Financial District

This large, boxy skyscraper at 28 Liberty Street may not be ornate or even as attractive as some of the simple glass towers we see sprouting up on the city’s side streets, but One Chase Manhattan Plaza’s architectural significance is profound. Erected in 1960, the building is accredited with bringing forth a downtown renaissance that paved the […]

VIDEO: Watch the World Trade Center Oculus Get Built in 65 Seconds

Time-Lapse Courtesy of EarthCam

March 3, 2016

VIDEO: Watch the World Trade Center Oculus Get Built in 65 Seconds

When we talk about Santiago Calatrava's $4 billion World Trade Center Transportation Hub, there's always the inevitable mention of how long (12 years!) it actually took to get the project up and running and built. Which is why this stunning time lapse is all the more fitting to mark the Hub's opening today at 3:00pm. The webcam experts at EarthCam teamed up with the project contractor, Skanska USA, to capture all 42 months (June 2011-December 2014) of construction progress for the famed and notorious winged oculus and condense it into a 65-second video.
Watch the full time lapse here

Architecture And Design

February 26, 2016

Renderings Revealed for Downtown Supertall 45 Broad Street

Back in January, 6sqft uncovered preliminary renderings of downtown supertall 45 Broad Street, a project of Madison Equities and Italy-based Pizzarotti Group that's reportedly being designed by the architects at CetraRuddy. The design showed a presumably glass tower, "crowned by a distinctive pitched roof and an angling cantilever located some 400 feet above street level along its northern facade." After groundwork began at the site earlier this month, The Real Deal has now obtained more concrete views of the tower, which will stretch 1,100 feet high, have 86 floors, and contain 245 condo residences catering to entry- and mid-level buyers. The new renderings mimic the original massing, but show much more detail, like the golden, Gothic-inspired ribs traveling up the facade, the pointed crown, and the narrow mid portion.
More details ahead

Port Authority Will Hold Opening Ceremony for WTC Transportation Hub After All

Santiago Calatrava: WTC Transportation Hub , New York (Photo: Mega Projects and Skyscrapers, via YouTube)

February 26, 2016

Port Authority Will Hold Opening Ceremony for WTC Transportation Hub After All

On Tuesday, news broke that the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey would not be holding a ribbon cutting ceremony when the World Trade Center Transportation Hub opens next week. They called Santiago Calatrava's project "a symbol of excess." Perhaps feeling the backlash from their decision, the agency sent out a press release yesterday saying that though there will still be no event to mark the opening on March 3rd at 3pm, they will hold a ceremony once the Hub is fully up and running this spring, according to the Wall Street Journal. They credit their change of heart to a desire to thank the thousands of workers who built the station. Additionally, Port Authority Chairman John Degnan said, "It will stand, along with the memorial, museum and the buildings themselves, as a tribute the resiliency of the region."
More this way

There Will Be No Ribbon Cutting for the WTC Transportation Hub Opening

Santiago Calatrava: WTC Transportation Hub , New York (Photo: Mega Projects and Skyscrapers, via YouTube)

February 23, 2016

There Will Be No Ribbon Cutting for the WTC Transportation Hub Opening

When the subject of Santiago Calatrava's World Trade Center Transportation Hub comes up, what's most likely to come to mind is not the flying-bird-looking architecture, but the fact that it was so incredibly delayed (it’s six years off schedule) and over-budget (final construction costs ring in around $4 billion in taxpayer dollars, twice what was projected, making it the world’s most expensive train station). The latter is not sitting well with the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, who oversee the hub, as they've announced that they will not host an event to mark the opening during the first week of March, calling it "a symbol of excess," according to Politico. Similarly, Governors Christie and Cuomo, who control the agency, have declined to commemorate the opening.
Get the scoop

February 11, 2016

Groundwork Begins at Downtown Supertall 45 Broad Street

Wasting no time getting started, Madison Equities and Italy-based Pizzarotti Group have begun soil testing at the site of their upcoming supertall tower 45 Broad Street. After 6sqft revealed a trio of preliminary renderings last month, Pizzarotti Group's CEO Rance MacFarland told Curbed that the tower will stretch 1,100 feet high and have 86 floors. He also shared that it will contain 245 condo residences catering to "entry- and mid-level buyers."
Get a look at the current site

Confirmed: Calatrava’s WTC Transportation Hub Will Open First Week of March!

Santiago Calatrava: WTC Transportation Hub , New York (Photo: Mega Projects and Skyscrapers, via YouTube)

January 19, 2016

Confirmed: Calatrava’s WTC Transportation Hub Will Open First Week of March!

