Times Square Plaza - 11 Times Square (42nd St & 8th Ave) [Archive] - Page 3

NYguy

January 5th, 2007, 05:55 PM

commercial property news

SJP Plans Summer Start for 1MSF Manhattan Tower

January 05, 2007
By Paul Rosta

SJP Properties plans to take advantage of the heated Midtown Manhattan office market and kick off construction this summer for a 1 million-square-foot office tower near Times Square.

SJP executives could not be reached for comment by deadline, but local observers said that the tower will help address the demands created by New York City's growing economy. "It certainly fills a need for additional office space in Manhattan in general and in Midtown specifically," Robert Sammons, research director at Colliers ABR Inc. told CPN. "We really need to push forward with new construction of trophy buildings, to keep employment in the city."

The Times Square office submarket is among New York's tightest, with an overall vacancy rate of 3.2 percent, Sammons reported. That figure is even lower than Midtown Manhattan's overall vacancy rate, which dropped to 5.6 percent at the end of December.

Also known as 11 Times Square, the long-awaited project would follow acquisition of the site last year from Howard and Edward Millstein by a joint venture of SJP and institutional investors led by Prudential Real Estate Investors. When complete, the property will significantly expand the office inventory in one of Manhattan's most active office development submarkets. Also scheduled for completion soon are the nearby Bank of America Tower, the New York Times Building, and the renovated 1095 Avenue of the Americas tower.

In a statement, SJP said that the tower would be ready for tenants by the first quarter of 2010. Demand should still be strong then, but Sammons pointed out that market conditions could also change over the next few years. However, Sammons said, "Chances are, a lot of the building would be pre-leased."

londonlawyer

January 5th, 2007, 06:01 PM

Aren't Disney and Viacom looking for space? This would be a nice location for both of them.

BrooklynRider

January 5th, 2007, 06:26 PM

At 600' it will be taller than both Reuters and Ernst & Young yet will hardly be visible anywhere in the skyline.

Just creating more NYC canyon space. Better than the mosquito breeding ground that's there now.

Eugenious

January 5th, 2007, 09:43 PM

Just creating more NYC canyon space. Better than the mosquito breeding ground that's there now.

Still could've been something special in that spot..instead another "bleh"..

http://www.delphi-forum.de/images/smiles/icon_puke.gifhttp://www.delphi-forum.de/images/smiles/icon_puke.gifhttp://www.delphi-forum.de/images/smiles/icon_puke.gifhttp://www.delphi-forum.de/images/smiles/icon_puke.gifhttp://www.delphi-forum.de/images/smiles/icon_puke.gif

krulltime

January 9th, 2007, 11:16 AM

http://www.pbase.com/image/72846434.jpg

New commercial/retail tower planned for Times Square
FXFOWLE unveils design for 40-storey, one-million-square-foot building

Located on one of the most renowned blocks in the world, Eleven Times Square will define the western gateway to midtown Manhattan’s newest and most exciting business districts; Times Square and the 42nd Street corridor. Eleven Times Square will be an extraordinary, modern building befitting its marquee location. The design features a sculptural composition of forms sheathed in various combinations of sheer glass curtainwall and unique “silk-glass” panels. In keeping with the Times Square streetscape there are large-scale signage ‘spectaculars’, including a 40’ diameter iconic globe at the corner. Eleven Times Square will be a state-of-the-art, environmentally responsible building. High-performance glazed curtainwalls will facilitate ample penetration of daylight, optimize views and provide superior environmental control.

http://www.worldarchitecturenews.com/index.php?fuseaction=wanappln.projectview&upload_id=783

Fabrizio

January 9th, 2007, 11:30 AM

Its not great, but its not bad. 30 years ago...25 years ago, if this had been developed, it would have most likely been another corporate tower with a barren plaza (or worse yet, a sunken plaza)... MAYBE they would have included a theatre but the whole thing could have looked like this, like Paramount Plaza:

http://www.emporis.com/en/il/pc/?id=115504&aid=8

This shows what some creative zoning can do. Would an office building EVER have had such lights and signage if it were not forced to do so by zoning? I say its best that we had a dumpy lot for so long... while in the meantime, Times Squares fortunes changed.

antinimby

January 9th, 2007, 12:07 PM

^ Very true Fabrizio. This parcel left undeveloped is turning out to be a blessing in disguise.

*****

Wow, this new rendering is the best yet.

I am really sold on this building now that I've seen it up close in this light.

Very sexy and that ground floor is nothing short of fabulous - very open, very inviting and exciting. That rounded corner is a great touch.

The tower is also very sleek - the glass looks first rate, no fritted junk.

All in all, an excellent design. Definitely looking forward to this going up.

Dare I say this one will take away some of the pizzaz from the Times?

http://i5.pbase.com/o6/55/435155/1/72846434.vbyRcYgW.11TimesSquareBig.jpg

kz1000ps

January 9th, 2007, 12:38 PM

Anti, you know that's a rendering and not the final building, right? Maybe the renderings vs. realities of the BOA and NYT towers have left me overly cynical, but I wouldn't go getting my hopes up so high just yet.

jeffpark

January 9th, 2007, 01:14 PM

the Retail base looks amazing, and very similar in design to the Durst's 4 Times Square-Condé Nast Building,
well i guess its maybe becouse its the same architect

lofter1

January 9th, 2007, 08:29 PM

jeffpark

January 9th, 2007, 08:35 PM

has the developer SJP..
began to start marketing the Office and Retail
to potential tenants.?
and who are the Brokers C&W, CBRE, Newmark, JLL, ??

Peteynyc1

January 9th, 2007, 08:38 PM

^^ Oh wow....I was wondering what the hell that was when I walked by there today. Thanks as always!

LeCom

January 10th, 2007, 10:18 PM

January 9, 2006

Corner of 41st Street and 8th Avenue

http://img242.imageshack.us/img242/8097/pict0025timessqplazaucjdy2.jpg

From Port Authority Bus Terminal's entrance

http://img66.imageshack.us/img66/6752/pict0016timessqplazaucjcb5.jpg

The view that will be lost

http://img66.imageshack.us/img66/7036/pict0018timessqplazaucjdq1.jpg

Where the dude on 41st Street is looking...

http://img84.imageshack.us/img84/798/pict0020timessqplazaucjea1.jpg

...is the wide open entrance to the site, which just yesterday was the site of a pretty large diarrhea-looking puddle, but is considerably drier today

http://img240.imageshack.us/img240/4677/pict0021timessqplazaucjec5.jpg

antinimby

January 10th, 2007, 11:25 PM

I don't understand why they can't get started on the digging right away.

I know they say work will begin this summer but the digging doesn't need to wait until then.

lofter1

January 10th, 2007, 11:43 PM

I'm not finding any Applications / Permits at DOB for this building :confused:

btw: If you enter "11 Times Square Plaza" this site doesn't come up, so I entered the highest number on the south side of 42nd Street on that block: 278 W. 42nd (http://a810-bisweb.nyc.gov/bisweb/PropertyProfileOverviewServlet?bin=1806327&requestid=6)

LeCom

January 10th, 2007, 11:44 PM

At leas they're doing something - so far, in a short span of time, they cleared out the lush vegetation and pumped out quite a bit of dirty water.

Derek2k3

January 11th, 2007, 04:10 PM

640 8 AVENUE
http://a810-bisweb.nyc.gov/bisweb/JobDetailsServlet?requestid=5&allisn=0001317304&allboroughname=&allnumbhous=&allstrt=

LeCom

January 11th, 2007, 04:56 PM

^Sweet:

No. Stories: 40
Height: 600
Total Gross Area of Building: 972,380 Sq. Ft.

lofter1

January 11th, 2007, 07:08 PM

640 8 AVENUE
http://a810-bisweb.nyc.gov/bisweb/JobDetailsServlet?requestid=5&allisn=0001317304&allboroughname=&allnumbhous=&allstrt=

Aha -- and the Application for a "New Building" just Disapproved today, 1/11/07 ...

104621312 (http://a810-bisweb.nyc.gov/bisweb/JobDetailsServlet?requestid=8&allisn=0001317304&allboroughname=&allnumbhous=&allstrt=) 01 NB CEL J P/E DISAPPROVED 01/11/2007 KAPLAN

antinimby

January 11th, 2007, 10:23 PM

Probably just some technicality...forgot to cross a "t" or dot an "i."

At this moment, this building is more certain than even the FT.

pianoman11686

January 12th, 2007, 01:06 AM

This shows what some creative zoning can do. Would an office building EVER have had such lights and signage if it were not forced to do so by zoning?

What ever happened to being against outdoor advertising that "overwhelms the pedestrian"? Or just tackiness in general?

Given the cache of Times Square, I doubt any new building would not want to take advantage of the opportunity to make big bucks off of advertising, zoning or not.

lofter1

January 12th, 2007, 01:25 AM

Time Square has been tacky in various ways, shapes & forms for nearly 100 years -- wouldn't want it any other way.

finnman69

January 12th, 2007, 12:57 PM

A guy was setting up some glass panels on some scaffolding along 8th Avenue late this afternoon, seemingly "test" panels that will be use on the building ...

http://i130.photobucket.com/albums/p242/Lofter1/11%20TS%20Plaza/L111TS_05a.jpg

Some of the glass is clear but with different tints, some is "silky" (somewhat opaque), and some of it is patterned (fritted?) ...

http://i130.photobucket.com/albums/p242/Lofter1/11%20TS%20Plaza/L111TS_05c.jpg

http://i130.photobucket.com/albums/p242/Lofter1/11%20TS%20Plaza/L111TS_05b.jpg

http://i130.photobucket.com/albums/p242/Lofter1/11%20TS%20Plaza/L111TS_05d.jpg

http://i130.photobucket.com/albums/p242/Lofter1/11%20TS%20Plaza/L111TS_05e.jpg

Really shows the variety of possibilities with glass, coatings and frits. some appear to have a slight tint, but I cant tell if its the glass or the reflective coating. Different kinds of frit patterns. Dot matrix and solid. Obviously they have not made final selections yet. I bet there are multiple submissions from different manufacturers competing for the glass specification. Best way to view glass is with a dark surface behind it and from a slight angle. You also need to see it on sunny days and in cloudy days. You can see the contrast between different colors best on cloudy overcast days.

