Taking Stock of New York's Changing Skyline Post-9/11

Fear that skyscrapers might be a persistent target of terrorist attacks did not last long beyond the days and months following 9/11. Neither terrorists nor the Great Recession have stopped the city's skyline from continuing to reaching skyward.

1 minute read

September 11, 2016, 1:00 PM PDT

By James Brasuell @CasualBrasuell


New York

SINITAR / Shutterstock

"Shortly after the Twin Towers fell, there were predictions of the end of skyscrapers as a practical form of architecture. Others thought Ground Zero — hallowed ground — should not be rebuilt to such heights," according to an article by James M. O'Neill. "Yet, despite the searing emotional impact of the Sept. 11 attacks — and the economically stifling Great Recession of 2008 — the Manhattan skyline that Berman and other North Jersey residents know so well has been strikingly transformed."

"In the decade and a half since the Twin Towers fell, 15 of Manhattan’s 35 tallest skyscrapers have been built. And others will soon join them," adds O'Neill. To illustrate that point, and the scale of change that has come to the Manhattan skyline since 9/11, the article includes an interactive graphic.

For more reading on the growing heights of the New York skyline, but without the context provided by 9/11, the New York Times Magazine released a big, interactive issue documenting and illustrating the 21 buildings currently reaching above 800 feet in the city of New York.

Tuesday, September 6, 2016 in The Record

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I love the variety of courses, many practical, and all richly illustrated. They have inspired many ideas that I've applied in practice, and in my own teaching. Mary G., Urban Planner

I love the variety of courses, many practical, and all richly illustrated. They have inspired many ideas that I've applied in practice, and in my own teaching.

Mary G., Urban Planner

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