Below you will find Our Concerns regarding the Ground Zero Tent. As of 3/28/02 we are told the tent will remain open until April 30 and then will be evaluated as to when it will be closed.

9-11 FAMILY GROUPS AND RECOVERY WORKERS CRITICAL OF CITYıS AND FEDıS PLAN TO CLOSE WTC RECOVERY WORKER TENT
By:
Dianne C. Baumert-Moyik, President
Baumert PR & Design, Inc.
926-D Lincoln Avenue, Holbrook, NY 11741-2204
Tel: (631) 563-3611 € Fax: (631) 563-3147
E-mail: dbaumert@baumertpr.com € http://www.baumertpr.com

NEW YORK, NY (March 29, 2002) ­ 9-11 Victimsı families, still awaiting word on the recovery of their loved ones, voiced strong objections today to the dismantling of the large white tent where recovery workers have gathered for the last 198 days for hot meals, counseling and medical help after 12-hour shifts recovering remains at the World Trade Center site. Families say the city doesnıt need to spend the extra money and time to create a new location since recovery will be completed in about eight weeks.

"We object to the closure of the tent just 45-60 days prior to final recovery at the WTC site and owe it to the workers who are looking for our family members to make sure it stays open," said Lee Ielpi, father of a FDNY firefighter lost on September 11. "And we want to know why the city, given its fiscal crisis, and Federal Emergency Management Agency, needs to spend more money to reconstruct what is already in place.² While city officials say they are searching for a new location, none has been announced.

Ielpi said the tent is an important, symbolic place for workers. ³It is a place for workers to take a break from their 12-hour shifts, working through rain or shine, since many are already feeling the strain of the recent increase in remains recovered at the site," he said. ³It is also a place for workers to shower and change their clothes so that they donıt bring contaminated materials home to their families.²

Timothy Carey, president and CEO of the Battery Park City Authority, in media reports said the tent would close April 14 and take a month to dismantle -- claiming they need to space to allow for theater and hotel parking and a place for the inspection of vehicles. Family members say is an insult to the dedicated and selfless work of thousands of recovery workers.

Battery Park City Authority officials said it had agreed with FEMA to close the tent once West Street was reopened citing traffic concerns. Families questioned the timing of the opening of West Street on April 1, the closing of the tent on April 14, and the final dismantling four weeks later on May 14.

³If Carey is so concerned about recovery workers crossing West Street, why are they allowing workers to continue to cross for the two weeks prior to April 14 or for the 30 days needed to dismantle the tent?² Ielpi said. ³Weıre offended by his comments that we should all try to get back to normal when there are 2,000 victims still unaccounted for.²