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Representative Anthony D. Weiner long advocated re-opening the Statue of Liberty's crown, which has been closed since the 9/11 attacks. Partly due to terrorism fears, the National Parks Service also noted the narrow staircase "violates every fire code in the city of New York and the state of New York and the state of New Jersey." However, Weiner blamed the park service for "a failure of creativity" by not solving the issues through renovation and evacuation plans.
Flash forward to the current Independence Day and news of Lady Liberty's crown re-opening may become a reality. The Daily News reports the federal government is exploring the idea, which Weiner says is "a dramatic breakthrough."
The National Park Service, which has limited Liberty Island visitors to her pedestal, on June 24 posted a request for bids from engineering and architectural firms to study what it takes to open the entire statue to the public.While there is no guarantee of the crown re-opening and the first new trip up won't occur anytime in the near future, the proper steps are now being taken in order to make it happen. If you've never seen the view from the top, here's a glimpse."We are asking the firm to answer two questions. Is there a way to make changes to the structure itself to make it comply with safety codes? If they say, no...they would look at a way to minimize the risk," said Darren Boch, a spokesman for the National Park Service.
Photo via Brooklyn Hilary's Flickr.
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Screw the "codes" & stuff. When I was a kid, no year was complete without a scramble up the old rickety spiral stairs with the occasional "resting" space with the thin metal railings. Scratchy windows, look out, enjoy the view. Scramble down. Then scramble back up again.
The statue was open from 1886 til the 2001 thing. How many people died in the S of L? Studies? Codes? Bids?
You know it's gonna be 30+years, billions over budget, leave your belt & nail clippers on the mainland, view limited to 30 seconds, $54/ticket
(kids & vets just $34),unless you buy the special President Bloomberg (w/ Ray "Popeye" Kelly as Mayor or Head of Homeland Security) "Freedom Pass" for only 200 Euros that let you visit your national taxpayer-supported monuments at a 10% discount. You also get a free "Statue" mug @ Fridays & Planet Hollywood.
Don't forget, this monument must have Wheelchair access, Braille plaques @ the summit, & a Disney concession at every corner. Just put a sign before the stairs that say "Enter @ your own risk" & "Abandon all lawsuits, ye who enter these gates". If me & the kids can climb Vesuvius, check out the Cenote @ Chichen Itza & poke a round Yedikule, they can handle some 100 year old stairs in the Harbor. Oh, and open the friggin' torch, which I never had the chance to check out.
Sorry for the extensive long-winded rant, but this subject is a sore point for me. Friggin' overbearing Lawyer-ruled, paranoid "Nanny State".
I'll detail later how I really feel.
Dadoc
It can't come too soon. Although I have to question the politicians' claim that visits have dropped by 2 million a year because visitors can't go up to the crown. Considering how few people can actually make it up the narrow stairs, there's no way 2 million could have gone up every year. Has anyone seen the ridiculous security arrangements lately? It may be easier to get into the Pentagon than into the pedestal. There's a big difference between security and Bush-era paranoia.
Spirit, you can believe it. The boat used to be cheap, no Max-security BS, great way to sped a few free hrs. Went there mult times w/ Mom&Dad as a kid. First climb together, then Dad had to undertake the multiple other climbs w/us, while Mom set up the picnic on the grass. Without the climb & crown, you might as well just take the free SI ferry & grab a look. & I do remember reading (@ length) the great historical setup in the pedestal. Prob not PC now, but truthful & educational, fact-based, & unbiased. Too bad you can't enjoy it anymore without an extensive background investigation & cavity check. Emma Lazarus is rolling in her grave.
Dadoc
Sorry, I can't believe it. As I wrote, that number is just way too high. No way you can get two million people a year up to that crown. Assuming you had a constant stream of visitors making the hike, even at 8 hours a day every day, that's about 12 people a minute. You wouldn't have any time to do any sightseeing at the time at that pace with only about five seconds to take in the view.
There was a blog somewhere that described how a group of World War II vets was put through the security wringer ("No exceptions!") at Liberty Island. Hell of a way to treat the "greatest generation" that fought and sacrificed so much for our freedom.
It's rediculous that seven years later it's still only just an idea to open it up.
And changing "the structure itself"? Are they out of their freaking minds? It may be impractical, but they didn't exactly change the Empire State Building or the New York Public library following September 11th because of 'security purposes'.
Bartoldi and Eiffel would be furious.
Dadoc, it'd be impractical to reopen the torch, it could only be accessed by a ladder in Liberty's arm, and given the fact there's only a railing surrounding the deck it'd be too much of a suicide risk to allow people up there.
Reopen the Statue of Liberty!