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Tuesday, April 7, 2015

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It's Official: One World Observatory Will Open May 29

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LOOK, UP IN THE SKY!

It's Official: One World Observatory Will Open May 29

Tuesday, April 7, 2015, by Jessica Dailey
OWO-Skyline-2.jpg
With signage and a working marquee up, we knew the opening of One World Observatory, was imminent, and this morning, the official opening date was announced: Friday, May 29. Tickets, which cost a whopping $32 for adults, will be available for purchase starting tomorrow, Wednesday, April 8 at 10 a.m. In the days before the official opening, there will be special visits for school children and World Trade Center construction workers, as well as "an open house for the general public on a first-come, first-served basis" on Thursday, May 28, details of which have not be released.
The observatory will sit 1,250 feet above the street, on the 100, 101, and 102 floors of One World Trade Center, and the trip to the top will only take 60 seconds, thanks to the high-speed elevators called Sky Pods. The show starts before guests even board the elevators. From the official press release:
"Upon entry, guests will be greeted in the Global Welcome Center, where a large video board will feature salutations in an array of languages, and a dynamically generated world map will highlight the hometowns of visitors. Guests will then proceed to a pre-show program, titled Voices, which tells the personal stories of the men and women who built One World Trade Center, and Foundations, which displays facts about the very bedrock on which the building stands."
In the elevators, you can expect: "Immersive, floor-to-ceiling LED technology in each cab invites guests to experience a virtual time-lapse that recreates the development of New York City's skyline from the 1600s to present day."
The Sky Pods drop you off at the See Forever Theater on the 102nd floor (note: OWO has trademarked "See Forever"). Here, you'll watch a two-minute video "that combines bird's eye imagery, time-lapse shots with abstract textures and patterns to present the unique rhythm and pulse of New York City to dramatic life in three dimensions." Huh?
Next comes the good part: the Main Observatory on the 100th floor, where you'll experience "City Pulse," "an interactive skyline 'concierge' that allows guests to deeply connect with the landmarks and neighborhoods they observe from above." This space is wrapped with HD video monitors outfitted with "gesture recognition technology" so the "global ambassadors" (aka human OWO employees) can summon whatever imagery you want. This floor also hold "the Sky Portal where guests are invited to step onto a 14-foot wide circular disc that will deliver an unforgettable view, using real-time, high-definition footage of the streets below."
There will be three dining options on the 101st floor, and a 9,300-square-foot event space on the 102nd floor will offer catering services for up to 300 people.
TL;DR? Watch this video:
ONE WORLD TRADE CENTER FREEDOM TOWER
72 Vesey Street, New York
FINANCIAL DISTRICT
1 WORLD TRADE CENTER
LEGENDS HOSPITALITY
LOOK, UP IN THE SKY!
ONE WORLD OBSERVATORY
ONE WORLD TRADE CENTER
TOP
 19 COMMENTS
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COMMENTS (19 EXTANT)
REspectator2039
It looks like a maze of confusing and pointless wide and narrow spaces that will lead to bottlenecks, logjams, impatient and annoyed customers -- and tramplings if there's ever an emergency.
#1. 04/07/15 11:35 AM
Reply to this.
BKNYC165
The lines will be down the block.
#2. 04/07/15 11:44 AM
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NYC10001-10305285
The ESB is just as if not more narrow and handles a lot of people. The bottleneck will be the long lines that will probably stretch around the building (and annoying the very complainy Conde Nast employees).
#3. 04/07/15 11:53 AM
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MidC Frank1118
The original trade center observatory was brilliant in it's simplicity -- especially the little step down benches at the windows that allowed parents of others to easily look over those seated. Also the fablous roof-top observatory. I remember thinking just weeks before 9/11 that I hadn't been up there in a while and should go soon -- alas, never got the chance.
Will I go up to this one? Not sure. Not sure if I want to see the propaganda, and not sure if I can put the image of a friend who worked at Cantor Fitzgerald jumping to her death from that height in that spot. Oy vey.
#4. 04/07/15 12:04 PM
Reply to this.
REspectator2039
@MidC Frank: If you do go, maybe start or finish with the memorial pools.
Frankly, though, I think New Yorkers get more out of seeing the city from the Empire State Building observation deck. The old WTC view, I thought, had too much uninteresting water and New Jersey -- vistas minus content.
#5. 04/07/15 12:28 PM
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MidC Frank1118
@REspectator: Rock Center has great views, too -- perhaps better than ESB.
#6. 04/07/15 12:38 PM
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NYCsince83373
