A $50-million, one-acre rooftop park will indeed grace the surface above the vehicle security center of the World Trade Center. The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey has received its approved funding that will allow visitors to the site take in a panoramic view of the national September 11th memorial—upon completion in 2015.
The renderings for the new park, aptly named Liberty Park and created by Joseph E. Brown, have finally been released after months of ongoing speculation about its existence. The project’s big reveal informs us that Japanese Cherry trees, along with several other varieties of vines and shrubbery, will encompass 300 feet and rise 20 feet high, forming what is being called a “living wall.” This living wall will parallel the Liberty Street façade of the site and essentially become a rather interesting vertical landscape—the feature that stands out the most in the renderings.
Liberty Park will be constructed on the current vehicle security center’s concrete roof, and it will also provide pedestrians an easy way to cross between West Street and Battery Park City. The park will elevate visitors 25 feet above Liberty Street, allowing as many as 750 people at a time to gather and contemplate as they look upon the impassioned memorial.
The walkways planned to traverse the park will provide visitors with an easy point of departure to Greenwich Street by way of conveniently placed staircases. There will also be a designated amphitheater-style area comprised of tiered wooden benches for seating. These will be conveniently ensconced on the site overlooking the soon-to-be-rebuilt St. Nicholas Greek Orthodox church.
Liberty Park’s location wasn’t an easy one to design considering it had to have just the right combination of unique properties to attract a crowd, but not so much that it would overshadow the memorial site itself. Trucks and tour buses will also travel beneath the park, which was an additional detail that had to be considered when Brown was creating the park’s design.
Nonetheless, the added park planned for the World Trade Center site is anticipated to be a welcome addition to the area, as it will provide a serene place amidst the city’s chaos for remembrance and appreciation.