Panel members warned against leaning too heavily on the recently formed Lower Manhattan Redevelopment Corp. Giving the city/state partnership too free a rein in the Downtown redevelopment process would ultimately backfire, stifling private sector growth and conflicting with Midtown interests, the group claimed. "We cannot invest this area with incentives surpassing Midtown to the point of assuming a position where we impose our vision upon New York City as a whole," said Steve Malanga, senior fellow with the Manhattan Institute. "We must ensure the Lower Manhattan Development Corp. does not become a small government."

Commitment to private-sector growth struck a common chord among the 17 panel members, as Empire State Development Corp. executive director Kevin Corbett was quick to point out. "Governor Pataki has always felt we are there to facilitate the private sector. Build the infrastructure and the private sector will come," he said. "We are committed to no raising of taxes within the private sector in New York City."

The urgency of swift, though careful, action was also a major theme. Jamie B. Stewart, Jr., first vice president, Federal Reserve Bank of New York, predicted, "If we don't move fast, other cities would love to fill the void and become the financial capital of the world."