Tag Archives: New York City

Aire

Manhattan, , , , , , , , , ,

Aire is a glass residential tower adjacent to the former Red Cross blood center just north of Lincoln Center. The building’s complex wedge-shaped plan presents an almost knife-edged profile when viewed from the south. Like any reflective facade, Aire’s appearance changes at the whim of the weather.

The former Red Cross building, meanwhile, was razed and rebuilt as a mixed-use low-rise structure – four floors above ground, two floors below grade. The street-level and underground floors are retail space, the upper floors are earmarked for community use.

The residential tower is a luxury rental building – a 2BR apartment lists for $14,000/month. The building’s amenities, however, are comparable to a luxury condominium: Landscaped private park, onsite health club, children’s indoor and outdoor play areas, and more. Not to mention awesome location – Central Park is two blocks east, Lincoln Center is two blocks south, Riverside Park is two blocks west.

Aire Vital Statistics
  • Location: 200 W 67th Street/150 Amsterdam Avenue
  • Year completed: 2011
  • Architect: Handel Architects
  • Floors: 42
  • Style: Postmodern
Aire Recommended Reading

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210 E 68th Street

Manhattan, , , , , , ,

There are plenty of more imposing buildings on Third Avenue – Trump Palace is on the next block – but 210 E 68th Street stands out at street level because of its colorful Art Deco accents and orange brickwork.

The 1929 apartment building was designed by George and Edward Blum, prolific architects who have more than 120 apartment buildings to their credit (not even counting their office and loft buildings). Alas, this was one of their last two buildings (the other is at 235 East 22nd Street).

The New York Times architecture critic Christopher Gray suggests a rationale for these apartments’ unusual color and decoration: “Perhaps because [the Blums] were fighting the hulking Third Avenue elevated train nearby, they used giant zigzag stripes of contrasting brick running across the front like World War I naval camouflage.” (The Third Avenue El was closed in 1955.)

210 E 68th Street Vital Statistics
  • Location: 210 E 68th Street at Third Avenue
  • Year completed: 1929
  • Architect: George & Edward Blum
  • Floors: 16
  • Style: Art Deco
  • National Register of Historic Places: 2008
210 E 68th Street Recommended Reading

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Seventh Regiment Armory

Manhattan, , , , , , , ,

Seventh Regiment Armory, aka Park Avenue Armory, was home of the “Silk Stocking Regiment” – militia that put down at least five riots in the city*, served in the War of 1812 and was the first militia to enlist for Civil War duty. The building’s military use is now mostly ceremonial; it has been leased (since 2006) to the Seventh Regiment Armory Conservancy, the arts group credited with rescuing the block-sized landmark from official neglect.

NYC – The Official Guide dubbed the armory “the ultimate boys’ club” because the affluent members of the Seventh Regiment built themselves an elegant home, enlisting the talents of Tiffany, Stanford White and other prominent designers of the day. It doesn’t show on the outside, but interiors were richly paneled and painted, and contained valuable artwork. Why? Because the armory (built with private, not government funds) served as a social club as well as a drill hall and weapons cache. The main drill hall, meanwhile, was among America’s first (and is the oldest surviving) “balloon shed” structures, spanning one of the largest unobstructed interiors in New York City. As a result, the building and its interiors were designated as NYC landmarks.

The building and its occupants have a rich and well-documented history – the links below are a good starting place. Also, Park Avenue Armory has public tours – information and reservations here.

* The “Right to bear arms” Second Amendment at work: The New York Times Streetscapes column noted, “When the armory was completed in 1880, Scribner’s Monthly recounted that the Seventh had served in putting down the abolition riots of 1834, the stevedore riots of 1836, the flour riots of 1837, the Croton water riots of 1840 and the Astor Place riots of 1849, in which 30 demonstrators were killed and 141 of the 200 soldiers called out were injured.”

