NEW YORK | One World Trade Center | 1,776' Pinnacle / 1,373' Roof | 108 FLOORS

[aluminum]

As much as I like the idea of the tower being 1776 ft, it takes a mast (spire) to get that high! The roof is only 1368 ft- small change by todays standards. Personally I would have liked to show the terrorists that when they knock down the WTC, we will simply build the tallest skyscraper in the world in its place.... and we'll erect it faster than anyone too. We are the USA. I hope that doesnt sound too imperial but heck just look at the drawings of the freedom tower next to other supertall builidings around the world. It doesn't stand out as anything special! You put the Freedom Tower in Dubai and its just another building.



Well said.
If not WTB, they should've atleast made it 1776' to the roof.


I hope that doesnt sound too imperial but heck just look at the drawings of the freedom tower next to other supertall builidings around the world. It doesn't stand out as anything special! You put the Freedom Tower in Dubai


or Chicago, or HK , or Shanghai ...... (what next ?.... Moscow ?)........... this list keeps gettin' bigger every year............................................. (no offense)

[fastdupree]

Yes, I agree on the idea of the Freedom Tower being 1,776' to the top of the roof. It's not like we're asking for it to be 2,000' like the CS or as tall as Burj Dubai. I'm sure the architects themselves wanted it to be much bigger when they issued their proposals knowing other bigger, better and taller skyscrapers were on the way. How can you claim world's tallest when you never had a chance in the first place. I love NY and the Empire State Bldg will always be my favorite on the planet but if ground zero is too affraid for a mega building to be built, then build one somewhere in Manhattan just to show we still have some balls. Especially when the economy gets better.

[Daquan13]

Sorry for saying this, but.................,

I think you all should be so glad that Ground Zero is getting anything at all, much less tall office towers. The officials could have very well left it as is or just build the memorial and nothing else, which is what some of the 09-11 families wanted at first.

You should not be so picky over how tall the roof will be. Here we are, about to get the very latest in skyscaper technology and architecture.

The Freedom Tower will also be beautiful, spectacular and elegant in in all its glory, in both height and stature - yet all some of you seem to want to do is nit-pick at it because you don't think that the roof of the tower is high enough.

Let it go. Sit back, relax, watch and enjoy as the building sprouts out of the ground and soars into the sky.

[Dalton]

The original Twin Towers were criticised for being too tall and overdominating for the area. A single 2000' tower would look even worse, totally dwarfing everything surrounding it. I think the current plan with 3 "shorter" supertalls and one near supertall will integrate the WTC site into the overall lower Manhattan skyline much better and form a much more pleasing skyline cluster as well as a more comfortable environment for those working within.

Let's face it, the United States has likely lost the title of "World's Tallest Building" for good. Deal with it.

[Daquan13]

I don't even care about the USA having the WTB any more.

And also, the ESB will be the ONLY office tower on earth for a long time to have had that title for just over 40 years.

So New York has nothing to be ashamed about.

[RandySavage]

I think the current plan with 3 "shorter" supertalls and one near supertall will integrate the WTC site into the overall lower Manhattan skyline much better and form a much more pleasing skyline cluster as well as a more comfortable environment for those working within.

I agree. While the massiveness of the original Twins was integral to what made them great, it also served to diminish the surrounding buildings to the point of making them look like little toy models. The new WTC is much gentler on the surrounding skyscrapers, to the benefit of the downtown skyline.

[CHAPINM1]

We'll be getting two towers of the same height back and then some! It will definetly be more dense, towers 3 and 4 will now be highrises as well! I honostly can't complain!

[fastdupree]

I also don't care very much of NY having world's tallest title anymore being that Dubai is going to build something taller everytime it gets a challenge. I just want to see something somewhere in Manhattan that makes me say "Wow" not only in looks but in pure building height. The Freedom Tower looks to become a great Skyscraper in beauty and size and yes, we are lucky to get such a gift. But, I just want to see something built somewhere in NYC that has serious dominance on the skyline like CS will in Chicago or Burj Dubai in Dubai. I think Dubai just might be the new Disney World of the future when people start flocking there in the years to come just to see a Skyscraper that has the tittle we had in the US for so many years. I'd even be happy with something in NY the size of SWFC but not with a spire.

[Jobohimself]

I agree that much more could have been done for the Freedom Tower. I LOVE tower 2, however.

[Jobohimself]

We cannot have WTB anyway because the FAA limits building height in the US to 2000 feet.

[Alliance]

It has been well established that that is not the case. Those guidelines can be overridden with FAA approval.

[Daquan13]

He's right, it IS true.

The FAA WON'T allow buildings built taller than 2,000 ft. ANYWHERE in the country.

[Nowhereman1280]

^^^ No he's not Daquan. Its been gone over again and again, these are only guide lines. It is entirely possible to get special permission to build taller than 2000'...

Here is the actual FAA documents regarding this restriction:

http://forms.faa.gov/forms/faa7460-1.pdf

Direct quote from the document:

"A proposed structure or an alteration to an existing structure that exceeds 2,000 feet in height above the ground will be presumed to be a hazard to air navigation and to result in an inefficient utilization of airspace and the applicant has the burden of overcoming that presumption. Each notice submitted under the pertinent provisions of this part 77 proposing a structure in excess of 2,000 feet above ground, or an alteration that will make an existing structure exceed that height, must contain a detailed showing, directed to meeting this burden. Only in exceptional cases, where the FAA concludes that a clear and compelling showing has been made that it would not result in an inefficient utilization of the airspace and would not result in a hazard to air navigation, will a determination of no hazard be issued."


Note that it specifically says that in cases where it can be shown that a structure over 2000' will not be an inefficient use of airspace and not a hazard, an exception can be made. In other words, you are wrong...

[Daquan13]

Not so fast.

Proposed? Yes, maybe. Who knows for sure? The proof is NOT in the pudding until it has actually been approved and construction started.

But has one actually been built yet? No. Wanna bet that there's going to be a lot of red tape & BS trying to get approval for it? Could be.

