Now that 1 World Trade Center has opened for business, more attention will go to another building with conspicuous civic purposes—the Oculus pavilion at the World Trade Center Transportation Hub.
"With its long steel wings poised sinuously above the National September 11 Memorial in Lower Manhattan, the World Trade Center Transportation Hub has finally assumed its full astonishing form, more than a decade after it was conceived," writes David W. Dunlap to commence an expose about "one of the most expensive and most delayed train stations ever built."
As the total cost for the Santiago Calatrava-designed hub approaches $4 billion (with $655 million of that total coming from administrative costs), even the executive director of the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey has expressed his doubts about the choice to build such an expensive facility. Patrick J. Foye is quoted in the story, speaking in October: " We would not today prioritize spending $3.7 billion on the transit hub over other significant infrastructure needs…"
The article includes details on the development of the hub as well as animated graphics and a time-lapse of construction. The building, also known as the "Calatrasaurus" has already provoked scathing reviews.
FULL STORY: How Costs Soared at the $4 Billion Train Station for the World Trade Center

Planetizen Federal Action Tracker
A weekly monitor of how Trump’s orders and actions are impacting planners and planning in America.

Canada vs. Kamala: Whose Liberal Housing Platform Comes Out on Top?
As Canada votes for a new Prime Minister, what can America learn from the leading liberal candidate of its neighbor to the north?

The Five Most-Changed American Cities
A ranking of population change, home values, and jobs highlights the nation’s most dynamic and most stagnant regions.

San Diego Adopts First Mobility Master Plan
The plan provides a comprehensive framework for making San Diego’s transportation network more multimodal, accessible, and sustainable.

Housing, Supportive Service Providers Brace for Federal Cuts
Organizations that provide housing assistance are tightening their purse strings and making plans for maintaining operations if federal funding dries up.

Op-Ed: Why an Effective Passenger Rail Network Needs Government Involvement
An outdated rail network that privileges freight won’t be fixed by privatizing Amtrak.
Urban Design for Planners 1: Software Tools
This six-course series explores essential urban design concepts using open source software and equips planners with the tools they need to participate fully in the urban design process.
Planning for Universal Design
Learn the tools for implementing Universal Design in planning regulations.
New York City School Construction Authority
Village of Glen Ellyn
Central Transportation Planning Staff/Boston Region MPO
Institute for Housing and Urban Development Studies (IHS)
City of Grandview
Harvard GSD Executive Education
Regional Transportation Commission of Southern Nevada
Toledo-Lucas County Plan Commissions