The Freedom Tower

The New York Times says the World Trade Center redevelopment project in the old days used elaborately staged events to bolster support for this controversial project. Most often, these announcements were almost always followed by disasters.

“Having learned a painful lesson in public relations, officials are now content to let actual milestones speak for themselves.

Observant passers-by have been able to spot just such a turning point, now that the massive concrete core of 1 World Trade Center, the Freedom Tower, has emerged into public view from the depths of ground zero. On Oct. 10, Collavino Construction poured 520 cubic yards of concrete, raising the top of the core 14 feet, thereby bringing it 13 feet 8 inches above sidewalk level.

The walls of the core range from three to four feet thick. The concrete is extremely high strength, with a rating of 14,000 p.s.i. — that is, a strength under compression calculated at 14,000 pounds per square inch.

The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey made no formal announcement, though it did note the moment on its World Trade Center Progress page.”