It does look like a destroyed ward. Everyone online in my FC remarked about it while we were watching and discussing the live letter. It will be an incentive for those on worlds without available houses to push to complete the reconstruction as fast as possible.

Quote Originally Posted by Noitems View Post
It obviously is going to be.

The fact they've called it the Firmament alone is a clear indication it's gonna be a housing district.
Why would you automatically associate "Firmament" with a housing district?

fir·ma·ment
/ˈfərməmənt/
noun
the heavens or the sky, especially when regarded as a tangible thing.

I don't see the relationship to housing. The name seems more like a reference to Ishgard being a focal point in the Heavensward expansion.