It has been twelve years since the frightful 9/11 attacks that occurred in lower Manhattan, New York, with American planes crashing into both of the World Trade Towers. Since then, citizens from all around the United States volunteered to help clean up the debris from the skyscrapers.

After the September 11^th attacks, the Empire State Building stood the tallest building in New York until one year ago when One World Trade Center opened and topped at a whopping 1,776 feet from the ground.

The construction of One World Trade Center started on July 4, 2004 and is expected to be opening around January or February of this year. Although the construction of One World Trade Center 1 and 7 are already finished and seeking to go into service this year, while other small skyscraper buildings are also expected to be constructed around One World Trade Center, such as World Trade Center 2, 3, 4, and 5. One World Trade Center also known as the “Freedom Tower,” includes 104 floors with 5 basements and 74 elevators.

It has been estimated that the construction cost of One World Trade Center is about 3.9 billion dollars, making One World Trade Center to be the most expensive building in the world to construct and the second tallest building, next to the “Burj Khalifa,” in Dubai, which stands roughly 2,717 feet.

“We really wanted our design to be grounded in something that was very real, not just in sculptural sketches. We explored the infrastructural challenges because the proper solution would have to be compelling, not just beautiful. The design does have great sculptural implications, and we fully understand the iconic importance of the tower, but it also has to be a highly efficient building. The discourse about Freedom Tower has often been limited to the symbolic, formal and aesthetic aspects but we recognize that if this building doesn’t function well, if people don’t want to work and visit there, then we will have failed as architects,” said David Childs, the architect of One World Trade Center.

The rebuilding of the World Trade Center has reached out to the nation and touched many hearts of Americans to move forward into the future, but to never forget those precious lives that died on that frightful day in history.