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There have been two buildings in New York City named 7 World Trade Center. The first building, which opened in 1987, was destroyed on September 11, 2001. The newer building was completed in 2006 and it is the first with a World Trade Center address to have been rebuilt.

The original 7 World Trade Center was on the super-block bounded by Vesey, Washington and Barclay Streets, and West Broadway. The new 7 World Trade Center is at the same location, except that its eastern boundary is on Greenwich Street, with a public park occupying the block between Greenwich Street and West Broadway.

1984-2001

Seven World Trade Center, which was destroyed in the September 11, 2001 attacks, was built in the mid-1980s. Constructed began in 1984, and in March 1987 the building opened to become the seventh structure comprising the World Trade Center. The building was constructed on top of a Con Edison substation, which was originally constructed on the site in 1967. The substation was constructed with a caisson foundation, that was designed to carry the weight of a future building on the site.

The original structure had 47 floors and was 570 feet (174 m) in height. Each floor had 47,000 square feet of rentable office space, which was considerably larger than most other buildings in New York City. In all, 7 World Trade Center had 1,868,000 square feet (174,000 m²) of office space. The building was clad in a red exterior masonry and had a pedestrian bridge connecting it to the main WTC complex. Emery Roth & Sons designed the building, which stood just north of the main World Trade Center complex across Vesey Street. The Center's management leased space to financial institutions, insurance companies, and government agencies.

From the former two categories, the building housed Salomon Smith Barney, American Express Bank International, Standard Chartered Bank, Provident Financial Management, ITT Hartford Insurance Group, First State Management Group, Inc., Federal Home Loan Bank, and NAIC Securities.

The government agencies housed at 7 World Trade Center were the United States Secret Service, the Department of Defense, the Immigration and Naturalization Service, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), the Mayor's Office of Emergency Management, the Internal Revenue Service Regional Council (IRS), and the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA).

Collapse

At 17:20 EDT on September 11, 2001, 7 World Trade Center collapsed. Since it had been evacuated, there were no casualties.

In May 2002, the Federal Emergency Management Agency of the United States (FEMA) released a report on the collapse. FEMA made preliminary findings that the collapse was due primarily to fires on multiple stories caused by debris from the other two towers, and not to the actual impact damage of 1 WTC and 2 WTC as they collapsed. The report noted that, prior to this collapse, there was no record of the fire-induced collapse of a large fire-protected steel building such as 7 WTC.

The report did not reach final conclusions, outlining a number of issues needing to be explored with respect to the cause of the collapse. Specifically, FEMA made these findings:

“Loss of structural integrity was likely a result of weakening caused by fires on the 5th to 7th floors. The specifics of the fires in WTC 7 and how they caused the building to collapse remain unknown at this time. Although the total diesel fuel on the premises contained massive potential energy, the best hypothesis has only a low probability of occurrence. Further research, investigation, and analyses are needed to resolve this issue.” (Chapter 5, pg 31.)

In response to FEMA's concerns, the Commerce Department’s National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) conducted a three-year, US$24 million investigation into the structural failure and progressive collapse of several WTC complex structures, including 7 World Trade Center. The study included not only in-house technical expertise, but also drew upon the knowledge of several outside private institutions, including the Structural Engineering Institute of the American Society of Civil Engineers (SEI/ASCE), the Society of Fire Protection Engineers (SFPE), the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA), the American Institute of Steel Construction (AISC), the Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat (CTBUH), and the Structural Engineers Association of New York (SEAoNY).

NIST has released video and still photo analysis of Building 7 prior to its collapse that appears to indicate a greater degree of structural damage from falling debris than originally assumed by FEMA. Specifically, a large 10-story gash existed on the south facade, extending a third across the face of the building and approximately a quarter of the way into the interior. A unique aspect of the design of 7 WTC was that each outer structural column was responsible for supporting 2,000 square feet (186 square meters) of floor space, suggesting that the simultaneous removal of a number of columns would lead to a severely compromised structure. Consistent with this theory, news footage shows visible cracking and bowing of the building's east wall immediately prior to the collapse, which started from the penthouse floors.

