Brookfield Place Pavilion, PATH Tunnel to Open Today

Rendering of the interior of the $50 million pavilion, which will have escalators leading to an underground walkway that connects to the nearby PATH station. Rendering courtesy of Brookfield Office Properties

The glass-enclosed pavilion that will serve as a new West Street entrance to Brookfield Place (aka the World Financial Center) opens today.

The 8,000-square-foot pavilion, directly across from the National Sept. 11 Memorial plaza, will have revolving doors on its northern and southern sides along West Street. The northern entrance, which will open with the pavilion, will connect to a pedestrian walkway leading to Vesey Street. The southern entrance, providing pedestrian access from Albany Street, will not open until sometime next year.

Inside, the pavilion has six escalators leading to an underground walkway that will link the office complex with the World Trade Center PATH station—and, eventually, with the new Calatrava-designed PATH station and the Fulton Transit Center, both under construction. It'll be the first time that commuters and visitors will be able to walk underground between the World Financial Center and the PATH station.

The 55-foot-high pavilion will have two towering steel columns resembling giant basketball nets, and Italian stone paving. Facing the grand entrance will be retail shops, due to open in the fall of 2014, that will line the back and sides of the Winter Garden staircase.