This September, as a part of the Panoway on Wayzata Bay, the City of Wayzata, in partnership
with the Wayzata Conservancy, will unveil a new 9/11 Memorial on Lake Street.
(Wayzata, MN) — August , 2021 — On September 11th, at 10 a.m., the City of Wayzata will be honoring the 20th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks on the World Trade Center with the opening and unveiling of a new memorial near the intersection of Broadway and Lake Street in Downtown Wayzata.
This new space will offer the community a place to remember and reflect while simultaneously honoring the lives of all victims of September 11th, as well as one of Wayzata’s native sons Gordy Aamoth Jr. who tragically passed in the attacks.
“This was a momentous, tragic event in our history that we, and future generations, will carry with us long after we’re gone,” said Johanna Mouton, Mayor of Wayzata. “I am proud that Wayzata will have this beautiful memorial right on Lake Street to remember, reflect and honor the lives lost that day.”
The memorial will include several pieces of the World Trade Center, gifted to the City from the Aamoth Family. The memorial’s design will feature two 27-foot-long horizontal plinths which are meant to resemble the iconic silhouette of the Twin Towers on the New York City skyline. The granite plinths will also serve as benches for visitors. The memorial is designed by Civitas in collaboration with Peter Aamoth from JDD Studio and youngest brother to Gordy Aamoth Jr..
“We know that the small details spark big emotion. We made a point to not make the memorial a prescribed or scripted experience,” said Scott Jordan, principal at Civitas. “It’s personal and emotional, and open in a way that allows each visitor to derive his or her own meaning. Each visitor can honor not only Gordy Aamoth Jr. but anyone who was impacted by 9/11.”
In conjunction with the memorial, there will also be a 9/11 Photography Exhibition at the Minnetonka Center for the Arts featuring photography from Minnesotans Lisa Poseley, Chris Kern and Dan Murphy. This exhibit will open to the public on September 10th with a gallery of photos, a model of the memorial and a video capturing the stories from Minnesotans who bore witness and/or were directly impacted by these events including the Aamoth & Burnett families.
This exhibit will be a unique and personal experience for all to reflect and an educational opportunity for younger generations to learn about this tragic event.
“We will never forget the thousands of precious lives lost on that crisp Tuesday morning 20 years ago,” said U.S. Representative Dean Phillips. “I’m honored to play a small role in unveiling this memorial in Wayzata, which will serve as a solemn space for reflection and remembrance for all victims, including my childhood friend and high school classmate, Gordy Aamoth Jr.”
The memorial unveiling event on September 11th is open to the public, but we ask that media refrain from photography, video filming and interviews out of respect for the families involved. Instead, media is invited to join us at a private opening of the photography exhibit on September 9th.
For interviews, images and b-roll please reach out to:
Wayzata Conservancy: Andrew Mullin: 952-484-8159 | mullin.andrew@gmail.com
City of Wayzata: Jeffrey Dahl: 952-404-5309 | jdahl@wayzata.org
Rep. Dean Phillips: Samantha Anderson: 952-656-5176 | sam.anderson@mail.house.gov Civitas: Katie Breest, 720-206-7710 | kbreest@agencypr.co
# # #
About the City of Wayzata: Wayzata is a charming, socially connected, and walkable lakeside community. A multi-generational community at the forefront of sustainability, with a healthy environment, enticing parks and public spaces. It is a proud steward of its premier natural asset; Lake Minnetonka. The City’s mission is to preserve and enhance the quality of life of the community, in order to be the idyllic city on Lake Minnetonka to live, work, shop and play.
About The Wayzata Conservancy: Founded in 2016, The Wayzata Conservancy is a non profit focused on the development of the Lake Effect plan to implement Panoway on Wayzata Bay. The patrons of the Wayzata Conservancy have funded the 9/11 project. For generations, the Wayzata lakefront has brought people together from across the state, providing a cherished experience unlike any other in MInnesota. Panoway on Wayzata Bay is a public-private partnership supported by the Wayzata Conservancy working to better connect residents to each other and to the city’s greatest asset, Lake Minnetonka.
About Civitas: Founded in 1984, Civitas is a practice of urban designers, architects and landscape architects engaged in strategic planning for urban change and project design for built works. A consultancy and a design studio, Civitas advises clients on a wide range of strategies for re-imagining city conditions, and designing the ideas, craft and implementation of built spaces and systems at the scale of infrastructure, working in U.S. cities coast to coast and around the world. For more information visit civitasinc.com.