Burlington Coat Factory 168

Burlington Coat Factory #168 was a Burlington Coat Factory off-price department store located at 45 Park Place in New York, New York. The store opened on November 1, 1990, the chain's first location in New York City. Located a few blocks from the World Trade Center, the store's building was heavily damaged during the in 2001, when landing gear from one of the planes that hit the Twin Towers fell onto the building's roof. The store never reopened, and Burlington's lease on the space expired in 2008. The building was planned to be the site of, a proposed Islamic community center that drew national attention in May 2010 as the "Ground Zero mosque". As Park51 gained media attention, Burlington hastily removed its large signs from the building, causing damage to the facade. Park51's organizers sued Burlington Coat Factory for $4.5 million over the damages, arguing that the damage was intentionally done out of hostility toward the proposal.