Yesterday the Related Companies and Tishman Construction held a little
ceremony to mark the topping out of 440 West 42nd Street. Yes, they built a 60-story tower in about 10 minutes. What is this, Inception? Not only has the Arquitectonica/Ismael Leyva Architects building reached its full height incredibly fast, but there’s also glass already covering half of the condo/rental/Yotel/Frank Gehry stage spectacular. The Land of Lincoln (Tunnel) had better get ready, because at this rate those 800 apartments are going to be filled by the time we finish writing this blog post.
· 440 West 42nd Street coverage [Curbed]
There’s a lot going on at 60-story mixed-use tower 440 West 42nd Street. Like the pod hotel that marks the beginning of Yotel’s U.S. invasion and the theater triplets from starchitect Frank Gehry. And now, glass! Intern Deanna took shots of the glassing from all angles, so take a look in the gallery above. We’re guessing the neighbors have long since said goodbye to the view.
· 440 West 42nd Street coverage [Curbed]
There’s a lot going on at 60-story mixed-use tower 440 West 42nd Street. Like the pod hotel that marks the beginning of Yotel’s U.S. invasion and the theater triplets from starchitect Frank Gehry. And now, glass! Intern Deanna took shots of the glassing from all angles, so take a look in the gallery above. We’re guessing the neighbors have long since said goodbye to the view.
· 440 West 42nd Street coverage [Curbed]
There’s a lot going on at 60-story mixed-use tower 440 West 42nd Street. Like the pod hotel that marks the beginning of Yotel’s U.S. invasion and the theater triplets from starchitect Frank Gehry. And now, glass! Intern Deanna took shots of the glassing from all angles, so take a look in the gallery above. We’re guessing the neighbors have long since said goodbye to the view.
· 440 West 42nd Street coverage [Curbed]
There’s excitement buzzing around the rising 440 West 42nd Street in Hell’s Kitchen, with its 60 floors of hotel pods and Gehry-designed outlets of dramaturgy. There’s less excitement next door, where a neighbor writes: “I live next to the Related development going up on West 42nd Street between Dyer and 10th Ave. I spoke to some construction workers at the diner who mentioned they are going at a rate of 5 floors every two weeks. Sadly my view will be gone soon!” Looks like the Atelier, Silver Towers and a host of others are already obscuring that river view, so it’s not the biggest loss. Plus, based on the second photo below, there are plenty of new friends to chat with!
That the 60-story mixed-use tower now under construction by the Related Companies at 440 West 42nd Street will have a pod hotel is not the most interesting thing about the building. Nope, that title goes to the development’s three theaters and adjoining lobby designed for the Signature Theatre Company by I-am-not-a-starchitectFrank Gehry. According to a Times story on the Signature’s new home, the interiors will be built out beginning in August, and the show will go on in January 2012. The plywood look seen above in Gehry’s models will carry through to the finished products. Gehry, the Times writes, “used plywood to create intimate, casual spaces with craftsmanlike elements.” Clever and thrifty, now that’s a starchitect! Oh crap, now he’s coming to murder us in our sleep. Here’s the breakdown of each new FOGgy creation, via a press release:
The Jewel Box (first in the photo gallery): The most intimate of the three theatres and has 199 seats. The intent of this space is to pull the patrons as close as possible to the stage, creating a compression that will allow for an intense and intimate theatre experience. This theatre has a single balcony and is reminiscent of a tiny opera house. This room has the most articulated architectural expression with shaped plywood panels framing the proscenium, wrapping around the balcony front and creating a ceiling under the lighting bridges above the house. These panels will be stained a deep chocolate brown that will disappear as the house is faded to black.
The End Stage: The largest of the 3 theatres in the Center with 299 seats. It is the most similar to the Peter Norton Space, the company’s current home. A straight rake of seating rises from the stage edge and is contained within plywood walls that give the space a subtle architectural expression. The shaped panels of the walls will be painted to fade to black as they approach the stage, creating a transition from the architectural space of the room to the scenic space of the play. A large doorway will connect this theatre to the lobby. The closing of this door will indicate that the play is about to begin.
The Courtyard: A 199-seat flexible theatre. The courtyard form, which has a long history in the development of theatre, will give this space distinction from the other two theatres. This theatre can be used in an endstage format, as a modified thrust stage, a runway center stage configuration, or in a flat floor format for experimental work. Each of these configurations has a second level gallery that seats patrons in a single line overlooking the stage. This small theatre will place patrons in a very intimate relationship with the actors.
Lobby : The Signature Center is entered from the sidewalk on 42nd Street under a glass canopy that will protect patrons from the elements and identify the Center with signage. This sculptural design element will give the Center a strong presence and sense of arrival. The street level lobby is compact and visually dominated by a plywood clad stairway that will lead to a gracious upper lobby and then to the three theatres. The extensive 2nd floor lobby will be used for informal gatherings and includes a bar and informal café seating. The lobby also includes a small bookstore area where books by current and past Playwrights-in-Residence will be sold, and audience enrichment materials relating to current Playwrights-in-Residence and their Signature residencies will be made available.
