In the never-ending saga that is the WTC Path Transportation Hub, the New York Times is reporting of yet another setback — a leaky roof. According to the Times, the new hub is suffering from a “persistent water leak” which is preventing hundreds of retailers such as Apple, Daniel Boulud, and Kate Spade from moving into their new spaces inside the mall. As a result of the leak, the hub’s official opening has now been moved to the first half of 2016 (it was supposed to have opened by now).
The hub was designed by Spanish starchitect Santiago Calatrava. Unfortunately, the New York Times has recently unearthed a number of alleged problems with many of Calatrava’s previous works. For example:
- “In Bilbao he designed a footbridge with a glass tile surface that allowed it to be lighted from below. But in a city that gets a lot of rain and occasional snow, pedestrians keep falling on the slippery surface.”
- “On the outskirts of Bilbao, Mr. Calatrava was commissioned to build an airport terminal that has been nicknamed La Paloma because of its resemblance to a dove taking flight. But when it opened in 2000, the airport lacked an arrivals hall.”
- “Auditors in Venice are taking Mr. Calatrava and several engineers to court because of cost overruns and what they see as an excessive need for repairs on Mr. Calatrava’s Ponte della Costituzione, a footbridge across the Grand Canal.”
Posing a more ominous threat are rumors of an alleged leak in the slurry wall that keeps the Hudson River from gushing into the WTC site. The Port Authority has yet to address or dismiss that issue. Interestingly enough, the Times also reports that by fall of 2016, two new Path train platforms will be in service at the WTC. —NYT
(Image: NYT)
