Many who hoped to dine in the WTC's Windows on the World took solace that from the beginning, the new WTC's plan called for another top floor restaurant. But last night, the Port Authority and the Durst Organization announced that they have scrapped plans for a Windows on the World-type restaurant. PA Executive Director Chris Ward said, "We do not build vanity projects at the top of tall buildings." But that means the terrorists won!
Jordan Barowitz of the Durst Organization told us, "It’s extraordinarily expensive to build and operate a restaurant at the top of an office building. After looking at the numbers, the plan for a restaurant was not financially viable." However, Windows on the World was one of the highest grossing restaurants in the US. Ward said, "We are committed to finding the highest, best and most practical use for this space—one that does not require subsidizing a restaurant with public money for years to come." But that wasn't always the case; in 2008 they asked proposing developers to include 34,000 square feet of dining, drinking and banquet space in their plans.
The PA seems to have erased the plans for a "skyline restaurant" from their website; the description of One WTC now reads, "Upon completion, One World Trade Center's program will include 3 million square feet of office space on 71 office floors, a grand public lobby graced with a 50-foot ceilings, an observation deck 1,241' 8" above ground, a wide array of shopping opportunities and ample parking." If you want a taste of that Windows on the World magic, there's always Colors, but let's face it, not being able to eat on the top floor of an office building means the city might as well be under Sharia law.