Seventh Regiment Armory Vital Statistics
  • Location: 643 Park Avenue between E 66th and E 67th Streets
  • Year completed: 1878
  • Architect: Charles W. Clinton
  • Floors: 5
  • Style: Gothic Revival
  • New York City Landmark: 1967, 1994 (interiors)
  • National Register of Historic Places: 1975
Seventh Regiment Armory Recommended Reading

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Engine 39 / Ladder 16

Manhattan, , , , , , ,

The Fire Engine 39 / Ladder 16 Station House originally served as the headquarters of the New York Fire Department. It’s the third of four late-1880s landmarks in a row on E 67th Street.*

Napoleon Lebrun & Son, which designed more than 40 buildings for the department, designed this one in Romanesque Revival style. While Lebrun’s design included space for the Fire Commissioners and staff, the headquarters outgrew its space and moved to the Municipal Building in 1914. The fire telegraph (communications system) moved out in 1922. A lookout tower once topped the building’s right-hand bay (the section with single windows) – but was removed in 1949. The building became a training center, but by 1970 the city had planned to demolish the building. In 1980 the Landmarks Preservation Commission designated the building as one of four landmarks on the block – but the Board of Estimate overturned the designation (and that of the adjoining police station). In the end, compromise: The facades of the fire house and police station were preserved and restored (1992), but new structures were built behind the 1880s face. The police precinct now uses the upper floors of the fire station.

(Unconfirmed scuttlebutt has it that “some 3 letter agency” operates/operated out of the building, which is directly across the street from an Eastern-bloc mission. Keep that under your hat.)

You might also enjoy Napoleon LeBrun’s Engine Company 31 on Lafayette Street, in a different architectural style – considered his most flamboyant fire house design.

*The four E 67th Street landmarks are: Mount Sinai Dispensary (now Kennedy Child Study Center) at 149; 19th (originally 25th) Police Precinct at 153; Engine Company 39/Ladder Company 16 Station House at 157; and Park East Synagogue, 163.

Engine 39 / Ladder 16 Vital Statistics
  • Location: 157 E 67th Street, between Lexington and Third Avenues
  • Year completed: 1886
  • Architect: Napoleon Lebrun & Sons
  • Floors: 6
  • Style: Romanesque Revival
  • New York City Landmark: 1998
  • National Register of Historic Places:
Engine 39 / Ladder 16 Recommended Reading

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40 E 62nd Street

Manhattan, , , , , , , , ,

40 East 62nd Street lights up the block with its colorful gold, blue and red terra cotta; bay windows and battlements suggest a medieval castle – (a man’s home, after all…).

The building is part of the Upper East Side Historic District, in fine company if you’re looking for historic residences.

Among the building’s wealthy and famous tenants was Henry Janeway Hardenburg, architect of the Plaza Hotel and The Dakota.

The New York Times Streetscapes column and Daytonian in Manhattan blog are excellent reads; the Daytonian blog includes old photos and floor plans.

40 E 62nd Street Vital Statistics
  • Location: 40 E 62nd Street between Madison and Park Avenues
  • Year completed: 1911
  • Architect: Albert Joseph Bodker
  • Floors: 8
  • Style: neo-Medieval
  • New York City Landmark: 1981
40 E 62nd Street Recommended Reading

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Colony Club

Manhattan, , , , , , , , ,

This is the second home of the Colony Club, the prestigious women’s social club that quickly outgrew its 1908 Stanford White-designed headquarters on Madison Avenue and E 31st Street. (Why didn’t White get to design the second club? He was shot by a jealous husband – but that’s another story.)

Like men’s clubs of the era, Colony Club was big on fitness facilities: the basement has what is said to be New York’s deepest indoor pool, a spa, and (via express elevator) a gymnasium and squash courts on the fifth floor. Other facilities included a ballroom and even a kennel for members’ pets.

Membership was (and still is) restricted to women – you must be recommended by a current member to be considered. Past members include Harrimans, Morgans, Astors and Rockefellers, to drop a few names.

Colony Club Vital Statistics
  • Location: 564 Park Avenue at E 62nd Street
  • Year completed: 1916
  • Architect: Delano & Aldrich
  • Floors: 7
  • Style: neo-Georgian
  • New York City Landmark: 1981
Colony Club Recommended Reading

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Restoration In Progress

Architecture, Manhattan, , , ,

If you’ve ever wondered how an old building could look so new, here’s how!

