NJ firm wins first major contract for WTC Memorial construction.

The first major contract for the construction of the World Trade Center Memorial has been awarded to New Jersey firm, E.E. Cruz.

The infrastructure specialist, based in Holmdel, NJ, was awarded the $17 million contract to build the foundations and footings for the memorial that will pay tribute to the nearly 3,000 people who lost their lives the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, and February 26, 1993.

The work will begin later this month and be completed within the next year. Site preparatory work for the Memorial began in March with preliminary work to cover the original box beam columns that outline the perimeters of the Twin Towers. The whole project is on schedule for completion in September 2009, according to the World Trade Center Memorial Foundation and the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, who made the announcement.

World Trade Center Memorial Foundation Chairman John C. Whitehead said he was pleased the bids for the project came in on budget and that work remains on schedule.

E.E. Cruz specializes in heavy infrastructure construction and has been involved in many private and public sector works. The firm carried out the excavation and construction of foundations for the light rail tunnel for the AirTrain at JFK Airport as well as the reconstruction of a 25-block section of Columbus Avenue for the city that included the installation of a steel water main. It also did the foundation work for the Goldman Sachs office tower in Jersey City.

Responsibility for construction of the Memorial has been handed over to the Port Authority, whose chairman, Anthony R. Coscia said, "We are committed to building a project that will ensure future generations never forget what happened [at the site]."

World Trade Center Memorial Foundation acting president Joseph C. Daniels said, "The award of this work is a definitive sign to our donors that the Memorial is being built and it reinforces the idea that we've achieved cost clarity, basic design finality, and have established clear roles and responsibilities for the project. These are critical elements to any successful capital campaign."

Last month, the Memorial Foundation and the Port Authority Board of Commissioners agreed to have the Port Authority assume responsibility for construction of the Memorial, the Memorial Museum, and the Visitor Education and Orientation Center. At that time, the Port Authority Board also agreed to commit up to an additional $95 million toward the Memorial and the Memorial Museum, in addition to a previous commitment of $100 million. The Memorial Foundation will continue to assume responsibility for the integrity of the project's design and operation.

Aside from the Memorial, major construction already is under way to build the Freedom Tower and the World Trade Center Transportation Hub, and to prepare the easterly portion of the site for the future construction of Towers 2, 3 and 4.

Since April, crews have been excavating for the Freedom Tower footings and foundation, and blasting is being done to expedite the work. The first steel order for the 1,776-foot-tall tower was placed in July, and the first pieces of steel will be erected on the site in January 2007.

At the transportation hub site, the foundations for Platform D are being installed. This fourth platform for the PATH station will allow work to be staged while the rail system continues its 24-hour-a-day operation. On the easterly portion of the site, demolition of the old Hudson and Manhattan Railroad infrastructure continues.