Tag: World Trade Center

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NYC: One World Trade Center Is Now Open

Via Gov. Andrew Cuomo Twitter account

Thirteen years after the 9/11 attacks, One World Trade Center – the tallest and most expensive building in the Western Hemisphere – is once again open for business.

From the Washington Post:

On Monday — more than 4,800 days after the 9/11 terrorist attacks felled the Twin Towers and left more than 2,700 people dead — the new 104-story skyscraper at 1 World Trade Center welcomed its first commercial tenant: About 175 employees of Conde Nast, the publishing giant that will eventually fill 24 floors of the $3.9 billion tower.

“One World Trade Center serves as a symbol of the resilience of the people of New York,” Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo said in a statement. “Today, as we open its doors for the first time, we remember that strength and courage will always conquer weakness and cowardice, and that the American spirit, defended by proud New Yorkers, will not be defeated. That lesson and that example live on today as powerful as they were 13 years ago.

“This is a tremendous day for all New Yorkers, proving once again that the spirit of resurgence and community lives on stronger than ever before.”

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16 year old gets past security all the way to the top of 1 World Trade Center

This is completely fascinating that a 16 year old boy could actually get so far.

From the New York Post:

A New Jersey teen captivated by 1 World Trade Center sneaked out of his home in the dead of night, got past the wall of security — and a sleeping guard — making it all the way up to the spire, The Post has learned.

Scrawny 16-year-old Justin Casquejo crawled through a hole in a Ground Zero fence at about 4 a.m. Sunday and got a lift up the tower from a clueless union elevator operator, even though he had no ID.

He was dropped off on the 88th floor and hiked the stairs up to the 104th floor — where a guard assigned to protect the top of the world’s biggest terror target was sound asleep. That guard has since been fired.

Casquejo told cops he then climbed up to the roof and made it up to the antenna.

After spending two glorious hours atop the nation’s tallest building snapping photos, the young daredevil was finally caught by a construction worker as he made his way back down.

Casquejo’s Facebook page is now full of photos of 1 WTC.

He has been charged with misdemeanor trespassing.

As to the other parties that took part in the little adventure?  The Port Authority, the NYPD, and two private security companies – who guard the building at all times – have refused to comment.

(via JMG)

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One WTC becomes tallest building in Western Hemisphere as spire is attached at 1,776 feet

Matt Lauer tweets that the spire atop One WTC was finished and bolted down this morning.

Construction workers bolted a 408-foot spire into place atop One World Trade Center on Friday, symbolically capping New York’s comeback after the September 11, 2001, terror attacks.

The spire brings the iconic building to a height of 1,776 feet — an allusion to the year the United States declared its independence. It also makes the building the tallest in the Western Hemisphere and the third-tallest in the world.

The company developing the building in partnership with the Port Authority of New York & New Jersey confirmed the installation.

While the building still has significant construction before its scheduled 2014 opening, the installation brought cheers from New Yorkers, and from people around the country.

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New World Trade Center – Time lapse video

In honor of the 11th anniversary of September 11th, EarthCam is premieres this commemorative time-lapse video with cinematic views of the World Trade Center site from multiple webcams.

The movie focuses on the rise of One World Trade Center, New York’s tallest building, and has amazing shots of the entire downtown New York City skyline.

The footage was captured between February 2010 and September 2012.