Fabrizio

January 12th, 2007, 04:24 PM

Pianoman writes: "What ever happened to being against outdoor advertising that "overwhelms the pedestrian"? Or just tackiness in general?"

Times Square is an entertainment DISTRICT. Huge bright signs area part of its heritage....its identity.

Why? You were not aware of that?

"Given the cache of Times Square, I doubt any new building would not want to take advantage of the opportunity to make big bucks off of advertising, zoning or not."

Cache? The cache is very recent, and happened under district zoning.

You obviously were not around when the first wave of new construction went up in Times Square. Developers protested the signage zoning that forced them to dress up their buildings with bright signs... fearing that "serious" staid world-class corporations would never rent in such buildings.

Some even tried to get around the rulings: take a look at 750 7th Ave (which fronts on Bway) the black panels of glass on the lower floors were originally meant to HIDE the signage during the daytime. They would only reveal the advertisng at night when the building was empty. And ofcourse the buildings addresswould be on the 7th avenue side... not the broadway side.

When 1585 was built for instance, the owners protested the signage zoning rules.

The original Phillip Johnson plan for the cross-roads at 42nd street included NO signage.

Adding bright signs to corprate skyscrapers had never been done before... it was seen as a way to keep Times Squares identity but it was risky. But fortunately, AGAIN people prevailed... and devolpers were forced to comply.

From the NYtimes: 1986
http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9A0DE0D7133BF937A25751C1A9609482 60

The protests about the signage rules from 20 years ago:

"Critics say it will become harder to find major office tenants for new buildings, although that would not necessarily be so if the changes set out merely to enhance lighting and signage. Instead, they say, the proposed rules are trying to encourage, by an urban-design ordinance, the retention or establishment of a brightly lit entertainment-oriented district."

"But at Gwathmey Siegel & Associates, Gerald Gendreau, the project architect for Solomon Equities' one-million-square-foot, 40-story office building on the west side of Broadway from 47th to 48th Street, said that ''it's curious when the zoning allows office buildings but makes it hard to find office tenants.'' Times Square is ''more than just signs,'' he said.

''The signage requirements are O.K. for hotels but not for office buildings, and the setback requirements are O.K. for office buildings but not for hotels,'' said Alan Lapidus, an architect who worked with the Planning Department to design a hotel for William Zeckendorf Jr. that meets the proposed standards.

Similarly, Kevin Roche, of Kevin Roche/John Dinkeloo & Associates, the architect designing another office building for Solomon Equities on a site between Broadway and Seventh Avenue on 49th Street, said the standards would discourage potential office tenants by requiring illuminated signs all around the building up to a height of 60 feet.

''No credit is given for decorative lighting,'' he said. ''It must be commercial advertising.''"

"But developers seeking office tenants worry about garishness. ''I would like to see something more moderate - less flamboyant,'' said Larry A. Silverstein, who has a site in the area. ''I am after good taste, and reasonableness.''

''There are imaginative lighting schemes that you should be allowed in lieu of selling signs to an advertiser,'' said Mr. Roche, the architect for Solomon Equities at 49th Street. To gird a relatively small building with signs up to 60 feet and require that they all be lit, he said, ''makes no sense.''"

---

LeCom

January 12th, 2007, 05:53 PM

At this moment, this building is more certain than even the FT.
?!

antinimby

January 12th, 2007, 11:29 PM

^ I'm assuming you're questioning my statement there.

Well, that's easy.

First this project has all the support of the ESDC and other city agencies, so there is no chance it won't get the approvals it needs.

The other is SJP already has the full intention of going through with this.

They are not showing any sign of reluctance whatsoever.

The Freedom Tower, meanwhile, has Spitzer's review looming over its head.

Not saying there won't be a FT eventually, just a slight chance of hitting a snag at some point.

pianoman11686

January 13th, 2007, 12:24 AM

Times Square is an entertainment DISTRICT. Huge bright signs area part of its heritage....its identity.

Why? You were not aware of that?

I'll take the sarcasm with a grain of salt. My response was motivated, in fact, by this second part, which you've now elaborated on:

Cache? The cache is very recent, and happened under district zoning.

You obviously were not around when the first wave of new construction went up in Times Square. Developers protested the signage zoning that forced them to dress up their buildings with bright signs... fearing that "serious" staid world-class corporations would never rent in such buildings.

Forgive me if this is incorrect, but I was under the impression that you loathed the "new" Times Square, with all its super-bright signage and corporate America presence. Now it seems, you're grateful for it, and place the blame (or, more a propos, the credit) in the hands of government.

Am I way off base here?

Fabrizio

January 13th, 2007, 05:21 AM

pianoman11686

January 13th, 2007, 01:55 PM

I'm pretty sure 6th avenue's barrenness was in fact a function of the zoning at the time, which encouraged the building of plazas with new office towers.

Fahzee

January 13th, 2007, 02:03 PM

^^ Agreed - those barren plaza buildings were known as the XYZ Buildings, and were considered to be an extension of Rockefeller Center, whose zoning encouraged plazas and the like.

Still - nothing like some blah 60s architecture to ruin the intent of one of the greatest urban planning success stories

lofter1

January 13th, 2007, 02:30 PM

I'm pretty sure 6th avenue's barrenness was in fact a function of the zoning at the time, which encouraged the building of plazas with new office towers.

I rarely find the plazas in front of those buildings barren during the daytime ...

And walking up or down 6th Avenue on the west side of the street is infinitely easier than walking along the east side of the street -- where the sidewalks are much narrower (plus you can see Rock center from the west side).

Midtown sidewalks were designed with another time in mind. Between garbage, deliveries and just the sheer numbers of people I'd prefer it if they were wider (or maybe folks should just walk faster -- and move to the side when on a cell phone, 'cuz 90% of the people walking / calling walk way slower than folks who aren't :cool: -- but that rant is for the "cell phone rudeness" thread).

pianoman11686

January 13th, 2007, 02:37 PM

Of course it won't be barren with people. This is, after all, Manhattan. ;)

My comment was strictly from an aesthetic point of view.

LeCom

January 13th, 2007, 04:34 PM

There is no way that the grittty TimesSquare that Im nostalic for could have continued to exist in a world-class city. But what we have today, is much better than the conservative corporate canyons, the 6th avenue, that developers would have prefered.
I don't thonk the developers would have preferred exactly that. Look at the crowds of tourists on Times Square at any time of any day. And you bet they're leaving big bucks at the abundant Hard Rock Cafes, ESPN Zones, Broadway show theaters and restaurants located on lower levels of the new towers. Think the developers don't like that?

lofter1

January 13th, 2007, 04:50 PM

None of those places you mention ^^^ were there back in the day (late 80s / early 90s) when Corporate types were worrying about the signage effect.

Of course now they like what TS has become -- but it was not a foregone conclusion.

lofter1

January 13th, 2007, 04:57 PM

My comment was strictly from an aesthetic point of view.

The 6th Avenue corridor along there has been much maligned for many years -- but I'll take it any day over 7th Avenue one block west or the stretch of 6th below Bryant Park down to Herald Square (not to mention the newly re-zoned 6th Avenue in Chelsea).

I'm in a very small minority but I like the way they stack up along the west side of those blocks of 6th -- and the openness is a nice change (although there's no doubt that the buildings / plazas could be much better).

Fabrizio

January 13th, 2007, 05:01 PM

LeCom: "I don't think the developers would have preferred exactly that."

All I can say is reread my post and the Times article. Developers DID NOT WANT bright signs forced on their buildings. Period. The development of theatres in the new skyscrapers ( the Uris, Miskoff etc.) was the result of earlier zoning and tax abatements.... not from foresight by developers. THAT is why it has remained a DISTRICT.

Fabrizio

January 13th, 2007, 05:06 PM

Lofter: I agree, I think 6th works now . The plazas and lower floors of the buildings have been developed over the last 30 years and offer more to the public. They were quite awful years ago. Theories of zoning have changed since those 1961 rulings.

mgp

January 16th, 2007, 02:07 PM

has the developer SJP..
began to start marketing the Office and Retail
to potential tenants.?
and who are the Brokers C&W, CBRE, Newmark, JLL, ??

SJP has hired Mary Ann Tighe and Steve Siegel of CBRE to market the building.

antinimby

January 16th, 2007, 02:44 PM

Does anyone know of any companies that are currently looking to be the main anchor tenant in a new office building?

kliq6

January 17th, 2007, 01:06 PM

Does anyone know of any companies that are currently looking to be the main anchor tenant in a new office building?

Viacom, Disney, Merrill to name just a few

antinimby

January 17th, 2007, 05:43 PM

We can scratch ML off that list for this tower because it just does not fit in with what they're looking for (large trading floors) but the other two sounds intriguing.

Are both Viacom and Disney looking for one million sf worth of space and will they make this be their world headquarters?

jeffpark

January 19th, 2007, 01:17 AM

CBRE is the Leasing Broker for SJP Properties
www.eleventimessquare.com (http://www.eleventimessquare.com),

this is the 4th new office tower that CBRE is marketing for the Landlord
in Times Square

NY Times Tower
7 Time Square
1095 6th-Verizon

whats we are on this topic what has C&W (or JLL, Newmark)
done as far as Landlord Rep on new Office developments in Manhattan in the last 5 years,
505 Fifth- is bearly 300,000 sf
340 Madiosn- is realy not a new building and is not good floor plates thats why they had a hard time leasing it
GCS 485 Lexington-750 3rd Ave- is a real cheap job by SL Green thats why they are doing a much better on 100 Park Ave

mgp

January 19th, 2007, 12:28 PM

jeffpark

January 19th, 2007, 12:40 PM

Fifth actually - CBRE handled Times Square Tower for Boston Properties. Unrelated - I believe they have been hired to do 510 Madison for Macklowe.

