Port Authority Will Hold Opening Ceremony for WTC Transportation Hub After All

On Tuesday, news broke that the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey would not be holding a ribbon cutting ceremony when the World Trade Center Transportation Hub opens next week. They called Santiago Calatrava’s project “a symbol of excess.” Perhaps feeling the backlash from their decision, the agency sent out a press release yesterday saying that though there will still be no event to mark the opening on March 3rd at 3pm, they will hold a ceremony once the Hub is fully up and running this spring, according to the Wall Street Journal. They credit their change of heart to a desire to thank the thousands of workers who built the station. Additionally, Port Authority Chairman John Degnan said, “It will stand, along with the memorial, museum and the buildings themselves, as a tribute the resiliency of the region.”

The Port Authority’s original decision stemmed from the fact that the Hub was incredibly delayed (it’s six years off schedule) and over-budget (initial estimates put the cost at around $2 billion, but it actually cost $4 billion in taxpayer dollars, the most expensive train station in the world). Internal debates, as well as supposed complaints from the World Trade Center staff, are cited as the reasons for the flip flop.

[Via WSJ and Politico]

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