Bottom line is though, that the Freedom Tower will be a magnificent and extraordinary structure when completed. It and Tower 2 will both be giants, so no one
should be complaining about the roofs of the two supposedly not being tall enough.

[Nowhereman1280]

No, I do not wanna bet. I know there will be lots of red tape, when is there ever not lots of red tape when dealing with the federal government?

However, your original statement was not "It will be a pain in the ass to get permission build a building taller than 2000'", but the following:


The FAA WON'T allow buildings built taller than 2,000 ft. ANYWHERE in the country.

WON'T does not mean "it can happen, but it will be hard", it means it can't happen, so, yes, your original statement was completely wrong.

I can't wait for the first 2000'+ building to be built in the US so that myth will be disposed of once and for all...

[Daquan13]

Whatever. I know what I said. Go do some more research, because until and unless this happens, you got your wires crossed.

Let it go and stop beating up on a dead horse. I'm not here to argue or debate with you.

Let's just stick with the discussion of the Freedom Tower, please.

That talk is all irrelevent, off topic and has absolutely nothing to do with the Freedom Tower.

Now getting back to the Freedom Tower, I'm anxiously waiting to see it rise from the ashes at Ground Zero. It will be the most spectacular thing since the construction of 7 WTC!

[fastdupree]

Here in Philly, The rule in the 80s was not to ever build a skyscraper over William Penn's hat at top of city hall which is about 500 feet tall. Now, today we have atleast 7 skyscrapers taller than Willy Penn and more on the way. Rules can be changed.

[aluminum]

^^^ Thats right, and haven't you guys heard of this old saying: 'You don't make history by following the rules... ' :haha:


Bottom line is though, that the Freedom Tower will be a magnificent and extraordinary structure when completed.

It might be magnificent, it can be extraordinary structure, hell it can even become the 'Eighth Wonder of the World', but [this is a big 'but'], i t i s n o t t a l l
e n o u g h w h e n m e a s u r e d f r o m s t r e e t l e v e l t o r o o f . When it isn't, it just isn't.

[Daquan13]

Oh stop it, will you?

Some of you are just NEVER satisfied with the stuff that is planned for Ground Zero.

Will you be nit-picking at the other towers as well? Deal with it.

[nick22185]

Any new construction pics? The most recent ive seen were taken in January.

[fastdupree]

I like the Freedom Tower and all of the others being built on that site. Especially tower #2. Tower #2 would be even more awsome if it came to a point at the center top of the building rather than the corner top. Just imagine that people. Oh man that would be beautiful. I wish someone could do a photo-shop of that idea. Tower #3 and #4 I can't see any differently. Maybe this comment belong on tower #2 thread.

[cactus22minus1]

This has got to be the most mind numbing thread on the entire forum, and I don't think I have to say why. The fact that I actually come back from time to time makes me a little masochistic.

[Realthang]

This has got to be the most mind numbing thread on the entire forum

That's because there is so little going on that the same crud gets repeated over and over.:yuck:

[Apex]

I like the Freedom Tower and all of the others being built on that site. Especially tower #2. Tower #2 would be even more awsome if it came to a point at the center top of the building rather than the corner top. Just imagine that people. Oh man that would be beautiful. I wish someone could do a photo-shop of that idea. Tower #3 and #4 I can't see any differently. Maybe this comment belong on tower #2 thread.

The idea of the slope on No. 2 is to direct one's eyes down to the memorial. Obviously making a central point (as cool as that might look) would destroy any such effect.

[STERNyc]

I hate to be one of those people, but...

Any updates?

This thread desperately needs a photo update.

[Daquan13]

It took seven years to build the Twins.

The Freedom Tower will be completed two years sooner. And you can't wait for five years?

Patience is a vertue. Good things come to those who wait.

[Dac150]

Truly, the pace it is going at is a little slow.

Not at all. I pass by there nearly everyday, and the site is always buzzing with activity. I was heading to the WFC yesterday via Liberty Street, and got a peak (tough to see from there). Trust me, progress can clearly by seen.

[fastdupree]

The idea of the slope on No. 2 is to direct one's eyes down to the memorial. Obviously making a central point (as cool as that might look) would destroy any such effect.

Didn't know that was the reason for that design. I like Tower #2 pretty much as is anyway. It already has the best style of them all. Anyway, I can't wait to see this one start growing and it will be the tallest.

[tua21506]

I have been watching this thread for a while now and it kinda does need a photo update...I would classify this build as a fairly significant piece of architecture in the grand scheme of things for this country...especially with the cultural significance that its has for America....whether you agree or disagree with its design...There are a lot of buildings that don't even have a fraction of the significance or meaning of this one that have photo updates almost everyday...I'm almost half tempted to take the Chinatown bus up to you guys and take some photos...lol i guess it would give me an excuse to visit old friends.....

[aluminum]

I just hope it's above ground already. Truly, the pace it is going at is a little slow.

Do you any idea how much work is going on at ground zero, for the trillionth time: they are not constructing sh#t over fresh ground, but over the wreck of two monster sized buildings. Have some patience for god sake...

[pattali]

I would have liked two Freedom Towers instead of one. ... that it would look like the Twin Towers' ghosts!:haha:

Recently I saw "Click" the movie : http://www.sonypictures.com/movies/click/site/index.php

At the end of the movie , the scene took place in 2021 maybe near the Hudson river for a party, and we can see clearly 2 Freedom Tower in the skyline ...

[Ghost]

Some pictures from wtcrising.com:

http://www.wtcrising.com/images/FE/chain217siteType8/site187/client/photoGallery/189/eastern%20slurry%20wall_big.jpg

http://www.wtcrising.com/images/FE/chain217siteType8/site187/client/photoGallery/189/view%20of%20wtc%20site%20_big.jpg

http://www.wtcrising.com/images/FE/chain217siteType8/site187/client/photoGallery/189/men%20on%20rebar%20march%202008_big.jpg

[Daquan13]

Thank you, Ghost!

