“As the city waits for the new World Trade Center development to open and begin pulsing with office workers, tourists and residents, big egos are clashing behind the scenes over what stores will occupy the massive retail complex,” Adam Pincus reports for The Real Deal. “Brokers told The Real Deal they expected Westfield Group’s 365,000-square-foot, multi-level mall in Lower Manhattan to be a success. But with deadlines nearing, the project is pushing to recruit more high-end tenants, even as some retailers have balked at being underground or expressed concern about a key design feature of the retail space… Westfield has been involved in the center since it signed a 99-year lease in July 2001 to control what was then called the Mall at the World Trade Center.”
“The jewel of the massive retail project is a spiny, ethereal-looking Santiago Calatrava–designed structure that will undoubtedly become an iconic addition to the Lower Manhattan landscape. The retail complex includes aboveground space, but the majority of the shopping will be below street level at the 16-acre site,” Pincus reports. “To help drum up interest among posh stores, Vogue editor-in-chief Anna Wintour has reportedly been using her status as the grand dame of luxury fashion to convince designers to take space at the project. Sources told TRD that Wintour — whose parent company Condé Nast will be anchoring the office component of 1 World Trade Center — has been making calls and joining tours to convince retailers to sign on for space.”
“Computer and iPhone giant Apple — which is expected to take space in the project — was frustrated by the giant ‘ribs,’ or columns, that Calatrava included throughout the underground portion of the site. The arching structures are spaced roughly 11 feet apart along the front portion of each store, which has put off some retailers who want to use that space for signage, branding or product display, sources said,” Pincus reports. “Apple even sought a design variance, but was turned down, said one retail source, who asked not to be identified.”
Mark Gurman reports for 9to5Mac that despite Apple’s frustration, the company has “nonetheless Apple has struck its deal and will be a launch partner alongside several other high-profile brands in the major new shopping center.”
Much more in the full article here.
[Thanks to MacDailyNews Reader “Dan K.” for the heads up.]
Related article:
Apple may open retail store in NYC at newly-rebuilt World Trade Center – September 14, 2013
I would not want a store in what should be a memorial site and will not set foot there. not saying you shouldn’t, but the thought gives me the creeps.
Excellent observation.
The 9/11 memorial is already huge, covering the footprints of the twin towers and the surrounding areas. The 9/11 memorial museum is right there as well.
How much bigger could you possibly want the 9/11 memorial site to be? Why not make the whole island the memorial site, kick every business and the UN out of there, and just rename Manhattan The-Place-Where-9/11-Happenned (Never Forget).
Yeah. Thank you. I live in Manhattan (East Harlem), and sometimes the way people view New York City gets annoying. This isn’t just a tourist destination or a political football – people live here.
Way to go!!!
Let’s LET the terrorists win why don’t we.
The terrorists won- democracy, privacy and civil liberties lost.
The Patriot Act, extraordinary rendition, torture, indefinite detention, suspension of Habeas Corpus, targeted assassination of US citizens abroad, NSA spying, TSA, the militarized border, etc.
All gone, all unnecessary.
But we wouldn’t want to interfere with commerce, now. Would we?
They did attack the “World Trade Center”, so I’d assume interfering with commerce was part of these terrorists’ objective. But they were religious psycho killers, so what they wanted to accomplish probably ain’t easy to understand or of any practical use.
I’m a NY’er and most people that live here don’t think of that area as a memorial site. Thats the tourist mentality . a lot of stores are moving down there , mainly because there area is growing as is most areas of NY.
Over 3,000 innocent people died and that should make it a memorial.
Would you like to see a McDonald’s or a GAP next to the Arizona at Pearl Harbor? We would not want to waste that valuable Hawaiian real estate, right?
Microsoft to follow!
…and a Korean knock-off. Fake apple slices won’t fall far from the tree, or ribs in this case.
The “Trans-Hudson (PATH) Transportation Hub by architect Santiago Calatrava” looks like a defense set for Godzilla’s attack.
Actually it looks more like Godzilla died and left a skeleton.. 😛
Great, Apple Store WTC will be open just in time for Malaysia Airlines Flight 370’s reappearance. With whatever lovely cargo it has onboard. No thanks. Last Apple Store I’d ever set foot in.
That’s about the dumbest paranoia you can possibly have. You’re far more likely to die by tripping on a cucumber and falling onto a carpeted floor.
Irrational criticism. Of course every other tech company is going to try to get in there, why not Apple? Hold your faces till they turn blue, life goes on.
When every major city in the world is covered in giant fish skeletons, the Santiago Calatrava look is going to be really old and dated. I’m surprised people are still going with him considering what a cliche he’s become.
It is actually a Venus fly trap that is closed on something.
This spiky thing looks like giant Venus Flytrap (Dionaea muscipula)
But nothing for LA Sikd row?
LA has The Grove, baby.
Take LA sun over NYC grunge and gloom any day of the week.
Article states:
“It is all about clashing egos. Those brands [that object to the columns] are not going to open a flagship Downtown and have Santiago Calatrava’s ribs obstructing the view.”
—
Clashing egos? Balderdash! It was stupendous stupidity that allowed a design with columns every 11 feet that would obstruct the fronts of retail stores. The ego that is getting in the way is only Calatrava’s for insisting that his mark be asserted everywhere.
Seriously!?
We can debate on the artistic value of Calatrava’s work (whether it is inspired, dated, cliché, genius or whatever), but whichever it may be, it is much less of an eyesore than bright neon signs for retail stores. There is nothing artistic or appealing about the neon sign for Burberry, or Brooks Brothers, or even Apple. It symbolizes consumerism, which hardly has any artistic appeal to it.
So, I’d much prefer columns obscuring the neon glow of ordinary retail space.
Pre
I agree completely.
But this is not about artistic value. Businesses do not buy space in a mall to further someone else’s artistic merits, rather to sell their own products. Visitors as well go there to buy the products. Architecture is supposed to be the melding of art with function. If the “artistic” columns get in the way of a sot re’s promotion, then it is a failure architecturally no matter how beautiful.
If there were a beautiful, artistic column in your kitchen blocking access to your stove, would that be “better” because of the artistic value? In my opinion it is the same for the columns to block the storefronts.
I may say this as an investor in Apple, but also as an artist. (You can see some of my writing at:
http://50CentFlash.com/ )
I think that more adequate comparison would be when you build your new kitchen and then cover the doors to your refrigerator, freezer, dishwasher and wine cooler with the same decorative veneer that is used for the rest of the kitchen cabinets in order to obscure the generic, bland design (as well as the maker’s branding).
These columns are not likely to disrupt the traffic flow to the stores. The way I see the design, they are there to enhance the visual appeal of the complex. If in the process they get to obscure glowing neon, that much the better. Retailers have a choice: to be there or not. They will decide once they figure out whether the value of a spot in an object that will get heavy and high-quality foot traffic (highly paid office workers and tourists) trumps the disadvantage of not having prominent frontage branding.
I guess my main point is that, egos clashing or not, there will be retailers in that mall, and more than likely, all of them will be high-end, regardless of Calatrava’s “ribs”.
PS – I gave you 5 stars even tho I disagree with your last sentence.
And I thank you for that. I reciprocated.
To me, the point of stars is not necessarily that of agreeing with what is said. but rather to acknowledge that someone has a well thought out (and respectful) opinion.
(even tho you ARE WRONG!!!!) [tongue in cheek]
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