Santiago Calatrava: “I have been treated like a dog”

Architect responds to criticism over WTC PATH hub project

From left: Santiago Calatrava and the World Trade Center PATH station
From left: Santiago Calatrava and the World Trade Center PATH station

Starchitect Santiago Calatrava isn’t being asked to compete for new projects in the U.S. after designing the PATH commuter rail station in Downtown Manhattan.

The eye-catching transit hub, located right at the World Trade Center, is nearly completed after delays and spiking costs, according to the Wall Street Journal, and has turned into the world’s most expensive train station, totaling $4 billion. The new terminal is scheduled to open at the end of the year. The initial opening date, according to the newspaper, was 2007.

The logistical problems and high costs are now almost synonymous with the starchitect’s reputation, something Calatrava said is unfair.

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It has not been easy for me, Calatrava told the newspaper. The architect has lived in New York City for 12 years. But now, he continued, “I have been treated like a dog.”

Calatrava also told the newspaper that he hadn’t been consulted on the project’s cost and schedule. “They didn’t ask me,” he said. [WSJ] — Claire Moses