Lyndhurst 14
Well-known member
- Jan 16, 2008
- 5,243
RIP Robert Eaton.
Always remember, we lost a fellow fan and North Stand Chat poster that morning.
I remember chatting with the affable Robert in the matchday NSC chat room, and him mentioning his workplace. Watching the events unfolding when I woke up early (6 am) dozily watching the news, it dawned on me to worry about our comrade in Albion. I was hoping that helicopters would be airlifting people off the roofs, but that didn't happen.
One of the most unbelievable aspects of the aftermath of the 9/11 tragedy is that the official Memorial will not be open until 10 years after the event.
The company I work for has a small involvement on the project and as such has been able to witness firsthand the staggering incompetence and arrogance of the Port Authority of New York, Larry Silverstein and the other parties involved. They were far more concerned with in fighting and scoring brownie points than carrying out their brief which was to construct a fitting memorial for the families and friends of the victims.
For a while the whole WTC Memorial project became completely overwhelmed by the budgetary issues and complexity of the design - it was only after a press campaign that Mayor Bloomberg stepped in and demanded that a final budget and completion date be agreed that things started to get back on track. Even now there is still some doubt that it will be complete by 9/11 in 2011 and the original design has been dumbed down considerably.
Many New Yorkers believe that a much simpler project should have been built which could have been finished years ago like the one at the Pentagon in Washington.
So, after more than 7 years, there is only really a big hole in the ground, some steelwork and the names of the victims on billboards - hardly a fitting tribute to Robert Eaton and the others.