Commercial Observer Co Power Briefing
Many experts have drawn comparisons between the fear felt following 9/11 with the city’s struggles in midst of an out of control pandemic. But true champions of New York understood then, 20 years ago, as they do today that we are resilient. That through strength, unity and determination New York City would, and will rise again. Please join this special Power Briefing as we approach the 20th Anniversary of 9/11 and welcome New York City’s leaders who were instrumental in uniting our community and rebuilding after the darkest day in New York’s history.
Speakers
Max Gross, Editor in Chief, Commercial Observer
Kenneth A. Lewis, AIA, 2021 President, AIA New York; Managing Partner, Skidmore, Owings & Merrill
George Pataki, Former Governor of New York
About the Speakers
Max Gross is the Editor in Chief for Commercial Observer; prior to that he was a reporter for the New York Post. He lives on the Upper West Side with his wife and son. His novel “The Lost Shtetl” was published by HarperVia this past fall.
Kenneth A. Lewis is a Managing Partner in SOM’s New York office. Since joining SOM in 1986, Lewis has managed a diverse range of projects across the globe, including mixed-use developments, commercial, hotel and residential towers, adaptive reuse projects, corporate headquarters, and healthcare facilities. With a special focus on New York, he has managed many projects of enormous scale and complexity, including the award-winning One Columbus Center, 7 World Trade Center, One World Trade Center, and 35 Hudson Yards. Lewis is currently leading the construction of Manhattan West, a new, seven-million-square-foot, mixed use development. Sustainability is a key focus in Lewis’s work – many of his projects have achieved, or are slated to achieve, a LEED Gold rating. He is President of AIA New York and sits on the Urban Green Council Board of Directors, the Center for Architecture Board of Trustees, and the Architectural Review Board of Irvington, New York.
George Pataki was the 53rd governor of the state of New York. He was elected to his first term taking office January 1, 1995 after having defeated the liberal icon Mario Cuomo. Pataki was reelected to a second term by over 1 million votes, the largest plurality for a Republican candidate in the history of the state of New York. He was reelected to a third term by almost 3/4 of 1 million votes in 2002. During his time as governor Pataki enacted record-setting criminal justice reforms-taking New York State from the most dangerous state in America to the safest large state and fourth safest state overall. His workfare policies reduced the state’s welfare rolls by over 1 million people and replace them with opportunity. He cut taxes by $147 billion, more than the other 49 states combined, and created an economic climate that produced over 700,000 new private sector jobs.
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