· New Signature Theater, Close to the Old [NYT]
· 440 West 42nd Street coverage [Curbed]
The pieces keep getting added to the Related Companies’ 60-story mixed-use tower now under construction at 42nd Street and Tenth Avenue, even if the developer is still playing coy about the building’s final look. Already the future home of the Signature Theatre Company and its Frank Gehry-designed spaces, the hotel/rental tower is now filling in the blanks on the hotel part. The building will house a 669-room Yotel, the first U.S. property from the company that operates pod hotels near several European airports. Rooms will be a snug 170 square feet and cost between $200-$250 per night. The Rockwell Group and London’s Softroom will design the Yotel New York, and a 2011 opening is expected. HotelChatter is all in a tizzy over the planned restaurant, spa, lounge and the “largest outdoor terrace space for an NYC hotel,” and they also scored a rendering that features a heck of a lot of detail on the nearby Zebra Building, but still doesn’t show much of the tower itself. The other Yotels look pretty crazy, but will Hell’s Kitchen’s Yotel be more happening than its gaytel?
· Yotel To Open Legit, Full-Service Hotel in Times Square in 2011 [HotelChatter]
· 440 West 42nd Street coverage [Curbed]
MIDTOWN—West 34th Street is always in need of cosmetic upgrades, and commercial megalandlord SL Green just announced it finished one at 333 West 34th Street, an office building the company purchased in 2007. The landlord enlarged and renovated the lobby and created a new 21,000-square-foot retail space, all through “recapturing cafeteria and other underutilized space.” There’s now an 18-foot-high glass wall wrapping the front of the building, the perfect sheltered and safe hangout to meet the guy you found on Craigslist to buy your Rangers tickets. [CurbedWire Inbox]
HELL’S KITCHEN—More proof from a tipster that Related’s massive tower rising at 440 West 42nd Street will look like those leaked renderings: “I spoke to one of the construction guys and he told me the building would have two heights; the west side of the block would be 25 stories and the east side would be a whopping 60 stories tall. Holy moly, that’s as big as the Silver Towers.” True, but this one’s all laid back about getting stoned and stuff. Awww yeah. [CurbedWire Inbox]
HELL’S KITCHEN—Did we speak too soon when we said Related’s massive condo/rental tower at 440 West 42nd Street might end up matching the disavowed renderings of the project. A tipster writes: “I keeping a close eye on your coverage since that building’s going to block my kick ass view. Attached is an aerial view of the construction. You can see it’s not quite matching up to Related’s ‘leaked’ plans.” Still looks like the early stuff to us, with that setback above the stone-covered base. Are we seeing things? [CurbedWire Inbox]
HARLEM—Thanks to a wave of new development Frederick Douglass Boulevard has been called Harlem’s Gold Coast, and every Gold Coast needs some fabulous, er, groceries. Enter the Best Yet Market, which one very enthusiastic tipster fills us in on: “You may want to check out the new Best Yet Market that opened Thursday afternoon on Fredrick Douglass and 118. Its a great grocery store and will mean all the folks in the new condos on Fred Douglass have a place to shop. Its large with 3 levels. Mezz level has coffee and desert bar with comfortable chairs and couches. It was already busy and folks are talking about it.”
“On a 10 point scale, if Le Bon Marche in Paris is an 11, Whole Food Columbus Circle an 8.5, then this is a solid 7. Better than any Gristedes, C-Town in the city. Its better than the narrow and crowed Fairways which has good stuff but the crowds are a pain. It has a much bigger selection than Trader Joes – but more expensive. Price is the only draw back — things were less expensive than Whole Paycheck but more expensive than Fairway or Trader Joes.” [CurbedWire Inbox]
The Related Companies told us that leaked renderings of its 59-story tower at 440 West 42nd Street in Hell’s Kitchen weren’t accurate, but we’re starting to doubt those claims. Cladding is now going up on the Arquitectonica- and SLCE-designed full-block tower (which will have condos and rentals) that matches those renderings. Slabs of sandstoney panels have been attached to the base along 41st and 42nd Streets, echoing the buff-toned brick seen across the street at the infamous Zebra Tower. Above the four-story base, where Frank Gehry is designing spaces for the Signature Theater Company, another seven stories have gone up. There’s no glass up yet, so whether the neighborhood will get another tin-can special or something more interesting remains to be seen.
· Thread: 440 West 42nd Street at 10th Avenue [Wired New York]
· 440 West 42nd Street coverage [Curbed]
Now that the city and Related are best of friends (if you forget about that Kingsbridge Armory business), The Real Deal passes along word that our fearless leaders are chipping in $25 million for Related’s long-awaited 440 West 42nd Street project. The former Hell’s Kitchen Swimming Hole, to refresh your memory, will be a 59-story complex of affordable and market-rate housing as well as a Frank Gehry-designed theater. The residential stuff is supposed to be done in 2011, and the theater in 2012. [Real Deal]