What is Digg?157 Comments
- DarkEnder, on 10/12/2007, -5/+94I hate names like "Freedom Tower."
- helix400, on 10/12/2007, -8/+63"i would like to see the old towers come back with some modern improvements."
Like this? http://www.pages.drexel.edu/~ina22/WTC-redesign.gif - epilonious, on 10/12/2007, -7/+55Every single artists rendering and architectural mockup I have see for what is to form in ground zero has essentially been the epitome of "damning with faint praise."
"Hey, New York, two parts of your iconic skyline have just been leveled... what are you going to do now?"
"Build the same towers one floor higher? Thereby indicating a large middle finger to those-who-would-threaten-America and maintaining the look of New-York and the business-as-usual attitude which shows America will not be swayed by dramatic attacks from pipsqueak assailants?"
"No! You're gonna take 6 years to vasillate against staggering beurocracy before you can even start construction on a cacophany of functionless aesthetic architectural abortus. Thereby indicating that not only terrorist attacks are effective against America for Winning Attention... but also provide years of constant reminders that for all America's acheivements... there is still a bunch of ridiculous incompetance and squabbling." - MarkCiccone, on 10/12/2007, -6/+53Build the towers back. I don't want to see futuristic ***** buildings, it doesn't place right in NYC's skyline. Build the towers, exactly as they were before, as a big "***** you' to whoever brought them down.
- joerod, on 10/12/2007, -5/+40with all due respect to the people who died during 9/11, i would like to see the old towers come back with some modern improvements.
- theone3, on 10/12/2007, -4/+35Subtlety has never been America's strongpoint.
- iDVD, on 10/12/2007, -1/+29Because registration is a bitch
Designs Unveiled for Freedom Tower’s Neighbors
*pic: http://graphics10.nytimes.com/images/2006/09/07/nyregion/07wtc.600.jpg
The developer of the new World Trade Center unveiled the designs this morning for three skyscrapers at ground zero, which in their gargantuan scale would reshape the New York skyline.
*pic: http://graphics10.nytimes.com/images/2006/09/07/nyregion/07wtc2.l.jpg
Each building has a different renowned architect — Norman Foster and Richard Rogers, both of London, and Fumihiko Maki of Tokyo — and the result is entirely unlike the monolithic uniformity of the original trade center.
The office towers, designated simply Towers 2, 3 and 4 for now, would occupy three sites between Church and Greenwich Streets, along the eastern edge of the trade center site. Together with the winged PATH terminal and transportation hub, they would form the face that the trade center presents to the rest of downtown, with the signature Freedom Tower behind them.
The designs presented this morning by the developer, Larry A. Silverstein, together offered the most comprehensive picture to date of what the finished complex might — just might — look like six years from now.
Lord Foster’s Tower 2, with a rooftop of four enormous diamonds steeply inclined toward the memorial below, would be as high as the Empire State Building. Tower 3 by Lord Rogers, framed boldly by an exoskeletal framework of diagonal beams, would reach a pinnacle of 1,255 feet at its corner antennas. Even the smallest and subtlest building among them, Mr. Maki’s Tower 4, would be taller than the Citigroup Center in midtown.
If these buildings form any kind of ensemble with the Freedom Tower — Tower 1, by Skidmore, Owings & Merrill of New York — , it would probably be a jazz quartet.
Apart from Tower 2, they are also a far cry from the quartz-like forms originally envisioned by Daniel Libeskind, the official master planner of the trade center site. Though they follow Mr. Libeskind’s dictum that the office towers step down in height progressively from the Freedom Tower, the intended spiraling effect may be lost on the casual viewer because the buildings do not appear at first glance to be parts of a unified whole. Instead, it may look like an instance of urban randomness.
Under the terms of an April agreement with the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, which is in place conceptually but has yet to be signed, Mr. Silverstein would construct and control all three buildings. He is also developing the Freedom Tower for the authority. Mr. Silverstein has surrendered his interest in the Tower 5 site, where the former Deutsche Bank building still stands awaiting demolition. Tower 5 has yet to be designed.
No matter the polish and refinement of the models and renderings seen today, the designs will certainly be subject to change in coming months and years, like all of the other projects at ground zero.