Some refreshing update pics!!

In the top pic, it looks like the workers are about to add another wall to the slurry wall. Is that correct?

[37TimPPG]

After looking at today's WTC live webcam it looks like the two cranes at the FT site have moved up in elevation again!? A positive development.

I would guess the core and steel columns would break through street level sometime in June or July.

Progress! Sweet Progress!:notacrook:

[Daquan13]

The part that will take some time is the concrete core - simply because first the rebar has to be tied in place crosswise to form the "framework for that, then lumber and plywood has to be the mold for the walls, then the concrete poured and finally, it has to cure and harden.

I imagine that the core's wall are going to be about two or three feet thick.

The steel is faster and will go up like nothing. Which is why once the core gets past the street level and in the air, the steel will sprout up reall fast.

[Ghost]

I think the part that is taking the most time right now is those basement floors. And that's because the old structure... And also they can't finish everything because they have to some day take down that temporary PATH entrance.

[CHAPINM1]

The part that will take some time is the concrete core - simply because first the rebar has to be tied in place crosswise to form the "framework for that, then lumber and plywood has to be the mold for the walls, then the concrete poured and finally, it has to cure and harden.

I imagine that the core's wall are going to be about two or three feet thick.

The steel is faster and will go up like nothing. Which is why once the core gets past the street level and in the air, the streat will sprout up reall fast.

Actually the core's wall will be 3 feet thick... :cool:

[Daquan13]

Actually the core's wall will be 3 feet thick... :cool:



Thought so.

[Puzzlecraft]

Been a l-o-n-g time since I've seen any concrete poured in the core area..... at least a month.... a lot of rebar work going on.

[37TimPPG]

Been a l-o-n-g time since I've seen any concrete poured in the core area..... at least a month.... a lot of rebar work going on.

I think they are getting ready for the next big concrete pour? Should be sometime within the next couple of weeks.

I can't wait until this thing finally breaks through the street level. (Have to keep telling myself the FT is 8 stories under street level to keep from getting frustrated!):tup:

[Daquan13]

Also, the fact that when the Twins were being built, not that much concrete was used except for the floors and maybe some at the bottom and their foundations.

The entire infrastructure columns, beams and girders, the entire core, as well as the floors themselves, will get concrete - possibly explaining why the infrastructure is taking a while to complete.

I believe, like the Twins, the very heaviest steel will be used for the infrastructure, and as the tower grows taller, lightweight but stronger allloy steel will be used, as in the case of 7 WTC.

[[SP]Neo]

can someone in NY plz take some pictures for this thread???

[Daquan13]

Go here; http://www.wtcrising.com.

[Ghost]

More steel has arrived to the site on friday and I think there is one installed already. Maybe we should see steel on the north wall?

http://i32.tinypic.com/10z2vx5.jpg
(earthcam.com)

[Daquan13]

You're right, doesn't appear to be any steel columns standing against that back wall.

Note Vesey Street, how tangled up it is. Boy! What a mess!! Guess it will be used as a "storage spot" for the steel when it's delivered to the constr. site. We should see some girders start being applied between the beams and the core soon.

[Dac150]

[QUOTE=Daquan13;Note Vesey Street, how tangled up it is. What a mess!! Guess it will be used as a "storage spot" for the steel when it's delivered to the constr. site.[/QUOTE]

Correct, that's really all it is. There's a small path that is dedicated for people to cross the 'North Bridge', but other than that, strictly prep and storage.

I haven't been down there in the last couple days, and won't be for the next week being that I'm on Spring Break. I plan on making it my first stop though when I return.

[Daquan13]

I'm seriously thinking about flying to LGA on a cheap round trip airfare this spring when the weather is warm and ride the subway to Ground Zero.

I'll spend the day there and take some pics while I'm there. I still have yet to see 7 WTC in person. Last time I was there was when the concrete base was being built.

Oh yes, I know where that little path is now! I used it the three times that I was there. It's under the front of the Verizon building. Right under that arch-shaped doorway at the corner. I just thought of it!

[Dac150]

^^^^^ You really should just take a day trip and check out the progress. It's well worth it, not only for the Trade Center but also just to walk around Downtown. Hell, you can even do an overnighter at the Millenium Hilton and get a room facing it.

It's good sometimes (if your able to do it) to see the city in person rather then in pictures. That's why I always never take for granted where I am and get out everyday to embrace it.

[Dalton]

^^^^^ You really should just take a day trip and check out the progress. It's well worth it, not only for the Trade Center but also just to walk around Downtown. Hell, you can even do an overnighter at the Millenium Hilton and get a room facing it.

It's good sometimes (if your able to do it) to see the city in person rather then in pictures. That's why I always never take for granted where I am and get out everyday to embrace it.

The promenade around Battery Park City to Battery Park was a nice place to take in the views of lower Manhattan, as well as Jersey City (which has a surprisingly nice skyline) and the Statue of Liberty. A nice place to walk to after visiting the WTC site. There's a skyscraper museum in that area. Then, of course, there's Wall Street if you want to see where all your money is going, and there's some sort of shopping area with a kind of a "seaport" theme (can't remember the name of it). Lots to see and do in lower Manhattan. NYC isn't just Midtown (for visitors, I mean).

[Daquan13]

Can't do too much walking because I have a heart condition. I must take it slow.

My intention was also to visit the ESB as well. Never been there.

[NYguy]

http://www.nypost.com/seven/03172008/news/regionalnews/rising_from_the_pit_102338.htm

RISING FROM THE PIT
WTC'S '1ST SPROUT'

http://www.nypost.com/seven/03172008/photos/new021d.jpg

2009
http://www.nypost.com/seven/03172008/photos/new021c.jpg

2010
http://www.nypost.com/seven/03172008/photos/new021b.jpg

2011
http://www.nypost.com/seven/03172008/photos/new021a.jpg

A WHOLE OTHER LEVEL - Digital renderings show the progress planned for the World Trade Center site, including the Freedom Tower breaking street level this year.


