# Boondoggle or architectural icon?

By [Brandon Donnelly](https://brandondonnelly.com) · 2016-03-04

architect-this-city, architecture, atc, athiscity, cities, new-york, santiago-calatrava, transit, transport, transportation-hub, uncategorized, urbanism, world-trade-center

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![](https://storage.googleapis.com/papyrus_images/6110b61bd4e5fa35419e2ae5971c3f33.jpg)

Today, the new World Trade Center Transportation Hub, designed by architect Santiago Calatrava, opened up – at least partially - in New York City. 

Given that it was originally supposed to open in 2009 and cost about half as much (original budget was $2.2 billion), the critics haven’t been kind.

Here are a few snippets from Michael Kimmelman’s writeup in the New York Times, called, [Santiago Calatrava’s Transit Hub Is a Soaring Symbol of a Boondoggle](http://www.nytimes.com/2016/03/03/arts/design/santiago-calatravas-transit-hub-is-a-soaring-symbol-of-a-boondoggle.html?partner=rss&emc=rss&_r=0):

> _…at first blush,_ [_Mr. Calatrava’s architecture_](http://www.calatrava.com/) _can almost — almost — make you forget what an epic boondoggle the whole thing has been. That virgin view, standing inside the Oculus and gazing up, is a jaw-dropper._
> 
> _The project’s cost soared toward a head-slapping, unconscionable $4 billion in public money for what, in effect, is the 18th-busiest subway stop in_ [_New York City_](http://topics.nytimes.com/top/classifieds/realestate/locations/newyork/newyorkcity/manhattan/?inline=nyt-geo)_, tucked inside a shopping mall, down the block from another shopping center.  
> _
> 
> _And it’s not really a hub. A maze of underground passages connects the site to far-flung subway lines, but there are not free transfers. The place is a glorified PATH station for some 50,000 weekday riders commuting to and from New Jersey._  

I haven’t been following this project, so I can’t really comment on the delays and cost overruns. But I sure wish that main hall (called the Oculus and pictured above) was a part of my regular travel routine.

_Image via_ [_Curbed_](http://ny.curbed.com/2016/2/25/11111634/santiago-calatrava-wtc-transportation-hub-photos)

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*Originally published on [Brandon Donnelly](https://brandondonnelly.com/boondoggle-or-architectural-icon)*