Team for WTC Bird of Peace' Tries to Remain Unflappable
Never mind the exoticcantilevered steel wings that, like a bird's, will flap to part the transit hall roof or the undulating concrete arches of a sunken public space to the west. Never mind the convoluteda five-acre, five-level basement for the $2.2-billion World Trade Center Transportation Hub, with future projects above, within and beside it. And never mind the supercharged atmosphere engulfing Santiago Calatrava's dove-like symbol of peace at the gateway to the site of the most heinous attack on U.S. soil ever. The builder responsible for landing the dove on its base on time and within budget, while keeping the temporary WTC transit terminal operational, is tied up in knots by something as mundane as subcontractor procurement rules.
"It is the single biggest challenge we are facing," says Gary W. Winsper, project director for local Phoenix Constructors JV, the construction manager-general contractor building the hub. Phoenix consists of Slattery Skanska and Fluor Corp., each with a 32.5% share; Granite Construction Northeast, with 20%; and Bovis Lend Lease, with 15%.