By TOM TOPOUSIS
March 17, 2008

The reborn World Trade Center will begin rising above street level this spring - when the Freedom Tower's steel frame emerges from its 80-foot-deep construction pit, officials say.

The tower itself is now just 10 feet from street level, Port Authority Executive Director Anthony Shorris said.

"We expect it to reach past street level in a few months," he said.

Shorris and Ground Zero developer Larry Silverstein, who is building three office towers at the site, said virtually every project at the World Trade Center is now under construction after years of cleanup, design and site preparation.

A time-lapse rendering of the 16-acre site prepared by the Port Authority shows the project coming together over the next five years like a massive jigsaw puzzle, with more than 10,000 construction workers assembling the pieces.

By the end of this year, the Freedom Tower's steel will be racing skyward, while a steel base for the memorial is being set in place. And foundations for Silverstein's three towers and the Santiago Calatrava-designed transit hub will be under construction.

By the end of 2010, the Freedom Tower and Silverstein's Towers 2 and 3 will reach rooftop level, and the memorial plaza will be complete and ready for the planting of more than 400 trees.

Silverstein's Tower 2, the second tallest at the site, will have topped out by the end of 2011.

"By the end of 2012, as they say, it'll all be over but the shouting," Shorris said at a New York Building Congress luncheon last week.

"What is falling into place is a construction-coordination machine of truly unprecedented complexity."

The four towers inside the perimeter of the original World Trade Center site will include 141,000 tons of steel and 593,000 cubic yards of concrete.

A fifth tower is planned a block away on the site of the former Deutsche Bank building. That tower is slated to be complete by the end of 2012.

Just to clear sites for Silverstein's three towers, the Port Authority excavated and hauled out enough dirt and rock to fill Giants Stadium.

Silverstein, who acknowledged that "things haven't always gone as smoothly or as swiftly as everyone - including me - had hoped," predicted that the final outcome in five years will create a new economic engine in lower Manhattan.

But Silverstein said the proof of progress for New Yorkers made skeptical by delays and missed deadlines will be the visible construction now shaping up.

"There has not been this much going on at the site since the cleanup concluded close to six years ago," he said.

[Daquan13]

Great job, NYguy!!

I'm so glad that the officials have devised a plan to have ALL of the towers going at the same time.

So that the whole area in u/c at once, and not stretched out for decades!

[STERNyc]

Next year is when things start to really get exciting. Great visuals, I can picture it now, however they should have also included 99 Church Street in the visuals.

[speedy1979]

The promenade around Battery Park City to Battery Park was a nice place to take in the views of lower Manhattan, as well as Jersey City (which has a surprisingly nice skyline) and the Statue of Liberty. A nice place to walk to after visiting the WTC site. There's a skyscraper museum in that area. Then, of course, there's Wall Street if you want to see where all your money is going, and there's some sort of shopping area with a kind of a "seaport" theme (can't remember the name of it). Lots to see and do in lower Manhattan. NYC isn't just Midtown (for visitors, I mean).

That's the "South Street Seaport". Shaperimage (too bad there bankrupt) is there so is Brookstone. Both are gadget stores :banana::banana::banana::notacrook:.

[Blue 24]

Could you make those images larger please. :D

[pablosan]

Those images are pretty cool.

[aluminum]

Yeah, make those images bigger, NYguy.

[Ghost]

New pics @ wtcrising.com

http://www.wtcrising.com/images/FE/chain217siteType8/site187/client/photoGallery/189/overlooking%20site%201_big.jpg

http://www.wtcrising.com/images/FE/chain217siteType8/site187/client/photoGallery/189/concrete%20forms%20march%202008_big.jpg

http://www.wtcrising.com/images/FE/chain217siteType8/site187/client/photoGallery/189/installing%20beam%20march%2008_big.jpg

[Lecom]

Nice.

[Daquan13]

But what in the world is that contraption in the 2nd pic?:shrug:

[Ghost]

Those are concrete forms to keep poured concrete in shape. More on Wikipedia, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Formwork and http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Climbing_formwork.

[37TimPPG]

I notice in the pics (wtcrising.com) they are starting to set up the crane for Tower 4! YES!:banana:

[Daquan13]

I notice in the pics (wtcrising.com) they are starting to set up the crane for Tower 4! YES!:banana:



At this point, I find that rather unusual when no foundation for it yet has been put in. I mean, there's nothing to hold it in place unless it's a mobile crane.

But I imagine that even stranger things have happened concerning Ground Zero.:shrug:

[37TimPPG]

I would imagine it is almost time for Larry Silverstein to be handed over control of the whole site!? I can't wait for that....then we will REALLY see some progress - not that there hasn't been any progress yet.

:D

[JV_325i]

http://www.wtcrising.com/images/FE/chain217siteType8/site187/client/photoGallery/189/concrete%20forms%20march%202008_big.jpg

Lego Technics!

I haven't checked this thread in a long time. Good to see all of the activity.

[speedy1979]

http://www.wtcrising.com/images/FE/chain217siteType8/site187/client/photoGallery/189/concrete%20forms%20march%202008_big.jpg

Lego Technics!

I haven't checked this thread in a long time. Good to see all of the activity.

Yeah that's right.... That's exactly what they look like. I used to love playing with those as a kid.:banana::banana::banana::banana:

LEGO's the toy that builds imagination.

EDIT: It sure beats those wooden forms they used to use not too long ago.

[Dalton]

New pics @ wtcrising.com

http://www.wtcrising.com/images/FE/chain217siteType8/site187/client/photoGallery/189/concrete%20forms%20march%202008_big.jpg




Looks like the inside of a Home Depot store nearing completion.

[Daquan13]

Yeah that's right.... That's exactly what they look like. I used to love playing with those as a kid.:banana::banana::banana::banana:

LEGO's the toy that builds imagination.

EDIT: It sure beats those wooden forms they used to use not too long ago.



