Architects Unveil Designs
For Towers at WTC Site

By Alex Frangos
From The Wall Street Journal Online

Architects unveiled plans for three shimmering office towers at Ground Zero, completing the latest vision for the World Trade Center reconstruction.

Architects Fumihiko Maki, Richard Rogers and Norman Foster showed off their plans Thursday for three distinct-looking towers of ascending height that will line the east side of the trade-center site. The cost to construct the three buildings will be about $7 billion. The entire trade-center site, including the Freedom Tower, the Sept. 11 memorial and a transit hub will cost more than $12 billion, according to people familiar with the project.

While the unveilings show progress toward a goal of completing the rebuilding by 2012, obstacles remain nearly five years after terrorist attacks destroyed the World Trade Center. Private office developer Larry Silverstein and the site's owner, the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, have yet to finalize an agreement on the designs of the buildings, the layout of the labyrinthine underground concourses the buildings share with retail and transit functions, and the way to pay for it all.

Mr. Foster's tower, known as Tower 2, at 200 Greenwich St., will rise 1,254 feet, topped by an 85-foot, triangular-shaped antenna -- making it one of the tallest buildings in the U.S. and only a shade shorter than the original Twin Towers. Earlier versions of Tower 2 put the height at 1,150 feet. The nearby planned Freedom Tower's roof parapet will rise to the same height as the taller of the Twin Towers, 1,368 feet, but its antenna will reach a symbolic 1,776 feet. Tower 2 will have a sloped roof with four diamond-shaped panels, which face the memorial. Mr. Foster described the panels as a "beacon" that will draw people's view from throughout the city toward the memorial.

Mr. Rogers's tower, known as Tower 3, at 175 Greenwich St., will rise 1,155 feet, also taller by 105 feet than originally envisioned. Plans show a flat top with four spires at the corners that rise an additional 100 feet. The façade exposes the structural steel that will hold up the tower, a signature of Mr. Rogers's work.

Mr. Maki's tower, known as Tower 4, at 150 Greenwich St., will be 947 feet and have a sleek, minimalist look. Notches run up the building along the corners, increasing the number of corner offices. The façade on the upper part of the tower is set at an angle to the lower portion of the building.

All three buildings have 50- to 70-foot-tall lobbies that face the memorial. The lower floors in each building include street-facing retail space and entrances to underground transportation. Towers 2 and 3 will include several large trading-room floors to attract major financial tenants. The towers will be paid for through a combination of insurance funds and government-subsidized, tax-exempt loans.

Construction at the site has long been delayed over how Mr. Silverstein, the Port Authority and other parties would divide and pay for the site's various functions. A tentative rebuilding agreement struck in April involved Mr. Silverstein ceding rights to own the iconic, but financially uncertain, Freedom Tower and another yet-to-be-designed tower to the Port Authority. In exchange, the Port Authority agreed to reduce Mr. Silverstein's lease payments. The developer kept the rights to own towers 2, 3 and 4.

After several groundbreakings and false starts, preliminary foundation work for the Freedom Tower, the memorial and the transit hub began earlier this year. To move forward on all the buildings at the site, however, an agreement on the design of the underground warren of delivery ramps, mechanical rooms and pedestrian walkways must be completed. Both sides had hoped to finalize the agreement in time for Thursday's unveiling. It now appears an agreement won't be ready until the Port Authority's next scheduled board meeting, Sept. 21.

Despite the lack of an agreement, Mr. Silverstein said unveiling the drawings was a significant step. "We're about to embark on the true rebuilding of the trade center," he said.

The federal government and New York state have tentatively agreed to rent at least half of the Freedom Tower, though leases haven't been signed. Of the towers unveiled Thursday, New York City and the Port Authority have offered to fill Tower 4 with government offices, though they are continuing to negotiate with Mr. Silverstein on rental prices. Mr. Silverstein is seeking private tenants for Tower 2 and Tower 3.

His prospects for landing major tenants have gotten better in recent months. Businesses are expanding in Manhattan, causing vacancy rates to decline and rents to increase. He has landed several tenants for his already-rebuilt 7 World Trade Center, including Moody's Investors Service, which is set to take 15 floors.