Published: October 31, 2009 10:56 pm      

GLYNN: USS New York honors victims of 9-11

The USS New York, the new amphibious war ship in the Navy’s fleet, will be arriving at her Hudson River berth in Manhattan on Monday.

It will be commissioned next weekend.

In a way, it should have special meaning to all Americans. The nearly eight tons of steel welded into her bow came from the rubble of the Twin Towers, the 110-story buildings destroyed in the terrorist attacks, Sept. 11, 2001.

Anyone glancing at the ship, even from a distance, will spot the symbolic image of those towers, virtually rising from the phoenix.

Commander Curt Jones noted her motto is “Strength Forged Through Sacrifice: Never Forget.”

Many of the personnel aboard the ship — 185 Marines, 359 crew members and 60 reservists — are from New York State. They volunteered for the assignment. Some are reportedly from upstate including the Buffalo-Niagara area.

A Navy spokesman said two sister ships also will be built in tribute to the 9-11 victims killed in the attack on the Pentagon and in the crash of the hijacked airliner in rural Pennsylvania.

After the USS New York is commissioned, it will be primarily used to transport Marines around the world.

Former Gov. George Pataki had suggested the new ship to be named for the Empire State.

As you might expect, the aggressive New York City Convention and Visitors Bureau was quick to market the Big Apple’s newest attraction, offering a special two-night stay at a midtown Manhattan hotel, just a short walk from the USS New York’s berth.

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A CHUNK OF HISTORY: A decorative cornice fell last week from the Statler Towers onto the sidewalk in downtown Buffalo. Fortunately, there were no injuries reported but officials were forced to close a one-block section of Delaware Avenue in front of the 18-story building that included 1,100 hotel rooms when it opened 86 years ago.

For area residents who commute into the Queen City, that part of Delaware Avenue should be re-opened by Monday.

Ironically, the concrete piece fell a few hours after the New Buffalo Statler Redevelopment, the prospective buyers of the building overlooking Niagara Square, had paid some $260,000 as part of a bankruptcy case.

On a related note, a local historian says that the once low room rate of Statler Hotels — they also were in Cleveland, Detroit, New York City and Boston — sparked the slogan, “A room and a bath for a dollar and a half,” when a room was available for $1.50 per night.

The Statler in Buffalo opened in 1923, two years before the Niagara Hotel in downtown Niagara Falls.

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ACROSS THE BORDER: Youngstown residents — especially those near the waterfront — couldn’t believe the number of sirens echoing last Sunday from the Ontario side of the Niagara River.

It was dozens of firemen and equipment responding to a raging fire that destroyed two historic Niagara-on-the-Lake buildings including the Copper Leaf Garden Store, which once housed the town firehall built in 1911.

The gutted scene in the heart of the quaint village is hardly what local officials wanted to welcome Prince Charles and his wife, Camilla, the Duchess of Cronwall.

Earlier, Lord Mayor Gary Burroughs announced that the royal couple will visit Niagara-on-the-Lake as part of a 12-day tour across Canada, starting Tuesday.

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QUOTE OF THE WEEK: “Well, at least I haven’t spent any time in jail yet” — one of the candidates for re-election, responding to a reporter who asked, “Is there one major accomplishment that you’re most proud of from your days in office?”

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A REMINDER: Tuesday is Election Day. Your vote can make a difference.

Contact reporter Don Glynn at 282-2311, Ext. 2246.