PLANS FOR NEW WTC GROW CLEARER

By the end of February, the Lower Manhattan Development Corporation and the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey will announce the "winning" design for the World Trade Center. The last two contenders, narrowed from a field of nine, are a design by Studio Libeskind and the World Cultural Center (pictured) by THINK. After more than two months of analysis and controversy, a single plan for the site is expected to emerge. Next week we'll see which prevails and what happens next.

TALE OF TWO CITIES

For most of the 19th century, two political groups fought for power in Nicaragua, and with the political winds, the capital shifted between their respective bases in Leon and Granada. Despite being bitter political rivals, however, the two cities are architectural twins. Mansions, churches, and houses adorn the streets of both places in a Spanish-Colonial style that is modified by indigenous elements unique to Nicaragua. Next week writer and photographer Steven Allan will show us the distinctive architecture of these two cities.

DEVELOPMENT, CHINESE STYLE

Beijing is undergoing a rapid urbanization and it's looking all too familiar to one American architect working there. The entrepreneurial real estate development community, he says, does not sufficiently analyze their intended markets. Hoping they can avoid some of the mistakes that have devastated American cities, architect Lawrence A. Samuelson will describe Chinese patterns of development and how they might change.