Austin J. Tobin Plaza
Austin J. Tobin Plaza | |
|---|---|
| Public square | |
| World Trade Center Plaza, Tobin Plaza | |
The plaza, as seen in 1976. The Sphere can be seen at the center of the plaza, and Ideogram is visible to the upper right, located between 1 and 2 World Trade Center. | |
| Design | Minoru Yamasaki |
| Construction | 1966 |
| Completion | 1973 |
| Opening date | April 4, 1973 |
| Destroyed date | September 11, 2001 |
| Cost | $12 million (1999 USD) |
| Area | 5 acres (220,000 square feet) |
| Dedicated to | Austin J. Tobin |
| Owner | Port Authority of New York and New Jersey |
| Location | World Trade Center, Lower Manhattan, New York City, U.S. |
Interactive map of Austin J. Tobin Plaza | |
| Coordinates: 40°42′42″N 74°00′45″W / 40.71167°N 74.01250°W | |
The Austin J. Tobin Plaza, also known as the World Trade Center Plaza, was a large elevated public square that was located within the World Trade Center site in Lower Manhattan, New York City, from 1966 until its destruction during the September 11 attacks in 2001. It covered 5 acres (220,000 sq ft; 2.0 ha), making it the largest plaza in New York City by acreage at the time.
The plaza opened as part of the original World Trade Center on April 4, 1973, and was renamed after Austin J. Tobin in 1982. Several sculptures were located there, including The Sphere and Ideogram. The plaza was damaged during the 1993 World Trade Center bombing and destroyed eight years later during the September 11 terrorist attacks, which saw over 1,000,000,000 pounds (450,000,000 kg) of debris fall onto the plaza's floor. Fires that erupted from the large pile of debris ended up destroying the plaza permanently.