C&W did Macklowe's building on Broadway & Houston (610 Broadway maybe?)

I think Newmark was the agent for 731 Lex (Bloomberg), but I could be wrong on that one.

i worte "7 Time Square" which the same building as "Times Square Tower"

anyways i was talking about times square area
if you are looking at other parts of Manhhatn
CBRE has 7 World Trade, for Larry.

"I think Newmark was the agent for 731 Lex (Bloomberg), but I could be wrong on that one"

they were the Tenant rep for Bloomberg's 700,000 sf lease
NOT the rep for the landlord-Vornado,
once they did that lease Vornado hired them as Landlord rep for the remaining 200,000 sf which Bloomerg did not take,

mgp

January 19th, 2007, 01:10 PM

i worte "7 Time Square" which the same building as "Times Square Tower"

Whoops - misread your post. In that case 5 Times Square is the fifth building.

kliq6

January 22nd, 2007, 03:09 PM

Law firms are lining up for this one and a media firm is looking as well

londonlawyer

January 22nd, 2007, 03:23 PM

Law firms are lining up for this one and a media firm is looking as well

Are you in the commercial real estate bus.? Is the media firm Viacom or Disney?

kliq6

January 22nd, 2007, 03:40 PM

I work for CBRE

londonlawyer

January 22nd, 2007, 03:58 PM

Cool. It sounds like this building, like NYT, 1095 6th and B of A, will fill up before it's built. Can you disclose if Viacom and/or Disney are looking here?

Also, do you have any insight re: the Vornado Tower at the Penn Hotel site or re: MSG.

jeffpark

January 22nd, 2007, 06:03 PM

SJP has hired Mary Ann Tighe and Steve Siegel of CBRE to market the building.
and Peter Turchin of CBRE

Dirty

May 1st, 2007, 05:13 PM

Went past this site today, spoke to two guys from Const. company . They stated SJP will start foundations work within two weeks.

lofter1

May 14th, 2007, 08:09 PM

Some guys were pushing mud & dirt around the site today ...

http://i130.photobucket.com/albums/p242/Lofter1/11%20TS%20Plaza/L111TS_08b.jpg

http://i130.photobucket.com/albums/p242/Lofter1/11%20TS%20Plaza/L111TS_08a.jpg

macreator

May 14th, 2007, 09:30 PM

I'll be so happy once this thing starts real construction.

This corner has been a real eyesore for years.

BrooklynRider

May 14th, 2007, 11:24 PM

Some guys were pushing mud & dirt around the site today ...

Yeah, every five years we're going to see dirt pushed from one side to the other. It's like their creating a new, more exciting mosquito playground for summer.

lesterp4

May 17th, 2007, 12:31 PM

Yesterday there were 2 bulldozers and other equipment at the site. I think they are acually starting construction.

kliq6

May 17th, 2007, 12:35 PM

This project is a go, no dirt shifting this time. SJP is in talks with two tenants as I post this

Adyton

May 17th, 2007, 03:04 PM

Just as NYTT across the street is nearing completion... we get another great scraper going up:)

Now, we'll have to wait and see what happens with the Bus terminal tower. Hopefully, we get more height, less "box" and not SOM-NYC designing this one :cool:

antinimby

May 17th, 2007, 07:39 PM

SJP is in talks with two tenants as I post thisWho are they and what industry are they in?

Let me guess, hedge funds and law firms?

Derek2k3

May 21st, 2007, 12:11 AM

Didn't see this posted. Can't wait for that "dramatic archetecture."

http://www.nypost.com/seven/04252007/photos/cre070b.jpg

NYPost
AHEAD OF ITS TIMES
By LOIS WEISS
http://www.nypost.com/seven/04252007/realestate/ahead_of_its_times_realestate_lois_weiss.htm

Stern

May 21st, 2007, 03:19 AM

Didn't see this posted. Can't wait for that "dramatic archetecture."

lol, that's the Post for you.

NYguy

May 21st, 2007, 10:23 AM

We'll get activity again within a month or two. Things are slowly picking up...

MAY 20, 2007

http://www.pbase.com/nyguy/image/79143057/large.jpg

http://www.pbase.com/nyguy/image/79143076/large.jpg

http://www.pbase.com/nyguy/image/79143115/large.jpg

http://www.pbase.com/nyguy/image/79143095/large.jpg

Hard to believe that one of the city's most vibrant intersections has been
occupied by this vacant lot for so long. Hard to believe, but with the addition
of this one and the PA bus terminal tower, the streetlife will intensify...

http://www.pbase.com/nyguy/image/79143140/large.jpg

http://www.pbase.com/nyguy/image/79143160/large.jpg

kliq6

May 21st, 2007, 10:23 AM

Who are they and what industry are they in?

Let me guess, hedge funds and law firms?

Media and technology

Dirty

June 4th, 2007, 10:15 AM

SJP 11 Tsq Groundbreaking June 6

lofter1

June 4th, 2007, 12:34 PM

Drilling / digging are actually in full force there already ...

Meanwhile don't even THINK about seeing a movie during the daytime at the AMC Empire 25 Theaters next door -- the drilling, etc. at the 11 TS site can be heard throughout the theaters and pretty much wrecks the movie-going experience :mad: I'd guess it'll be that way for the next few months.

TonyO

June 4th, 2007, 01:49 PM

lofter1

June 4th, 2007, 02:36 PM

It's usually A-OK there during the daytime on a weekday --

I avoid it at other times because of the idiots you mention.

antinimby

June 4th, 2007, 07:13 PM

SJP 11 Tsq Groundbreaking June 6Oh goody, a photo op.

Get out the clean hard hats and the shiny new shovels.

kliq6

June 5th, 2007, 12:13 PM

With excavation under way for Steven J. Pozycki's 11 Times Square, the developer is talking turkey to companies interested in the 1.1 million-square-foot office, spec tower at Eighth Avenue and 42nd Street.

We hear Macquarie Bank (one of Australia's largest investment banks) has been swapping proposals with Pozycki's SJP Properties. The firm, which has offices at 120 W. 55th St., is said to need at least 300,000 square feet.

No comment from CB Richard Ellis' Regional Chief Mary Ann Tighe, who is marketing the building for SJP.

pianoman11686

June 5th, 2007, 11:03 PM

Here's your photo-op. :D

http://i146.photobucket.com/albums/r260/pianoman11686/SA700875.jpg

Excavation is in full swing.

kz1000ps

June 18th, 2007, 09:01 PM

6/16

http://img502.imageshack.us/img502/6089/img4914qf1.jpg

antinimby

June 18th, 2007, 10:57 PM

Steel construction should get to streetlevel by December of this year and the whole structure will top out one year later by the end of 2008.

The whole building will be move-in ready six months after that in the summer of 2009.

I've watched enough of this already to have a pretty good idea how long everything will take. ;)

kliq6

June 20th, 2007, 10:21 AM

Your probally close, this is not a big site nor big tower

NYguy

June 21st, 2007, 08:24 AM

http://www.nysun.com/article/57013

Light Will Shine From 42nd Street's Dark Corner

By DAVID FREEDLANDER
June 21, 2007

For decades the western end of 42nd Street has been the dark corner of Midtown, a place shunted to the side and left for squalor as the engines of commerce and progress rolled by.

Cora Cahan, president of the New 42nd Street, a nonprofit organization established by New York State and New York City that is charged with revitalizing the area's theaters, remembers a time when a parking lot at the corner of 42nd Street and 8th Avenue was at its busiest between the hours of 2:45—5:30 a.m., when people looking for drugs or prostitutes stopped in for a few moments at a time.

While "the Deuce" fitfully shed its peep shows and penny arcades in favor of Virgin megastores and Bubba Gump's Seafood Co., that corner stayed in the shadows. Even the parking lot was abandoned and fell into disuse, taken over by trash and urban flora.

That changed earlier this month, when ground was broken at the site for 11 Times Square, a glittering new high-tech skyscraper designed by FXFowle for SJP properties, a New Jerseybased developer of suburban office parks.

"If you collapse time, the idea that this site is now going to be an architect-designed office building is really quite remarkable," said Ms. Cahan. "All those ‘re-' words that we have used to talk about 42nd Street for so long — renew, restore, repair — we are really going to have to stop using them. The entire block has been reinvented."

The building, a 600-foot, 40-story tower, features sculptural forms covered in a sheer glass curtainwall and silk-glass spandrel panels, and is expected to achieve LEED silver certification from the U.S. Green Building Council. It is expected to cost more than $1 billion to construct, according to a spokesman for SJP Properties, Fred Feiner, and will be finished by fall 2009.

The chief designer for the project, Robert Kaplan, said he wanted the building to be a part of its schizophrenic surroundings, incorporating both the delirium of the new Times Square and the sober business district to its south. The southern side of the building, which Mr. Kaplan calls "the corporate side," is rectilinear and modern; the northern front he calls "a jumble of fragments that adds to the sprit and energy of Times Square." It features several large signage "spectaculars" and a 40-foot in diameter globe in one corner.

"When you do something in Times Square you have to make sure, especially at the base, that it's strong enough to compete, that it can accept the inevitable variation of many different layers and signs that are happening," he said.

The parcel the building will occupy is the last buildable site on 42nd Street. SJP acquired the land for $306 million in September 2006 from Howard and Edward Millstein. It is envisioned as capstone on the redevelopment of the area and a gateway to the "new 42nd Street," according to Ms. Cahan.

"Our overriding public goal was put people on the street, and you have certainly seen that established" she said. "It is beyond the city father and state mother's wildest expectations what has happening on that street."

The tower will stand between the new Westin Hotel on 43rd Street and the new Renzo Piano-designed headquarters of the New York Times.

The Millsteins purchased the land in 1983 for $5 million, as part of an earlier citywide attempt to clean up the area. Their attempts to build something on the site sputtered.

The project is the first in years to be built without an anchor tenant, a sign of the increased demand for office space and symbolizing a further encroachment of the Midtown business district, real estate observers say.