The Port Authority has announced today in a press release that the World Trade Center Transportation Hub—anchored by architect Santiago Calatrava's Oculus–will open the first week of March. The hub will link the World Trade Center PATH station and "enable travelers to have a seamless connection with 11 New York City subway lines and the East River ferries in addition to access to PATH trains."
What about the mall?

January 15, 2016

Fox and News Corp. Ditch Plans to Move Into 2 World Trade Center

Big news on the 2 World Trade Center front. After several months of negotiation and hashing out design plans, News Corp. and 21st Century Fox Inc. have decided not to move into the new tower. The Post first broke the news, reporting that the media companies will remain at their Midtown headquarters at 1211 and 1185 Sixth Avenue where they currently have a lease in effect until 2020. "After much careful consideration we have decided to maintain our New York headquarters and other business operations. We have extension options that could continue our occupancy on Sixth Avenue through 2025,” the companies wrote in a joint statement. Sources added that the move would have been "a huge distraction for the companies' global operations."
FInd out more here

January 13, 2016

WeWork’s Communal Living Concept on Wall Street Gets Its First Residents

Co-working space provider WeWork (which has 40,000 members in 19 US, European and Asian cities that share office space with perks like free coffee, cool furniture and a communal atmosphere) has launched their new "co-living" apartment concept, beginning with 45 units in a Wall Street building. FastCompany reports that last weekend, 80 new residents moved into furnished apartments at 110 Wall Street, where the company already runs a co-working space on the building’s first seven floors. They're part of what the company says is the first stage of beta testing for this community-driven concept, with New York City as the guinea pig. The concept is, according to a company spokesperson, "focused on enabling people to live more fulfilling lives. During this testing phase, we’ll be listening to feedback from our community." Plans are in the works to accommodate 600 people on 20 floors of the building.
Find out more about the latest co-living experiment

REVEALED: 45 Broad Street, Slated to Be Among the Highest Condo Buildings Downtown

** UPDATE as of 1/6/16: Pizzarotti CEO Rance MacFarland confirmed to Curbed that 45 Broad Street will be a 1,100-foot-tall, 86-story supertall tower. It will have 245 units that will cater to “entry- and mid-level buyers,” as well as five floors of commercial and retail space.

January 5, 2016

REVEALED: 45 Broad Street, Slated to Be Among the Highest Condo Buildings Downtown

Last October, it was announced that the long-vacant lot in the heart of the Financial District at 45 Broad Street would be redeveloped into a 65-story residential skyscraper by way of a partnership between Pizzarotti IBC and Madison Equities. Now, via Pizzarotti's project page, we have our first look at the design of the 300,000-square-foot CetraRuddy-designed tower that the development group affirms "will be the highest condo in Downtown Manhattan." The team will have to move quickly, though; at least two condo towers are proposed to be taller including Shvo's supertall at 125 Greenwich Street.
More details ahead

December 1, 2015

Ring In the New Year at One World Observatory for $7,000

Thought that $100 New Year’s Eve cover at your favorite bar was steep? It’s nothing compared to the rates to ring in 2016 atop One World Trade Center. DNAinfo reports that the Observatory is hosting a black-tie-optional soiree for which tickets will range from $500 to $6,750, a far cry from the normal $32 rate […]

Events & Things To Do

REX Revealed as the Architects Redesigning the World Trade Center Performing Arts Complex

Image pointing to the site of the Performing Arts Center at the World Trade Center. Rendering by DBOX

November 20, 2015

REX Revealed as the Architects Redesigning the World Trade Center Performing Arts Complex

Ever since Frank Gehry and his design for the Performing Arts Center at the World Trade Center (PACWTC) site got the boot last year, many have been eager to know who would be taking the helm in his place. Since July, the PACWTC has been working with an anonymous architectural firm to hash out a new concept, and now, nearly five months later, the board has finally released the name of the lead architect: Brooklyn-based studio REX led by Joshua Prince-Ramus, a former protégé of starchitect Rem Koolhaas. PACWTC chairman John Zucotti said in a statement, "The selection of REX and the Lower Manhattan District Council’s renewed commitment are critical milestones in our collective effort to create a vibrant new cultural and community anchor for all of Lower Manhattan. We are now two important steps closer to completing the World Trade Center and fully realizing our vision of Lower Manhattan as the world’s most dynamic, 24/7 urban community."
more details on the design here

