Plans for rebuilding at the World Trade Center site - SEE HERE!

CNN ^ | 7/16/02

[decimon]

The owner of the site is the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey so whatever is built there will probably be another dud.

No tax money or Port Authority subsidy should be involved. Private capital all the way.

[wheezer]

My gut tells me this is going to play out very similarly to how the Vietnam Memorial in Wash DC played out.....initially people are going to freak over the design/plans, but upon visiting the place will realize that the planners got it absolutely right.

Workers and visitors will be both moved by the tasteful memorials and also excited about the promise for the future the new buildings will bring.

After a tug of war over delicate issues, some pushing, shoving and sharply thrown elbows, NYC's gonna' get it just right....I can't wait!

[American Preservative]

See #23, too! : )

[RedWing9]

Yes, the link provides an impressive and beautiful concept. If only the people involved would be gutsy enough to build it.

[patent]

FYI

[finnman69]

No tax money or Port Authority subsidy should be involved. Private capital all the way.

Im with you all the way.

[NYC GOP Chick]

Nothing but an exact replica of what was destroyed is o.k. in my book.

As soneone with a vested interest in this, I don't believe that the rebuilt WTC has to be an exact replica of what was so brutally taken down, but the same height (at least!) and # of floors (at least!) must be rebuilt, or we might as well just build a mosque there and put a white flag on top of it.

[chimera]

You know what my first impression of those "Memorial Park" concepts was? People standing around a grave.

We don't need that in these times. We've mourned our dead and will remember them and always honor their memory, but we don't need buildings to keep us mourning for the next few centuries. We need to build something there that will be uplifting, something to honor the resilience and determination that has marked the character of America through its history. If we do less, it may mark the first time that we, as a people, will have chosen to honor a regression and retrenchment of our national spirit.

[Zon]

Remember folks, these are just PLANNING concepts, not final building designs. Even the masses of the towers shown are just suggestive of fomrs, not final forms. My professional architectural opinion leads me to believe that the final choice will be a mix of several ideas shown here. NONE of the schemes shown here will likely make it intact to the final master plan stage.

None of the designs even approaches the 110 stories that scraped the sky.

IMO, to not have at least one in the design group is an abomination similar to the politically-correct three-hero-firefighters-hoisting-the-U.S.-flag statue

[Militiaman7]

FU Bank merged with Walkalloverya bank

[Petronski]

Each of them looks like the cans of shampoo and deodorant lined up on the average bathroom closet shelf.

When did imagination die?

[housethatruthbuilt]

i think we should leave it as a park, and plant flowers, and put in benches so we can cry in our soup and meditate about why everyone hates us so much...waa waa

thats effectively what i overheard someone saying the other day. i almost slapped the person and gave them money for a one way ticket to berkeley. instead i ordered a double.

in other words, i am with you. they should be a little more structurally sound of course, and easier to get around in (i used to work there, and would again)

[livius]

In terms of the buildings and fitting in with what exists there now, I like 6 best. But, at the same time, it would be nice to have a large green space (such as in #1), not only as a memorial, but to provide open space for concerts and other large public activities (of the sort that the Islamics would like to put a stop to forever). I agree that none of them are really stunning, but they're a start.

Another interesting thing is that the WTC towers were so high that they cast a shadow over much of lower Manhattan. It appears to me that the shorter and more open design of these new towers will be fitting because it will make lower Manhattan feel lighter and more open, and will invite more people into the area - thus bringing back its life and activity, which is something else the Islamics hate.

[E Rocc]

None of the designs even approaches the 110 stories that scraped the sky.

The minimum height for at least one of the buildings should be 1,351 feet.

-Eric

[Bloody Sam Roberts]

Plan #1 looks very nice. The only thing I can see wrong with it at first glance is the vortices likely to be created in the park when high winds come off the harbor and through the 4 buildings that look like airfoils.

Wouldn't this also create the effect of the buildings being drawn together from a drop in air pressure?

[discostu]

Not tall enough!

Oh well, that's the problem with not being king, don't always get what you want. Other than that I don't really see a problem with any of these, I like the 5th one the most (seems to be the tallest). Not worried about lack of imagination. If you look at the old WTC with 9-10 eyes the buildings were pretty plain, gaining their beauty largely through being so damn tall. In some ways replacing them with something more exciting would be kind of an insult.

And hey, let's here it for that clean up crew. When all this went down I thought it would be a least a year probably closer to two before the site was cleared. These guys did an awesome job under very physically and emotionally difficult circumstances and will unfortuantely probably be over looked by history. But for now we can give them a pat on the back and a couple of attaboys out of petty cash.

[RobRoy]

Now's the time to put up Frank Lloyd Wright's mile high design!!!-

[RobRoy]

The last one is my favorite except the two towers need to be trippled in hieght... imo

[rintense]

Yet, couldn't it possibly also be in the prelim phase as the others are? With a few modifications, it would look like the Renaissance Center in Detroit.

In terms of the complete concept, it has been well thought out. The design can also be changed as long as the concept remains true.

Honestly, they will never create a building that will satisfy everyone. They need to pick the best and most feasible design and ignore the negative opinions.

[NYC GOP Chick]

My gut tells me this is going to play out very similarly to how the Vietnam Memorial in Wash DC played out.....initially people are going to freak over the design/plans, but upon visiting the place will realize that the planners got it absolutely right.

Totally different situation. The Vietnam Memorial is totally different from this, in that it was designed and planned to be a memorial -- nothing more, nothing less. But the WTC has to rebuilt to include commerce and other stuff, and there's going to be nasty battles over how much land goes for what purpose.