Creepy video. The sterile, desolate shopping-mall vibe reminds me of "Dawn of the Dead." The random ghost figures don't help. But I'm sure the real thing will feel much different. You just know it's going to be jam-packed with tourists posing and grinning with their selfie sticks.
#7. 04/07/15 12:48 PM
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bc10912
How could anyone who was alive when 9/11 happened go up there and not be completely overwhelmed by it all? I wouldn't even be able to appreciate the view.
I know we can't live in the past, but is it really right to turn anything on this property into a spectacle? See Forever? A 300 person event space? What kind of person would want to throw a party there? It's not the fucking Rainbow Room. I hadn't given this observation deck much thought before, but seeing this has really rubbed me the wrong way.
#9. 04/07/15 01:07 PM
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Views4Days929
@MidC Frank: I agree. I think the observatory on top of 30 Rock has even better views than both the Empire State Building observatory and the soon to open observatory of One World Trade Center because what aerial view of NYC is complete WITHOUT the Empire State Building and One World Trade Center IN THE VIEW?
#10. 04/07/15 01:12 PM
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Views4Days929
@bc109: What's the alternative? Leave a giant hole in the ground in the middle of lower Manhattan? I was alive during 9/11 and remember seeing the horrific news coverage but we need to move on. As you said, we can't live in the past. I think there is no better way to honor all those who lost their lives on that day than by creating the tallest building in the entire United States and showing the world that the United States will prevail.
#11. 04/07/15 01:16 PM
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bc10912
@Views4Days: I know, and that's why I have nothing against the building itself. I even think that the memorial fountains—literal holes in the ground—are actually a little too far on the sad and empty side of things. I'm not saying everyone who ever goes here should be horribly depressed by it all. What the fountains lack is a sense of hope (and that one survivor tree helps a little, but is kind of detached), and what the observation deck lacks is any acknowledgement of the past.
A special portion/exhibit of the museum up there would have been nice. Something uplifting/not panic attack-inducing (and I understand that was probably a concern when they designed this) that might help keep the throngs of tourists with selfie sticks a little more grounded.
I think the event space is the piece that really gets me, when it comes down to it.
#12. 04/07/15 01:41 PM
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Newark Bear4
The original WTC deck was great, even better than ESB. You could literally sit and look outside
#13. 04/07/15 03:19 PM
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stanchaz65
It should be free, as in Freedom Tower.
The ghosts and spirits and essences of those poor innocent people at the adjoining, lofty ,Windows on the World Restaurant, both workers and guests alike, not a one who escaped that fated early morning breakfast, 1000 feet up, trapped, no way out, the anguish of how they died, will no doubt forever haunt the vicinity, the dust, the wind, the very air....
In respect, in their memory, to maintain our dignity, let's not make this into a tourist mini-Disneyland.
This is forever a graveyard.
#14. 04/07/15 06:38 PM
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MHeinz2721
I can only imagine the humiliating security screenings that lie in wait for the unsuspecting visitor...full body cavity searches and detainment at Guantanamo Bay for a week if you even so much as breathe in a suspicious way....
#15. 04/07/15 06:50 PM
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NYC.ME878
@REspectator: ROCK is better than the ESB .. because from ROCK you can SEE the ESB! :-)
#16. 04/07/15 07:41 PM
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NYC.ME878
@stanchaz: Please do NOT use "FT". They do not hate us because we have "Freedom" ... but because of how our country has treated them for almost 100 years .. either indirectly or directly cause the deaths of millions of innocent people through the drawing of arbitrary borders, supporting dictators, sanctions, war, and drone attacks. What happened on 9/11 was NOT the slap, but the SLAP BACK! Acknowledge that and you will be the better person for it, and if everyone acknowledged it and apologized and worked to right the wrongs .. perhaps the world would be a better place. One can HOPE can't they?
#17. 04/07/15 07:44 PM
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Friendlyshark631
I hope to work there as a Tour Ambassador it's going to be wonderful.
It's historic. See you there!
#18. 04/07/15 08:56 PM
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Views4Days929
@NYC.ME: That's what I said about the observatory at 30 Rock being better than the Empire State Building and One World Trade Center. A skyline photo of New York City is not complete without the Empire State Building and One World Trade Center in the shot. This is precisely why the famous photo looking south from the 30 Rock observatory past the Empire State Building and One World Trade Center is so famous.
#19. 04/07/15 09:18 PM
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