During the post-war period, economic growth was concentrated in Midtown Manhattan, in part stimulated by the Rockefeller Center, which was developed in the 1930s. Meanwhile, Lower Manhattan was left out of the economic boom. One exception was the construction of One Chase Manhattan Plaza in the Financial District by David Rockefeller, who led urban renewal efforts in Lower Manhattan.[5] In 1958, Rockefeller established the Downtown-Lower Manhattan Association (DLMA), which commissioned Skidmore, Owings and Merrill to draw up plans for revitalizing Lower Manhattan. The plans, made public in 1960, called for a World Trade Center to be built on a 13-acre (53,000 m2) site along the East River, from Old Slip to Fulton Street and between Water Street and South Street.[6][7] The complex would include a 900-foot (275 m) long exhibition hall, and a 50–70 story building, with some of its upper floors used as a hotel.[8] Other amenities would include a theater, shops, and restaurants.[9] The plan also called for a new securities exchange building, which the Downtown-Lower Manhattan Association hoped would house the New York Stock Exchange.[7]
David Rockefeller suggested that the Port Authority would be a logical choice for taking on the project,[7] and argued that the Trade Center would provide great benefits in facilitating and increasing volume of international commerce coming through the Port of New York.[9] Given the importance of New York City in global commerce, Port Authority director Austin J. Tobin remarked that the proposed project should be the World Trade Center, and not just a "world trade center."[10] After a year-long review of the proposal, the Port Authority formally backed the project on March 11, 1961