A Mall under Ground Zero| Abandoned Mall untouched by 9/11.

Aydin J Zubair
3 min readMay 7, 2023

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The mall in 2002.

The Twin Towers of the World Trade Center in New York City were iconic symbols of American capitalism and economic power. As two of the tallest buildings in the world, they housed thousands of businesses and attracted millions of visitors each year. One unusual feature of the World Trade Center was the underground mall, which was located beneath the Twin Towers. This mall was an unusual addition to the building complex, and its creation was motivated by a number of factors.

The World Trade Center was originally conceived as a massive commercial complex in the heart of Manhattan. It was designed to be a hub for international trade and commerce, with offices for hundreds of businesses and facilities for shipping and transportation. However, the planners of the World Trade Center also wanted the complex to be a destination in its own right. They envisioned a space that would not only be a hub of commerce, but also a hub of culture and entertainment. To this end, they included a number of amenities in the design of the complex, including a large plaza, a conference center, and even an observation deck.

However, the most unusual feature of the World Trade Center was the underground mall, which was located beneath the Twin Towers. This mall was not originally part of the design for the complex, but was added later as a way to attract more visitors and shoppers to the area. The mall was built in the early 1970s, and was one of the largest underground malls in the world at the time. It featured a wide variety of stores and restaurants, as well as a movie theater and a skating rink. The mall was connected to the rest of the World Trade Center complex through a series of underground tunnels, which allowed visitors to easily access the mall from anywhere in the complex.

The creation of the underground mall was motivated by several factors. First, the planners of the World Trade Center wanted to create a space that would be attractive to visitors and shoppers. The mall was seen as a way to provide a unique shopping experience that would draw people to the area. Second, the mall was also seen as a way to generate revenue for the World Trade Center. The stores and restaurants in the mall paid rent to the building owners, and the revenue from these rents helped to offset the cost of building and maintaining the World Trade Center complex. Finally, the mall was also seen as a way to provide a buffer against the harsh weather conditions in New York City. The underground mall provided a climate-controlled environment that was comfortable for shoppers and visitors, even during the winter months.

The underground mall beneath the Twin Towers was a unique feature of the World Trade Center complex. It was built to attract visitors and shoppers to the area, generate revenue for the building owners, and provide a comfortable environment for visitors. Although the mall is no longer standing, it remains a testament to the vision and ambition of the planners of the World Trade Center, who sought to create a hub of commerce, culture, and entertainment in the heart of Manhattan.

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Aydin J Zubair

Reddit: u/186times14 Hello! I write articles on whatsever on my mind. I don't write here a lot as I used to, but I hope you enjoy!