Does anyone know why the Twin Towers were not rebuilt?
There was a great deal of argument about if and what should be rebuilt there.
Twin Towers were owned by the Port Authority, but that July were leased for 3.2 billion dollars for 99 years to the owner of 7 WTC Larry Silverstein. An insurance deal hadn't been finalized before the attack happened. (this is were some conspiracy theorists found themselves a home)
Many families and friends of the dead, locals, and Mayor Guilliani wanted it left bare other than a memorial.
Silverstein however, couldn't claim any insurance unless all the destroyed office space was rebuilt.
The Governor of New York, George Pataki, had the final decision and IMO did his best to fairly balance out the different needs.
Lower Manhattan development corporation launched the World Trade Center Site Memorial Competition for a memorial.
Then later, architectural groups where commissioned to suggest replacing the twin towers with 'something.'
Four proposals were to rebuild the towers as taller versions.
If I have the memory correctly one of them, backed by Trump, was actually planned to be entered into the memorial competition, as the supposed memorial, but got it's timing wrong.
A friend who wasn't part of the normal businesses occupying the towers, died in the North tower and I'm grateful to be able to look at the sky at approximately where I know he very much enjoyed the view and think of him enjoying it there, (and some of his friends who worked in the restaurant, at least one of whom fell to his death) in a way that really wouldn't have been possible if they'd replaced it with some 'showy' 'we don't get beat' 'bigger and better replacement' full of more people.
In some way over the years it has helped just a tiny bit to balance out their last moments and how they died along with all those brave rescuers who died trying to rescue others.