NEW YORK—The smell of fresh gravel permeated the bordering blocks of the 9/11 Memorial Museum, as traffic guards facilitated crossings for pedestrians and construction caterpillars. The bronze parapets by the twin memorial pools, each an acre in size, were surrounded by a large crowd. In the distance, a meandering line of tourists and locals waited by the entrance as the museum let the public in for the first time on May 21. They waited with mixed feelings.
“I’m against the whole tourist-attraction aspect of it ... it’s unsettling,” said John Herbst, a real estate salesperson who worked at One Liberty Plaza six months before the attack. “But it needs to be seen, so I’m torn.”
The museum’s $24 entrance fee, its gift shop, its location near a repository of unidentified remains, and its Islamic reference in a terrorism education video, have sparked much controversy recently. But on its first public opening, it received a positive response from the public for the most part.
“Although the price is a bit high, I think it’s worth it,” said Alvin, a New Yorker who witnessed the second plane crash from Columbus Park. “It’s a nice memorial. I know there’s a lot of controversy around the gift shop, but I thought it was okay since it wasn’t tacky.”
“You learn about the attack a lot in school, but I walked away from this knowing the stories of real people,” said Keely Sanders, 16, from Long Island.
Inside the Museum
The museum’s core exhibitions are located seven stories below ground, in the very space that once served as the foundation for the Twin Towers.
