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Rahm Emanuel Throws Shade at Freedom Tower

The Chicago mayor isn’t convinced New York now has America’s tallest building

by
Adam Chandler
November 12, 2013
Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel addresses a conference commemorating the 10th anniversary of the Center for American Progress in the Astor Ballroom of the St. Regis Hotel(Chip Somodevilla/Getty)
Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel addresses a conference commemorating the 10th anniversary of the Center for American Progress in the Astor Ballroom of the St. Regis Hotel(Chip Somodevilla/Getty)

For a brief moment in American history, the three largest cities in the United States had Jewish mayors. With Bill de Blasio set to take the reins from New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg, so will end the golden era of Jewish and unprecedentedly short heads of city.

While we’re on the topic of height, today in Chicago, it was announced by the Height Committee Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat (I bet their business cards are also tall) that the Freedom Tower in New York has supplanted the Willis Tower (nee Sears Tower) in Chicago as America’s tallest building.

One World Trade measures 1,776 feet tall when the 408-foot needle-like antenna is considered. That’s some 325 feet taller than the 1,450-foot Willis Tower. The council needed to decide whether One World Trade’s pointy top was considered a needle or a spire: A spire ruling would mean it counts towards the building’s height while a needle would stay off the books, giving Chicago the win.

I think we’ve all known for several years now that the Freedom Tower was going to be 1,776 feet tall, but Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel is not taking the news lightly. Today, he told reporters something along the lines of Yeah, well, you know, that’s just, like, your opinion, man.

“I would just say to all the experts gathered in one room, if it looks like an antenna, acts like an antenna, then guess what? It is an antenna.”

Symbolism be damned, America! And for those of you who are curious, by official Google accounts Mayor Bloomberg is five-foot-eight, Mayor Emanuel is five-foot-seven.

Adam Chandler was previously a staff writer at Tablet. His work has appeared in the New York Times, the Wall Street Journal, the Atlantic, Slate, Esquire, New York, and elsewhere. He tweets @allmychandler.