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Puerto Rico World Trade Center

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The Puerto Rico World Trade Center (PRWTC), also known as the World Trade Center San Juan (WTCSJ), was an unbuilt World Trade Center that was to be located in San Juan, Puerto Rico. Originally, the PRWTC was a program offered by the Puerto Rico Trade and Export Company, which held the license to operate the PRWTC brand,[1] and the building would house it as well as many other facilities.[2]

Puerto Rico World Trade Center Building
Alternative namesWorld Trade Center San Juan
General information
StatusNever built
LocationIsla Grande (Santurce)
Town or citySan Juan, Puerto Rico
Cost$36 million
OwnerPuerto Rico Convention Center
LandlordUrban Revitalization Group, Corp.
Height248 ft (75.59 m) (planned)
Technical details
Floor count10 (planned)
Design and construction
Architect(s)V Architecture
Other information
Parking500 parking spaces (planned)
Website
WTCSanJuan

History

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First attempt

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Originally conceived under governorship of Pedro Rosselló, the project would have been part of Americas World Trade District (AWTD), part of a larger Golden Triangle Project. The PRWTC would have been housed in two towers, and would be part of a $200 million Super Block project. This initial project would have been completed by late 2002, housing 210,000 ft2 of leasable space, "an international business club and an educational facility for local businesses." The PRWTC would be built in two phases, the first of which was supposed to last between 2000 and 2002.[3]

Second attempt

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Then-governor Aníbal Acevedo Vilá announced in his budget message for fiscal year 2007-2008 that the cornerstone for the PRWTC would be laid in that fiscal year.[4]

Third attempt

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This version of the project, which was announced during the governorship of Luis Fortuño, would cost $65 million.[5]

Fourth attempt

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The building was to serve as a world trade center, "[w]ith the mission of expanding the local and international commercial exchange" and "[sought] to promote economic development and commercial activity."[6] It was "the first initiative for the construction of an office building in the Convention Center District"[7] and with the then-ongoing construction of the Hyatt House nearby, was excepted to "expand revitalize" the area.[8][9]

The project was announced on August 13, 2013, by the then-executive director of the Puerto Rico Convention District Authority, Víctor Suárez Meléndez, who had signed a long-term lease agreement with Urban Revitalization Group. The structure, which was going to be built in an area close to the Puerto Rico Convention Center,[10] where the Hyatt Place Hotel now stands, would have stood at 248 ft[8] and housed 216,000 ft2 (66,000 m2) of office space, approximately 32,000 ft2 (10,000 m2) of commercial space and 500 parking spaces.[11] The PRWTC would be built through two phases, the first of which would be 100,000 ft2, approximately 18,000 ft2 of commercial space and 156 parking spaces.[12][13] Of the square footage, 25,000 ft2 would have been LEED-CS 2.0-certified by the U.S. Green Building Council.[14] With an investment of $36 million,[15] the building would end up housing "offices for economic exchange, commercial spaces, restaurants and exhibition space."[7] The project "[would] have not feature[d] a memorial or have any ties to the former World Trade Center in New York.[16] When originally announced, it was not known how long both the project and agreement would last.[17] The building was to be designed by Jiménez + Rodríguez Barceló, now known as V Architecture.[18]

The Puerto Rico Trade and Export Company would have offered "a wide range of services for businesses interested in internationalizing their products and services: business training, meeting rooms, local and international business missions and fairs, international business services and counseling, and the international business library" to small- and medium-sized enterprises at the PRWTC.[19]

In the 2016 Puerto Rican general elections, the gubernatorial candidate, David Bernier, called for the development of the PRWTC as a "multisectorial public–private platform" to internationalize Puerto Rico in his party's platform.[20]

PRWTC Program

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The PRWTC provides "access to the most innovative ideas in international business, international marketing channels, and the benefits and services of the World Trade Center Association."[21] It is a membership-based organization,[22] and runs under a manager, who between 2006 and 2011 was Ruth M. Claudio, who now labors at the Minority Business Development Agency.[23]

In 2010, the PRWTC attracted 150 new members under the direction of then-Secretary of Economic Development and Commerce of Puerto Rico, José Pérez Riera.[24]

The Interamerican University of Puerto Rico and the Puerto Rico Trade and Export Company signed an agreement to create the first student chapter of the World Trade Center, which would have an office at the university's Metro campus to permit students and would-be entrepreneurs have access to WTCA services .[25]

In 1995, the International Museum Institute of New York's travelling Paleomania!: 4.6 Billion Years of Fossil History exhibition was placed at a site known as the World Trade Center, San Juan.[26]

