.

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