At Last, Tour Santiago Calatrava's World Trade Center Transportation Hub
Get a first look inside the Spanish architect's much-anticipated $4 billion transit station
After more than a decade, an unfathomable amount of money, and hundreds of thinkpieces on the subject, the World Trade Center Transportation Hub—and the Oculus, the spiky, controversial sculpture that tops it—is set to make its debut to the public. The official word is that the Santiago Calatrava-designed project will open next week (when Curbed recently visited the site for a tour, a worker on the site said that March 3 would be the day, but Port Authority wouldn't confirm that), but it'll do so without fanfare. (UPDATE! Port Authority confirmed that it will open on the 3rd.)
To some degree, the reluctance to celebrate what should be a huge, crowning achievement is understandable. Calatrava's design for the Hub was first unveiled in 2004, and at the time, the Port Authority estimated that the project would take only five years and $2.2 billion to complete. But things spiraled out of control quickly, and thanks to a variety of factors—the economic downturn; political hubris and general bureaucratic incompetence; the sheer enormity of Calatrava's design—both the timeline (which you can see below) and the price ballooned. What was meant to cost $2.2 billion became a $4 billion undertaking, making the WTC hub the most expensive train station ever. Outgoing Port Authority executive director Patrick Foye even called the Hub "a symbol of excess" to Politico New York earlier this week.
But for everything that has been said and written on the subject, it's been difficult to judge Calatrava's design on its merits because, well, it wasn't finished. And even now, after a walk-through of the space a week in advance of its opening, it's hard to say whether this will ultimately go down as a "magnificent boondoggle," as New York magazine memorably described it, or as one of New York City's great pieces of infrastructure. Calatrava has compared it to Grand Central Terminal, and certainly, the Hub—particularly the interior of the Oculus, which is pictured here—rivals that iconic train depot in grandeur and size.
And there's no doubt about it: Calatrava's Oculus is an awe-inspiring piece of architecture. While the design has changed from its original incarnation (when the wings that make up the Oculus were meant to open and close, similar to the architect's design for the Milwaukee Art Museum), it's no less impressive for it. The steel rafters create a cathedral-like effect, letting in an abundance of light; the glass skylight at the tip of the Oculus, which can indeed open and close, adds to the feeling of airiness.
The space is also sure to be Instagram catnip: There are cantilevered balconies that allow visitors to take in the expansive view from above. The enormous marble floor (which sits below-grade), meanwhile, is uninterrupted by pretty much anything—no columns or podiums to speak of, a measure that both looks prettier, but also allows for visitors to evacuate quickly if necessary. (It's not exactly something you want to think about, but here we are.)
It's all rather lovely, but also somewhat sterile—if it's possible to feel both stunned by the beauty of something while also underwhelmed by it, that's what this inspires. You also have to wonder how long the space will stay pristine once it opens to the anticipated 100,000 commuters who'll pass through every day.
There's also the fact that construction is still very much taking place within the Hub. Only a portion will open to commuters next week; the rest, including the retail spaces that surround the main floor, is still in the works and is expected to open "in phases" (per the Port Authority) beginning this spring.
Still, whatever your feelings are on the WTC Hub, it's here now, and it's at the very least worth a visit—if for no other reason than to see what $4 billion gets you. Check out many more photos of the space below.
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And here, a timeline of the past 12 years of work on the Hub:
THERE ARE 11 COMMENTS.
I am glad it was built. To remind us how inept, vulgar and excessive our elected representatives can be with TAXPAYERS’ MONEY.
As far as the design itself: I like the harmony, how proportional the whole structure looks but I do not like the T.Rex shape of it – I guess I’ll get used to it. As I have written before, it will be iconic in 10 years.
I will definitely go next week. I have always been curious to see how a T.Rex would look from the inside.
Posted 7 hours ago
I think it’s a great design and something that is memorable and eye catching vs the dull glass boxes thrown up to much applause everywhere. Calatrava gets a bad rap about all this, when in fact it was not his doing that bureaucratic ineptitude caused overruns. Keep in mind it’s a full station operating underneath, not just a building plonked down on a corner, and that kinda stuff costs a LOT. Not defending the overruns, but hopefully people will give the architect a break, I think he has created a really beautiful piece of architecture.
Posted 6 hours ago
It looks great, but this is an obscene amount of money to spend on a transit hub. $4,000,000,000 is way too much money to blow on something that looks like a dinosaur. For that, you can visit the Natural History museum for a lot less. Hope it does not leak. He has a long track record of overruns, construction issues and lawsuits around the world. What if NYC had an extra $2,000,000,000 to house the homeless or finish the Second Avenue subway?
Posted 6 hours ago
This transportation hub looks incredible both inside and out. A Grand Central mini me.
Posted 5 hours ago
Robert Moses, this is so unlike you. Has resurrection suddenly made you a fan of mass transit?!
Not that I’m complaining. A mass-transit-loving Robert Moses is what we needed many decades ago.
Posted 4 hours ago
I think what’s really not sinking in, is the sheer engineering marvel of this structure(s). Built with exceedingly onerous and ever changing security standards, two 24/7 subway/train systems traveling within it at nearly all times. A substantial infrastructure rebuilding of basic utility systems. An enormous site with simultaneous construction projects; and overhanging everything, a memorial site trying to appropriately honor the dead, while building something for the living. Well done.
We complain about the mundane, and yet criticize the bold. Keep reaching.
As someone who lived with this construction for nearly 10 years, I’m thrilled to see the results.
Posted 4 hours ago
This is sure to become an iconic New York landmark in the ranks of such places as Grand Central, the Empire State Building, the Statue of Liberty, the Brooklyn Bridge and 1 WTC.
More than anything, the Hub is a symbol of recovery and resilience, of New York spreading its wings and rising from the ashes of 9/11. It represents the spirit of New York, a priceless representation at that despite the cost.
The Port Authority, for all of its shortcomings, did superb in the execution of this masterpiece. Calatrava’s creation will be the jumping off point for the New New York, I am thrilled to have this in downtown, and hope it inspires future projects of magnificence and creativity.
More than anything, the Hub is a symbol of recovery and resilience, of New York spreading its wings and rising from the ashes of 9/11. It represents the spirit of New York, a priceless representation at that despite the cost.
The Port Authority, for all of its shortcomings, did superb in the execution of this masterpiece. Calatrava’s creation will be the jumping off point for the New New York, I am thrilled to have this in downtown, and hope it inspires future projects of magnificence and creativity.
Posted 3 hours ago
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