The final report from NIST regarding the collapse of 7 WTC was due in July 2005, but is still ongoing. NIST released a progress report in June of 2004 outlining its working hypothesis. On this hypothesis a local failure in a critical column, caused by damage from either fire or falling debris from the collapses of the two towers, progressed first vertically and then horizontally to result in "a disproportionate collapse of the entire structure".

Despite FEMA's preliminary finding that fire caused the collapse, conspiracy theorists believe the collapse was the result of a controlled demolition, usually as part of a larger belief in 9/11 conspiracy theories. In answer to the question of whether "a controlled demolition hypothesis is being considered to explain the collapse", NIST says that it "While NIST has found no evidence of a blast or controlled demolition event, it would like to determine the magnitude of hypothetical blast scenarios that could have led to the structural failure of one or more critical elements."

2002-2006: Building the new 7 World Trade Center

Construction of the new 7 World Trade Center began in 2002. The building is 750 feet (228 m) tall and has 2 foot (60 cm) thick reinforced concrete and fireproofed elevator and stairway access shafts, whereas the original building used only drywall to line these shafts. The stairways are wider than in the original building to permit greater egress. Steel columns are encased in much thicker fire protection and the building is being promoted as the safest skyscraper in the U.S. The building is considered New York City's first "green" office tower by gaining gold status in the US Green Building Council's LEED program.

The 52-story building has 1,700,000 square feet (158 000 m²) of leasable office space starting from the 11th floor, since the first ten floors will house an electrical substation which will power most of Lower Manhattan. The office tower has a narrower footprint at ground level than its predecessor (as the course of Greenwich Street has been restored in an effort to re-unite Tribeca and the Financial District). The architect was David Childs of Skidmore, Owings and Merrill who worked in conjunction with glass artist and designer James Carpenter to create a structure that capitalizes on reflectivity and light. According to Silverstein Properties, the owner of the building, it "will incorporate a host of life-safety enhancements that will become the prototype for new high-rise construction..."

Building Seven was not included in the original World Trade Center master plan by Daniel Libeskind, but was designed by Skidmore, Owings & Merrill under the leadership of David Childs, who largely redesigned the Freedom Tower.

The building was officially opened at noon on May 23 2006 with a free concert sponsored by Larry Silverstein. The concert featured Suzanne Vega, Citizen Cope, Bill Ware Vibes, Brazilian Girls, Ollabelle, Pharaoh's Daughter, Ronan Tynan of the Irish Tenors, and special guest Lou Reed.

The triangular park was created by David Childs with Ken Smith and his colleague Annie Weinmayr of Ken Smith Landscape Architect, and is situated between the now extended Greenwich Street and West Broadway. It consists of a central open plaza with a fountain and flanking groves of trees and shrubs. As the seasons change, so will the colors in the park, providing a soothing natural complement to the adjacent tower.

Artist Jeff Koons created Balloon Flower (Red), the sculpture in the center of the fountain. The mirror-polished stainless steel sculpture represents a twisted balloon in the shape of a flower that has been enlarged to monumental scale. Jenny Holzer created a large light installation inside the main lobby with glowing text moving across wide plastic panels. The entire wall is about 30 meters wide by 7 meters tall and changes colors, according to the time of day.

From September to October 2006, visitors and tourists were allowed to go to the 45th floor of the building for free to get 360 degree views of lower Manhattan, midtown, the Hudson River, the Brooklyn Bridge, and a view of the World Trade Center site (see photo). Publicity for the event was almost non-existent, and its inclusion in the Open House New York program only appeared a few days before the weekend event. The 45th floor is currently a large, empty concrete space, which will eventually be turned into offices. The last day for the public to go to it was October 7, 2006.

Tenants

As of August 2006, ten percent of the building has signed leases, with eight tenants, in addition to housing Silverstein Properties. The building has 42 floors of rentable space, with the first ten floors occupied by a Con Edison substation. In September 2006, Moody's signed a 20-year lease to rent 15 floors of 7 World Trade Center.

