Efforts to come up with a new, less of a hassle, security plan for visitors heading to Statue of Liberty National Monument have been restarted, as various state, local and federal agencies have failed to reach agreement on a new plan.

What happens when you try to apply modern fire and safety codes to a historic structure that was built long before such requirements were considered? When that structure is an international icon like the Statue of Liberty, the challenges are big ones indeed. Those needs are perhaps even more apparent in the post-9-1-1 era, and plans for the work are well underway. If you have any comments, the NPS would be glad to have them.

One of the most famous urban scenes in the world is view of the New York City skyline from Liberty Island, but the island, home of the Statue of Liberty, is normally closed to the public during the evening. Special tours will offer a chance to visit the island—and enjoy the view—on eight Thursday nights this summer. Space is limited and advance tickets are required.

Once used to shuttle recently-admitted immigrants from Ellis Island to Manhattan, the ferryboat “Ellis Island” was retired in 1954 and sank at its berth in 1968. Now a difficult salvage operation has retrieved the historic ship‘s rusted remains.