Yeah, but part of these are made from wood (you can see the plywood panels attached), so some wood is still used in forming the concrete walls.

[howardroark]

Can anyone identify these structures?

Purple=?
Orange=?
Green=?
Blue=?
Red=?

http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y21/archetype_/viewofwtcsite_big.jpg

[pattali]

Can anyone identify these structures?

Purple=?
Orange=?
Green=?
Blue=?
Red=?

http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y21/archetype_/viewofwtcsite_big.jpg
Purple : Temporary PATH entrance, the futur place of S Calatrava PATH HUB entrance.
Orange : New Temporary PATH entrance (maybe in April)
Green : the actual PATH Wharf station
Red : The PATH track
Blue : Don't know.

[howardroark]

*smacks forehead*

So obvious, thanks for clarifying that up for me. :tup:

[Ghost]

That blue one is also part of the PATH system, I think it has control rooms, main electrical lines and that sort of stuff... Here (http://www.panynj.gov/drp/gallery/showPics.php?year=05&month=11&pnav=picstble)'s some pictures (2003 especially)

[Daquan13]

Why on earth are there so many PATH structures? One has to wonder.

[Zerton]

its going to be a major station

[ATLksuGUY]

news?

[Complex01]

Awesome pics. Its coming along...

:cool:

[NYguy]

APRIL 2, 2008

1.
http://www.pbase.com/nyguy/image/95076566/large.jpg

2.
http://www.pbase.com/nyguy/image/95076571/large.jpg

3.
http://www.pbase.com/nyguy/image/95076574/large.jpg

4.
http://www.pbase.com/nyguy/image/95076576/large.jpg

5.
http://www.pbase.com/nyguy/image/95076587/large.jpg

6.
http://www.pbase.com/nyguy/image/95076630/large.jpg

7.
http://www.pbase.com/nyguy/image/95076676/large.jpg

8.
http://www.pbase.com/nyguy/image/95076679/large.jpg

9.
http://www.pbase.com/nyguy/image/95076680/large.jpg

_________________

Some bonus shots of the 3rd and newly opened temporary PATH entrance...

10.
http://www.pbase.com/nyguy/image/95076531/large.jpg

11.
http://www.pbase.com/nyguy/image/95076534/large.jpg

[Daquan13]

Great pics, NYguy!!

[BrandonJXN]

I'll never like the blood clot at 7 WTC. But nice pics.

[BUILDER5000]

I'll never like the blood clot at 7 WTC. But nice pics.

art it so subjective, I was just thinking how much I liked it

[Daquan13]

I was hoping that they'd put the old sculpture back that stood in front of the old tower, but I guess times change.

It DOES look like huge blood cells though.

[Happy Valley Freak]

ha ha! blood clot, i seriously thought it was a baloon animal :P

[NYguy]

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/04/09/nyregion/09freedom.html?ref=nyregion

Replicas of New Tower Endure Nature’s Fury and a Test Blast

http://graphics8.nytimes.com/images/2008/04/09/nyregion/09freedom-650.jpg

A mock-up of the Freedom Tower at the World Trade Center, in Ontario, Calif., was built to be exposed to extreme conditions.



By DAVID W. DUNLAP
April 9, 2008

One World Trade Center has not yet emerged from below ground, but its facade has already survived earthquakes, hurricanes and an explosion that shook the earth a quarter-mile away.

In recent months, two full-size mock-ups of a few floors of the glass and aluminum facade have been built and tested. One is outside Los Angeles, in Ontario, Calif. The other was at a site in central New Mexico that can be reached only over dirt roads in four-wheel-drive vehicles.

At 1,368 feet, with 23 acres of glass-clad surface area, 1 World Trade Center will be subject to tremendous natural forces. The building, also known as the Freedom Tower (at a symbolic 1,776 feet, when its mast is counted), will be the tallest in New York City and as the skyscraping phoenix on the site of ground zero, it may be the target of terrorist attacks, too.

The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, which is building 1 World Trade Center, and Skidmore, Owings & Merrill, which designed it, said both mock-ups performed well. The facade, called a curtain wall, is being made by Benson Industries of Portland, Ore. The engineering firm Weidlinger Associates is the consultant in blast-resistant design.

“Physical testing is a confirmation that curtain-wall contractors are in fact meeting performance requirements,” said Carl Galioto, a Skidmore partner. “Full fabrication of the curtain wall cannot begin until the mock-up specimen passes these tests.”

Almost invisible to passers-by, the foundations of 1 World Trade Center are rising every day toward street level.

The first mock-up was subjected to a blast test in Socorro, N.M., at the Energetic Materials Research and Testing Center, a division of the New Mexico Institute of Mining and Technology. Because details might arm a prospective attacker — providing information like how much force the curtain wall is designed to withstand — officials would say almost nothing about the test of this mock-up.

“The simple answer is, yes, it passed,” said John McCullough, the project executive for the Port Authority.

He was more forthcoming about the tests last month at Construction Consulting Laboratory West in California. There, a $537,000 mock-up was built to represent a corner of three typical tower floors, with laminated glass panes one and a half inches thick. The largest are 5 feet by 13 feet and weigh half a ton. An enclosed steel chamber was constructed behind the glass and aluminum cladding.

The goal was to find out how much air and water leakage could be expected under storm conditions that could be expected at least once in 50 years.

Water jets simulating winds of 74 miles per hour were sprayed at the facade. During the 15-minute test cycle, each square foot of glass was hit with more than a gallon of water.

In another test, a dismounted airplane propeller was switched on to simulate even-stronger and more-scattered winds. “It’s pretty colorful,” said Mr. Galioto, who witnessed the test. “It’s very noisy. Water is blowing in every direction and smoke is blowing from the engine.”

Air infiltration is measured by gauges. Water infiltration is measured by witnesses who are inside the chamber.

“Water is coming into the face of the curtain wall with such intensity that you can’t see,” said Bruce Fox, the deputy project executive for the Port Authority. “Then you’re looking into and opening up all the different pieces to see if there’s any evidence of leakage.” There was none.