References

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  1. ^ Proenca, João (2017). Puerto Rico: Island of Opportunities (PDF). Puerto Rico Department of Economic Development and Commerce. p. 34. Archived from the original (PDF) on 16 December 2020.
  2. ^ 32nd Miami Conference on the Caribbean & Latin America (2008). Conference Program (PDF). Caribbean and Central America Action. p. 12. Archived from the original (PDF) on 16 December 2020.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  3. ^ Guadalupe-Fajardo, Evelyn (27 April 2000). "Puerto Rico Convention Center Breaks Ground". Caribbean Business. Casiano Communications. Archived from the original on 23 March 2010. Retrieved 16 December 2020.
  4. ^ Acevedo Vilá, Aníbal (2007). Mensaje sobre el presupuesto 2007-2008 [2007-2008 Budget Message] (PDF) (in Spanish). Puerto Rico Office of Management and Budget. p. 7. Archived from the original (PDF) on 16 December 2020.
  5. ^ Ryan, Frances (2 July 2009). "Making Puerto Rico an "in" tourist destination again". Caribbean Business. Casiano Communications. p. 32. Archived from the original on 16 December 2020. Retrieved 16 December 2020.
  6. ^ "Construirán un World Trade Center puertorriqueño" [Puerto Rican World Trade Center to be Built]. Primera Hora (Puerto Rico) (in Spanish). 13 August 2013. Archived from the original on 15 December 2020. Retrieved 15 December 2020.
  7. ^ a b "Construirán el "Puerto Rico World Trade Center Building"" ["Puerto Rico World Trade Center Building" to be Built]. Sin comillas (in Spanish). 13 August 2020. Archived from the original on 12 September 2013. Retrieved 15 December 2020.
  8. ^ a b Rodríguez, Víktor (13 August 2013). "Puerto Rico tendrá su World Trade Center" [Puerto Rico Will have Its World Trade Center]. Metro International (in Spanish). Archived from the original on 15 December 2020. Retrieved 15 December 2020.
  9. ^ "Puerto Rico launches $36M project to expand convention center district". Fox News. 13 August 2013. Archived from the original on 16 December 2020. Retrieved 16 December 2020.
  10. ^ "Convention Center Expansions" (PDF). Association Conventions & Facilities. 6 (4). Coastal Communications Corporation: 4. 1 August 2013. Archived from the original (PDF) on 6 September 2015.
  11. ^ "Construirán edificio "Puerto Rico World Trade Center Building" en San Juan" ["Puerto Rico World Trade Center Building" to be built in San Juan]. The San Diego Union-Tribune (in Spanish). 13 August 2013. Archived from the original on 15 December 2020. Retrieved 15 December 2020.
  12. ^ "Anuncian acuerdo para la construcción del 'Puerto Rico World Trade Center Building'" [Agreement announced for the construction of the 'Puerto Rico World Trade Center Building']. NotiCel (in Spanish). 13 August 2013. Archived from the original on 15 December 2020. Retrieved 15 December 2020.
  13. ^ Hinz, Christine; Martínez, Tere (19 November 2012). Puerto Rico Continues to Entice Meeting Groups with New Hotels, Property Updates and Increased Airservice at Upgrade Airports (PDF). Puerto Rico Convention Bureau. p. 3. Archived from the original (PDF) on 16 December 2020.
  14. ^ "Puerto Rico World Trade Center". U.S. Green Building Council. Archived from the original on 16 December 2020. Retrieved 16 December 2020.
  15. ^ Beckley, Barbara (1 April 2014). "Mexico and the Caribbean". Meetings and Conventions. Archived from the original on 16 December 2020. Retrieved 16 December 2020.
  16. ^ "Puerto Rico to expand convention center district". Associated Press. 13 August 2013. Archived from the original on 16 December 2020. Retrieved 16 December 2020.
  17. ^ "Un World Trade Center Boricua" [A Boricua World Trade Center]. Índice (in Spanish). 14 August 2013. Archived from the original on 16 December 2020. Retrieved 16 December 2020.
  18. ^ "Puerto Rico World Trade Center". Green Work Experience. Archived from the original on 16 December 2020. Retrieved 16 December 2020.
  19. ^ Puerto Rico Department of Economic Development and Commerce (2012). A Guide to Doing Business in Puerto Rico.pdf (PDF). pp. 88, 119.
  20. ^ Gobierno – Economía – Vida Plan Estratégico para Puerto Rico 2017-2020 [Government – Economy – Life Strategic Plan for Puerto Rico 2017-2020] (in Spanish). Popular Democratic Party (Puerto Rico). 28 August 2016. p. 30. Archived from the original on 16 December 2020.
  21. ^ A Guide to Doing Business in Puerto Rico (PDF). Puerto Rico Department of Economic Development and Commerce. 2011. p. 119. Archived from the original (PDF) on 16 December 2020.
  22. ^ Guía de Organismos de Apoyo a la Inversión: Puerto Rico [Guide to Organizations that Support Investment: Puerto Rico] (PDF) (in Spanish). Spanish Institute for Foreign Trade. 2010. p. 30. Archived from the original (PDF) on 16 December 2020.
  23. ^ "Puesto de Trabajo: Especialista en Comercio Internacional" [Job Position: International Trade Specialist]. Minority Business Development Agency (in Spanish). Archived from the original on 18 August 2018. Retrieved 16 December 2020.
  24. ^ Pérez-Riera, José (2011). Modelo Estratégico para una Nueva Economía [Strategic Model for a New Economy] (PDF) (in Spanish). Secretary of Economic Development and Commerce of Puerto Rico. p. 11. Archived from the original (PDF) on 16 December 2020.
  25. ^ "Se crea el primer capítulo estudiantil del Puerto Rico World Trade Center" [First Student Chapter of the Puerto Rico World Trade Center Created] (PDF). Noticias de la Red (in Spanish). 10 (18). Red Latinoamericana de Cooperación Universitaria: 54. 1 October 2008. Archived from the original (PDF) on 16 December 2020.
  26. ^ "Past Venues and Attendance Statistics". International Museum Institute of New York. Archived from the original on 15 October 2020. Retrieved 15 December 2020.

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