The tragic events of September 11, 2001 destroyed Liberty Plaza Park. Brookfield Properties, owner of the site, selected Cooper Robertson to design the renovated public space, now named Zuccotti Park, which opened in 2006. On September 17, 2011, the Occupy Wall Street movement took possession of the park. The question naturally arises as to why Zuccotti Park was chosen. Alex Cooper surveyed nine Occupy protest sites revealing a striking commonality among them, including adjacent uses, size, and physical context. This essay was originally published in Beyond Zuccotti Park: Freedom of Assembly and the Occupation of Public Space (New Village Press, 2012).
