Sooyeon's story pitch.

U.N. BUILDING (Kim)

The story is mainly about a profile of the UN renovation process, a $1.88 billion rehabilitation project, called "Capital Master plan."
Also, along with the profile, I want to find whether there were any security changes after 9/11 and what would be the main focus or advancement from the new renovation plan (Are there any lessons from the 9/11 )

According to UN report, they will focus the aspects on security, environmental and safety issues. They plan to achieve a LEED Silver rating.
But there were not many known changes after 9/11. Even, the U.N. headquarter building has been known for not having any fire alarms and having a very old security system. (The U.N. had been flagged for 866 violations, and it was estimated that fewer than 20 percent had been taken care of so far, according to a report in The Washington Times.)

Last November, The New York City Fire Department gave the U.N. until January to comply with standards, and until March to finish. But it has been checked yet. So, I want to discover how much the process has been done as contacting the U.N, or the Fire Department.

I have tried to contact Mr Werner Schmidt, Public Information Officer and hopefully, I can have an interview him and ask him the questions I prepared.

(What would be the main advancement from the renovation? What do you think about the current safety situation in the U.N. headquarter building? Were there any security changes after 9/11?)

Also, to give some other perspective or objective opinions, I will interview someone, not working for U.N. but an expert of building safety or system that can give some opinions about the U.N. building.

Temporary Hold on Trump Soho After New Accident

Links below to two stories in today's (March 10) news regarding the Trump Soho, where work was ordered to stop again after a new accident.

New Accident Stops Work at Trump Soho Tower As Wind Wreaks Havoc (Daily News)

Temporary Hold on Trump Soho After New Accident Doesn't Appease Foes (New York Magazine)

(Photo taken from the Daily News article)

Scaffold Questions (Steagall)

Worker Safety / Scaffold

My questions will vary depending on who I'm interviewing, worker vs. administrator vs. legislator. Here are a couple, probably in a more formal style, but the same gist. In light of your (Professor Barry's) post regarding keeping questions on track, these questions don't live up to that. In fact, this topic might not be appropriate. Let me know if that's the case Professor Barry

Are you aware / in favor of the proposed changes to the Section 201 of the Labor Law, known as the Scaffold Law?

Have you received training on scaffold safety? What did it consist of?

Have you provided training on scaffold safety? What did it consist of?

Has you taken extra precautions in light of the recent deaths of construction workers?

Do you feel that the use of illegal immigrant workers is a detriment to worker safety, both their's and their co-workers?

Questions.

U.N. renovation

What would be the main advancement from the renovation?

How do you think about the current safety situation in the U.N. headquarter building?

Was there any security changes after 9/11?

Do you use different regulations for the U.S. building, since it would be considered as an international building? What's the difference?

How do you think about the criticism on the high price of the renovations?

Green Buildings (Carlson): Questions

What are the specific challenges faced by green builders in terms of meeting post-9/11 building and fire code regulations?

Are there any examples of when a green building was inspected and found to violate these post-9/11 standards?

How can green buildings address new and previous security concerns for high-rise buildings?

Are green buildings practical in an age of terrorism?

re interview questions, part II

As I reread many of your questions, I sometimes lose track of what is the point of the interview.
Double check that your questions are clearly focused to find out what has changed since 9/11, or has not changed (or since 1993 with the first attack on the World Trade Center or 1911 with the Triangle shirtwaist fire, if doing a historical comparision).

re interview questions

Fellow bloggers,
There are a lot of good questions on your posts. Be careful, however, not to get too far down a tangent, if it doesn't illuminate the main safety issue. Also, don't overwhelm interviewees with what can seem like a barrage of questions. I'd start off with a few very focused questions and then see how the interview is going, and then ask a set of additional questions where pertinent. In some cases, you may be able to get replys by email, which is fine, if the responses are on point. Telephone interviews are perhaps easier to arrange than face to face interviews with many busy people. But aim to get at least one sit down or on the scene interview (and take photos and/or video of the person). I think 2-3 good interviews per piece may do it, given everything else on your plates. But weave in more, if it makes sense for the story.
Lastly, sometimes a previously published quote is right on point. If you can reach that person, tell them you'd like to include that quote in your story and ask if they have more they'd like to say on that topic. Often, they did say more, but the rest didn't make it into the original publication.