"The area has come around to where it is acceptable as an office location," the director of research for Colliers ABR, Robert Sammons, said. "Having the Port Authority across the street is something of a problem, but I think this is going to be where the big growth of Manhattan takes place over the next 25 years."

Ms. Cahan concurs: "Midtown is marching to the east. It's like there is a parade, you can feel the buildings coming toward. The vibrancy and vitality of the city is palpable in that area."

BrooklynRider

June 21st, 2007, 08:35 AM

My own wish for this project is wider sidewalks and a lot more room for pedestrians on the two corners it abuts.

As for signage, 42nd Street has great waths of blankness and Times Square, too. Personally, I think it the signage is more important to the vitality of the area than just bening a revenue generater.

kliq6

June 21st, 2007, 10:55 AM

imjust glad after 10 years its finally moving along

lofter1

June 21st, 2007, 01:06 PM

Cora Cahan, president of the New 42nd Street, a nonprofit organization established by New York State and New York City that is charged with revitalizing the area's theaters ...

"Midtown is marching to the east. It's like there is a parade, you can feel the buildings coming toward. The vibrancy and vitality of the city is palpable in that area."

If Ms. Cahan wasn't misquoted then I hope she finds time to go back to geography class ...

kliq6

June 21st, 2007, 01:13 PM

Great point, i saw that but figured why comment, just another political appointment that has no brains

BrooklynRider

June 21st, 2007, 11:15 PM

"Marching" implies it is moving. Is she really feeling buildings come "toward" her?

Midtown is "spreading."

Someone ought to redline that statement and mail it to her.

lofter1

June 22nd, 2007, 01:58 AM

And what to do with this "sentence" :confused: :

The vibrancy and vitality of the city is palpable in that area.

ablarc

June 24th, 2007, 03:33 PM

The 6th Avenue corridor along there has been much maligned for many years -- but I'll take it any day over 7th Avenue one block west or the stretch of 6th below Bryant Park down to Herald Square (not to mention the newly re-zoned 6th Avenue in Chelsea).

I'm in a very small minority but I like the way they stack up along the west side of those blocks of 6th -- and the openness is a nice change (although there's no doubt that the buildings / plazas could be much better).
I'm a member of that minority, lofter.

lofter1

June 24th, 2007, 09:28 PM

A minority of two :D

pianoman11686

June 24th, 2007, 11:06 PM

Chalk up a third, fellas.

NYguy

June 25th, 2007, 09:47 AM

JUNE 24, 2007

Getting deeper...

http://www.pbase.com/nyguy/image/81130000/medium.jpg

http://www.pbase.com/nyguy/image/81130023/medium.jpg

http://www.pbase.com/nyguy/image/81130000/large.jpg

http://www.pbase.com/nyguy/image/81130023/large.jpg

kliq6

June 25th, 2007, 11:44 AM

Glad this one is finally moving along, hope that a few more get going on 8th Ave soon as well

londonlawyer

June 25th, 2007, 03:05 PM

Glad this one is finally moving along, hope that a few more get going on 8th Ave soon as well

Other than, BP's 55th Street tower, how do you rate the chances of the following breaking ground on 8th in 2008:

1. BP's 45th St. parcel
2. The PA Tower
3. The Disney Tower
4. A hotel on the Duane Reade site and on the adjoining parking lot on 42nd?

Are there any others?

kliq6

June 25th, 2007, 03:12 PM

1. BP's 45th St. parcel-Early 2008
2. The PA Tower-Developer has till 11/30 to sign a lease or loose the air rights back to the PA who will sell them off again.
3. The Disney Tower-State has to this date not given Disney the type of breaks they want, Disney may build tower in CT
4. A hotel on the Duane Reade site and on the adjoining parking lot on 42nd?-Not Planned, Hotel is planned on 8th and 43rd/44th on the Westside However

NYguy

June 25th, 2007, 07:53 PM

http://www.globest.com/news/935_935/newyork/161773-1.html

11 Times Square Starts Spec Construction

http://www.globest.com/newspics/nyc_11ts42nd8th.jpg

By Sean Ryan

NEW YORK CITY-The first shovel of dirt is in for 11 Times Square, two months ahead of schedule. SJP Properties will finish its 40-story, 1.1-million-sf spec office and retail building in 2009.

“We have been able to significantly expedite the development process and commence construction two months ahead of schedule,” Steven J. Pozycki, chairman and CEO of SJP, tells GlobeSt.com. The building is going up with help from the 42nd Street Redevelopment Corp., Empire State Development Corp. and the New York City Economic Development Corp., all of which Pozycki credits for the sped-up schedule.

The total construction cost is projected at $1.1 billion, around $1,000 per sf. That includes the $306-million price of buying the land, which SJP partnered with Prudential Real Estate Investors to buy the L-shaped parcel for $306 million, about $350 per sf.

The tower is at 42nd Street and Eighth Avenue, a block north of the new New York Times building. As described in a Real Estate New York feature, the tower’s floor plates range from 29,914 sf to 41,035 sf. Some of the larger spaces are on the upper floors, due to the building’s outward slope design.

The 55,000 sf on the first three floors will be retail, with the building’s architecture with distinctive different designs for the retail and office sections. Asking rents for the space have not been disclosed yet.
“There are few large-scale blocks of class A space or development sites available in Midtown,” Pozycki says. “11 Times Square represents a vital opportunity for the city and state to retain large corporations looking for sizeable floor plates of new generation space in this core commercial district.”

ablarc

June 25th, 2007, 08:01 PM

A minority of two :D
Chalk up a third, fellas.
I find that Europeans are especially impressed. It seems so exotic to them.

Derek2k3

July 4th, 2007, 04:32 AM

6/3/07
http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1286/713725834_0612709051_o.jpg

http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1187/713725874_be8702cd6f_o.jpg

http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1073/713725852_e5b6ce9a78_o.jpg

ablarc

July 4th, 2007, 03:13 PM

About time.

ld876

July 8th, 2007, 07:30 PM

About time.

I was walking to work a week or two ago, going past the site -- I was almost startled that the midtown 'garden' once there had turned into a construction site. Thank. God.

econ_tim

July 8th, 2007, 09:59 PM

http://img146.imageshack.us/img146/1650/ts11jf1.jpg

BrooklynRider

July 8th, 2007, 10:22 PM

Love the tag on the building. So much for site security.

ramvid01

July 9th, 2007, 02:34 AM

Looks like this one is moving quite quickly which is good because that lot was such a horrible eyesore for the area.

Hamilton

July 9th, 2007, 11:09 AM

Love the tag on the building. So much for site security.

I'm pretty sure that's been there since when Milstein owned this property and did nothing with it--except put up a few ads for his bank.

NYguy

July 23rd, 2007, 05:03 PM

JULY 21-22, 2007

http://www.pbase.com/nyguy/image/82707276/large.jpg

http://www.pbase.com/nyguy/image/82707290/large.jpg

http://www.pbase.com/nyguy/image/82707303/large.jpg

With this tower about to rise, and the revival of the planned tower on top of
the Port Authority, that leaves just one corner of 8th & 42nd to be developed - though
I like the advertisements there...

http://www.pbase.com/nyguy/image/82707340/large.jpg

http://www.pbase.com/nyguy/image/82707371/large.jpg

Skylimitone

July 23rd, 2007, 05:55 PM

Cool Ad.

lofter1

July 23rd, 2007, 07:06 PM

That inverted corner of the building on the NW side of 8th Avenue / W 42nd Street is the only good thing about what exists on that site. Some terrific ads go up on those walls.

It would be cool to have a huge new building go up there that incorporated something similar in the design down at street level ...

benzapp

July 24th, 2007, 04:32 PM

ASchwarz

July 24th, 2007, 05:00 PM

Benzapp, like a number of Times Square sites, it's a state urban renewal site so I think the zoning is dependent on New York State's overall specifications, not the underlying city zoning.

kliq6

July 24th, 2007, 05:24 PM

Right on the money, state laws bi-pass its zoning on certain issues, all sites in TS redevelopment are actually higher then they should be except Ernst and Young building

Derek2k3

August 1st, 2007, 11:58 PM

Found this on the World Product Centre website. They were formerly slated to occupy this building.

http://worldproductcentre.com/images/left1.jpg
This rendering underrepresents its height.

http://worldproductcentre.com/images/left2.jpg

http://worldproductcentre.com/images/photo3.jpg

http://worldproductcentre.com/images/photo5.jpg
http://worldproductcentre.com/

londonlawyer

August 2nd, 2007, 01:01 PM

This is an awesome building.

I wonder why this group backed out and decided to go with EXtell's new Copacobana Tower. I'm glad they did though because it results in another new tower.

Stern

August 2nd, 2007, 01:14 PM

According to the New York Post the "L" shape of the buildings floorplates didn't work with their needs.

To be honest I am a little skeptical about Israel Green and the World Product Centre, it reminds of Vantone and the China Center and how nothing has concretely developed there. How come the first we hear about the World Product Centre occupying 11 Times Square is not until Green decides to partner with Extell elsewhere. Boutique-type office buildings exist in the city such as the Decoration & Design Building, but they are usually smaller, older building, I just don’t know if the economics are there. If the World Product Centre is built a bit of good news is that in the elevation of 11 Times Square floors would have been raised to 16 feet, so this building has the opportunity of being a very tall building.

BrooklynRider

August 2nd, 2007, 02:40 PM

Is that auditorium for a commercial office tenant or is it a new theater for the district? Anyone know?

antinimby

August 12th, 2007, 02:40 AM

Thursday 8/9/07.