October 29, 2015

REVEALED: 26-Story, LEED-Certified Hotel Coming to the Financial District

Here's our first look at Tribeca Associates upcoming 26-story hotel at 143 Fulton Street in the Financial District, where demolition at the site is already underway. The 90,000- square-foot tower designed by SLCE Architects will contain 228 rooms, ground-level retail, and typical hotel amenities such as a fitness center and a bar/lounge on the third floor. Hotel suites, found on floors 5 through 25, average ten per floor. The building will also seek LEED accreditation.
More details

65-Story Condo Tower Designed by CetraRuddy to Rise in the Downtown Skyline

Renderings of the tower at 900 feet, courtesy of CityRealty

October 27, 2015

65-Story Condo Tower Designed by CetraRuddy to Rise in the Downtown Skyline

Last week it was announced that the long vacant Financial District lot at 45 Broad Street would be redeveloped into a 65-story condominium tower through a partnership between Madison Equities and the Pizzarotti Group. According to The Real Deal, "The buyers closed on the purchase of the land for $86 million and secured a $75 million acquisition loan." While it is not yet clear what the project’s exact size and number of units will be, given the lofty ceiling heights of today's high-end condo developments, 65 stories could yield a tower of up to 900 feet.
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October 22, 2015

New, Cheaper Design for WTC Performing Arts Center to Be Revealed Soon

The Performing Arts Center at the World Trade Center has seen a lot of ups and downs since it was first conceived over a dozen years ago. The biggest shakeup occurred a year ago, when Frank Gehry's design for the center got dumped by officials, followed by the Lower Manhattan Development Corporation's decision earlier this year that the project should cost no more than $200 million, far less than the original estimates of $350 to $400 million. In July, LMDC funded a $500,000 study to explore how the "current conceptual design" could work within those cost restraints, and since then they've been working with a yet-unnamed architectural firm to reimagine the plan, according to the Wall Street Journal. The paper reports that "their latest take envisions a roughly 80,000-square-foot building, rising three to four stories aboveground, where new works of theater, dance, music and digital art would be produced."
More details ahead

September 22, 2015

Downtown’s Beekman Residences Tower Is Ready for Its Crowns – Now 50 Percent Sold

Rising from the birthplace of the romantic skyscraper, a svelte 51-story condominium known as the Beekman Residences will soon receive its twin pyramidal crowns. The to-be-illuminated, open-air pinnacles will bring the building's 599-foot roof height up an additional 51 feet, granting us skyline-watchers a new silhouette to gaze upon. While the tower's height is unremarkable in today's world of kilometer-high skyscrapers (it's only the 24th tallest building now under construction in the city), its peculiar design and prominent location overlooking Park Row is sure to add to the exceptional urban room created by the variously-styled towers surrounding City Hall Park.
More details ahead

New Renderings of Vinoly’s 125 Greenwich Street, Downtown’s Future Tallest Residential Skyscraper

Rendering by ArX Solutions

September 11, 2015

New Renderings of Vinoly’s 125 Greenwich Street, Downtown’s Future Tallest Residential Skyscraper

On the 14th anniversary of the day that caused the city to question our skyward building ambitions, we give you a new look at lower Manhattan's future tallest apartment tower, 125 Greenwich Street. Not only has the city regained its confidence in building high again, but it has now been feverishly erecting 1,000-plus-foot supertall towers at a faster rate than nearly any other global metropolis. This particular residential spire will soar 77 stories and roughly 1,100 feet high, some 200 feet taller than downtown's next tallest ground-up residential buildings, 30 Park Place (937 feet) and New York by Gehry (870 feet).
Find out more here

2 World Trade Center rendering via BIG

August 6, 2015

2 World Trade Center Could Be the Most Expensive Office Tower in the World

The Post reports that the construction of the Bjarke Ingels Group-designed 2 World Trade Center will come with a $4 billion price tag. The 2.8 million-square-foot downtown tower will top out at 1,340 feet, just 28 feet shy of One World Trade Center, which currently holds the title of the world's most expensive office building with construction costs coming in at $3.8 billion.
More details this way

Architecture And Design

July 21, 2015

BIG Ideas: Bjarke Ingels Talks 2 WTC and Why Today’s Skyscrapers Lack Confidence

Helping to kick off the 2015 New York Times Cities for Tomorrow conference, Danish architect Bjarke Ingels—principal of Bjarke Ingels Group (BIG), the firm responsible for 2 World Trade Center, Google HQ in Mountain View (with Thomas Heatherwick), the Dry Line and the pyramid-shaped “Via,” AKA 625 West 57th Street, among many others—talked “social infrastructure” with New York Times architecture critic Michael Kimmelman. The baby-faced “starchitect 2.0” was his usual quotable and slightly mischievous self, yet, as always, provided plenty of insight on the topic at hand. Well-known for his suggestion that “Architecture at its best is really the power to make the world a little bit more like our dreams," Ingels offered his views on the ideal workspace design, what makes a memorable skyscraper and what some of his toughest challenges have been, in addition to speaking to the architect’s role in the social evolution of modern cities.
Find out the highlights and watch a video of the discussion

