The New York City Department of Veterans’ Services and the Department of Cultural Affairs recently announced the next steps in the development of its Post-9/11 Fallen Service Member Memorial.
The memorial will be New York City’s first memorial dedicated to its more than 100 post-9/11 service members who made the ultimate sacrifice in Iraq and Afghanistan.
The proposal was initially unveiled in May 2024 during Veterans and Service Members’ Week by New York City Mayor Eric Adams and Department of Veterans’ Services Commissioner James Hendon.
“I love this city and this country, and those who made the ultimate sacrifice for our freedom deserve to be memorialized now and forever,” Adams said after introducing the proposal. “With this new memorial, we will honor a new generation of souls who gave their lives far too early in the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan while simultaneously paying tribute to the hundreds of thousands of New Yorkers who have served our country in these wars. I hope all New Yorkers will take the time to reflect on the sacrifice these brave men and women made. God bless their memories.”
The memorial will be located on the waterfront in the Whitestone neighborhood of Queens due to it being home to the highest number of fallen post-9/11 service members and the city’s largest population of living veterans.
The new memorial is part of the Utopia Parkway Seawall Replacement and Street Improvements project led by the New York City Department of Transportation and the New York City Economic Development Corp. It will incorporate a bike path, pedestrian walkway and rebuilt bulkheads to revitalize the area and mitigate storm risk for the surrounding neighborhood.
“Set along the peaceful waterside, far from the city's hustle and bustle, this monument site provides a place of serene reflection,” said Hendon. “In this setting by the water's edge, we honor the bravery and selflessness of our post-9/11 service members, ensuring their sacrifice is never forgotten. The enthusiasm for this project is infectious, as we eagerly anticipate the development of a monument to honor those who gave their lives in service to this nation.”
The memorial will be designed by renowned sculptor Douwe Blumberg and will serve as a sacred site of reflection, remembrance and recognition for those lost in the post-9/11 conflicts, as well as a “thank you” and “welcome home” to the broader post-9/11 veteran community.
The memorial is currently undergoing design development, with project stakeholders offering feedback on the concept design. As part of the public input process, the city is inviting community members to share their thoughts on the memorial through Veterans Advisory Board (VAB) public sessions.
The first session took place in April in Queens and the second occurred earlier this month on Staten Island. Subsequent sessions will occur on Aug. 27 in the Bronx and on Oct. 29 in Brooklyn.
Working with the Department of Cultural Affairs’ Percent for Art program, Blumberg will refine the proposal to reflect this input from city agencies, the VAB, and other stakeholders ahead of the next stage.
The process will then follow the formal review path of the New York City Public Design Commission (PDC):
· The memorial proposal will next be submitted to the PDC for Conceptual Design Review, which includes a public hearing where commissioners and members of the public can provide additional feedback.
· Upon Conceptual Approval, the design will advance with a focus on material selection, aesthetics, durability and constructability.
· The refined design will then return to the PDC for Preliminary Design Review. Upon approval, the city will issue a notice to fabricate, formally initiating the construction phase.
Funding for the project will be sourced from private donations and public capital project allocations to cover design, construction and long-term maintenance costs.