South Street Seaport: Pier 17
Exterior cladding begins at SHoP Architects' new retail building at Pier 17, part of the redevelopment of Howard Hughes Corporation's South Street Seaport.
Steel superstructure has topped out and exterior facade panels are going up at the Howard Hughes Corporation's new retail center at Pier 17. This new structure is part of the redevelopment of the site formerly home to Benjamin Thompson's 1983 structure of similar function. The 300,000 square foot retail project is designed by SHoP Architects, the firm also responsible for the nearby Pier 15 and the East River Waterfront Esplanade renovation.
Looking south from the East River Esplanade.
Currently, exterior wall panels are being installed on the third and fourth floor of the north facade. Each panel spans two floors and includes a center window surrounded by more opaque channel glass.
Exterior panels on the north facade.
Detail of the exterior panels.
Architect: SHoP Architects; Developer: The Howard Hughes Corporation; Program: Retail; Location: Seaport District, New York, NY; Completion: 2017.
503 West 24th Street - The Getty
Superstructure has reached above ground at Peter Marino Architects' luxury residential condo tower at the High Line.
Signs of progress are visible at the latest condo adjacent to the High Line. Located on the site of the former Getty gas station, the 11-story condo tower by Victor Homes and Michael Shvo has started to rise above ground. The first few concrete floor slabs have been poured but concealed behind protective construction fencing.
Northeast corner from 10th Avenue and West 25th Street.
Peter Marino, an architect often known for his fashionable interiors for luxury brands, is responsible for the design of the low-rise tower. According to previously published renderings, the tower will feature a facade of dark metal and glass at varied widths throughout. An art gallery is slated for the ground floor, a typical tenant for retail space in the neighborhood.
Northeast corner from 10th Avenue.
East elevation from 10th Avenue.
Southeast corner from 10th Avenue and West 24th Street.
Southeast corner from 10th Avenue.
Architect: Peter Marino; Developer: Victor Homes and Michael Shvo ; Program: Residential, Retail; Location: High LIne, Chelsea, New York, NY; Completion: 2017.
55 Hudson Yards
Structure begins to rise at Related Companies' 55 Hudson Yards, one of many towers underway at the Hudson Yards mega-development.
After nearly a decade in planning, a tower is finally rising at 55 Hudson Yards. The project was first envisioned as an office tower for the medical industry when Extell was leading the development. Since then, the site has transferred to the Related Companies with a broader office and retail program.
Northwest corner from West 34th Street and 11th Avenue.
Design of the 51-story, 780-foot tower is led by Kohn Pedersen Fox with Kevin Roche John Dinkeloo and Associates. The design of the tower's massing features a tenth floor setback that affords an outdoor terrace with views of the larger development as well as Hudson Park and the High Line.
Close-up of the northeast corner (right), with 30 Hudson Yards (center) and Three Manhattan West (left) rising beyond.
In its first iteration, the medical tower sported a diagrid facade. With the change in developers and program came a redesign that features a curtain wall with black metal mullion caps that create a grid of chamfered rectangles.
Looking up at the north facade from West 34th Street.
Northeast corner from West 34th Street.
East facade from Hudson Park.
East facade of 55 Hudson Yards (background) and the entrance to the 34th Street-Hudson Yards station in Hudson Park (foreground).
East facade from Hudson Park.
Architects: Kohn Pedersen Fox with Kevin Roche John Dinkeloo and Associates; Developer: The Related Companies; Contractor: Gilbane; Program: Office, Retail; Location: Hudson Yards, New York, NY; Completion: 2018.
520 West 28th Street
Work begins on the metal screen at Related and Zaha Hadid Architects' 520 W 28 at the High Line.
Installation has begun on the hand-rubbed metal screen at Related's 520 W 28 residential condo tower. Designed by Zaha Hadid Architects, the 11-story, 40-unit condo flanks the western edge of the High Line at 28th Street. The metal screen functions as a finished cover for the concrete slabs, which are not covered by the glass panels of the window wall system. A typical glass curtain wall is installed along the perimeter of the tower's slabs effectively covering them, while a window wall sits in between the slabs some distance inside from the edge. Hadid uses the slab covering as an opportunity to express and emphasize the softened edges at the corners and create the building's signature element of floors that meld with walls. The intricacy of their shapes require a technological artisanry, as they are formed by unique, laser cut pieces.
When completed, the building should be a fitting testament to the avant garde vision of Zaha Hadid, who died earlier this year.
East facade from West 28th Street.
East facade from the High Line.
Detail of the metal facade installed at the southeast slab edge.
Southeast facade from the High LIne.
Detail of the metal facade installed at the southeast slab edge.
Looking north from the High Line towards 520 W 28 (left), 10 Hudson Yards (right), and 507 W 28 (far right).
East facade from West 27th Street.
Architects: Zaha Hadid Architects; Developers: Related; Program: Residential; Location: Chelsea, New York, NY; Completion: 2017.
