New York Codes, Rules and Regulations › Title 9 - EXECUTIVE DEPARTMENT › Subtitle A - Governor's Office › Chapter I - Executive Orders › Part 5 - Executive Orders (George E. Pataki) › Section 5.133 - Executive order no. 133: establishing the lower manhattan construction command center

Current through Register Vol. 46, No. 28, July 10, 2024
WHEREAS, the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001
					 resulted in the deaths of 2,749 people, the loss of more than 65,000 jobs, the
					 destruction and damage of 30 million square feet of commercial office space,
					 and the dislocation of more than 65,000 commuters;
WHEREAS, a permanent Memorial is being planned for the
					 World Trade Center site to ensure that future generations never forget the
					 people who died on September 11, 2001 in New York City, in Pennsylvania and at
					 the Pentagon, as well as those who died in the terrorist bombing of the World
					 Trade Center on February 26, 1993;
WHEREAS, an extensive rebuilding and revitalization effort
					 is being undertaken in response to the damage to the World Trade Center and
					 surrounding properties, and the broader impacts to area businesses and the
					 transportation infrastructure of Lower Manhattan, caused by the terrorist
					 attacks of September 11, 2001;
WHEREAS, the rebuilding and revitalization of Lower
					 Manhattan will involve billions of dollars in public and private construction
					 projects over the next decade conducted by multiple State, multi-State, and
					 City agencies, as well as private developers;
WHEREAS, the rebuilding must occur in a compact timeline to
					 preserve and improve the quality of life downtown, to retain Lower Manhattan's
					 place as the financial capital of the world, and to reenergize the entire
					 regional economy;
WHEREAS, it is critical that construction be coordinated to
					 ensure that projects move forward expeditiously and with the utmost integrity,
					 while minimizing the impact of such construction on residents, businesses,
					 workers, commuters, pedestrians, and vehicles;
WHEREAS, the lead construction personnel from the key
					 agencies involved in the rebuilding have been meeting regularly as the Lower
					 Manhattan Construction Coordination Group;
WHEREAS, the inspectors general and law enforcement
					 personnel from the key agencies involved in the rebuilding process have been
					 meeting regularly as the Lower Manhattan Construction Integrity Team;
WHEREAS, all parties involved in the rebuilding recognize
					 the need for an entity to coordinate the construction projects in Lower
					 Manhattan;
WHEREAS, all parties involved in the rebuilding recognize
					 the need for an entity to ensure equal employment opportunities, and meaningful
					 opportunities for minority and women-owned businesses to participate in
					 contracting and subcontracting opportunities to minority and women owned
					 businesses;
WHEREAS, all agencies involved in the rebuilding must
					 maintain the ability to manage their own projects and an entity coordinating
					 the projects improves their ability to successfully manage their own projects;
					 and
WHEREAS, a Lower Manhattan Construction Command Center,
					 working with the public and private partners involved in the rebuilding,
					 charged with coordination of construction projects in Lower Manhattan can best
					 achieve the goal of meeting the ambitious timeline while minimizing the impact
					 of such construction on the community.
NOW, THEREFORE, I, GEORGE E. PATAKI, Governor of the State
					 of New York, by virtue of the authority vested in me by the Constitution and
					 Laws of the State of New York, do hereby order as follows:
1. Establishment of the Lower Manhattan
				  Construction Command Center. There is hereby established a Lower Manhattan
				  Construction Command Center ("the Command Center"). The Command Center will
				  coordinate between all construction located in Lower Manhattan. Lower Manhattan
				  is defined as the area on the island of Manhattan south of Canal Street and
				  southwest of Rutgers Street from the Hudson River to the East River.
				  Construction includes all construction beginning from 2004 to 2010 valued at
				  over $25 million, work requiring governmental action or permit, and any
				  construction requiring work directly in City or State streets or
				  highways.
2. Lower Manhattan
				  Construction Command Center Executive Director. The Command Center will be
				  managed by the Lower Manhattan Construction Command Center Executive Director
				  ("the Executive Director"). Such Executive Director shall be appointed in a
				  manner to be determined jointly by, and shall report directly to, the Governor
				  and the Mayor of the City of New York.
3. Management of the Command Center. The
				  Command Center will be managed by the Executive Director, and one or more
				  deputies, including a communications director and fraud prevention director,
				  charged with responsibility for coordinating the scheduling and staging per the
				  overall plan and with day-to-day responsibility for coordinating construction
				  work in Lower Manhattan with a focus on mitigating impacts on mobility,
				  maintaining and improving access, and alleviating congestion of any kind
				  related to construction.