(click to enlarge)
http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1147/1074440695_c9122ce4d9_m.jpg (http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1147/1074440695_c9122ce4d9_b.jpg) http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1163/1074437883_00ef50c7b4_m.jpg (http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1163/1074437883_00ef50c7b4_b.jpg)
julio.miyares (http://www.flickr.com/photos/juliomiyares/1074440695/)

NYguy

August 14th, 2007, 08:41 AM

http://www.nypost.com/seven/08142007/business/testing_time_at_times_sq__business_steve_cuozzo.ht m?page=0

TESTING TIME AT TIMES SQ.
NEW TOWER AWAITS TENANTS IN UNCERTAIN LEASING MARKET

http://www.nypost.com/img/cols/stevecuozzo.jpg

August 14, 2007 -- WITH commercial real estate players more nervous than they'll admit over the credit crunch resulting from the subprime-loan crisis, the new development that's drawing all eyes is SJP Properties' 11 Times Square - the 1.1 million square-foot speculative office tower going up at Eighth Avenue and 42nd Street.

Although SJP had its financing in place well before the subprime debacle hit, the New Jersey-based company must lure tenants in a leasing market that could well turn sour before the building is completed in late 2009.

But SJP founder and Chief Executive Steven J. Pozycki is utterly confident - in 11 Times Square's fiscal integrity, its quality and the likelihood of strong demand that he believes will survive a Wall Street turndown, if one occurs.

For starters, SJP and its partner, Prudential Financial, have 35 percent equity in the $1.2 billion project, "much more than most developers," said SJP Chief Financial Officer David Welch.

Moreover, it's insulated from interest-rate fluctuations on debt financing, having previously swapped an adjustable-rate loan for a fixed-rate loan from a seven-bank consortium led by PNC Bank and Bank of America.

As far as demand goes, Pozycki said, "given the tightness of the New York office market, and the lack of product coming on line to fill that void, I've never seen things so tight in 25 years in terms of supply and demand."

He said the Manhattan market is so "strong and deep" that it can easily withstand retrenchment by investment banks, the largest users, if that happens.

Pozycki and his CB Richard Ellis leasing team - led by Mary Ann Tighe and Stephen B. Siegel - are still in the early stages of marketing.

"We think we're a bit early for the market [of late 2009-2010]," CBRE's Pozycki said.

But, "we're presenting the project to a number of interested companies and we are taking RFP's.

"By late fall or early spring, we'll be talking to tenants [in earnest].

"Our foundation will be done by then."

SJP broke ground in the spring on the long-awaited project at the western end of 42nd Street's booming "Deuce," on what had been an empty lot, and construction is ahead of schedule.

Although spec projects are often regarded as rare and risky, there have been a fair number of them in recent years, and all are successful. They include 4 Times Square, the new 7 World Trade Center, 222 E. 41st St., 505 Fifth Ave., and the top half of the New York Times tower, which developer Bruce Ratner owns separately from the New York Times Co.

Pozycki was cagey on the question of asking rents: "To be honest, the market's moving so fast," he said, adding, "It depends on where you are. If you're in the Plaza District and paying from $90 to $180 a square foot, we're probably a bargain."

Midtown rents are averaging around $62 a foot, and Ratner has achieved rents in the $90s on the upper floors of the Times tower next door to 11 Times Square.

"We are very excited about Mr. Ratner's success there," Pozycki chuckled.

Pozycki agrees that 11 Times Square is being viewed as a possible bellwether for other proposed spec projects. "We're the only large spec building under construction," he said.

"I think that with financial uncertainty around and some exuberance waning a bit, you'll see people be a bit more guarded about starting." He did not refer to any specific developers.

Brookfield, Boston Properties, Vornado and Harry Macklowe are among those with sites where they can put up large new office towers.

Pozycki's tower, designed by FX Fowle, shares the same basic contours as one planned for the site by Howard Milstein, who sold the land to SJP last year for $325 million.

But its 40 stories are more than Milstein planned, thanks to additional air rights purchases, and most details - such as floor-to-ceiling windows - are completely new.

kliq6

August 14th, 2007, 12:42 PM

londonlawyer

August 14th, 2007, 12:53 PM

They will get one, even if economy keeps turning, it will be the only major tower under construction in Midtown with a completion in the next few years, ths it will corner the market for any firm needing new space

I wonder if Macklowe will switch to residential and a hotel for The Drake site since there still seems to be huge demand for high-end apartments from overseas buyers, and there appears to be demand from ultra, high-end hotels.

kliq6

August 14th, 2007, 01:13 PM

Market will sway him I assume. Its a site that could be good for both

BrooklynRider

August 14th, 2007, 06:20 PM

The bigger reality in Commercial real estate is the fact that so many companies are looking to leave Midtown. It is simply too expensive. Too expensive PPSF. Too expensive for employees. Too expensive in almost every way. Hudson Square is suddenly a very hip place to work and Downtown is hot. Prices are in a zone that further feeds Jersey City and might actually jumpstart Brooklyn. However, Brooklyn - being on Long Island - is not an easy commute and the downtown amenities suck.

lofter1

September 21st, 2007, 12:01 AM

The hole is getting bigger, footings are going in & everybody (well, almost) is working hard ...

http://i130.photobucket.com/albums/p242/Lofter1/11%20TS%20Plaza/L111TS_14Duo_1c.jpg

http://i130.photobucket.com/albums/p242/Lofter1/11%20TS%20Plaza/11TS_13a.jpg

http://i130.photobucket.com/albums/p242/Lofter1/11%20TS%20Plaza/11TS_14a6.jpg

http://i130.photobucket.com/albums/p242/Lofter1/11%20TS%20Plaza/11TS_14a7.jpg

http://i130.photobucket.com/albums/p242/Lofter1/11%20TS%20Plaza/11TS_14a10.jpg

http://i130.photobucket.com/albums/p242/Lofter1/11%20TS%20Plaza/11TS_14a14.jpg

***

macreator

September 21st, 2007, 12:11 AM

Thanks for the photo update, lofter! :)

lofter1

October 3rd, 2007, 01:25 AM

This site was buzzing today ...

Looks like they're getting ready for some crane erection:

http://i130.photobucket.com/albums/p242/Lofter1/11%20TS%20Plaza/L111TS_16c.jpg

http://i130.photobucket.com/albums/p242/Lofter1/11%20TS%20Plaza/L111TS_16a.jpg

http://i130.photobucket.com/albums/p242/Lofter1/11%20TS%20Plaza/L111TS_16j.jpg

http://i130.photobucket.com/albums/p242/Lofter1/11%20TS%20Plaza/L111TS_16k.jpg

http://i130.photobucket.com/albums/p242/Lofter1/11%20TS%20Plaza/L111TS_16l.jpg

http://i130.photobucket.com/albums/p242/Lofter1/11%20TS%20Plaza/L111TS_16h.jpg

***

Archit_K

October 3rd, 2007, 01:48 AM

I practically forgot all about 11 Time Square, I can’t believe its still in foundation mod… Has the design change since its original proposal? Where are the renders???

BrooklynRider

October 3rd, 2007, 08:40 AM

I just want this one done.

Seems all my life this corner has been empty.

Wow I sound like a soap opera.

Peteynyc1

October 3rd, 2007, 09:13 AM

In eleven days it will be FIVE YEARS since this thread began and you guys first started talking about this project!!! That was long before I ever knew of Wired NY. I do remember the parking lot that sat here from 22 years ago because I got mugged right there when I was 14! Does anyone have any pictures of or know what was there before the parking lot?

JCMAN320

October 10th, 2007, 04:52 AM

Great plug for my Nets in the pic at the top of the page Lofter. lol

BKride and Arch your right I really did almost forget, that site has been empty forever I'm so glad finally getting done. Time Square needs a better gateway for the bus terminal for people entering the city that way.

Fabrizio

October 10th, 2007, 01:31 PM

I remember that as an empty lot in the mid 1970's.

On that corner there was always this guy with a microphone and a sign saying "The-End-of-The-World-Is-Near".

That was the greeting coming in from the Port Authority.

antinimby

October 10th, 2007, 04:55 PM

Does anyone have any pictures of or know what was there before the parking lot?There were old, pretty ornate townhouses on that corner near the turn of the century.

I remember seeing old photos of Times Square on some forum and noticed that corner was not always an open lot.

Don't ask me to find that photo but if I come across it again, I'll certainly post it here.

Fabrizio

October 10th, 2007, 05:02 PM

All I had was 10 bucks in my pocket and my tap shoes. The rest is history.

lofter1

October 10th, 2007, 06:50 PM

It wasn't until just now that I realized you were really Peggy Sawyer (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A-UzpveWFQ4) ;)

londonlawyer

October 10th, 2007, 07:33 PM

This building will be an utter masterpiece compared to the lame boxes that Morty Zuckerman and Macklowe are building on 8th and Madison, respectively.

Fabrizio

October 10th, 2007, 07:39 PM

I figured if it didn't work out, I could always go back to stomping grapes.

ZippyTheChimp

October 10th, 2007, 08:23 PM

Does anyone have any pictures of or know what was there before the parking lot?I only remember it as a parking lot. The Empire Theater (opened as the Eltinge Theater in 1912), now used as the entrance to the AMC theaters, was originally about 150 ft to the east. In the 90s, it was jacked up on rails, and moved to its present location.

The theater was named for Julian Eltinge (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Julian_Eltinge)
http://www.thejulianeltingeproject.com/return.html

The comedy team Abbott & Costello (Who's on First) performed at the theater in the 1930s.

In 1929, Laurence Olivier performed in Murder on the Second Floor at the Eltinge. I think it was his first appearance on an American stage.

Lots of history around Times Square, much of it ripped away.

lofter1

October 10th, 2007, 09:00 PM

Here is an aerial shot of the PABT (http://collections.lib.uwm.edu/mketran/image/412.jpg) circa mid-1950s ...