Architecture And Design

July 16, 2015

New Initiative Rethinks Lower Manhattan Streetscape to Clear Tourists and Congestion

If you've ever attempted to go shopping at Century 21 on a weekend or take a selfie with the Charging Bull, you know very well the perils of tourist-laden lower Manhattan. The confusing street layout, lack of open gathering spaces, and non-pedestrian-and-cyclist-friendly thoroughfares make the historic neighborhood a bit of a jumble, especially as it's currently undergoing a huge development boom and both residential population and tourism have more than doubled since September 11th. But a new initiative called Make Way for Lower Manhattan hopes to change all this. As DNAinfo reports, the plan's goal is to "highlight tourist areas, like the Seaport, the 9/11 Memorial, The Battery, Wall Street, and connect the dots better for tourists — giving them a means to find their way, stay and spend money without completely congesting the neighborhood." The group presented at this week's Community Board 1 meeting, unveiling ideas like creating a more accessible entrance to the Brooklyn Bridge that also connects people to the nearby South Street Seaport and moving the bull across from the New York Stock Exchange, its original home and much less congested site.
Find out more right here

3 World Trade Center Gets Update to Better Complement Its Bjarke Ingels-Designed Neighbor

Original design of 3 WTC (L); Revised design without the roof masts (R)

June 23, 2015

3 World Trade Center Gets Update to Better Complement Its Bjarke Ingels-Designed Neighbor

Ever since starchitect Bjarke Ingels revealed renderings for 2 World Trade Center (after taking over the design from Norman Foster), the building has been the talk of the architecture world, especially since Ingels has been so generous about giving interviews to the press. The tower has now even influenced the architects of 3 World Trade Center (a.k.a. 175 Greenwich Street) to rethink their design. As Yimby reports, Rogers Stirk Harbour + Partners have amended their plan for the third-tallest building on the site to have a more streamlined roof, now void of its spires, to better complement 2 World Trade.
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Architecture And Design

New Rendering Reveals What Rafael Viñoly’s 125 Greenwich FiDi Tower Will Look Like

Rendering via NY Yimby via Shvo

June 15, 2015

New Rendering Reveals What Rafael Viñoly’s 125 Greenwich FiDi Tower Will Look Like

It's been a while since we've heard anything on Rafael Viñoly's tower slated to rise in the Financial District, but it looks like the starchitect's next supertall is inching closer to a full reveal. Ground was broken at the building's 125 Greenwich Street site about four months ago, and now this newly uncovered rendering via NY Yimby gives us a much better idea of its height, its look, and how it fits in with the downtown skyline. Previous renderings had shown a stark, tall and slim rectangle—very much a glass version of Viñoly's 432 Park—while this new and sweeping depiction highlights a structure that will taper slightly as it rises, and feature a stacked crown of what appear to be residences and sky-high terraces.
Find out more here

Two World Trade Center rendering via Silverstein Properties

June 11, 2015

Bjarke Ingels Talks About His Design for 2 World Trade Center

If you were still itching for more after Tuesday's reveal of Bjarke Ingels' design for Two World Trade Center, you're in luck. The starchitect himself chatted with NY Yimby about his design process and inspirations behind the tower. He also revealed an interesting tidbit of information when asked when asked when he started the design process. "Let's say in December," he responded. Keep in mind, though, that word only broke about him replacing Norman Foster in April. Controversy aside, Ingels has a lot to say about this world-famous project, including why he thinks Foster's plan was scrapped for his.
More revealing details right this way

June 10, 2015

POLL: Do You Like Bjarke Ingels’ Design for 2 World Trade Center?

Yesterday, it was huge news when the renderings were revealed for Bjarke Ingels’ redesign of 2 World Trade Center, taking over from architect Norman Foster. Now that the immediate buzz has subsided, and we’ve all had a chance to study the design and considers Ingels’ motives for its stepped design and stacked-volume height, we want […]

Architecture And Design

June 9, 2015

REVEALED: Bjarke Ingels Design for 2 World Trade Center