The WTC District
Advanced infrastructure planning was necessary to fit together all the buildings and streets in the district. In 2008, with towers 2, 3, and 4 in advanced stages of design—and well in advance of the establishment of the Port Authority's streets-and-sidewalks engineering team—Silverstein Properties commissioned PWP to establish a design framework for the public spaces of the entire district. Detailed elevations set the levels of all future streets and sidewalks, building lobbies, and the Memorial. Existing and proposed underground utilities and infrastructure, such as the existing subway box, were analyzed and negotiated to create a final surface design.
An important example of this rebuilding effort is PWP's development of a complete design for Cortlandt Way as an important pedestrian connection aligned with the Memorial. Now under construction, Cortlandt Way, is built with finely detailed stone pavements, stone seat walls, and retail and dining terraces to serve the needs of office workers and visitors to the Memorial; the significant grade change leading down to the Memorial was designed to amplify the view through the trees and into the South void. Construction will be in phases related to the completion of towers 3 and 4.
