Keith Striga, an adjunct professor of architecture at New York Institute of Technology (NYIT), has submitted the winning design for the Nassau County 9/11 Memorial. The memorial, which will be built at Eisenhower Park in East Meadow, Long Island, features two steel girders recovered from Ground Zero and a plaque with the names of all Nassau County residents lost in the attack (approximately 275 total).
"There has been a lot of media exposure from the current designs for Ground Zero in Manhattan," said Striga, who earned his bachelor of architecture from NYIT. "Our site in Eisenhower Park, for approximately 275 Nassau County victims, will allow the visitor to experience the essence of how the towers appeared in what I would sum up as an impressionistic reality, as a 'ghost-like' representation."
At the center of the memorial will be two semitransparent, interconnected towers made of polished aluminum. The towers will be placed on a pedestal of black absolute granite and will rise over 30 feet above a reflecting pool shaped to represent the geography of lower Manhattan. Striga's design also includes a plaque with a narrative on 9/11 and a Rescuers' Wall, which will depict the emblems of the New York City Fire Department, the New York City Police Department and the Port Authority Police, who all performed so gallantly during and after that tragic day.
A design competition for the memorial was sponsored by Nassau County beginning in fall 2002. Striga's design was submitted on behalf of Striga and Associates of Valley Stream, L.I., and created with Phil Gavosto of Gavosto Associates.
The memorial's official unveiling and dedication is scheduled to take place in 2004. It will be located in Eisenhower Park, on the hillside overlooking Eisenhower Pond adjacent to the Harry Chapin Lake Side Theater. The two towers will be visible to passing motorists on Merrick Avenue.
Striga joined NYIT in September 2000. He teaches both architecture and continuing education courses on the Old Westbury campus, specializing in CAD and visualization.
In addition to teaching, Striga also heads Striga and Associates, a design collaborative practicing architecture and construction management in Nassau County, and is the founder of Wet-Paint FX, Inc., a team of professional architectural and graphic designers.
New York Institute of Technology is an independent, comprehensive college that offers, through eight schools, more than 100 courses of study leading to undergraduate, graduate and professional degrees. NYIT currently educates more than 11,000 students on three physical campuses--in Old Westbury and Central Islip, Long Island, and Manhattan, near Lincoln Center--and one virtual campus via the Internet. More than 61,000 alumni have received degrees from NYIT.
Please visit http://www.striga.com for additional information.
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