Skyscraber without windows, 33 thomas st. WHAT THE HELL IS IT?

[Victorcoi]

Hi people. I moved to NYC half a year ago. Yesterday I was walking in downtown Manhattan, and I saw a strange huge skyscraber (it has logo "at&t") without single window in it. I asked a cop about it and he said that it is a "negotive pressure building". I asked another guy and he said that there is an electronic archive with database on each newyorker inside.
I asked one more guy, and he said that there is very sensitive equipment in it, that's why it has no windows.

I tried to figure out what is it on the Internet - I haven't found anything at all. Looks like there is no such a building in New York. Very strange.

DOES ANYBODY KNOWS WHAT IS IT FOR?

[Peteynyc1]

Its a "telco hotel" or data center, owner by AT&T. You can buy co-location space there. They have many of their switches there and terminate many of their overseas fiber in this facility. The largest and most well known is not this one however but rather 60 Hudson Street, which is served by the West Street Verizon Central Office. When 9.11 occurred this CO sustained major damage by falling debrit and took a large amount of our city (and nations) telecom network offline. Another large telco hotel in this city is 111 8th avenue, which is more focused on data rather than voice. It is here you will find large server farms served by all the major carriers (Level 3, Qwest, Verizon, etc). Hope this helps.

[RandySavage]

I wondered the same thing when I first moved downtown. It's the AT&T Longlines Building, which Peteynyc1 describes.

[Victorcoi]

Yes, sounds good. But I still have some questions.
Why there's no info on the Internet bout it? Ghost-skyscraper
Why it has no windows? It's cheaper to have natural light, than spend money on the electric lights.
And why it's located downtown, where the land is so expensive? Why not in Brooklyn for example, or in the suburbs?

[RandySavage]

The building isn't occupied by office workers like a typical building. They probably don't even turn on most of the interior lights unless a technician is working with the equipment.

There is more information on the building here:

http://www.emporis.com/en/wm/bu/?id=114288

From Emporis:
-This building is essentially "windowless" for the security and protection of the expensive equipment.
- The exterior walls are granite-faced precast concrete panels.
- The building has a typical floor to floor height of 18 feet in order to accommodate the telephone switching equipment requirements.
- To support the equipment, the floors were required to be designed for 200 to 300 psf live loads.

[Peteynyc1]

http://www.nyc-architecture.com/SOH/SOH016.htm

http://www.nyc-architecture.com/SOH/Pict0159.jpg

The Western Union Building (1930; Voorhees, Gmelin & Walker), at 60 Hudson St., is a noteworthy building by architect Ralph Walker who also designed the New York telephone Building at 140 west St. just north of the World Trade Center. When it opened, the Western Union Building housed telephone, telegraph, and ticker machinery, as well as a messenger service and classrooms where Western Union messenger boys could continue high school. Nineteen tones of brick shade the facade from deep red brown at the bottom to bright salmon at the top. Walk through the lobby to West Broadway. Finished in brown brick, with recessed lighting and geometrically patterned brickwork and marble on the floor, the lobby gloriously exemplifies Art Deco materials and techniques.

“60 Hudson St., New York City, New York" *

The Premier Communications Hub on the East Coast

"60 Hudson Street, the former Western Union headquarters, provides the ultimate example of the desirability of carrier hotel space in top markets. This building is the nerve center for international communications and is known as the most important carrier hotel in the world. The lifeblood of the Information Economy pulses through this building’s sturdy infrastructure, with fiber optic cable packing the risers. 60 Hudson Street is the home of at least sixty-five telecom companies. The 943,000 square foot facility was built between 1928 and 1930 at a cost of $ 45,000,000 which equates to $ 428,000,000 in today’s market. It initially housed seventy million feet and thirty miles of conduit. This infrastructure has been greatly expanded today.

The building has a grand history as a cornerstone in the development of America’s communications infrastructure. It wasdesigned by Ralph Walker for the Western Union headquarters and is part of the New York Landmark Preservation Commission. The building is ninety-eight percent leased."

Here is a brief cross section of the larger tenants at 60 Hudson today:

Qwest, Broadwing,Global Crossing, General Telecom, Cablevision Lightpath, AT&T, Worldcom, TimeWarner Telecom, Gulfnet USA, Wiltel, Primus, GTE - Verizon, Viatel Global Communications, MFN, Cable & Wireless, Intermedia Corp, Teleglobe, VarTec.

[Victorcoi]

Hmm, that explains much
Thanks!

[Ninjahedge]

PS, "Skyscraper"

;)