Tower Verre
Encyclopedia
Skyscraper
A skyscraper is a tall, continuously habitable building of many stories, often designed for office and commercial use. There is no official definition or height above which a building may be classified as a skyscraper...
proposed by the real estate company Hines
Gerald D. Hines
Gerald D. Hines is the founder and chairman of Hines, a privately held real estate firm with its U.S. headquarters located in Houston, Texas, and its European headquarters located in London....
to rise in Midtown Manhattan
Midtown Manhattan
Midtown Manhattan, or simply Midtown, is an area of Manhattan, New York City home to world-famous commercial zones such as Rockefeller Center, Broadway, and Times Square...
, New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
adjacent to the Museum of Modern Art
Museum of Modern Art
The Museum of Modern Art is an art museum in Midtown Manhattan in New York City, on 53rd Street, between Fifth and Sixth Avenues. It has been important in developing and collecting modernist art, and is often identified as the most influential museum of modern art in the world...
.
The building, designed by Jean Nouvel
Jean Nouvel
Jean Nouvel is a French architect. Nouvel studied at the École des Beaux-Arts in Paris and was a founding member of Mars 1976 and Syndicat de l'Architecture...
, initially was proposed to stand 1,250 feet (381 m) tall (the same height as the Empire State Building
Empire State Building
The Empire State Building is a 102-story landmark skyscraper and American cultural icon in New York City at the intersection of Fifth Avenue and West 34th Street. It has a roof height of 1,250 feet , and with its antenna spire included, it stands a total of 1,454 ft high. Its name is derived...
below its mast) and contain 82 floors.
The mid-block building has run into considerable opposition focusing on fears that it would cast a shadow over Central Park
Central Park
Central Park is a public park in the center of Manhattan in New York City, United States. The park initially opened in 1857, on of city-owned land. In 1858, Frederick Law Olmsted and Calvert Vaux won a design competition to improve and expand the park with a plan they entitled the Greensward Plan...
during the winter and that its mid-block location would create traffic problems. Further the building does not have financing.
The building bought air rights
Air rights
Air rights are a type of development right in real estate, referring to the empty space above a property. Generally speaking, owning or renting land or a building gives one the right to use and develop the air rights....
from the University Club of New York and St. Thomas Church.
On September 9, 2009, the New York City Planning Commission
New York City Department of City Planning
The Department of City Planning is a governmental agency of New York City responsible for setting the framework of city's physical and socioeconomic planning...
said the building could be built if 200 feet (61 m) were clipped off the top. The City's decision not to approve Tower Verre as proposed was greeted with disappointment and derision by several prominent architecture critics.
The 1050 feet (320 m) version, was approved by the City Council on October 28, 2009 in a 44-3 vote.
The building's skin would contain a faceted exterior that tapers to a set of crystalline peaks at the apex of the tower. Due to this, the project is said to be one of the most exciting additions to New York's skyline in a generation.
The building would host Galleries, a 5 star hotel, and 8 star residential apartments. Each floor has 17000 sq ft (1,579.4 m²) starting with 40000 sq ft (3,716.1 m²) of space at the base. It will use wind power and rain water for everyday needs.
MOMA, which owned the building's 17000 square feet (1,579.4 m²) lot and completed a renovation in 2005, sold the lot to Hines for $125 Million in 2007.