Following the recent debate about the design on top of One World Trade Center, the Port Authority and the Durst Organization have released images of the street-level design of the building. This is the first rendering of how the base of One World Trade Center will look up close—a four-sided façade of glass, stainless steel and aluminum.
The podium designed by Skidmore, Owings and Merrilll will feature vertical glass fins protruding from panels of stainless steel slats, which will be arrayed in varying patterns traveling up the façade, the New York Post reports. Perforated aluminum screens behind the steel slats will be lighted, making the entire tower podium glow at night.
The design for the podium has gone through several changes. Preliminary renderings suggested a monolithic concrete pedestal, but the design was seen as uninviting, the New York Times reports. Subsequent designs included a scheme calling for custom-fabricated glass, but it was dropped over concerns glass would too easily shatter.
Cladding this podium will cost $40 million, the Post reported.