Eighth Avenue below W 42nd is barely visible in the upper right -- it appears that there is a building at the SE corner of that intersection where the TS Plaza is now rising -- and what appears to be an empty lot on the other part of that building site at the NE corner of Eighth / W 41st ...

http://collections.lib.uwm.edu/mketran/image/412.jpg

lofter1

October 10th, 2007, 09:13 PM

Another shot of PABT shortly after it opened (http://www.bokmasarna.se/vykort/vyk032.jpg) (taken from the east -- possibly from the upper floors of the Candler Building (http://www.nyc-architecture.com/MID/MID112.htm) at 224 W 42nd) showing the rooftop of an old theater-looking building (lower right) at the SE corner of Eighth / 42nd and rooftops of lower buildings on the south end of that block ...

http://www.bokmasarna.se/vykort/vyk032.jpg

ManhattanKnight

October 11th, 2007, 12:18 PM

Actually, that "theater-looking building" is the Franklin Savings Bank, designed by York & Sawyer, which was completed in 1901 and destroyed in the mid-1970s, when the bank relocated to its bland new headquarters diagonally across the intersection. In their account of the decay of 42nd Street in New York 1960 (at p. 468), Stern et al. call the loss of the bank's "pristine landmark-quality headquarters" "yet another sad note to the street."

An August 5, 1974 NY Times article by Paul Goldberger about the impending demolition of the bank includes this photograph of it:

http://img341.imageshack.us/img341/1500/franiklinsavingsbankyx1.jpg

A few choice excerpts from the text of the article:Declaring that it is a "dump the city would be better off without," in the words of Edward Rollins, executive vice president, officials of the Franklin Savings Bank have decided to demolish the monumental structure at the southeast corner of Eighth Avenue and 42nd Street that was the bank's home from 1901 until last year. . . . The bank plans to replace the old building with either a parking lot or a one-story retail building, believing that the cleared site would be more attractive to potential developers. . . . Along with the old McGraw-Hill Building, the green skyscraper on 42nd Street, the old Franklin Savings Bank is one of the first major New York buildings visitors from New Jersey see as they emerge from the Port Authority Bus Terminal across the street. The bank decided to move out of the structure in 1966, when the Eighth Avenue blockfront of which it is a part was assembled by the Uris Buildings, Corp., for a new skyscraper.

The Uris deal fell through, as did a subsequent plan to erect a 40-story Holiday Inn on the site, largely because of doubts about the area's future. . . . [Bank vice president Adam Zaun] conceded that any development on the site was "certainly several years away," but explained that bank officials felt that demolishing the old building, in addition to increasing the attractiveness of the site for development, would "be helpful to the neighborhood."

"A building like that is an eyesore if it isn't being used for its legitimate purpose," Mr. Zaun said. "We don't want to contribute to the Times Square neighborhood going downhill any further."

Fabrizio

October 11th, 2007, 12:29 PM

Thanks for the research. Interesting story.

(another reason why WiredNY is so valuable)

lofter1

October 11th, 2007, 01:12 PM

Great find ^^^ Manhattan Knight http://wirednewyork.com/forum/images/icons/icon14.gif http://wirednewyork.com/forum/images/icons/icon14.gif http://wirednewyork.com/forum/images/icons/icon14.gif ...

More from the LPC Report for the Staten Island Savings Bank Building (http://www.nyc.gov/html/lpc/downloads/pdf/reports/SI_savingsbank.pdf) (pdf) :

By the late 1920s, however, monumental classicism was being replaced by variety of other styles. York & Sawyer, New York’s premier bank architecture firm had already begun diversifying their stylistic vocabulary with French Renaissance precedents in the 1924 extension to the Franklin Savings Bank on 42nd Street and Eighth Avenue (demolished), a Florentine Renaissance palazzo for the Federal Reserve Bank at Liberty and Nassau Streets and Maiden Lane (1919-1924, a designated New York City Landmark), and the Byzantine and Romanesque-inspired Bowery Savings bank on 42nd Street (1921-1923, and 1931-1933, a designated New York City Landmark and Interior Landmark). Once the dominance of classicism was broken, other architectural firms followed suit adapting Georgian and American Colonial styles to fit the needs of modern banks. An example of which is the St. George branch of the Staten Island Savings Bank.

ManhattanKnight

October 11th, 2007, 02:14 PM

^Thanks, Lofter. I was a regular user of the PABT during the years just before this bank was razed but don't remember it at all, undoubtedly because upon arriving at the bus terminal, I'd use the underground passage over to the 7th Ave. IRT to catch a train downtown rather than walk through the nastiness that was 42nd St. back then.

antinimby

October 11th, 2007, 04:30 PM

Declaring that it is a "dump the city would be better off without," in the words of Edward Rollins, executive vice president, officials of the Franklin Savings Bank have decided to demolish the monumental structure at the southeast corner of Eighth Avenue and 42nd Street that was the bank's home from 1901 until last year. . . . The bank plans to replace the old building with either a parking lot or a one-story retail building, believing that the cleared site would be more attractive to potential developers. . . . Along with the old McGraw-Hill Building, the green skyscraper on 42nd Street, the old Franklin Savings Bank is one of the first major New York buildings visitors from New Jersey see as they emerge from the Port Authority Bus Terminal across the street. The bank decided to move out of the structure in 1966, when the Eighth Avenue blockfront of which it is a part was assembled by the Uris Buildings, Corp., for a new skyscraper.The Uris deal fell through, as did a subsequent plan to erect a 40-story Holiday Inn on the site, largely because of doubts about the area's future. . . . [Bank vice president Adam Zaun] conceded that any development on the site was "certainly several years away," but explained that bank officials felt that demolishing the old building, in addition to increasing the attractiveness of the site for development, would "be helpful to the neighborhood.""A building like that is an eyesore if it isn't being used for its legitimate purpose," Mr. Zaun said. "We don't want to contribute to the Times Square neighborhood going downhill any further."I wonder if any of these people (mainly Rollins and Zaun) are still alive today and are able to see how off-the-mark many of their fears and predictions were.

Fabrizio

October 11th, 2007, 04:47 PM

You must consider that in 1974 the city was at it's lowest depths. Today it is hard to understand what 42nd and 8th was like back then. I lived for a time in the neighborhood, on 46th between 8th and 9th during the late 70's. In all of that time I think I walked down that block of 42nd maybe three or four times. It was terrifying. Really. It was like an open-air mental institution/prison ward.

ManhattanKnight

October 11th, 2007, 05:38 PM

You must consider that in 1974 the city was at it's lowest depths.

The Goldberger article was published just four days before Nixon abdicated and Ford took over and a year before the Daily News' infamous front page appeared:

http://img210.imageshack.us/img210/9765/fordtocitywd5.jpg

TREPYE

October 12th, 2007, 08:44 PM

:mad::rolleyes:Imbecils...

An August 5, 1974 NY Times article by Paul Goldberger about the impending demolition of the bank includes this photograph of it:

http://img341.imageshack.us/img341/1500/franiklinsavingsbankyx1.jpg

A few choice excerpts from the text of the article:Declaring that it is a "dump the city would be better off without," in the words of Edward Rollins, executive vice president, officials of the Franklin Savings Bank have decided to demolish the monumental structure at the southeast corner of Eighth Avenue and 42nd Street that was the bank's home from 1901 until last year. . . . The bank plans to replace the old building with either a parking lot or a one-story retail building, believing that the cleared site would be more attractive to potential developers. . . .
but explained that bank officials felt that demolishing the old building, in addition to increasing the attractiveness of the site for development, would "be helpful to the neighborhood."
"A building like that is an eyesore if it isn't being used for its legitimate purpose," Mr. Zaun said. "We don't want to contribute to the Times Square neighborhood going downhill any further."

Fabrizio

October 13th, 2007, 09:35 AM

35 years in the future people will be reading the same about the Hotel Penn and the Roosevelt.

As it is, this is n o t h i n g compared to the destruction 10 years later of the Helen Hayes, the Morrosco theatre, The Bijou, and the Hotel Piccadilly just 3 blocks to the north. Or 15 years later with the Rivoli. All of those, by the way, were fully functioning right up until the wreckers ball. In fact, here I am going out there for the second act:

http://sjsondheim.com/gallery/main.php?g2_view=core.DownloadItem&g2_itemId=17&g2_serialNumber=2

--

LeCom

October 18th, 2007, 09:13 PM

Hard to believe something is happening at the site after all these years.

MidtownGuy

October 18th, 2007, 09:19 PM

the Roosevelt is going too?:(
These are dark days for architecture, perhaps worse than the often bemoaned 60's.
Hard to believe they ripped down that magnificent bank building to make a parking lot.

antinimby

October 19th, 2007, 02:12 AM

As unfortunate as that may have been at the time, ultimately I'm glad things worked out it did because I think the design we're getting is fantastic and will make a great addition to that corner.

http://www.pbase.com/image/72846434.jpg

londonlawyer

October 19th, 2007, 06:13 PM

the Roosevelt is going too?:(
These are dark days for architecture, perhaps worse than the often bemoaned 60's.
Hard to believe they ripped down that magnificent bank building to make a parking lot.

I don't think the Roosevelt is going anywhere any time soon.

There were plans to redevelop it before the credit crunch. It will be around for a few years, and hopefully, Tierney will be replaced by someone competent who landmarks it before the economy revives.

antinimby

October 19th, 2007, 07:32 PM

Yeah but now you're just relying on hope (and a prayer) but as we see with the Drake and the townhouses, that isn't nearly enough.

You need something with more assurance and landmarking is the only way to accomplish that.

ASchwarz

October 19th, 2007, 07:42 PM

I don't think the Roosevelt is going anywhere any time soon.

There were plans to redevelop it before the credit crunch. It will be around for a few years, and hopefully, Tierney will be replaced by someone competent who landmarks it before the economy revives.

The Roosevelt does not come close to the standards of landmarking, and would never even be considered. In fact, it would go directly counter to the famous Grand Central landmark ruling.

The whole basis for the preservation of Grand Central was that Penn Central (former owners) would have adjacent "receiving sites" for F.A.R. in the former Terminal City.

londonlawyer

October 19th, 2007, 10:54 PM

The Roosevelt does not come close to the standards of landmarking...

It should. It's a beautiful building.

lofter1

October 20th, 2007, 01:34 AM

The Roosevelt does not come close to the standards of landmarking, and would never even be considered.

Let's see ...