45 East 22nd Street - Madison Square Park Tower
Superstructure has topped out at Bruce Eichner's tower in the Flatiron District.
Construction has topped out at the Flatiron District's high profile tower at 45 East 22nd Street. Developed by Bruce Eichner of The Continuum Company, the 65-story, 777-foot tower is designed by Kohn Pedersen Fox with construction overseen by Plaza Construction. Recently I was given a sneak peek of the panoramic views from the top.
Nestled mid block amongst the low-rise masonry and stone buildings typical of the Flatiron District, the tower's five-story base will be clad in granite. A quarry was found in China that produces a granite identical to that of Cass Gilbert's United States Custom House in Lower Manhattan from 1907. The granite coursing and bronze detailing of the entry doors and canopy will tie into the neighborhood context and welcome the tower's residents and guests.
From the 75-foot wide granite base, the glass tower rises towards its 777-foot apex, tapering outward on the western facade to a final width of 125 feet. The tower's floor-to-ceiling glass cladding offers panoramic views of New York and New Jersey. Eighty-three residences will be offered in a variety of configurations from simplex, duplex, full-floor and penthouse homes. Interiors designed by Martin Brudnizki Design Studio will take inspiration from the Art Deco and Moderne precedents of the neighborhood.
Residents will have access to five floors of amenities in the granite-clad base, including a library, fitness center, children's playroom, living room, and billiard's room. The Upper Club at the 54th floor will offer an entertainment suite with catering and demonstration kitchens for all residents.
While superstructure has topped out, curtain wall installation continues on the remaining floors at the top. Completion of the tower is slated for late 2016.
Northwest corner of the top of the tower.
Northwest corner from East 23rd Street.
Looking up at the north facade from East 23rd Street.
Looking up at the southwest corner of the tower from East 22nd Street.
Looking up at the southwest corner of the tower from East 22nd Street.
Looking south towards Lower Manhattan.
Looking west towards Chelsea, with the Hudson Yards mega-development rising (right).
Looking north towards the iconic towers of Midtown.
View of One Madison Avenue (foreground) and the Empire State Building (background).
Looking northeast towards Kips Bay and the expanding Long Island City skyline.
Looking southeast towards Gramercy Park and the Brooklyn waterfront.
Looking down on the Flatiron District.
Madison Square Park flanked by One Madison and One Madison Avenue.
Architect: Kohn Pedersen Fox Associates (KPF); Interior Architect: Martin Brudnizki Design Studio; Landscape Architect: Oehme van Sweden; Developer: The Continuum Company; Program: Residential; Location: Flatiron District, New York, NY; Completion: 2016.
16 West 40th Street - The Bryant
Facade installation continues at HFZ Capital Group's mixed-use tower at Bryant Park in Midtown.
Superstructure has surpass the 28th floor and facade panels continue to go up at the Bryant, a 33-story mixed-use tower in Midtown from HFZ Capital Group. The tower is designed by David Chipperfield Architects in their signature modernist style that emphasizes a rationalist grid of windows and structure. Rather than rely on the exposed concrete structure, as seen in similar towers like 432 Park Avenue, the structural members are instead clad in precast concrete terrazzo panels. The windows, one of which has been installed on the north facade, are actually full-height sliding doors with a metal railing of vertical pickets. KPF's 27 Wooster in SoHo has also employed this strategy with its sliding glass doors and perforated metal and glass railing.
Northwest corner from Bryant Park.
The tower will offer a mix of uses including a 230-key hotel on floors 2 through 15, 57 condominium apartments on floors 16 through 33, and ground floor retail and restaurant. Amenities in the tower include lobby lounge, fitness center, bike storage and hotel specific amenities.
Northwest corner from West 40th Street.
Looking up at the north facade from West 40th Street.
Facade detail with window.
North facade
Looking up at the northeast corner from West 40th Street.
Northeast corner.
Architect: David Chipperfield Architects; Developer: HFZ Capital Group; Program: Residential, Hotel, Retail; Location: Midtown, New York, NY; Completion: 2017.
Construction Update: 53 West 53rd Street
Construction rises above ground at Jean Nouvel's iconic diagrid tower in Midtown.
After many years in development limbo, the iconic diagrid of Jean Nouvel's 53W53 tower in Midtown has started to rise. Planning for the tower, from developers Hines and Pontiac Land Group with financing from Goldman Sachs, began all the way back in 2006 and was unveiled to the public in November of 2007. Since then, there has been a height reduction from 1250' down to 1050' and Diller Scofidio + Renfro have been tapped to design the tower's included expansion of MoMA.
Southwest corner from West 53rd Street.
The tower's signature identity comes from its diagrid structure, the diganolly criss-crossing of normally vertical concrete columns that will be expressed on the facade. Unlike the exposed concrete diagrid at the recently completed 170 Amsterdam, renderings suggest that Nouvel's structure will be clad, perhaps with metal panels.
West facade from West 53rd Street.