Hydraulic jacks were used to simulate the different horizontal sway of various floors, both fully occupied and empty. The surface was also chilled to 10 degrees (refrigerated piping was applied to the glass) and baked at 100 degrees (by heat lamps).

Gusts up to 167 m.p.h. were simulated by using pumps to pull air out of the chamber, creating a condition in which the external air pressure was far greater than the internal pressure. The process was reversed, too, by pumping air into the chamber, simulating conditions on the side of the tower away from the wind.

An earthquake was simulated by jacks pulling the mock-up in different directions. Finally, a much stronger earthquake was simulated. At this point, the designers no longer expected the mock-up to remain airtight and watertight. But the criteria required that no glass could crack and no panes could be dislodged.

Mr. McCullough of the Port Authority said the mock-up met all the performance criteria.

And Mr. Fox marveled: “Sometimes on these tests, you have to do forensics and do corrections. Here, we had no failure at all.”

[pattali]

Awesome download here (Only for Windows User) : :banana:
http://multimedia.nydailynews.com/misc/2008/04/10/wtc_view_from_observation_deck.EXE

some news from Nydailynews at http://www.nydailynews.com/ny_local/2008/04/10/2008-04-10_freedom_tower_to_open_observation_deck_o.html

Freedom Tower to open observation deck on 102nd floor
BY DOUGLAS FEIDEN
DAILY NEWS STAFF WRITER
Thursday, April 10th 2008, 4:00 AM

Click photo for an aerial tour of the view from the proposed new Freedom Tower observation deck
Get ready to return to the Top of the World.
A new version of the observation deck atop the World Trade Center that beguiled lovers and tourists - and even jaded New Yorkers - will soon rise at the Freedom Tower.
The Port Authority said Wednesday it is seeking a world-class operator to design, build and manage the indoor deck on the 102nd floor of the 1,776-foot icon at Ground Zero.
Boasting eye-popping, heart-stopping, 360-degree panoramic views that stretch forever - or at least 50 miles on a clear day - the deck will be perched 1,300 feet above West St. on the tower's highest occupied floor.
The rebirth of New York's signature rooftop was announced as another key element of post-9/11 rebuilding fell into place: The Sept. 11 Memorial & Museum said yesterday it had reached its goal of raising $350million in funds from private donors.
A record $10 million corporate gift from Cantor Fitzgerald, the financial services firm that lost 658 workers in the terror attacks, put the museum over the top. It's now flush with donations from 60,000 people in all 50 states and 31 nations.
"We reached our fund-raising goal because of support from people across the country and around the world," said Mayor Bloomberg, who doubles as museum chairman.
The project, which will cost a total of $610 million, will also receive state and federal grants.
The twin announcements provided fresh momentum for a rebuilding drive that has been haunted by years of delays, funding shortfalls and interagency squabbling. Officials now say the museum will open in 2011 and the Freedom Tower in 2012.
Occupying 18,000 square feet, the tower'snew observation deck will be smaller than the 44,000-square-foot original on the 107th floor of the south tower of the World Trade Center. Along with an open-air deck on the 110th floor, it drew 2 million visitors a year.
"It was a can't-miss stop," said PA Chairman Anthony Coscia. "We intend to recreate the same experience for future generations."
The bistate agency will issue a request for qualified developers early next month.
By June next year, an operator will be tapped, and the deck will open to the public three years later.

[RockMont]

OK, so you were not that fond of the twin towers, and you don't like this design, so what is your dream style of architecture? What style, do you think says "you can't keep us down"? Would you like twin 'Chrysler Buildings' or 'Empire State' type of buildings or what? I'm not being sarcastic, I'm just curious as to what style, sends out the right message.

[fleonzo]

Awesome download here (Only for Windows User) : :banana:
http://multimedia.nydailynews.com/misc/2008/04/10/wtc_view_from_observation_deck.EXE

some news from Nydailynews at http://www.nydailynews.com/ny_local/2008/04/10/2008-04-10_freedom_tower_to_open_observation_deck_o.html

Freedom Tower to open observation deck on 102nd floor
BY DOUGLAS FEIDEN
DAILY NEWS STAFF WRITER
Thursday, April 10th 2008, 4:00 AM

Click photo for an aerial tour of the view from the proposed new Freedom Tower observation deck
Get ready to return to the Top of the World.
A new version of the observation deck atop the World Trade Center that beguiled lovers and tourists - and even jaded New Yorkers - will soon rise at the Freedom Tower.
The Port Authority said Wednesday it is seeking a world-class operator to design, build and manage the indoor deck on the 102nd floor of the 1,776-foot icon at Ground Zero.
Boasting eye-popping, heart-stopping, 360-degree panoramic views that stretch forever - or at least 50 miles on a clear day - the deck will be perched 1,300 feet above West St. on the tower's highest occupied floor.
The rebirth of New York's signature rooftop was announced as another key element of post-9/11 rebuilding fell into place: The Sept. 11 Memorial & Museum said yesterday it had reached its goal of raising $350million in funds from private donors.
A record $10 million corporate gift from Cantor Fitzgerald, the financial services firm that lost 658 workers in the terror attacks, put the museum over the top. It's now flush with donations from 60,000 people in all 50 states and 31 nations.
"We reached our fund-raising goal because of support from people across the country and around the world," said Mayor Bloomberg, who doubles as museum chairman.
The project, which will cost a total of $610 million, will also receive state and federal grants.
The twin announcements provided fresh momentum for a rebuilding drive that has been haunted by years of delays, funding shortfalls and interagency squabbling. Officials now say the museum will open in 2011 and the Freedom Tower in 2012.
Occupying 18,000 square feet, the tower'snew observation deck will be smaller than the 44,000-square-foot original on the 107th floor of the south tower of the World Trade Center. Along with an open-air deck on the 110th floor, it drew 2 million visitors a year.
"It was a can't-miss stop," said PA Chairman Anthony Coscia. "We intend to recreate the same experience for future generations."
The bistate agency will issue a request for qualified developers early next month.
By June next year, an operator will be tapped, and the deck will open to the public three years later.

