Wonder Land Being a former
Being a former New Yorker, I've taken a special interest how the Lower Manhattan Development Corp.'s plans are progressing for Ground Zero. Several of the proposals struck my fancy, and two in particular made me much more optimistic than the previous proposals. Daniel Henninger is kind enough to throw cold water on that optimism in the Wall Street Journal.
Let's get something straight: There is no chance that any of these out-sized buildings will ever be realized, and these architects surely know it, though just as obviously their plans had to include signature buildings that reflected their reputational eminence. No New York tenant will lease space at those heights, and therefore no developer will build, not even the Port Authority. That mistake was made once, with the World Trade Center. You may see one of these buildings some day in Shanghai's Pudong Development Zone, but not here.Regretably, he may be right that America's ignorant brashness is over when it comes to tall buildings. But then I realized that what got my attention in the proposals wasn't about the buildings. I don't care what is built around the site, though I don't want an intentional whimpering reflection of what-used-to-be. Most important, I care what we do to memorialize the site.
Daniel Libeskind suggests building at odd geometric angles around the "footprints" of the old towers. No, this isn't some bizarre cubist vision: if his plan is enacted, the footprints will always be bathed in sunlight between the time of day the first tower was struck until the time it fell, shortly after its twin. The odd angles of the buildings were calculated to permit no shadows to fall inside the former footprints during those hours. The idea is nothing short of breathtaking.
The other plan that caught my eye was designed by the THINK team. It features two latticework frames reminiscent of the Eiffel Tower that somewhat resemble the majesty of the old Twins, without actually putting buildings there and permitting the footprints to remain sacred. Even Henninger seems taken with the idea, asking, "The city's shorn skyline? Go ahead, put up teamTHINK's amazing, absurd, light-filled latticework tube." Henninger gets it - and though I've put my own little spin on his remarks, don't misunderstand - he gets it in the first paragraph of his column when he quotes the email of reader Jack Smith of Monticello, MN.
"This is Gettysburg, the Alamo, the Arizona Memorial. Sorry, Manhattan, but Ground Zero doesn't belong to you anymore. It belongs to all of us."Jack, ya hit me where I live, saying it that way.