By virtue of its size and aesthetic bravura, Lord Foster’s Tower 2 at 200 Greenwich Street, between Vesey and Fulton Streets, may draw the most public attention. The 1,265-foot building is to have 78 floors, 62 for offices, four trading floors and the rest for retail and mechanical space. The uppermost of the rooftop diamonds will be a tripod shaped antenna whose pinnacle is 1,350 feet above street level, just 18 feet shy of the Freedom Tower’s parapet.
Construction of Tower 2 will require the removal of the Vesey Street staircase, also known as the survivors’ stairway, which is the only aboveground remnant of the original trade center that is still in place. It served as an escape route for hundreds of people on 9/11.
The main shaft of Tower 2 is to be divided by notches into quadrants, culminating in diamond forms that are meant to lead the eye down to the memorial plaza. The surface of these structures will be a porous screen on which snow and ice are not expected to accumulate; always a hazard on a steeply pitched roof.
Lord Rogers’s Tower 3 at 175 Greenwich Street, between Dey and Cortlandt Streets, is a flat-topped building with asymmetrical shoulders and the diagonal beams of the exoskeletal framework seem to echo the rooftop of Tower 2. The building will rise 1,155 feet, reaching the higher pinnacle at the antennas. It will have five trading floors, three retail floors, nine mechanical floors and 54 floors of offices, for a total of 71 stories.
Cortlandt Street will be kept open between Tower 3 and Tower 4. The Port Authority had originally proposed constructing a shopping arcade that would join the buildings’ bases, but city officials objected to the loss of an open corridor between the memorial and the rest of Lower Manhattan.
Mr. Maki’s Tower 4 at 150 Greenwich Street, between Cortlandt and Liberty Streets, is the most understated of the lot, with a sheer curtain wall. The 61-story tower rises for most of its height as a parallelogram and then, nearly 700 feet in the sky, it becomes a trapezoid, reaching an overall height of 946 feet, with no antennas. The upper part of the facade inclines toward the towers to the north and is meant as a unifying gesture.
Under the conceptual development agreement, most of this building is to be occupied by the Port Authority and New York City offices. - ScornForSega, on 10/12/2007, -6/+34With just a little better fire retardant please.
- matts0344, on 10/12/2007, -3/+28As do I. Even the "New World Trade Center" would have sufficied. I hate BS names like that.
- konradk, on 10/12/2007, -4/+28Call them French Towers, so they forgive for Freedom Fries. Lol.
Go ahead, mod me down... - cazabam, on 10/12/2007, -6/+28"Freedom Fries" are already subject of international ridicule. This will only make it worse.
- Jaxim, on 10/12/2007, -0/+19During the time that these towers were built, people at the time thought they were ugly. I would have to agree. I think we need more buildings like the Chrysler building -- with eagle gargoyles screeching at the direction of the Middle East. I say we have the artists from Hollywood come up with some interesting and beautiful designs and then have an architect translate the designs into something possible. I'm tired of the minimalistic approach to building design.
- BadassCheese, on 10/12/2007, -7/+23I would like to see the WTC rebuilt as they were, but white instead of darker colors. I think it's the best "***** you" we could give to terrorists.
- Chewie67, on 10/12/2007, -0/+16"The buildings were not built with the idea of being rammed by ***** planes, for christ's sake."
Actually, they were. After the Empire State Building was hit by a plane in the 1940s (50s?) -- due to heavy fog -- most buildings in NY were built to withstand a hit by an airplane.
The problem is that the towers were designed to be hit by the smaller planes that were circa the 1960's, not the larger jets with more fuel like in 2001. - rockefeller, on 10/12/2007, -3/+18I'm so sick of hearing this "if we don't do this, the terrorists win", as if it's some 3rd grade triple dog dare or something.
I wish people would really grow up and stop talking about terrorism altogether. I think the simple fact that they are constantly in your brain means they have "won" already.
I wish "terrorism" would stop being the main news story everyday. "Terrorism" has been around long before 9/11 and we didn't hear about it everyday before 9/11. I wish the CIA, FBI, or whoever would just do their job and take care of it and leave it out of the daily headlines. I wish people would stop trying to use it as a means to promote their political agenda.
End of Rant - rysar, on 10/12/2007, -2/+17Good that they're finally moving forward again, bad that there's really no collaboration between the architects.