A restoration team from Jablonski Building Conservation, Inc. is restoring the facade of 105 W 22nd Street / 695-709 Sixth Avenue. Xsusha Flandro, Senior Conservator, was kind enough to explain the process:

“The tiles are glazed ceramic tiles manufactured by the Hartford Faience Company (incorporated from the Atwood Faience Company in 1894). The current building was erected in phases between 1889 and 1911. The tiles are ca. 1913 when Chicago business man J.L. Kesner (hence the “K” on the tile columns) leased the building and submitted plans for alteration to the first floor store fronts. Oddly enough Kesner was never in the building as he backed out of the lease, but since the construction plans were already submitted the Ehrich Brothers (owners of the building) went through with the building plans and completed the tile columns. The building is a contributing member to the Ladies Mile Historic District.

“A lot of prep work goes into the restoration of tiles. The first thing we did were cleaning tests. We completed small cleaning test samples and then based on results proceeded with the most gentle and effective of the cleaners tested to clean all the tiles. We also tested paint strippers (all pH neutral – not acidic and not alkaline – because harsh strippers can damage the glazes) in the same manner as the cleaners because some columns had graffiti and general over paint. After cleaning and paint removal we moved into removing abandoned anchors (where signage and such had been attached over the years). Then we moved into patching. We utilized a repair system manufactured by Edison Coatings out of Connecticut. Edison Coatings provided us with custom colored patch repair material for each color of glaze, after the patching was complete the patches are sanded and shaped to the correct profile, and then in-painted (only painted where the patch is) using a polyurethane paint system (also by Edison Coatings) custom colored to the glazes on the tiles. This is where the artistry comes in and we blend the colors onsite to match the adjacent historic tile glazes. No coating is placed over the work after we are finished, as everything we use is specifically manufactured for outdoor use.

“In this project we are conserving nine tile columns. All missing tiles or tiles which we could not successfully conserve are being replaced with custom tiles, manufactured by Shenfeld Studios, to match the existing. It took us approximately three weeks to complete all the conservation work on site. The replacement tiles are still a few months out.”

Ms. Flandro noted that the work requires extensive training.

“To be an architectural conservator you have to have a Master’s degree in Historic Preservation – and usually in the conservation sector of historic preservation, which is where you gain a lot of your materials knowledge. Similar to how art conservators go through school and then specialize in one material, we go through school and specialize in building materials. In our company in order to progress past junior conservator we are required to apply to be a Professional Associate with the American Institute of Conservation (of which I hold PA status and the owner of Jablonski Building Conservation, Mary Jablonski, is a Fellow.) AIC – Professional Associate requires at very least 3 years’ experience and your previous projects/works are peer reviewed and letters of recommendation are required.”

(The company’s website is jbconservation.com.)

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Hugh O’Neill Building

Manhattan, , , , , , , , , ,

The dazzling white Hugh O’Neill Building on Sixth Avenue is a great example of historic restoration and recycling in New York. Not only did the developers bring an old building back to life, they also magically added two floors without changing the original appearance. While structural problems have appeared, the future looks bright.

Hugh O’Neill, an Irish immigrant, was a very successful retailer. He outgrew his original Sixth Avenue store and replaced it in 1887 with a four-story double-domed emporium. In 1890, he expanded the store at the rear of the West 20th Street wing. In 1895 he added a fifth floor (raising the domes one story in the process).

Alas, after O’Neill died in 1902 the store (and most neighboring retailers) deteriorated and closed. The corner domes were removed in the early 1900s, and the building was converted to lofts.

In 2004 the by-then grey building got a new lease on life: Conversion to condominium apartments. The developer Elad Properties, and architects Cetra/Ruddy Inc. got Landmarks Preservation Commission approval to restore the missing domes – and add two stories of apartments at the same time. The trick was to set back the new floors so that they are not visible from the street.

In December 2012 one of the building’s columns on West 2oth Street collapsed, forcing evacuation. Repairs were made, but scaffolding still covers the West 20th Street facade at this writing (June 2013).

