Archinect - News

New renderings leak of Foster + Partners' upgraded redesign for 2 World Trade Center

2022-02-16T19:12:00-05:00

A revised version of one of the world’s most high-profile architectural projects by Foster + Partners is now being circulated online as new renderings have surfaced that depict the firm’s upgraded Two World Trade Center design.

The London-based firm was added back onto the development team in January 2020 after developers Silverstein Properties officially nixed a concept from Bjarke Ingels Group that had been on the docket since replacing Foster's original design in 2015. Since then, Silverstein has been in pursuit of the anchor tenants necessary to provide the confidence to commit to the entirely-private development.

Rendering by Visualhouse

The final piece of the renewed 16-acre World Trade Center site will now stand some 1,350 feet above the Oculus and 9/11 Memorial site and quartet of other office towers designed David Childs, Richard Rogers, Fumihiko Maki, and Kohn Pedersen Fox, respectively. The foundation of the building has already been completed, givi...

BIG-designed WTC tower booted for Foster + Partners revamp

2020-01-16T16:01:00-05:00

Back in 2015, Foster + Partners' design was shelved for a more favorable by the Bjarke Ingels Group (BIG). At the time, it looked like News Corporation and 21st Century Fox were slated to lease the building but backed out a year later. "Now that BIG’s quirky tower of stacked boxes has no takers, the old Foster design is being 'significantly modified to be more reflective of contemporary needs and taste,'" said developer Larry Silverstein, according to the New York Post.

Norman Foster's original proposal for Two World Trade Center via 2015

Foster's initial design didn't fit the needs for the two media giants, which prompted the redesign by BIG, which focused specifically on the needs of these tenants. As tenants fill up the existing towers, Silverstein's next focus will be acquiring tenants for Tower 2, which he's suggested might begin construction without first signing some. But, as the New York Post reports, "if he wants a tenant first, a new Foster design might be just the thing to...

"The Haves and the Have Nots" – digesting the most important news of the week that was, on Archinect Sessions #49

2016-01-21T18:46:00-05:00

As last week's episode was taken up by Pritzker-hooplah, this episode takes a look back at the major news items of the last week(ish) and gets you caught up with what's been happening in Archinect news.

We discuss: the recent photo exhibition on homelessness at USC (which closes tomorrow!); the Treasury Department's controversial new practice of tracking and identifying secret buyers of luxury housing; how BIG's 2 World Trade Center is now in limbo after "anchor tenant" Rupert Murdoch has pulled out; the demolition of yet another not-beloved-enough Brutalist building; the big ol' chunk of cash the U.S. now has to prepare for driverless cars; and the ongoing debacle over the Tokyo Olympic Stadium, as Zaha Hadid Architects accuses Kengo Kuma Associates of copying their design, while Japan won't pay ZHA until they hand over the design copyrights.

Phew! What a week. All original news postings are available in the shownotes.

Listen to episode 49 of Archinect Sessions, "The Haves and the Hav...

Rupert Murdoch suddenly pulls out of 2 World Trade Center deal

2016-01-18T17:48:00-05:00

Rupert Murdoch has dropped his plans to relocate 21st Century Fox and News Corp. to 2 World Trade Center. In a statement issued Friday afternoon, World Trade Center developer Larry Silverstein declared himself “disappointed” by the news. [...] In June, the two media companies signed a letter of intent with Silverstein to occupy 1.5 million square feet for 30 years at a 2 World Trade Center designed by architect Bjarke Ingels.

2 WTC previously in the Archinect news:

2 World Trade Center receives $9M rent assistance from Port Authority to expedite project

2015-12-15T13:14:00-05:00

The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey approved subsidies to help expedite the construction of lower Manhattan’s 2 World Trade Center [...]. Developer Silverstein Properties Inc., which leases the sites for 2 World Trade Center and two other towers from the Port Authority, would receive a rent break that amounts to $9 million over the life of the lease [...]. The agency had previously maintained that 2 World Trade would be built entirely without public assistance.

Previously in the Archinect news:

Bjarke Ingels and the challenges of designing Two World Trade Center

2015-10-06T13:41:00-04:00

He has coined a punning term, BIGamy, to describe his own up-for-anything style. He rejects the idea that an architect must adhere to a single personal aesthetic, which enables him to be cheerfully flexible in meeting the demands of corporate clients. Ingels’ creative impulse to say yes to everything, even contradictions, often leads him into hybridism.

Previously in the Archinect News:

There is nothing so stable as change: Nick Taylor, director of BIG's 2WTC video, and McShane Murnane of Project M Plus on Archinect Sessions #34

2015-06-18T18:22:00-04:00

Easily the biggest news of last week, and probably of this year, was the unveiling of BIG's design for 2WTC. For a project of such status, on such a highly charged site, representation must be handled with expert care – so to dig a bit deeper into the splashy video introducing 2WTC, we spoke with Nick Taylor, co-founder of Squint/Opera and director of the BIG video. We cover Squint/Opera's historied relationship with architects and how creative vision is managed across many powerful stakeholders.

Paul and Amelia also sat down with McShane Murnane, architecture director and co-founder of Project M Plus, a husband-wife creative studio out of Los Angeles' Silver Lake. Often viewed as a case-study for gentrification in LA, Silver Lake has established a highly specific aesthetic within the Californian sensibility, that has its pros and cons – we speak with Murnane about how he's dealt with issues of developmental displacement head-on.

And in the news, we discuss how Tadao Ando is faring am...

Last week today, June 8-15 2015: BIG projects, big opinions

2015-06-15T18:33:00-04:00

Friday, June 12:

The new OMA-designed Garage Museum opens in Moscow: On the design, Koolhaas has been quoted with "not restoring the building, but preserving its decay". The original Soviet-era building used to be a restaurant.

Thursday, June 11:

Stargazing with Patrik Schumacher: Episode 33 of Archinect Sessions: Patrik Schumacher discusses his recent op-ed for Archinect.
The Cooper Union turmoil continues: President Jamshed Bharucha resigns: In the midst of student protests and five trustees resigning, President Bharucha also stepped down last week. This came after the Cooper Union's Board had already voted not to renew Bharucha's contract as president next year.

Wednesday, June 10:

Five Cooper Union trustees just resigned: Among them were Daniel Libeskind, Mark Epstein (the board’s former chairman), Vassar College president Catharine Bond Hill, Francois de Menil (the board’s vice chairman), and investment banker Monica Vachher.
Locals welcome The 606, a.k.a. Chicago's "High Line", but a...