Ground Zero

On the very spot formerly occupied by the towers of the World Trade Center, an expansive 20,000 sq. ft. rectangular stone plaza is to come into being—a place of remembrance and a public city square at one and the same time. It will be framed by a ring of thirty-metre-high  buildings, with seven towers, each with 100 floors: a striking symbol for a new skyline. On three sides the inner ring will be encircled by further thirty-metre blocks, with six 56-floor towers rising up from these structures. The composition is rooted in the principle of intermeshing, with sections of the buildings in the ensemble slotting into each other. The configuration of the buildings creates an array of different sightlines into the plaza. A long, generously proportioned promenade runs along West Street.