World Trade Center Rebuilding Finally Takes Shape with Last Office Tower

The final piece of Larry Silverstein's 25-year rebuilding project at the World Trade Center is taking shape. The last commercial office building, 2 World Trade Center, broke ground in July and will become American Express's new global headquarters when it opens in 2031.

The tower will hold up to 10,000 employees across 55 office floors, more space than the company occupies today. Its signature feature is an acre-plus of outdoor terraces and gardens woven through the building.

Rebuilding the World Trade Center has been a long and arduous process for Silverstein, who was 70 years old when he took title to the Twin Towers in 2001. The delay in building 2 WTC traces back two decades, to a five-year insurance battle Silverstein fought after buying the lease for $3.2 billion.

The project has also been complicated by bureaucracy involving 19 government agencies with oversight of the site. However, American Express agreed to serve as anchor tenant for the entire building this year, giving Silverstein the guarantee he needed to secure financing.