You gotta put this in the pic thread!!!!:tup:

[NYguy]

http://www.nypost.com/seven/04102008/news/regionalnews/freedom_tower_on_deck_105795.htm

FREEDOM TOWER ON DECK

By TOM TOPOUSIS
April 10, 2008

Talk about a room with a view.

The Freedom Tower's observation deck - 1,300 feet in the sky - will soon go on the market as the Port Authority launches a search for an operator.

With views stretching more than 50 miles, the glass enclosed deck on the 102nd floor is expected to become a major tourist attraction when it opens in 2011.

Officials will first issue a request for qualifications from potential operators. The firms that pass muster will be able to file detailed proposals later this year.

"We have begun our planning now for what will be at the very top of the building, knowing that it will once again become a world-class place that will be part of the New York experience for millions of tourists," said PA executive director Anthony Shorris.

[NYguy]

http://cityroom.blogs.nytimes.com/2008/04/09/on-a-clear-day-you-can-see-connecticut/?hp

On a Clear Day, You Can See Connecticut

http://graphics8.nytimes.com/images/2008/04/09/nyregion/09dunlap.large.jpg

The scene atop and from the observation deck of the World Trade Center in May 1999.

By David W. Dunlap
April 9, 2008


With the Freedom Tower headed steadily skyward (though not yet in view of sidewalk superintendents), the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey is looking ahead to the moment when the public will want a slice of that sky.

It said Wednesday that it has begun searching for a private operator for the observation area planned on the 102nd floor of the tower, also known as 1 World Trade Center. Early next month, the authority will ask prospective candidates for their qualifications. Qualified bidders will be asked to submit proposals at the end of 2008. A firm will be chosen in early 2009. The observation area is expected to open in 2012.

At 1,300 feet above street level, the new observation area will be about 10 feet lower than the one atop the south tower of the original trade center. The new observation area will be about half the size and will not include an outdoor deck. Ogden Corporation operated the old observation deck under a lease from the Port Authority.

“The observation deck that sat atop 2 World Trade Center prior to 9/11 was a can’t-miss stop for those who lived and worked in Lower Manhattan, as well as two million tourists who visited each year, generating business for local merchants and others,” Anthony R. Coscia, the chairman of the authority, said in a statement. “We intend to recreate the same experience for future generations.”

Anthony E. Shorris, the executive director of the authority, said the observation deck was also intended to help make the tower “an open, lively public space integrated with the rest of the city.”

In the first step of its search for a restaurant operator at the top of the Freedom Tower in January, the Port Authority received 11 responses.

[kraggman]

Great to see this thing finally moving along well !!! :D

[emathias]

...
I think the Freedom tower has more of an attractive shape, and more symbolism, that's all. ...

You can have the guy in the oxford button-down, I'll take the guy in the Gucci.

[Independence]

That Mock Up Section Of The Facade Looks Awesome!!!!

[SNT1]

In b4 Steely Smash


^^I gotta agree with the above post, the mock-up facade makes me all giddy and stuff. There's something about that color of glass facade, even though NY already has a bunch of those U/C.

[BradMacD]

MUST we get on this topic again?

I'm going to back on topic and say the facade section looks AMAZING!

Very glossy and elegant. It's going to look amazing on the real thing. Gah!! Watching this is so riveting. xD

Even though it's like watching paint dry...but it's exciting nonetheless. :D

[kraggman]

I would have to say that this tower will suit the NY skyline just fine. I always thought the old WTC was out of place, 2 big boxes in a field of spires. JMO

[Patrick]

The mockup looks great! I'm excited to see the result! :yes:

There's nothing wrong with the Freedom Tower, and those who think so are just as stupid as you seem to think I am.

WOW. Thats so overly rediculous, I'm sorry but isnt this a discussion fourm where people have the right to discuss their opinions?

[Independence]

I would have to say that this tower will suit the NY skyline just fine. I always thought the old WTC was out of place, 2 big boxes in a field of spires. JMO

Wow... how could you ever say something like that!?!?

Okay, the old WTC was freakin HUUUGE and it clearly made an intergalatic impact on the downtown...nah...the whole city skyline, which could be defined as 'out of place' - but their mass and impact made the skyline
even more recognizable and distinctive. Just because of the difference
to the surrounding spires (don't forget a lot of boxes, too) and did I mention
sheer MASS IMPACT the WTC really WAS Downtown.

It just can't be faulted.


But that's all gone today and the future WTC isn't too bad, right?

Now, let's get back watching paint dry. (Webcam :frog: )

[CoolCzech]

http://cityroom.blogs.nytimes.com/2008/04/09/on-a-clear-day-you-can-see-connecticut/?hp

On a Clear Day, You Can See Connecticut

http://graphics8.nytimes.com/images/2008/04/09/nyregion/09dunlap.large.jpg

The scene atop and from the observation deck of the World Trade Center in May 1999.

By David W. Dunlap
April 9, 2008


At 1,300 feet above street level, the new observation area will be about 10 feet lower than the one atop the south tower of the original trade center. The new observation area will be about half the size and will not include an outdoor deck. Ogden Corporation operated the old observation deck under a lease from the Port Authority.

“The observation deck that sat atop 2 World Trade Center prior to 9/11 was a can’t-miss stop for those who lived and worked in Lower Manhattan, as well as two million tourists who visited each year, generating business for local merchants and others,” Anthony R. Coscia, the chairman of the authority, said in a statement. “We intend to recreate the same experience for future generations.”



Damn, I was really hoping eventually they would see the light and somehow create an outdoor deck around the base of the spire. THAT would have recreated "the same experience for future generations" like I enjoyed as a kid.

[Patrick]

MUST we get on this topic again?

