Construction will resume on the REX designed cubic structure, the Ronald O. Perelman Performing Arts Center (PAC), which will become an international hub for the arts in the Financial District.
An agreement was announced last week by Governor Cuomo that will pave the way for construction of a “world-class arts center” on the World Trade Center site, named The Ronald O. Perelman Performing Arts Center. The center will include three theaters, rehearsal space and other amenities, with 200,000 square-feet of space, three halls and rehearsal space, a restaurant, and a gift shop are included in the design.
The arts center will also have the ability to host educational, community and fundraising events. The space allows for flexible seating, with theaters that can be conjoined to create different configurations, accommodating up to 1,200 people.
The agreement was ratified by the Port Authority’s Board of Commissioners, with a call for the bi-state agency to enter into a 99-year lease with World Trade Center Performing Arts Center, Inc. at $1 per year for the new facility. This will include the option for an extension of the lease for an additional 99 years at the same terms, with an additional option that will allow the Port Authority to transfer the site to the performing arts center at some point in the future for $1.
“New York is home to some of the most renowned cultural and creative institutions in the world and with this new performing arts center, Manhattan will cement its reputation as an international hub for the arts,” Governor Cuomo said. “This new facility will secure New York City’s status as a premier cultural destination while supporting tourism, jobs and economic growth for the entire Empire State.”
The performing arts center is one of the final pieces of the original World Trade Center Master Plan to be built on the site. The commercial office towers began to open in November 2013, when tenants began to occupy 4 World Trade Center. The following year, One World Trade Center – the tallest office tower in the Western Hemisphere at 1,776 feet tall – opened on November 3, 2014. And 3 World Trade Center is scheduled to open later this year. Construction has not yet begun on 2 World Trade Center.
In anticipation of the completion of the center, the Board of Directors for The Ronald O. Perelman Performing Arts Center (PAC) announced the appointment of Bill Rauch as head of its artistic team, planning for The Perelman’s opening season.
In December, 2018, the project was awarded an $89 million grant by the Lower Manhattan Development Corporation and the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, which brought the project 82 percent of the way toward meeting its total construction costs. The Performing Arts Center should top out by the end of 2919 and is scheduled to be fully completed in 2021.