From left: the site of 4 World Trade Center and Catherine McVay Hughes, chairwoman of CB1's World Trade Center Redevelopment Committee

No conclusions have been reached so far about what caused a cable on a crane working at the 4 World Trade Center site to snap, sending steel beams crashing onto a flatbed truck 40 stories below, DNAinfo reported.

The Department of Buildings looked into the incident, according to city records, but was barred from making any safety recommendations because the site is under the jurisdiction of the Port Authority of New York & New Jersey. [more]

Howard Hughes Corp., which leases the South Street Seaport, has begun sharing its plan for redeveloping Pier 17 with the Landmarks Preservation Committee, according to Crain’s. Monday was the most recent meeting between the developer and the city commission.

The developer hopes to file its plan with the committee sometime early this year. Community Board 1 has indicated they would prefer plans for both Pier 17 and the seaport as a whole, that are not too tall and don’t attract so many tourists. [more]

A Sukkah planned for Duane Park in Tribeca will instead be erected on an empty lot that is twice as large at 70 Warren Street, which is owned by real estate company B. Jaffe Real Estate, the New York Times reported. Chabad at Tribeca had planned to construct the Sukkah in Duane Park for the Jewish holiday of Sukkot, which begins the evening of Oct. 12.

But some members of Community Board 1 had opposed the plan, saying that the park was too small and suggesting that allowing it in a public park could violate the First Amendment prohibition of the establishment of religion. [more]

To look out the windows from the 10th floor of Larry Silverstein’s shiny new 7 World Trade Center is to take visual stock of how far Lower Manhattan has come since Sept. 11, 2001. There’s the already-skyscraping 1 World Trade Center to the right, Towers 3 and 4 rising to the left, the soon-to-open memorial plaza below, and the new W Downtown staring back from across the construction site. A few blocks to both the east and west, Lower Manhattan now houses more residents than it has ever before seen, and still more are moving in — in droves. And soon, of course, Condé Nast will arrive, and with it, as is presumed to be the case, so will the neighborhood.

So this morning, when some of the most important architects of this turnaround convened to celebrate “The New Downtown,” alongside the NYU Schack Institute of Real Estate and Silverstein Properties, there was a natural, and deserved, optimism in their voices (see photos above). But there was also an unmistakable air of exasperation, as if to say, what else can we possibly do to get major retailers and restaurateurs to take notice? [more]

City Council rezoned a vacant Williamsburg lot, reversing Community Board 1′s recommendation to reduce the number of units on Wythe Avenue near South 2nd Street. The City Planning Commission signed off on a plan for a six-story apartment complex across two buildings, one with 59 market-rate units, and another with 18 below-market rate apartments. The ground floor will include a restaurant and bar by Taavo Somer. [Brooklyn Paper]

Greenpoint’s Community Board 1 is riled over a new plan to turn a $4 million loft building at 400 McGuinness Boulevard into a halfway house for convicted felons, according to the Brooklyn Paper. The building, which was originally slated to become a homeless shelter, was bought by hotelier Shimmie Horn, who owns Midtown’s Iroquois New York and Washington Jefferson Hotel. Horn, who also operates a Florida-based post-prison facilities company, bought out the Greenpoint building’s remaining tenants for $600,000 and just announced plans to use the property to house recently-released prison inmates. [more]

Scott Stringer and the proposed mosque site

Manhattan Borough President Scott Stringer voiced support for a proposed 15-story mosque and community center, after Community Board 1 approved the project’s proposal to build on a site adjacent to the World Trade Center last night. The approval came after a contentious debate between supporters, who say the project will be a boon to the city’s diversity, and opponents, who claim the mosque’s placement is inconsiderate to those affected by 9/11. Stringer criticized opponents of the mosque plan, specifically targeting conservatives aligned with the Tea Party movement, calling their comments “unfortunate” and accusing them of “looking to divide [the] city” through their opposition. “By voting to support this multi-faith community and cultural center, [CB1] sent a clear message that our city is one that promotes diversity and tolerance,” Stringer said, following the vote. The $100 million project has been popular with downtown community groups, and its construction funding is largely in place already. TRD

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A new hurdle has emerged for a proposed $100 million, 13-story mosque and cultural center, which Muslim groups have pitched for a site adjacent to the World Trade Center, according to NBC New York. The 150-year-old building that developers would tear down to make way for the religious center may be architecturally significant and has been in consideration for landmark status for decades, city officials say. The local community board plans to vote on whether to evaluate the building’s architectural significance at a meeting tonight. [NBC New York]

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Local religious group Masjid Manhattan wants to build a new mosque adjacent to the World Trade Center, according to the New York Post. Masjid Manhattan, a 1,500-member organization, has so far raised $8.5 million of the $11 million needed to launch the project, according to group officials. This isn’t the only proposed mosque looking for a new home near the WTC — earlier this month Community Board 1 approved a proposal to build a $100 million, 13-story mosque and Islamic cultural center at 45 Park Place near Broadway. [Post]

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A proposed 13-story mosque and Islamic cultural center near Ground Zero was unanimously approved by Community Board 1′s financial district committee last night despite grumblings from some who said the project was offensive for families of 9/11 victims, according to the Daily News. The $100 million glass-and-steel Cordoba House would be built on the site of the old Burlington Coat Factory, at 45 Park Place near Broadway, and would have a 500-seat performing arts venue, swimming pool and basketball court in addition to the mosque. [more]