When completed, the 82-story tower will include 140 residential condo units ranging from one- to five-bedrooms, the largest of which will be a 7,892-square-foot duplex penthouse. The tower's unique shape impacts the design of each unit, ensuring that each has a unique floor plan. Interiors for the apartments and amenites are designed by Thierry Despont.
Southeast corner from West 53rd Street.
Southeast corner.
Detail of the tower branding on the sidewalk shed.
Northwest corner from West 54th Street.
North facade from West 54th Street.
Looking up at the north facade from West 54th Street.
Diagrid detail on the north facade.
Diagrid detail on the north facade.
Northeast corner from West 54th Street.
Architects: Ateliers Jean Nouvel (Design Architect), SLCE (Executive Architect); Interiors: Office of Thierry Despont; Developers: Hines, Pontiac Land Group, and Goldman Sachs; Program: Residential, Retail, Musuem; Location: Midtown, New York, NY; Completion: November 2018.
225 East 39th Street
Superstructure has topped out at Fisher Brothers' residential tower in Murray Hill.
Superstructure has topped out and curtain wall installation is ongoing at Fisher Brothers' 36-story tower in Murray Hill. Designed by Handel Architects, the 372-unit residential tower features a curved southern façade with large glass bays and vertical stripes of shadow box units that create a random pattern. Horizontal and vertical white spandrel panels frame and define these glazing zones throughout the facades. Completion looks to be on track for an early 2017 completion.
Architect: Handel Architects; Developer: Fisher Brothers; Program: Residential, Retail; Location: Murray Hill, New York, NY; Completion: 2017.
22-22 Jackson Avenue
ODA's signature residential building in Long Island City nears completion and awaits its first tenants.
Construction is wrapping up at the Gershon Company's 22-22 Jackson Avenue in Long Island City. Designed by the prolific firm ODA, the massing of the 11-story, 175-residential-unit mixed-use building features the firm's signature stacked forms in a playful jumble of ins and outs. Maroon framed windows are installed in the distinct boxes created by the exposed concrete structure. The massing also provides opportunities for residential terraces atop the protruding boxes but the maroon railings detract a bit from the purity of the massing diagram. Amenities for the project are housed in the two story base and include a lobby, lounge, library spaces, gym, indoor pool, and a landscaped courtyard on the 3rd floor roof deck. The project looks to be near ready for its first tenants.
Southeast corner.
East elevation with the former Five Pointz site in the foreground.
Northeast corner from the Court Square subway station platform.
Northeast corner from the Court Square subway station.
East facade from Jackson Avenue.
Northeast corner from Jackson Avenue.
North elevation from Jackson Avenue.
Northeast corner from Crane Street.
East facade with storefront.
East facade detail.
Looking up at the east facade from Crane Street.
Southeast corner from Crane Street.
Cornell Tech Campus
Progress continues at the first phase of Cornell NYC Tech's new Roosevelt Island campus as all buildings have topped out and facade installation begins on the residential tower.
Construction continues at the new campus for Cornell Tech on Roosevelt Island. Steel erection is complete at Morphosis' Bloomberg Center and Weiss/Manfredi's co-location building, known as the Bridge at Cornell Tech. At the Hudson Companies' 26-story residential tower for graduate students, superstructure has topped out and facade panel installation is underway on the lower floors. Designed by Handel Architects, the tower will be the world's tallest project built to the Passive House standards for energy efficiency. Phase One looks to be on track for its mid 2017 opening date.
Looking east towards the Cornell Tech campus from the Roosevelt Island Tram.
Looking east towards the Cornell Tech campus from the Roosevelt Island Tram.
Looking south towards the Cornell Tech campus from the Roosevelt Island Tram.
Looking south towards the Cornell Tech campus from the Roosevelt Island Tram.
Cornell Tech Campus from the intersection of North Loop Road and West Loop Road.
North facade of the Cornell Tech Residential Building from North Loop Road.
Facade panels awaiting installation on the Residential Building.
Looking up at the north facade of the Cornell Tech Residential Building.
Close-up of facade panel installation underway at the Residential Building.
Northeast corner of the Cornell Tech Residential Building (center) and the Bridge (left).
Close-up of the Residential Building's northeast facade.
Northeast corner of the Bridge at Cornell Tech from North Loop Road.
Looking north toward the Cornell Tech Campus from Southpoint Park.
Looking north toward the Cornell Tech Campus from Southpoint Park.
Southwest corner of the Bloomberg Center and the Bridge.
Close-up of the south facade of the Bridge.
West facade and canopy of the Bloomberg Center.
West facade and canopy of the Bloomberg Center.
Architects: SOM (Master Plan, Central Utility Plant), Morphosis (The Bloomberg Center), Weiss/Manfredi (The Bridge at Cornell Tech), Handel Architects (Residential Tower); Landscape Architects: Field Operations (Campus Plaza); Program: Education, Office, Residential, Open Space; Location: Roosevelt Island, New York, NY; Completion: 2017.
