May 4, 2006

Daniel Libeskind’s commercial-design guidelines for the World Trade Center site, which were released in draft form over two years ago, have yet to be formally approved by the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey (PA) or the Lower Manhattan Development Corporation (LMDC), which are overseeing construction on the site. The lack of approval has drawn the ire of many in New York’s planning and design community. Yet now that the contentious negotiations between developer Larry Silverstein and the PA have been settled, the guidelines may finally get their due. According to PA spokesperson Steve Coleman, “the board could conceivably vote on them in May or June.” LMDC communications director Kori-Ann Taylor commented, “We are in the final stages of formulating design guidelines consistent with recent developments at the WTC site and we will adopt and enact them in the near future.”

Liebeskind’s draft guidelines “describe the form, character, and standards of development that will support the master plan." Some of the topics covered by their 10 chapters include overall site development, open space guidelines, and building design. Without formal approval, though, the guidelines have carried no official weight, and there is no scheme to control how seven buildings under design by seven superstar firms will relate to each other.

Coleman says the draft guidelines have been “refined” since they were originally released. They would be released to the public after approval, he adds. 

While it is unclear whether the guidelines will actually be approved soon, their formal release could, depending on their content, be a relief to designers and activists in New York, who have long been concerned that little attention had been paid to establishing connections between the various elements on the site. But a final verdict can’t be made until after they have been formally approved.

Margaret Helfand, FAIA, a New York architect and a member of New York New Visions, a group of designers advocating for design excellence in Lower Manhattan, says the PA has been acting “more like a private developer than in the private interest.” Because the PA is not obligated to address the public’s concerns through a review process she does worry about what the final guidelines will be like, saying, “they could go in any direction.” She also has concerns about the placement of a mall at the base of one of the towers that will stand near the Memorial, and the planned closure of several streets in the area for security purposes.

Sam Lubell