Excerpts from the AOL article View full story.The developers of a proposed Islamic community center and mosque near ground zero are seeking federal redevelopment grants reportedly worth $5 million, further infuriating some families and first responders.
"I think it's an insult to the 9/11 families. It's another smack in the face," retired Deputy Fire Chief Jim Riches, who lost a firefighter son during the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, told the Daily News.
"Why would we give them money ahead of so many other worthy groups?" Tim Brown, a retired firefighter who was a first responder on 9/11, told the New York Post.....
"We are now turning to the challenging but important task of sorting through the applications to identify those that address long-standing community and cultural needs," corporation spokesman John De Libero told the Daily News.
Those seeking funds must show a "nexus to revitalizing the World Trade Center site and its surroundings," Julie Menin, a member of the corporation's board, told The Times. Proposals focused on creating jobs and partnerships with other organizations in the area would be favored, she said. She told CNN the grants would range from $100,000 to $1 million.
"There are going to be very tough choices," she told The Times.
The grants are expected to be awarded early next year.
You can't make this up. Why do they suddenly need money? I thought that waiter turned overnight mega-developer was rollin' in the dough.
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