By Jane Standley BBC New York correspondent

More than 5,000 people, including many relatives of those who died in the attacks of 11 September, are expected at a meeting on Saturday to discuss the redevelopment of the World Trade Center (WTC) site.

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The meeting, called Listening to the City, is based on the American "town hall" style gathering, and will also include discussions on what kind of memorial should be built.

The forum is being organised by more than 85 civic, business, environmental and academic groups, with the input of some of the numerous support organisations and charities which have been formed by families of the 3,000 victims.

The aim is to start as broad a discussion as is possible on the thorny issues which are facing New Yorkers, now that the site of the WTC stands cleared and ready for rebuilding.

Business interests

Earlier this week, six initial plans for the site were unveiled by its owners, the Port Authority.

All included skyscraper office blocks, and the majority involved building directly on the land where the Twin Towers stood.

This has not found favour with victims' families, nor with many leading city officials.

The plans, and the way in which New York should now move forward, will be at the centre of all of Saturday's discussions, as will ideas for a memorial.

This last topic is such a sensitive and potentially controversial one, it is being discussed separately from any other reconstruction plans.