Viewing wall going up around Ground Zero

Fence may list names of the more than 2,800 people killed

Recovery and cleanup efforts at Ground Zero in this October 17, 2001, photo. The Empire State Building is visible at top left.

NEW YORK (CNN) -- An early marker of things to come at the World Trade Center site was installed Wednesday -- the first section of a viewing wall that will surround the site throughout years of projected construction.

A 13-foot-high galvanized steel fence will run along the east and south sides of the 16-acre site where the 110-story twin towers and four smaller buildings stood.

The fence will include fiberglass panels, either with names from the list of more than 2,800 people killed in the September 11 terrorist attacks or with descriptions of the history of the site.

Construction on the World Trade Center began with the digging of its 70-foot-deep foundation in 1967. The towers were completed in 1973.

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The sidewalks will be widened in the area with most pedestrian traffic to accommodate visitors.

"On a typical day, 25,000 people will come to this site to pay their respects, view the scene of a horrible attack upon America, and reflect in their own way on the heroes we lost on September 11," said New York Gov. George Pataki.

"They can see the names, reflect back, offer a prayer, and in their own way, pay appropriate respects."

The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey -- which owns the World Trade Center site -- is building the wall. Pataki shares control of the Port Authority with New Jersey Gov. Jim McGreevey.

"It is an opportunity for us to reflect on those fallen heroes. To understand the history of the site. But also to affix America's hope, New York and New Jersey's hope, for a better America," McGreevey said.

Parts of the 1,800-foot-long viewing wall will be open to the public in time for next month's anniversary of the attacks, and it is scheduled to be completed by the end of the year.

Proposed swap in question

At the event, McGreevey cast doubts on New York City's proposal to swap the Trade Center site for the city-owned land under the Laguardia and John F. Kennedy airports, which the Port Authority operates.

"It's relatively unlikely," McGreevey said. "There is a significant difference in the allocated worth of the airports as against the present site," he said.

The deal is being floated by the administration of New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg. McGreevey has previously suggested including the Newark, New Jersey, airport -- also run by the Port Authority -- in the calculations.

"We have yet to see a detailed proposal from the city," Pataki said. "We will give it a thorough review. As I've said earlier, I have an open mind on the issue."