There’s a brouhaha brewing about the owners of the site naming the building “One World Trade Center” instead of the Planned “Freedom Tower.
Personally, I would just like them to finish the thing, and frankly, don’t mind a name reflective of the original buildings. In fact, I would have liked to have seen the building build exactly as they were before. Your take?
Critics call WTC tower name change unpatriotic
Even without the name, the symbolism of the Freedom Tower as an American response to the Sept. 11 terror attacks was hard to miss.
The original architect designed a twisting form he wanted to imitate the Statue of Liberty, with a spire that rose to the deliberate height of 1,776 feet to recognize the year of American independence. Politicians called the tower proof of the country’s triumph over terrorism.
Former Gov. George Pataki said visitors to the iconic skyscraper “will know our determination to overcome evil” in a 2003 speech that first gave the Freedom Tower its name.
The tower — still under construction with a projected completion date of 2013 — no longer has the same architect, design or footprint on the 16-acre site. And this week, the owners of ground zero publicly parted ways with the Freedom Tower name, saying it would be more practical to market the tallest building in New York as the former north tower’s name, One World Trade Center.
…the owners of ground zero publicly parted ways with the Freedom Tower name, saying it would be more practical to market the tallest building in New York as the former north tower’s name, One World Trade Center.
Indeed. Keep in mind that today’s corporate world is full of limousine liberals who bristle at words like “freedom” and “responsibility” and “accountability”. New York City has more of them per square foot than anyone else in the world. The name One World Trade Center appeals to the fascist mindset of these leftist plutocrats with their quest for a global dictatorship in which they will profit handsomely from a planned economy.
Just be glad they did not call it the Saddam Hussein Memorial Tower or something similar that is more in line with their kooky political beliefs. New York is not that crazy. Yet.
I agree, I am not too disturbed by it… but I am a bit disturbed that floors 64-69 will be a hub for China’s continued efforts to own our butts.
“…The change from Freedom Tower was revealed Thursday at a news conference where the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey announced the signing of the first commercial lease in the building to a Chinese company. The building is expected to be completed in late 2013.
Representatives of the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey and Vantone Industrial Co. announced Thursday the signing of a lease that will create the China Center, a 190,810-square-foot business and cultural facility, to be on portions of the 64th floor and the entire 65th through 69th floors of One World Trade Center.
Hailing it as a great day for the Port Authority and its partners in the China center, Port Authority Executive Director Chris Ward added, “this is the first step in a long journey as downtown is finally rebuilt.”
The lease is for 20 years and nine months, beginning when the building is completed, with rents starting at $80 per square foot and escalating afterward. The China Center also will have the right to lease up to two additional contiguous floors under the same terms, an option that expires at the end of 2009.
The Port Authority also has commitments for more than a million square feet of leased office space in One World Trade Center from the U.S. General Services Administration and the New York State Office of General Services. Leases for these two public agencies are being finalized. These commitments, coupled with the China Center lease, represent nearly 50 percent of the office space in the building.
The China Center at One World Trade Center is expected to represent the elite of China’s business and cultural communities and serve as a hub for Chinese firms developing United States operations, as well as for U.S. companies that wish to conduct business in China or expand operations…”
I’m waiting for Urkel to rename the terms “September 11” and “World Trade Center.”
I really don’t care. I could have been worse, could have been Obama Heights or a memorial to the frakkin terrorists.
Personally, I think it should be called The Freedom Tower just as The Statue of Liberty should keep it’s name.
It’s an AMERICAN thing!
That being said, it would be nice if they’d just get the damn thing built.
I think the reluctance to name or honor the bldg in tribute to 9-11 and its victims is due to cowardice and greed. The owners don’t want to entice future symbolic attacks with a name that drives terrorists crazy. Discouraging a future attack by downplaying the site’s historic and symbolic significance (or lifting a shirt to reveal a yellow belly) may lower insurance premiums too.
The name change itself – no biggy. The charge that ‘critics’ called it ‘unpatriotic’ is pure fantasy. Who called it unpatriotic? When? I want named sources and recorded quotes. This kind of unsupported infandous hyperbole slanders a whole class of people, and everyone just smiles and nods.
I can’t believe they have not finished it yet! An immediate rebuild would have shown the world we ain’t fool’in around.
It does matter! The name of the tower was part of a theme. That’s why it 1776 feet tall.
And it matters because they’re changing it to placate the rest of the world (aka the crack house) who hates that we still represent liberty to their enslaved inhabitants.
Why can’t Donald Trump buid the Freedom Tower?