Current and future tenants include:

• Silverstein Properties
• Ameriprise Financial Inc.
• New York Academy of Sciences
• Mansueto Ventures LLC - business publisher, Fast Company
• Darby & Darby P.C.
• Moody's Investors Service

A deal fell through in July 2006 with Vantone Real Estate, of Beijing, which was slated to occupy the top five floors of 7 WTC.

Trivia

• 7 WTC was the setting of the 1988 movie Working Girl (though the office scenes were filmed in another building).
• The 1933 Double Eagle was temporarily stored in the US Secret Service Vaults at 7 WTC. It was relocated to Fort Knox in July of 2001, before its record-breaking sale in New York for $7.59 million in 2002.
• In March 2006, the new and unopened 7 WTC frontage and lobby were filmed in scenes for the movie Perfect Stranger with Halle Berry and Bruce Willis.

See also

• World Trade Center
• Larry Silverstein

References

1. ^ "Interim Report on WTC7" (PDF). National Institute of Standards and Technology. June 2004.
2. ^ "Seven World Trade Center (pre-9/11)". Emporis.com. Retrieved 2006-05-07.
3. Horsley, Carter B. (October 25, 1981). "Lower Manhattan Luring Office Developers". The New York Times.
4. ^ "WTC7 (Chapter 5), pdf" (PDF). FEMA.
5. "CIA Lost Office In WTC: A secret office operated by the CIA was destroyed in the terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center, seriously disrupting intelligence operations'". CBSNews.com / AP. 2001, November 5, 2001. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
6. "Final Report on the Collapse of the World Trade Center" (PDF). National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST). September 2005.
7. ^ "Answers to Frequently Asked Questions". National Institute of Standards and Technology. August 2006.
8. "Key Findings of NIST's June 2004 Progress Report on the Federal Building and Fire Safety Investigation of the World Trade Center Disaster". Fact sheets from NIST. National Institute of Standards and Technology. 2004. Retrieved 2006-07-28.
9. "Interim Report on WTC 7" (pdf). Appendix L. National Institute of Standards and Technology. 2004. Retrieved 2006-07-28.
10. "Downtown Construction and Building Information". Lower Manhattan Construction Command Center. Retrieved 2006-05-22.
11. "7 World Trade Center Officially Certified as New York City's First 'Green' Office Tower" (PDF). Silverstein Properties. Retrieved 2006-05-26.
12. ^ "Seven World Trade Center (post-9/11)". Emporis.com. Retrieved 2006-05-07.
13. Spitz, Rebecca (2006, August 31). "9/11: Five Years Later: 7 World Trade Open For Business, Lacking Tenants". NY1 News. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
14. "Moody's Signs Lease at 7 WTC". Associated Press/MSN Money. 2006-09-18.
15. "Ameriprise Financial to lease 20,000 SF at 7 WTC". Silverstein Properties. 2006, January 4. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
16. "New York Academy of Sciences Signs Lease at 7 WTC". New York Academy of Sciences. 2005, December 16. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
17. "Mansueto Ventures signs lease at 7 World Trade Center to become the first corporate tenant to locate its national headquarters in the building". Silverstein Properties. 2006, July 26. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
18. "Darby & Darby P.C. to move headquarters to 7 WTC". Darby & Darby. 2006, August 24. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
19. "Pricey Midtown Rents Mean Big Tenant for 7 WTC". Gothamist. 2006, June 20. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
20. Egan, Mark (2006, July 11). "Chinese company pulls out of planned WTC lease". Reuters. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
21. "Filming Locations for Working Girl". IMDB.
22. "Under Cover, Tower 7 is no 'Stranger' to fame". Downtown Express. 2006, March 17-23. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)

External links

• World Trade Center
• Silverstein Properties

• Former buildings and structures of New York City
• Skyscrapers in New York City
• Skyscrapers between 200 and 249 meters
• World Trade Center