Two decades since the 9/11 attacks, Lower Manhattan has bounced back, transforming into a vibrant residential neighborhood as well as a top-tier business district that has drawn major office tenants to the area.

The changes have gone hand in hand with New York City’s metamorphosis. According to Mike Aziz, Partner and Director of Urban Design at architecture firm Cooper Robertson, at a macro scale, New York City has been evolving from an almost purely hub and spoke model—which relies on Manhattan’s central business districts to drive the city’s economic engine—to a more distributed and decentralized model.