••• The New York Times checks in with Christopher O. Ward [right], executive director of the Port Authority and appealing straight-talker: “He began by tearing up the existing schedules and budgets and told the governor that the project would cost $3 billion more than originally estimated. He stopped calling the main skyscraper the Freedom Tower, a name used by Gov. George E. Pataki. ‘We were free before 9/11, we were free after 9/11,” he said. “New Yorkers don’t need a tower named ‘freedom.’ New Yorkers need to know that we built it, that there’s a place to go and work.’ As Mr. Ward saw it, the entire project was being choked by its symbolic duties. ‘I told Paterson, ‘This first needs to be a construction site.'”

••• “At least 10,000 people in New York have post-traumatic stress disorder, and while many were emergency responders, others were passive witnesses.” (New York Times)

••• Neue Cuisine, a cookbook by Blaue Gans‘s Kurt Gutenbrunner, comes out in September. Food & Wine has a recipe for salami-egg canapés.

••• “The lavatories at two local restaurants—Ninja New York in Tribeca and Habana Outpost in Fort Greene, Brooklyn—were among the 10 nominees for America’s Best Restroom, an annual competition sponsored by Cintas, a uniform and bathroom supply company. […] Voting opened online last week and runs through Sept. 19. With its heated toilets and elaborate washing technology, Ninja New York figures to be a formidable competitor. Visitors in either the men’s or women’s room operate a control pad outlining various ‘comfort wash’ options within the bowl. On command, a wand sprays water from the front or the rear of the toilet, oscillating and pulsating as instructed by the user. When the wash is complete, guests need only push the ‘Dryer’ button and remain seated.” In other words, it’s a Japanese toilet. (New York Times)

••• Pictures from the Salty Paw’s Puppy Prom. (DNAinfo)

••• More on CB1’s hand-holding event on Sept. 10. (Tribeca Trib)