4. City
				  Operations. A Director of City Operations will be appointed by the Mayor, after
				  consultation with the Command Center Executive Director, to ensure the quality
				  of life of residents and businesses of Lower Manhattan, to coordinate the
				  various municipal services as they interface with the construction projects and
				  to ensure that the various logistics and traffic management plans are
				  appropriately enforced. The Director of City Operations will serve as the
				  liaison between the Executive Director of the Command Center and all City
				  agencies and will be located at the Command Center.
5. Participation by Public and Private
				  Partners. The Command Center will coordinate between high level construction
				  personnel from the key participants in the rebuilding process including the New
				  York City Department of Transportation, the New York City Department of Design
				  and Construction, the New York City Economic Development Corporation, the New
				  York City Department of Sanitation, the New York City Police Department
				  ("NYPD"), the New York City Fire Department, the New York City Office of
				  Emergency Management, the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, the
				  Metropolitan Transportation Authority, the New York State Department of
				  Transportation, the Lower Manhattan Development Corporation, Silverstein
				  Properties, Verizon and ConEdison, the Alliance for Downtown New York,
				  Community Board, the Battery Park City Authority, the Real Estate Board of New
				  York, and representatives of such other entities as the Executive Director
				  shall determine appropriate in carrying out the duties and responsibilities of
				  the Command Center.
6. Lower
				  Manhattan Construction Executive Committee. The Lower Manhattan Construction
				  Executive Committee, which includes senior managers designated by the heads of
				  the New York City Department of Transportation, the New York City Economic
				  Development Corporation, the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, the
				  Metropolitan Transportation Authority, the New York State Department of
				  Transportation, and the Lower Manhattan Development Corporation (each in a
				  number to be determined by the Command Center Executive Director) will advise
				  and consult with the Command Center Executive Director on the establishment and
				  management of the Command Center. This group will meet as determined by the
				  Command Center Executive Director (in any event no less than monthly) and will
				  be chaired by the Command Center Executive Director.
7. Traffic Coordination. The New York State
				  Department of Transportation will work in consultation with the New York City
				  Department of Transportation and New York City Police Department, in a manner
				  consistent with law, in the coordination of traffic management, street
				  permitting, and enforcement.
8.
				  Fraud Prevention. In order to provide a coordinating mechanism for the State
				  and City to receive information on potential corruption relating to any
				  construction in Lower Manhattan, a Lower Manhattan Fraud Prevention Hotline
				  will be created under the direction and control of the Command Center. The
				  Lower Manhattan Construction Command Center will help ensure that all
				  construction projects proceed with the utmost integrity, free of corruption and
				  wrongdoing, by reporting to the Lower Manhattan Fraud Prevention Hotline, any
				  allegations of corruption or criminal activity by or on behalf of any agency
				  employee, public official, contractor employee, agent, subcontractor, vendor,
				  or labor official. The Command Center shall work in coordination with each
				  agency's Office of Inspector General, and the New York City Department of
				  Investigations, as appropriate, and shall coordinate all efforts on
				  federally-funded projects with the United States Department of Transportation
				  Office of Inspector General, and other appropriate federal agencies.
9. Functions of the Command Center. The
				  Command Center will coordinate community information, construction logistics,
				  utility coordination, environmental compliance, safety, diversity, and equal
				  opportunity. The functions of the Command Center shall include:
A. Coordinating the work of the participants
				  in the rebuilding process and ensuring that the construction in Lower Manhattan
				  proceeds as scheduled by mediating conflicts in schedules and street and site
				  access between construction projects, agencies, and the Lower Manhattan
				  community through the following:
(1) Expanding
				  the on-going standard coordination efforts from pre-planning through
				  construction currently managed by NYC DOT and its consultant for all projects
				  in Lower Manhattan;
(2) Working
				  with each of the project sponsors to establish a master schedule of all Lower
				  Manhattan construction projects;
(3) Working with New York City and the Port
				  Authority to set guidelines for street and site access priorities;
(4) Providing a forum for agencies,
				  contractors, utilities and the community to be heard when conflicts arise;
				  and
(5) Coordinating expeditious
				  and consistent decisionmaking on conflicts that can not be resolved between
				  agencies.