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Size matters in NYC, where several projects vie for the city’s tallest building honor

High-rise Construction

Size matters in NYC, where several projects vie for the city’s tallest building honor

The latest renderings of 217 West 57th Street show a tower that would rise higher than the World Trade Center’s pinnacle, when elevations are included.


By John Caulfield, Senior Editor | April 23, 2015
Size matters in NYC, where several projects vie for the city’s tallest building honor

With a pinnacle height of 1,775 feet, Nordstrom Tower would be one foot shorter than One World Trade Center. Rendering via New York Yimby

The latest renderings for the future Nordstrom Tower at 217 West 57th Street in New York City show a building that would be the tallest residential skyscraper in the Western Hemisphere, eclipsing the height of One57 in Manhattan.

With a pinnacle height of 1,775 feet, Nordstrom Tower would be one foot shorter than One World Trade Center. But with a Midtown elevation that’s higher than WTC’s Financial District location downtown, Nordstrom Tower gains about 70 feet and would be 1,850 feet above sea level.

The renderings were published on NewYorkYimby.com, a website that covers real estate and development news. The New York Post, quoting “real estate sources,” reports that the building’s architect, Chicago-based Adrian Smith + Gordon Gill Architecture, did not create the renderings, which the Post says may have been leaked “from a marketing source for the building.” Extell is the Nordstrom Tower’s developer.

NY Yimby reports that while Nordstrom Tower, if it were already built, would rank fifth among the world’s tallest buildings today, it might not even crack into the top 10 by the time it’s completed in 2018.

 

The 1,396-foot 432 Park Avenue, designed by Rafael Viñoly, rises above WTC’s roof level. Rendering courtesy Rafael Viñoly Architects

 

Still, it reigns as the tallest building that’s currently under construction in New York, if just barely. NY Yimby reports that the 1,396-foot 432 Park Avenue, designed by Rafael Viñoly, rises above WTC’s roof level, and One Vanderbilt will probably do so, too, when it opens in 2017.

Rezoning in Midtown East could lead to the construction of more giant towers. Gizmodo.com notes that SHoP Architects and JDS Development Group plan to build a 1,348-foot skyscraper at 107 West 57th that would be less than 40 feet wide

Many of these “supertalls,” as they’ve come to be known, are mixed-use developments. Nordstrom Tower, for example, would include offices, a hotel, and condos within its gross space of 1,210,993 sf. The department store chain Nordstrom reportedly shelled out $10 million to anchor the retail component in this tower with a 200,000-sf store.

The building will also include what could be the city’s highest outdoor terraces.

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