The Roosevelt Hotel (http://www.theroosevelthotel.com/About/Facts/), 1924

Architects: George B. Post & Sons (http://www.emporis.com/en/cd/cm/?id=georgebpostsons-newyorkcity-ny-usa) -- who also worked with Joseph Urban on the Hearst building (http://www.tenant.net/pipermail/hkonline/2001-December/000327.html) (1928) at 959 Eighth Avenue.

From The City Review (http://www.thecityreview.com/roose.html) ...

by Carter Horsley:

THE ROOSEVELT HOTEL
50 East 46th Street

The last remaining unaltered hotel of the original "Terminal City" complex centered around Grand Central Terminal (see The City Review article (http://www.thecityreview.com/grandcen.html)), the Roosevelt Hotel provides a good example, because it was never planned as luxury facility, of the high quality of architecture design in pre-Depression New York that envisioned an ever improving, ever more stately urbanity ...

The 1,100-room Roosevelt Hotel was the first large hotel to be built under the city's new zoning regulations of 1916 and was named after President Theodore Roosevelt. According to Robert A. M. Stern, Gregory Gilmartin and Thomas Mellins in their book, "New York 1930, Architecture and Urbanism Between The Two World Wars," published in 1987 by Rizzoli, the Roosevelt was the first new New York hotel to include ground floor stores to offset a lack of revenues caused by Prohibition.

... its future is some doubt because it is on a receiving site for transfer of Grand Central Terminal's unused air rights. The hotel's base is particularly attractive in its excellent articulation and modulation.

ZippyTheChimp

October 20th, 2007, 08:13 AM

The whole basis for the preservation of Grand Central was that Penn Central (former owners) would have adjacent "receiving sites" for F.A.R. in the former Terminal City.TDRs are standard practice when buildings are landmarked.

Penn Central vs NYC 1978 did not settle the transfer of air-rights. The transfer was offered to Penn Central before suit was filed, but they rejected it. It was noted in the ruling that GCT would still operate as a railroad hub after designation, and that air-rights would be available off site; but the ruling settled the challenge by Penn Central that the city had the right to designate the property.

BrooklynRider

October 20th, 2007, 11:58 AM

Back in the early nineties there were proposals floating around to build a World's Tallest on the site.

NYguy

October 29th, 2007, 09:44 AM

OCTOBER 28, 2007

http://www.pbase.com/nyguy/image/88059042/large.jpg

http://www.pbase.com/nyguy/image/88059043/large.jpg

BrooklynRider

October 29th, 2007, 10:38 AM

I find that seeing this project rise is particularly satisying.

MidtownGuy

October 30th, 2007, 01:14 AM

Me too.
As for the Roosevelt, Hands Off! Shwarzy you are nutcase if you don't think it deserves to be landmarked.

kliq6

November 1st, 2007, 10:09 AM

It should. It's a beautiful building.

This buildingis safe for now, the one decent proposal to redevelop this site has been killed thaks to the credit crisis

antinimby

November 1st, 2007, 04:32 PM

There can never be a "decent" proposal if it involves razing the Roosevelt. The best proposal is no proposal.

Why something as marvelous as that hotel is not landmarked yet some rundown, rat-infested warehouse in Williamsburg is, is hard to believe and can only happen in this city.

econ_tim

November 1st, 2007, 06:13 PM

what does the roosevelt have to do with this project?

MidtownGuy

November 2nd, 2007, 02:28 PM

Go back and read the thread.

econ_tim

November 2nd, 2007, 03:47 PM

Go back and read the thread.

let's just talk about hotel penn and chicago and wtc while we're at it.

MidtownGuy

November 2nd, 2007, 04:26 PM

Discussion is organic, of course threads should stay relevant but there is such a thing as flowing conversation; a distraction bigger than tangential comments would be breaking the rhythm with petty griping whenever something not 100% reflected in the title is mentioned.

lofter1

November 2nd, 2007, 09:52 PM

Besides there's nothing going on at TS Plaza site that hasn't been pretty fully documented -- they're still working on that foundation.

So we can blame it on the work crew that our conversation strays away from the topic.

Fabrizio

November 2nd, 2007, 10:02 PM

Let's talk about me.

lofter1

November 2nd, 2007, 10:26 PM

If you keep uncinching that night coat no doubt we'll all be yapping about you for days.

Fabrizio

November 2nd, 2007, 10:48 PM

Ok back on topic: the COOL thing would be to buy the Roosevelt and re-name it the ELEANOR Roosevelt.

I'd do the whole thing in no-nonsense tweed and have all the help wearing sensible shoes. Egg salad and gelatin molds in the cafeteria.

http://artfiles.art.com/images/-/Eleanor-Roosevelt-Poster-C10085375.jpeg

BrooklynRider

November 3rd, 2007, 02:34 AM

We don't whether Times Square Plaza will abut Ratner's Hilton, do we?

It also seems the tower has no set back on 41st Street or am I not recalling the rendering?

lofter1

November 3rd, 2007, 12:09 PM

11 TS Plaza will abut the Hilton building up to about floor 5 on the south eastern side of TSP -- then (strangely) it steps back and rises, separated from the Hilton by ~ 45' (which will leave the majority of the existing blank green east-facing Hiloton wall exposed).

The first image below is from the north, looking over and across the AMC Empire 25 Theaters. The next 4 images are TSP seen from the south.The last image is from the west and shows the very minimal setbacks on the south facade above W 41st ...

***

BrooklynRider

November 3rd, 2007, 01:10 PM

I guess natural light is a valuable commodity in today's commercial office market. Thanks for the images.

antinimby

November 10th, 2007, 03:06 AM

The website, eleventimessquare.com (http://eleventimessquare.com/) has been updated with new images and information.

Good news, there will be a concrete core in this one. http://wirednewyork.com/forum/images/icons/icon14.gif

Besides the retail portion on the 42nd St. side, there will be a café on 41st St. also.

NYguy

November 10th, 2007, 10:36 AM

The website, eleventimessquare.com (http://eleventimessquare.com/) has been updated with new images and information.

Besides the retail portion on the 42nd St. side, there will be a café on 41st St. also.

The base, and the outdoor podium have always been the most interesting
thing about this one...

http://www.pbase.com/nyguy/image/88713778/medium.jpg_http://www.pbase.com/nyguy/image/88713792/medium.jpg

http://www.pbase.com/nyguy/image/88713795/medium.jpg_http://www.pbase.com/nyguy/image/88713797/medium.jpg

http://www.pbase.com/nyguy/image/88713795/large.jpg

http://www.pbase.com/nyguy/image/88713797/large.jpg

NYguy

November 10th, 2007, 10:37 AM

More views from various "floors", from the website:

1.
http://www.pbase.com/nyguy/image/88713807/large.jpg

2.
http://www.pbase.com/nyguy/image/88713808/large.jpg

3.
http://www.pbase.com/nyguy/image/88713810/large.jpg

4.
http://www.pbase.com/nyguy/image/88713812/large.jpg

5.
http://www.pbase.com/nyguy/image/88713822/large.jpg

6.
http://www.pbase.com/nyguy/image/88713830/large.jpg

7.
http://www.pbase.com/nyguy/image/88713833/large.jpg

8.
http://www.pbase.com/nyguy/image/88713839/large.jpg

9.
http://www.pbase.com/nyguy/image/88713841/large.jpg

10.
http://www.pbase.com/nyguy/image/88713842/large.jpg

NewYorkDoc

November 10th, 2007, 11:54 AM

Stunning views from every angle!

lofter1

November 10th, 2007, 12:53 PM

One of the best things about this building for NYers is the new & large Subway entrance along W. 42nd just east of Eighth Avenue.

That should really alleviate much of the crunch that now exists on the west side of Eighth in front of the PABT.

antinimby

November 10th, 2007, 10:55 PM

A brand spanking new subway entrance is always great. Must be where the blue canopy is at:

http://img251.imageshack.us/img251/7079/11tssubwayentranceba6.jpg

By the way, NYGuy missed one showing the office lobby:

http://img251.imageshack.us/img251/3015/11tslobbynf8.png

lesterp4

November 11th, 2007, 06:32 PM

The crane is standing tall. It must have been installed over the weekend.

antinimby

November 11th, 2007, 07:02 PM

Yay! So looking forward to see this thing rise.

alonzo-ny

November 11th, 2007, 07:12 PM

Seems like a classy tower, the base reminds me of BOA. Same architects, non?

Stern

November 11th, 2007, 08:12 PM

Different architects. 11 Times Square was designed by Daniel Kaplan, as all the TXSQ highrises were at Fox and Fowle. BOFA was designed by Cook+Fox, I believe the design architect there is Richard Cook. Richard Fox used to be part of Fox and Fowle. That said the base is somewhat similar to BOFA, but the curve at the base is blatantly shared with the curve at 4 TXSQ.

http://www.nrel.gov/data/pix/Jpegs/06458.jpg

http://www.pbase.com/nyguy/image/88713778/medium.jpg

lofter1

November 14th, 2007, 09:19 PM

Look what's gone up here ...

http://i130.photobucket.com/albums/p242/Lofter1/11%20TS%20Plaza/L111TS_18e.jpg

http://i130.photobucket.com/albums/p242/Lofter1/11%20TS%20Plaza/L111TS_18b.jpg

http://i130.photobucket.com/albums/p242/Lofter1/11%20TS%20Plaza/L111TS_18g.jpg

+++

antinimby

November 14th, 2007, 10:35 PM

I would think they're gonna need another one of those soon.

Skylimitone

November 15th, 2007, 01:51 AM

WOW, I one down one up. I think I read somewhere this is biggest construction boom in the city in like 40-50 years?

investordude

November 15th, 2007, 02:17 AM

If you look at the web site, it will be fun when people start building out Hudson Yards to have a southern view and watch an entire mini city rise before your eyes.

NYguy

November 19th, 2007, 08:15 PM

NOVEMBER 17, 2007

Against the New York night...

http://www.pbase.com/nyguy/image/89206365/medium.jpg__http://www.pbase.com/nyguy/image/89206369/medium.jpg

http://www.pbase.com/nyguy/image/89206365/large.jpg

http://www.pbase.com/nyguy/image/89206437/medium.jpg

BrooklynRider

November 24th, 2007, 01:57 AM

I'm not sure if I made this comment before, but...

