Gothamist
A non-profit newsroom, powered by WNYC.
Gothamist
Listen Live
Arts & Entertainment
WTC Tower To Be Tallest Building
By
Jen Chung
Published Dec 10, 2003
Modified Mar 6, 2008
Share
FacebookTwitterRedditEmail
Never miss a story
Email address
By submitting your information, you're agreeing to receive communications from New York Public Radio in accordance with our Terms .
By
Jen Chung
Published Dec 10, 2003
Modified Mar 6, 2008
Share
FacebookTwitterRedditEmail
We rely on your support to make local news available to all
Make your contribution now and help Gothamist thrive in 2026. Donate today
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
The Times reveals that the main building of the redesigned WTC will vastly different from Daniel Libeskind's design. The new design, from tower architect David Childs and engineer Guy Nordensen, will be revealed next week by Governor George Pataki. Times reporter David Dunlap's description:
Those who have seen the design of the Freedom Tower, as Mr. Pataki calls it, describe a torqued and tapering form culminating in an unoccupied, open-air structure filled with cables, trusses, antennas and recalling the energy source that helped settle Lower Manhattan 350 years ago windmills that may generate 20 percent of the electrical power needed by the building.
The 70-story occupied part of the Freedom Tower would rise 1,000 to 1,100 feet, more than 200 feet shorter than the twin towers. But the open-air structure would reach 1,776 feet, exceeding Taipei 101, which is being built on Taiwan, and would take the world's tallest title from the Petronas Towers in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, which took it from the Sears Tower in Chicago, which took it from the trade center. The Freedom Tower's antenna would reach 2,000 feet.
This unusual hybrid would allow New York to "reclaim our skyline," the governor said in October, while acknowledging that most New Yorkers 62 percent, according to a recent New York Times Poll would not be willing to work in one of the higher floors of a new building at the trade center site.
Naturally, the NRDC is excited about the prospect of a wind farm atop the tower. But considering the sticky relationship between master planner Libeskind and tower architect Childs, all bets are off as to what will actually be the final design. Dunlap also points out that Libeskind's skinny, assymetrical design is still on WTC developer Larry Silverstein's website.
Tagged
art
chicago
Daniel Libeskind
david
david childs
David Dunlap
design
freedom tower
George Pataki
governor
Governor George Pataki
kuala lumpur
larry silverstein
lower manhattan
manhattan
new york
new york times
new yorkers
News: NYC
poll
sears tower
The Freedom Tower
the times
Jen Chung
Jen Chung is a former WNYC and Gothamist editor.
Read more
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
MORE arts-entertainment
In the algorithm age, NYC college radio DJs are still broadcasting the funky stuff
We dropped by WNYU to see what the next generation of radio DJs is up to. The answer is "Br00tal Beats To Study/Relax To."
By
James Ramsay
Published Oct 22, 2026 at 11:18 a.m. ET
A Queens prop shop shutters, bunnies find a home uptown, and more openings and closings
Highlights of shifts in the city's business landscape.
By
Hannah Frishberg
Arts & Entertainment
A Queens prop shop shutters, bunnies find a home uptown, and more openings and closings
Highlights of shifts in the city's business landscape.
By
Hannah Frishberg
A new film invites you to eavesdrop on one of the greatest conversations in NYC history
By
Sonia Rao
The Knicks are NBA champions. Now they have to start dressing the part.
By
Sonia Rao
Will Barnes and Noble in the East Village spell doom for smaller shops? It's complicated.
By
Sonia Rao
Never miss a story
Catch up on the most important headlines with a roundup of essential NYC stories, delivered to your inbox daily.
Sign upEmail address
By submitting your information, you're agreeing to receive communications from New York Public Radio in accordance with our Terms .