Rep. Grimm wants ferry named after Giuliani

September 14, 2012 By Paula Katinas Brooklyn Daily Eagle
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Rudy Giuliani’s steady leadership during and after the Sept. 11 attack will never be forgotten by New Yorkers, according to U.S. Rep. Michael Grimm (R-Bay Ridge-Staten Island), who is pushing the city to name a Staten Island ferry after the former mayor.

Grimm has written to the New York City Department of Transportation’s Ferry Division to request that one of three new ferries the city is planning to buy be named for Giuliani.

The city has issued a Request for Proposals for the acquisition of three new ferry vessels. Grimm said that naming a ferry in Giuliani’s honor would be in keeping with a longstanding tradition of naming Staten Island ferries after prominent people associated with that borough.

The Guy V. Molinari, for example, is named after the former Staten Island borough president.

Grimm said Giuliani united the city following the attack on the World Trade Center and deserves to be remembered for that and other deeds he performed for the city during his eight-year tenure in City Hall.

 “Rudy’s leadership on 9/11 brought calm and resolve to a shaken city. His strength and courage during that dark day shepherded us through our worst crisis. This alone would be sufficient for this man to receive this honor,” Grimm wrote.

“For the tens of thousands of residents and tourists that ride the ferry each day between Staten Island and lower Manhattan, the visible absence of the twin towers from New York City skyline is still a haunting sight,” Grimm said. “We will never forget the tragedy and loss of 9/11 or the way Mayor Rudy Giuliani united us as a community in the aftermath, but his contributions to our city are far greater than that fateful day.”

Giuliani helped reduce crime and made the city more livable, according to Grimm. “From squeegees to strip clubs, Mayor Giuliani got rid of the bad and brought in the good. At a time when most thought New York City was lost forever as a leading tourist destination, he cleaned it up,  made it safe,  and put it on the economically solvent path that revitalized it into the thriving city we know today,” the congressman said.

“Mayor Rudy Giuliani’s contributions are significant and praiseworthy, which is why I am calling on the New York City Dept. of Transportation to name one of its new ferry vessels after ‘America’s Mayor,’ permanently honoring his legacy and commitment to the greatest city on earth,” Grimm said.

There’s no word yet on what Giuliani thinks of Grimm’s idea.

Grimm was an F.B.I. agent on Sept. 11, 2001. He and other federal agents spent several weeks in the aftermath of the attack at Ground Zero, assisting in the recovery effort.
 

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