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August 19, 2009
E-mail a friendYOUNG VOICES
Flight 93 Families Still Struggling
Nearly six years after it crashed in a Pennsylvania field, the story of Flight 93 continues. With a memorial and national park planned, designed, and slated to open in 2011, the transfer of the site to the National Parks Service is being stalled by the questionable motives of a property owner.
Mike Svonavec, who owns 273 acres of the proposed memorial site, is asking an outrageous $10 million for his property, far more than its fair market value. He has so far refused three offers from Families of Flight 93, the group coordinating the memorial, the last of which was for $500,000. By generous estimates, Svonavec's property is worth just over half a million dollars, and his refusal to let it go for that price is raising concerns among memorial organizers that he may not have their lost loved ones' best interests in mind.
This week, Svonavec further angered families of the flight 93 victims by soliciting donations on site to pay for security at the temporary memorial, which sits on his land. On its own, this action might seem legitimate, although why a field and some flags require $10,000 per month in security is a little mysterious. Coupled, however, with Svonavec's extortive price for his parcel, the whole thing starts to stink. While he denies any profit-making motives, his actions say otherwise.
It is saddening that anyone would attempt to profit from such tragic loss of life, let alone remain so stalwart in the face of a public outcry. It is an ugly thing indeed, and an extreme disrespect to the victims of flight 93.