- tizz66, on 10/12/2007, -2/+16Yeah, but it's not really anymore corny than 'Statue of Liberty'. After a few years it'll just become normal to call it that.
- bebop717, on 10/12/2007, -0/+14Who would want to work in a building that looks and feels like the old towers?
That would be kinda creepy to me. - JTMON, on 10/12/2007, -0/+12Dude, are you stupid? How tall is the pentagon? Oh, there goes your target theory.
- inactive, on 10/12/2007, -1/+13It is indeed very dis-joint looking.
10-1 says they're all completed before Boston's Big-Dig is done. - sunchild, on 10/12/2007, -1/+13As a New Yorker who lives two blocks from the WTC site, I might have a bit more invested in this than some of you. In my opinion, the new buildings look terrific and are a welcome addition to the skyline. I'm not too fond of what I've seen of building #5, but it may change and improve before it gets built. I really like the one they've already finished (#7). Go New York!
- da233, on 10/12/2007, -1/+13
Anyone remember those 2 blue spotlights they used as a memorial for the WTC?
Wish they still had those, they looked so beautiful. They went SO incredible high into the sky, with such a nice dark-neonish blue color. - SlaunchaMan, on 10/12/2007, -6/+17Dugg down because of registration prompt. I hate having to log in to read news stories.
- rdotson, on 10/12/2007, -1/+11@matts0344
"New World Trade Center"? That name would drive the New World Order conspiracists nuts, LOL! - doom.md, on 10/12/2007, -0/+10I glad that they are making progress but is it just me or is the Freedom Tower one of the worst looking buildings ever designed.
They had the opportunity to do something really special but they choose a monolithic obelisk of an office building. - nixr, on 10/12/2007, -4/+14I think "Liberty Tower" is a more suitable name. It ties in nicely with the Statue of Liberty and doesn't reek of the post-9/11 chest pounding that was rampant after the attacks.
- gotamd, on 10/12/2007, -4/+14Yeah, it seems like they're trying too hard to prove that, yes, we do actually have freedom in "the land of the free".
- feylanks, on 10/12/2007, -1/+11I heard this on the internet. IT MUST BE TRUE!!
idiot. - turbowombat, on 10/12/2007, -0/+9They still have those lights -- they were turned on on sept.1st and I believe they are to stay on all month. I can see them out of my office window every evening.
- inactive, on 10/12/2007, -0/+9Actually, the towers wer designed to be hit by a 727 (the largest plane at the time of their design) and remain standing for 10 minutes. When they were built, the steel was upgraded to withstand the heat of burning airplane fuel for at least 15 minutes. The fact that they remained standind for over an hour after being hit my MUCH larger planes than a 727, traveling much faster than a 727 is just amazing.
The History channel has the architect on at the 1st anniversary of the attack and he said that he was absolutely astounded that they didn't crumple at the time of the strike because they were NEVER designed to take that kind of punishment.
NOTHING if fireproof. With enough energy, EVERYTHING will burn. Ever hear of the sun? - mapkinase, on 10/12/2007, -5/+14Statue of Liberty was a gift from France. In 1886 US was not considered worldwide as evil as it is considered today.
The difference between "Freedom tower" and "Statue of Liberty" is difference between world of year 1886 and 2006 - john570, on 10/12/2007, -9/+18Again with all due respect to the people who died in 911 I would NOT like to see those two huge rectangular boxes be rebuilt. They were just plain ugly.
- goblindegook, on 10/12/2007, -4/+13"I would like to see the WTC rebuilt as they were, but white instead of darker colors."
White could be a problem, as dust and air pollution would very quickly cover the whole thing with a dirty gray patina. - paulmike3, on 10/12/2007, -0/+9http://www.bugmenot.com/view/www.nytimes.com
- john570, on 10/12/2007, -0/+8Well it's called a city. Square footage is at a premium in large cities like New York. This is why buildings are built tall there.
- krinthekuz, on 09/16/2008, -1/+9if you actively live in fear of the terrorists, then they won. you want to change your behaviour because of something they did. the terrorists just beat you.
- misterpony, on 10/12/2007, -2/+10For me it's that the NY Times requires cookies to view anything. I'm not going to bother adding them to my allowed cookies list just to read this. I did bother to type a comment about it which is probably taking longer, but oh well...
