Past and present New Yorkers (and visitors): were you already well aware that the original WTC plaza was modeled after the Grand Mosque of Mecca?

Was/is this commonly known among New Yorkers? Pretending for the moment that I’m not a raging conspiracist nutball, I’m finding this fact utterly boggling given the ongoing coverage of the “mosque at ground zero” controversy. What is striking (albeit unsurprising) is that this isn’t at all mentioned in the current media debates.

Anyway, I’m curious to know if New Yorkers mostly already knew this in addition to whatever else you might have to say.

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