NY1's Grace Rauh filed the following report. A crumbling building in Lower Manhattan could soon become a mosque and Islamic cultural center. Anywhere else in the city, the plan would be unlikely to generate controversy. But it's just around the corner from the World Trade Center site, where nearly 3,000 people lost their lives on September 11, 2001. "It is almost as if they are giving these radicals a place that they can come to look at what they did," said Al Santora whose son was lost on September 11th.

 On his website, a Tea Party leader Mark Williams called the mosque a monument to the September 11th hijackers, a place where people could worship their "monkey God." "We have no tolerance for that in our city. Our city is open to anybody, no matter what your religion is," said Mayor Michael Bloomberg. Elected officials rallied in support of the mosque and cultural center Thursday, where many called it a center of peace. "We stand today, unified. Filled with hope and love and rejecting this kind of bigotry," said Manhattan Borough President Scott Stringer. The chairman of the Cordoba Initiative, which is behind the project, says his organization is trying to build a cultural center like the 92nd Street Y or the Jewish Community Center, which would have programs for Muslims and non-Muslims alike. "This is also our expression of the 99.99 percent of Muslims all over the world -- including in America -- who have condemned and continue to condemn terrorism," said Imam Feisal Abdul Rauf of the Cordoba Initiative.

Families who lost loved ones during the September 11th attacks say they're not opposed to mosques in general, they're just upset by the idea of having one so close to the World Trade Center site. Al and Maureen Santora, who lost their son, Christopher, a city firefighter, say it's as if the grief and sorrow connected to the site is being ignored. "There are plenty of places in New York City where you can build a mosque. To have it two blocks from the world trade center seems very inappropriate and just callous," said Maureen Santora. It seems for now, at least, the project is a go. Mayor Bloomberg also noted Thursday that as long as zoning laws are complied with, anyone looking to build a house of worship in the city can do it. manhattan.ny1.com

The last time they saw it, the room looked like it belonged in the 1970s. “Our rec room is a wreck” is how former chief Kevin Bockus described it. Not anymore. Andres Krusberg/NBCThe Country Hills recreation room, before (top) and after.The “old, antique-looking, run-down dorm stuff” — as assistant chief Brian Ricks called the décor in the old room — had been replaced by leather couches, a swivel flat-screen TV, a gaming corner, a fish-tank table, a new computer and funky lights that dangled from red cords from the ceiling.

On the back wall, a blown-up 1964 photograph of a fireman tied the room together. The people responsible for the transformation were the crew of “Open House NYC,” an LXTV real estate show that airs on Sunday mornings and aids residents in the tri-state area with decorating and designing.

Every show is ended with a special segment called “Open House to the Rescue,” where the crew comes to the aid of homeowners with problems they can't solve themselves.

Sometimes LXTV, owned by NBC Universal's Local Media division, puts on full shows of the rescue segment, and that's what they were doing here in Bridgewater. The episode will air on Sunday, May 23, at 8:30 a.m. on all NBC-owned television stations. “In this particular rescue, instead of coming to a homeowner's aid, we decided to come and rescue the rescuers,” said George Oliphant, host of the show.

It all started when Bockus, a 15-year-member of the firehouse, was watching TV one Sunday morning about two months ago. He typed an e-mail to the show about the rec room, where the 30 active fire fighters and 15 administrative members hang out when not on duty. “We get almost two-hundred e-mails a week for requests for Open House to the Rescue,” Oliphant said, adding that the words “volunteer fire department” made this e-mail rise to the top of the stack. “These guys are dedicating their lives, they're risking their lives day in and day out to voluntarily come to our rescue.

No matter how big or small the fire is, these guys aren't getting paid,” Oliphant said. A week later, Bockus got a phone call from the producer of the show. A few meetings later, and NBC was in Bridgewater, demolishing the old space. “First phone call, I was really skeptical as to whether or not this was really going to occur. And as things moved forward, it was obvious that NBC was pursuing this, and I was very excited,” Bockus said. The Open House team, which included designer Jill Vegas, had free rein in the room, with the caveats that there needed to be a space to play games and Internet access for those doing homework. Bockus said the fire fighters also told the show: “Please try to avoid pink, frilly things.”

There were cheers all around as the fire fighters flowed into the new room like water breaking over a dam, trying out the new couches and admiring the mural on the wall. “The fish tank is the best,” said Steven Cornella, Jr., of Bridgewater, a 20-year-old fire fighter. “This is insane,” Ricks said. “It's not even comparable.” More than just giving the fire fighters a new place to gather between fire calls, Bockus is hoping that the room and its exposure on the show will entice new members.

 “We are hoping that in addition to having a nice space to ourselves that this may become attractive to some of the local folks in our area that wish to volunteer their time,” Bockus said.