- DiggidtyDog, on 10/12/2007, -3/+10Agreed,register=no digg
- EBFoxbat, on 10/12/2007, -2/+9I don't so much care what they look like. I want them built. They should be 1/2-way done by now. It's time.
- kalte, on 10/12/2007, -5/+12Try taking photos of the buildings after they are built and see how much freedom you get.
- NoSalt, on 10/12/2007, -1/+6Have you seen the buildings??? They are TOTALLY ugly!!!
I agree with all those who say that they would like to see the old buildings back with improvements. Many people don't know this, but The Donald (i.e., Trump) hired his own architect to come up with plans for the site and he, basically, redesigned the old buildings but better. They even had much improved safety features. Plus, they were a little taller.
With absolutely NO respect to the families of the victims ... they should have ABSOLUTELY NO say so in the redesign of the buildings or of what to do with the land. You didn't see them asking my vote for the design of the Vietnam War Memorial did you even though I was affected?!?!?!? - sunchild, on 10/12/2007, -0/+5@nixr
The WTC borders Liberty Street and Liberty Plaza, too. - cbreaker, on 10/12/2007, -0/+5The thing about the original towers is that they were enourmous and very functional, as well as industrial in appearance. In my opinion, this is what NYC stands for, and the old towers fit right into that.
New, better, and slightly more stylish towers could be put up in their places, but to change the design too much would be to take away the benefits of lower cost construction and functionality.
I say rebuild them, use concrete reinforced steel like they do in cities near fault lines, and be done with it. No planes could take down those buildings if they were built with reinfoced concrete steel. - tainedhero, on 10/12/2007, -0/+5I think its good that they are designed differently. It shows the individuality of the American people. Americans are very different from each other. In terms of Culture, Race, etc. And I feel that the building differences show that.
- gummih, on 10/12/2007, -1/+62000ft? You would have to do a lot better than that - probably closer to 3000
The Dubai tower is currently being constructed and is to be completed in 2008 at close to 2600ft! Other projects are under way to compete for tallest building.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Burj_Dubai - inactive, on 10/12/2007, -3/+8@datastorageguy
Your example is only one opinion, and only states he never worked for the CIA. I never stated he did.
He WAS (as was the mujahideen) trained by the ISI (Pakistani version of the CIA), who where being supplied and advised by the CIA (under Reagan's administration), with the express goal of removing the russians from Afghanistan. Once the Russians left Afghanistan, the support suddenly ended, and the Mujahideen (and Bin Laden) were ignored, and became what they are today. I never remotely stated he worked directly for the CIA, but he was supplied with guns and training during this period. Is this so hard to understand? Just like Saddam was supported when his goal suited the American administration.
Don't assume everyone who has a different viewpoint from you is a crackpot. Research ALL the facts from different viewpoints and then come to a LOGICAL conclusion, not just believe the crap you are spoonfed
This is not from silly schoolboy bloggers. It's historical fact, not just posted on the internet by crackpots. I will supply better links when I have more time.
http://www.globalresearch.ca/articles/CHO109C.html
http://www.saag.org/papers3/paper287.html
http://www.janes.com/security/international_security/news/misc/janes011001_1_n.shtml
http://www.globalissues.org/Geopolitics/MiddleEast/TerrorInUSA/Anatomy.asp
http://www.atimes.com/atimes/Central_Asia/FD01Ag02.html
http://socrates.berkeley.edu/~pdscott/qdimu.html
http://www.guardian.co.uk/comment/story/0,,1266317,00.html - ElectricGrandpa, on 10/12/2007, -0/+4skyshock you totally missed the point: that the pentagon isn't tall.
- inactive, on 10/12/2007, -0/+4Thanks for the copy/paste!
I look forward to these things obstructing my current view of jersey :) - datastorageguy, on 10/12/2007, -3/+7@ cartoonAI
How can you claim that the CIA trained Bin Laden when it is so completely false. Just one example:
http://www.cnn.com/2006/WORLD/asiapcf/08/15/bergen.answers/index.html
Yet another baseless folktale put forward by the "I get my news from blogs written by ritalin high teenagers living in their mother's basements" - Gavin, on 10/12/2007, -0/+4Looks very good but there too shiny for New York all the other buildings look like crap next to them.
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