Hugh O’Neill Building Vital Statistics
  • Location: 655 Sixth Avenue between W 20th and W 21st Streets
  • Year completed: 1887
  • Architect: Mortimer C. Merritt; Cetra/Ruddy Inc. (renovation)
  • Floors: 5
  • Style: cast iron, neo-Grec
  • New York City Landmark: 1989
Hugh O’Neill Building Recommended Reading

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Album: April, 2013

Collections, Manhattan, New Jersey, , , , , , ,

Highlights from photos shot in April, 2013 – but not yet added to a neighborhood or specific building gallery. Neighborhoods include Lower Manhattan, Greenwich Village, Midtown, Upper West Side – and Hoboken – Jersey City, New Jersey.

In this album:
  • Standard Oil Building (26 Broadway)
  • Isamu Noguchi’s Cube – At 140 Broadway / Liberty Street
  • One World Trade Tower
  • City Hall
  • Washington Square Arch
  • One Fifth Avenue framed by Washington Square Arch
  • Courant Institute (NYU) – 251 Mercer Street
  • 2 Cornelia Street – aka 333 Sixth Avenue
  • Bigelow Building – 412 Sixth Avenue
  • The Villager – 450 Sixth Avenue
  • 434 Sixth Avenue
  • 37 Washington Square West
  • 186 W 4th Street
  • 120 E 12th Street – Facade of St. Ann’s Church in front of NYU dorm
  • 126 E 12th Street
  • Fifth Avenue Building clock
  • 488 Eighth Avenue – former Bickford’s (the last two Bickford’s in NYC closed in 1982)
  • Bank entrance at New Yorker Hotel
  • Lerner Building – 478 Seventh Avenue
  • 480 Seventh Avenue
  • The Westin New York
  • LOFT marquee – Times Square Tower
  • The Lyric Theatre
  • The New York Times Building
  • Knickerbocker Hotel (1906) – aka 6 Times Square
  • HBO Building – 1100 Sixth Avenue
  • Fred F. French Building
  • The Manhasset – 300 W 109th / 301 W 108th Streets at Broadway
  • Ariel East – 2628 Broadway (between W 99th and W 100th Streets)
  • Ariel West – 2633 Broadway (between W 99th and W 100th Streets)
  • Paterno – 440 Riverside Drive – aka 3 Claremont Avenue
  • 410 Riverside Drive
  • Cathedral of St. John The Divine
  • 512 W 112th Street
  • Hendrik Hudson – 380 Riverside Drive
  • St. Anthony Hall – 434 Riverside Drive
  • 452 Riverside Drive
  • Oxford Hall – 454 Riverside Drive
  • The Riverside Church
  • Grant’s Tomb
New Jersey photos also in this album:
  • Erie Lackawana Hudson piers – Hoboken, NJ
  • New York Sunrise – view from Hoboken
  • Willow Avenue / Willow Terrace South – Hoboken
  • Clinton Street / Willow Terrace South – Hoboken
  • All Saints Episcopal Day School – Hoboken
  • Stevens Institute – Hoboken
  • Scotland Yard pub – Hoboken
  • Second Street – Jersey City, NJ
  • Newport – Newport/Jersey City

47 Plaza Street West

Brooklyn, , , , , ,

47 Plaza Street West is often described as Brooklyn’s own Flatiron Building – and the similarities are striking: Both have a triangular footprint, but 47 Plaza Street West is a little more complex – its eastern side gently curves to follow Grand Army Plaza’s perimeter. The 1928 Brooklyn apartment building and the 1902 Manhattan office building both overlook a pedestrian plaza and a park (though the Brooklyn Plaza and park are MUCH more impressive). Both buildings are in Renaissance style – though 16-story 47 Plaza Street West is Italian Renaissance to 21-story Flatiron’s French Renaissance.

Brooklyn’s Flatiron has something that the original lacks – a sibling on the same block. Berkeley Plaza, the 14-story apartment building at 39 Plaza Street West, was also designed by Rosario Candela, in the same style, at the same time.

47 Plaza Street West Vital Statistics
  • Location: 47 Plaza Street West at Union Street
  • Year completed: 1928
  • Architect: Rosario Candela
  • Floors: 16
  • Style: Renaissance
47 Plaza Street West Recommended Reading

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