The general consensus seems to be that the KSM trial won’t be in lower Manhattan after all.
Most also agree, however, that the trail should (or must, depending on the legal statute) still be held in the state of New York.
I have a new, state of the art, secure location to recommend:
The Buffalo Record 
Hmm is a billion dollars worth the negative PR of having a decaying statler across the street for the entire nation to see? Good things that statler is empty and not a hotel or anything.
STATLER SUPERMAX!
won’t be open til feb ’11…but yeah that would be great…i can already see the cvb and brown boasting about the economic impact!
I was expecting comments on the economic impact, the security disruptions, making Buffalo a higher profile terror target, and such. Instead, the first two comments are on the Statler. What does that say about Buffalo and our obsession with empty buildings.
What is the economic impact of negative PR? What is the cost of cementing the nations mind that Buffalo is empty and decaying and isn’t worth fighting for? Could you name me a better symbol of that than the Statler? Maybe Bethlehem Steel? It’s literally right across the street, do you expect the media circus to ignore it?
“Well we were going to have the trial in NYC but the cost of hurting business was too great. So they moved the trial to Buffalo, NY where clearly as this huge giant building behind the federal courthouse shows… there is no business in Buffalo, NY.”
Could we make it any easier for them to give us a black eye? I am going to say that wanting the trial here is short sighted.
Well, I made no explicit argument for why it should be in Buffalo – I simply laid out the option to spark discussion. But since you ask: I think the trial should be here because 1) we’re the second largest city in NY, and have many assets available, 2) we will have a shiny new state of the art building to do it in, 3) we help the security argument by being as far from NYC as possible but still in the state, 4) we have experienced terror lawyers and jurists (due to the Lackawanna 6) who could be of assistance, 5) I think the added terror threat is minimal, and 6) since the feds are paying, it’ll be a massive, multi-year economic stimulus. I never even thought of the Statler.
If we wish to shun the national spotlight because they might show an abondoned building on teevee, then things are sadder than I thought. Cancel the Bills and Sabres games – they might show a picture of our waterfront too.
What other city other than Detroit is known for having abandoned behemoths smack in their downtowns?
I am not going to go all bullet style counter point on you just because we disagree. I don’t know if you have noticed this over the past 40-50 years but having federal and state money thrown at us hasn’t really helped. :[
I can see where you are coming from on the abandoned building comments. But in all honesty…just how much different is the Statler 100% empty from just 6 months ago when it had just a handful of tenants? The Statler has been ’empty’ for a long time.
Besides, any situation can be turned into a positive. For example, the Statler was just shut down. Someone mentioned on BRO that a non-profit group could be given control of the Statler like what is done at the Central Terminal. So precedent has been set. If the city did not trip over themselves, I know..I know…, this transition could be done in short order.
If this were to happen, the ballrooms for the Statler and some of the office space could be leased to those needed space for the trial. Because they are going to need it. The trial is going to come with a small army of lawyers, reporters and other various people. These people will need space and Starbucks is not going to cut it.
Now the Statler is not an abandoned building but rather the backdrop for national news casts. From what I have been told, the lobby and ballroom space is still pretty nice. Think of it as a two year commercial for the building. All the while, the heat stays on and the building gets a pause from the current bleak fate.
I think the black eye that Buffalo has is more due to the mindset like your than the product of that mindset. There was a guy from Lockport who wrote a post in Sports Illustrated about the Knox brothers going after a MLB team. The mindset that he mocked the city for…is exactly the same mindset you have today.
Bah… I’m moving to Texas!
Apologies on the thread derail Mr. Castner.
If that building does not turn out as pretty as that rendering a lot of people are going to be mighty dissappointed.
i felt duped the second i saw the concrete facade emerge. holy crap its brutal.