Again I'm a little confused, this is a discussion fourm, and this is a discussion about the Freedom Tower. Although what is "on topic" I mean people are voicing their opinions on the Freedom Tower. I mean what do we go back to? Talking about "OMG BIG NEWS: Single Freedom Tower Steel Column being shipped to NYC! Placement at WTC site expected 6 months."

I agree, the Freedom Tower and the rest of the WTC is a monumental failure in todays world. Its the 21st Century, buildings rise fast, and in todays terms, the Freedom Tower is pretty much a mild construction project. Why it has taken 2 years to not even rise above ground yet is rediculous. The nearby Goldman Sachs Tower commenced in 2005 and is nearly topped off, while the Freedom Tower still sits and slowly slowly rises.

The Desgin is not bad at all, its a very nice building, but the base just shows fear, its terrible. Hopefully it will maybe come out better overall. But really the building is nice and works well with New York, the problem is that the others do not. Being all designed by different architects the towers dont work together rather work against each other for attention. Another thing we will sorely miss is our beloved Twin Towers. The Twin Towers of the World Trade Center where such an icon to the USA and not rebuilding them is such a shame. I would have loved to see two Freedom Towers, one with a spire/antenna, the other without it, instead an outdoor observation deck.

[BradMacD]

I was saying that it seems the only topic ever discussed here is "I hate the Freedom Tower" and I was only saying...agh, nevermind.

In my opinion, I think 2 FT's wouldn't look very good. I do, however, think that 2 other designs might look better together. Maybe not the Freedom Tower's design as it is today, but maybe something a bit more plain, so it wouldn't be so huge and overdramatic (cough...Dubai)

The twins were plain as anything by themselves, but when you put them together to form 2 megalithic twin towers, there was something elegant and truly left someone in awe about them.

But I like the Freedom Tower.

Think of it this way; The Freedom Tower's current design, or the Freedom Tower's design a couple years ago that made it look like a half-collapsed pile of rubble and sewage.

Anyways...

[kraggman]

Wow... how could you ever say something like that!?!? In response to my comment that the old WTC were 2 big out of place boxes.

On the subject of the old WTC being a monstrosity, hard to swallow. But interesting.


Though this may be hard for some to believe, especially in these sentimental times, the so-called Twin Towers at the World Trade Center were hated by many New Yorkers, who before September 11, 2001 would have been happy if the goddamned things had never been built and after September 11th are glad that they're gone. An entire neighborhood was emptied out and destroyed to make way for them. Them -- not just one spectacular tower, but two. And this in a city known for singularities and differences, not repetitions and resemblances! Those weirdly self-referential monoliths completely blocked the sunlight from getting through; they blocked the view of the sun setting over New Jersey. Their reflective, steel-belted surfaces played havoc with radio and TV broadcasts, which meant that broadcasters were forced to move their transmitters (they had little choice but to put the transmitters atop one of the towers). Unlike the modestly tall buildings at Rockefeller Center, which are surrounded by an "extroverted" or open space through which pedestrian traffic can move freely, the freakishly tall Twin Towers were surrounded by a blank, abstract space that was "introverted" and closed off. Fully twice the size of the buildings around them, the towers were in fact so excessively large that the only place one could escape them and see New York City's famous skyline without distraction was on top of one of them!

Built for an enormous amount of money between 1966 and 1970 by the Port Authority of the State of New York, the Twin Towers were intended to house in one complex a great many foreign financial institutions and to provide everything that their managers, employees and clients might need (hotels, restaurants, shops, movie theaters, etc. etc). Despite the novelty of being the tallest buildings in the world -- a distinction that only lasted until 1976, when the Sears Tower was built in Chicago -- the Twin Towers were always money-losers as rental properties and required huge subsidies (tens of millions of dollars a year) from the State of New York to remain solvent. Because all of the windows in both towers were sealed up tight, and because neither tower was equipped to take advantage of its unique potential to generate power using the wind or solar energy, the WTC complex was ludicrously costly to heat and light. Furthermore, visiting business men and women weren't satisfied to remain within the WTC's purportedly self-sufficient universe, and wished to venture (and shop and do business) outside of it. In the 1980s, advances in information and telecommunication technologies decentralized the financial markets, which in turn "rolled back" the necessity for foreign institutions to be in close physical proximity to each other, Wall Street and the rest of lower Manhattan, which is precisely what the gigantic size and centralized location of the Twin Towers were intended to provide.

In New York City, obsolete buildings are infrequently saved, whatever their historical or architectural interest. Most often, they are simply torn down and replaced. The only thing that saved the Twin Towers from demolition was the fact that they were filled with asbestos, which would be released into the air if the buildings were destroyed by controlled explosions. In 2000, the Port Authority calculated that it would cost $1 billion -- i.e., much more money than the Port Authority could afford to spend -- to remove the asbestos before the buildings were destroyed. And so the Port Authority was stuck with the Twin Towers, that is, until 26 April 2001, when it found a consortium of business interests (Westfield America, led by Larry Silverstein, the owner of the building at 7 World Trade Center) that was willing to lease the property. Supposed to last for 99 years, the $3.2 billion lease mandated that the Port Authority continue to pay taxes on the property. "This is a dream come true," Silverstein said at the 23 July 2001 celebration of the lease's signing. "We will be in control of a prized asset, and we will seek to develop its potential, raising it to new heights."

And so, quite paradoxically, the mass-murdering hijackers who destroyed the Twin Towers by flying fully fueled passenger airplanes into them did Westfield America an immense favor. Even though Westfield America would obviously have preferred that both the planes and the buildings were unoccupied (save for the hijackers themselves) at the time that the former were used to destroy the latter, the terrorists got rid of the towers quickly, efficiently -- the towers fell down instead of over -- and in such a way that Westfield America didn't have to pay for any of it, including the asbestos, which was "removed" from the site by the wind, the rain and the search-and-rescue teams employed by the City of New York in the months after the buildings exploded, collapsed and gave off thick clouds of toxic dust.

From: http://www.notbored.org/wtc.html

Anyway...I DO like the new one.