Although this isn't the tallest, most spectacular, or architecturally significant building to go up in the last 30 years, it is a building I am very excited about. That corner has been bleak for nearly my entire life. It is so satisfying to see the ugly lot disappear.

This project is a thrill.

investordude

November 24th, 2007, 02:37 AM

BrooklynRider, I definitely think a building on this corner is exciting. But I think to complete the transformation we need the PA building office tower to go through (hopefully with a more attractive design). If we get that, and 440 west 42nd street, the whole of 42nd street will basically be complete and exciting from river to river.

antinimby

November 24th, 2007, 02:43 AM

No, it wouldn't. You still need to redevelop the Eighth and 42 St. NW corner aka "the Duane Reade corner."

That place, especially after the other three corners are redeveloped, will stick out like a sore thumb.

alonzo-ny

November 24th, 2007, 01:20 PM

How can this building be called 11 times sq when its a block away from the actual square?

pianoman11686

November 24th, 2007, 10:22 PM

How can Bank of America's building be called One Bryant Park?

(Hint: I think it's just for "clever" marketing.)

antinimby

November 25th, 2007, 05:06 AM

It would be nice to see how the construction within the pit has progressed.

Ebola

November 25th, 2007, 05:28 AM

I really love her lobby and base; she is simply another amazing building for our already amazing city:

http://img362.imageshack.us/img362/3742/11tslob2fe7.jpg

scumonkey

November 25th, 2007, 05:27 PM

It would be nice to see how the construction within the pit has progressed. Your wish is my command!
http://i211.photobucket.com/albums/bb276/scumonkey/pit3.jpg

http://i211.photobucket.com/albums/bb276/scumonkey/pit2.jpg

http://i211.photobucket.com/albums/bb276/scumonkey/pit.jpg

scumonkey

November 25th, 2007, 06:28 PM

Looks like a pretty shallow pit for such a tall building?

antinimby

November 26th, 2007, 07:35 PM

Thank you so much scumonkey. I needed that badly. ;)

Oh yeah, the pit might appear deceptively shallow but it is a good two or three stories deep. If memory serves me correctly, this is very similar to the NY Times next door.

kz1000ps

November 27th, 2007, 01:31 AM

One more image from this past weekend, looking southeast

http://img406.imageshack.us/img406/6834/dscf0125nt5.jpg

BrooklynRider

November 27th, 2007, 03:42 PM

Anyone know if this will have a subway entrance built into it? Every new Times Square building has included an entrance.

lofter1

November 27th, 2007, 05:16 PM

A BIG one -- on 42nd just east of Eighth (Antinimby (http://wirednewyork.com/forum/showpost.php?p=197558&postcount=672) has graciously pointed it out for you) ...

http://img251.imageshack.us/img251/7079/11tssubwayentranceba6.jpg

BrooklynRider

November 27th, 2007, 10:54 PM

Thanks. I somehow missed that post by ANTiNIMBY. This will be a great (and needed) addition.

Skylimitone

November 27th, 2007, 10:59 PM

If I'm not mistaken you can see the entrance here

http://img515.imageshack.us/img515/2707/dsc05234ga5.th.jpg (http://img515.imageshack.us/my.php?image=dsc05234ga5.jpg)

Dirty

December 3rd, 2007, 03:11 PM

Skylimitone, you are correct, that is the subway entrance there will be an escalator from the 42nd street entrance down.

Edward

December 8th, 2007, 08:35 PM

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2237/2096730782_f958623926_o.jpg (http://www.wirednewyork.com/skyscrapers/11xsq/)

ablarc

December 9th, 2007, 12:33 PM

^ Splashes of red unify composition.

ZippyTheChimp

December 9th, 2007, 01:35 PM

^
Oh, a photo critique.

I think a companion will benefit NYTimes.

antinimby

December 10th, 2007, 01:44 AM

Not to mention that it'll permanently and thankfully block that Hilton blankwall from view.

lofter1

December 10th, 2007, 11:17 AM

Except ^ for those folks inside 11 TS (since this new building sets back at a low floor and rises separately from the Hilton).

LeCom

December 10th, 2007, 02:26 PM

Sweet, a new subway entrance on that stretch would not be extra. I don't see me using it frequently (thare is an entrance right in the bus terminal, or if I need B or Q, just walk down the block), but at least it will relieve some congestion by the entrances.

kliq6

December 10th, 2007, 04:33 PM

I feel this will turn out to be a nice little addition to TS

antinimby

December 16th, 2007, 04:09 PM

Sidewalk scaffolding have begun to go up around the perimeter of the site. A sure sign that steel construction will begin very soon. :)

antinimby

January 8th, 2008, 10:01 PM

Working on the concrete core...quite different from other past city projects where the steel usually goes up first, then the core.

Good to see here that they are following the practice the rest of the world usually employs.

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2347/2178031837_e93d99a4fe_b.jpg

promaine (http://flickr.com/photos/promaine/2178031837/)

Stern

January 8th, 2008, 10:08 PM

Its still to be seen if the core will rise before the steel once this project hits street level.

lofter1

January 8th, 2008, 11:42 PM

Interesting that the core is rising in the 41st street section of this building's "L", and not in the main section fronting onto 8th Avenure.

Skylimitone

January 9th, 2008, 01:10 PM

Interesting, could this be because of the building's irregular vertical shape?

lofter1

January 9th, 2008, 01:31 PM

Looking at Floorplans it shows that this core will be the Freight / Service core.

Another 2nd core for Passenger Elevators will rise just to the west.

***

Peteynyc1

January 9th, 2008, 01:46 PM

Still in shock about the fact something is actually being built here. You get an awesome birds eye view of the development from the under utilized outdoor area in the Empire 25 movie complex.

Gotham

January 15th, 2008, 05:44 PM

I believe what you see is the whole core.... what might look like two distinct cores on the plans because of the passenger elevator lobby, is just part of the core structure. Also, since the 8th avenue side is going to be reserved for retail, and the main entrance on 41st street.

antinimby

January 21st, 2008, 02:24 AM

January 16, 2008 - the core is now a few stories higher while work continues on what appears to be the tower's footing...

(Click on pic for larger view)
http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2035/2206812651_ec9296f476.jpg?v=0 (http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2035/2206812651_ec9296f476_b.jpg)

promaine (http://flickr.com/photos/promaine/2206812777/in/photostream/)

antinimby

January 30th, 2008, 07:20 PM

Jan. 30, 2008 - according to the guy who took these pics:

"I spoke to a worker who said the steel won't be up "for quite some time." He also said there'd be an additional crane in place in the SW corner (41st/8th Ave), where the flag is, when the steel is needed."

"The worker further told me that the core will be about five stories when its done--there's lot's more concrete to pour. He's very proud of the work they're doing and noted that they were a union job and had had no accidents to speak of."

(click on pics to enlarge)
http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2084/2231450758_507104cd7f.jpg?v=0 (http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2084/2231450758_507104cd7f_b.jpg)

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2182/2231450462_f50e42b0c3.jpg?v=0 (http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2182/2231450462_f50e42b0c3_b.jpg)

promaine (http://flickr.com/photos/promaine/2231450758/)

antinimby

February 5th, 2008, 04:51 PM

This stretch of W. 42 St. back in 1910...

http://img79.imageshack.us/img79/5050/timesbuildingaround1910bi6.jpg

lofter1

February 5th, 2008, 06:38 PM

Actually, that shot ^ is looking west down 42nd Street from a point just east of Fifth Avenue.

Note the NY Times building on the north side of 42nd, and the covered El Station at the intersection of 42nd / Sixth.

The photo is basicallty the reverse angle of an 1878 print posted (http://www.wirednewyork.com/forum/showpost.php?p=175575&postcount=2159) in the B of A thread (note the tallest church steeple) ...

http://www.columbia.edu/~brennan/beach/fig16-34.jpg

42nd St station, view east possibly from a church steeple.
On the right is Bryant Park and the old Egyptian-style storage reservoir.
From Harper’s Weekly, July 20, 1878.

Beach Pneumatic / Columbia. edu (http://www.columbia.edu/~brennan/beach/chapter16.html)

antinimby

February 5th, 2008, 10:11 PM

You're right, that is W. 42nd block between Fifth and Sixth Aves.

Well, at least now we know what that block had looked like before the Grace building and even 500 Fifth came onto the scene.

Also note the building standing where 505 Fifth now stands and prior to that, which up until a few years ago was an open lot/flea market.

BrooklynLove

February 6th, 2008, 08:47 AM

wait. i think that i can see my grandpappee in the 1910 shot ...

lofter1

February 6th, 2008, 06:23 PM

you mean the guy with the hat?

:cool:

antinimby

February 6th, 2008, 06:56 PM

That narrows it down to everyone in that pic.

Hey wait a minute...that dude on the carriage does look a little like you, BL.

BrooklynLove

February 6th, 2008, 09:59 PM

hah, nice.

seriously though, j jungmann sure does have a better ring to it than duane reade.

antinimby

February 14th, 2008, 07:15 PM

February 14, 2008 - the concrete core rising up fast, past street level.

Quote from the photographer: "A worker told me that he didn't expect the steel for slightly more than a month. (They actually let me inside the wooden fence!) The guys are very proud of the building.

The wooden supports in the very near center foreground here, seen better in this photo (http://www.flickr.com/photos/promaine/2241705283/in/set-72157600228774819/) from the far west, are wooden forms for concrete which will hold Con Edison electrical."

(click on pics for larger view)
http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2279/2265614408_9d996021a8.jpg?v=0 (http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2279/2265614408_9d996021a8_b.jpg) http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2258/2265614626_58052f5f09.jpg?v=0 (http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2258/2265614626_58052f5f09_b.jpg)

promaine (http://flickr.com/photos/promaine/)