NEW YORK | 432 Park Avenue (Drake Hotel dev.) | (1,396) FT / 432 M | 89 FLOORS

[Onn]

Originally Posted by THE BIG APPLE

This building could very well have a facade similar to Republic Plaza on the mile high mountains in Denver. The only difference, is 432 has windows increasing in size as the building ascends, and the materials used could end up being spectacular (billion dollars). But design is still uninspired.

First of all, the windows do not increase in size at 432 Park ascends, they are all one size. Second, don't say the design in uninspiring before its even complete. Vinoly is a highly renowned and prestigous architect.

[Mugatu]

Originally Posted by THE BIG APPLE

BTW has this image been posted yet?

holy crap.

[NYguy]

^ Shows why this tower will be a success.

Originally Posted by MarshallKnight

We got a little bit of this sense from those interior renders a couple months ago... but holy hell are those windows going to be gigantic. If you remember those shots -- maybe you'll agree -- I think there's something weirdly more impressive about those huge windows in the concrete frames than just a wall-to-wall glass curtain. Something monolithic.

Whatever you think about the exterior -- I didn't like many of the early renders, but I suspect it's going to surprise people when it's done -- the thing is going to be incredible from the inside.

I agree.

[CCs77]

they just lifted and placed one of those rebar beams.





They placed it in the west side.

[The North One]

I can't say I really like this building. Its totally disproportional to the rest of the skyline, but damn... It's impressive. It looks like it came out of a sci-fi movie.

[miesian]

love it inside and out....

[NewYorkDominates]

Once a hater,this building is starting to drift my opinion every day as this progresses.But I have to agree,the interior is one of a kind.

[applejacks]

Its nice to see the crew working the weekend as this will expedite the buildout. I havent seen them work the weekend in the past so Im hoping this is the new normal.

[Hamilton]

Originally Posted by Onn

First of all, the windows do not increase in size at 432 Park ascends, they are all one size. Second, don't say the design in uninspiring before its even complete. Vinoly is a highly renowned and prestigous architect.

That doesn't mean that every building he designs must be inspired. It's a box. A box is a box is a box, however you spin it. This building is like the Emperor's New Clothes the way people try to justify the choice to build a 1970's extruded rectangle on this site.

[miesian]

It could have resembled a cucumber----wasted opportunity

[photoLith]

Originally Posted by THE BIG APPLE

I want.

[NYguy]

Just thinking, no matter how high the view is from 432 Park, there will be someone with a higher view a few blocks to the west...it's the age of the view. Also, I think this tower will go down more like 15 CPW than One57.

[RoldanTTLB]

I don't see how any tower in this area can go down like 15CPW again. The initial sales of 15cpw were at such a discount as to be shocking. Early sales were all around $3,000 a square foot. Current sales are all over $4,500. That premium is baked into the sales prices on every one of these towers.

[Onn]

Originally Posted by Hamilton

That doesn't mean that every building he designs must be inspired. It's a box. A box is a box is a box, however you spin it. This building is like the Emperor's New Clothes the way people try to justify the choice to build a 1970's extruded rectangle on this site.

No, it doesn't. But he has a pretty good track record. There's a lot of things we still haven't seen yet, like the windows, the open air spaces, the night lighting. We've barely even seen the white concrete facade yet. The base is also supposed to incorporate a glass cube like the Apple stores have. There might be some really great surprises coming still, withhold some judgment until its all finished.

[THE BIG APPLE]

Originally Posted by Onn

First of all, the windows do not increase in size at 432 Park ascends, they are all one size. Second, don't say the design in uninspiring before its even complete. Vinoly is a highly renowned and prestigous architect.

Judging by this 2D model, they most certainly increase in size so don't assume I make shit up, here's proof to back it up. If the design changed and called for congruent window sizes all around, then that's a different story.



The building might end up turning into a high class piece of uninspired work, with many expensive, luxurious, and auspicious materials/cladding (ala International Gem Tower), but in the end the key word stands tall UNINSPIRED.

[Onn]

Originally Posted by THE BIG APPLE

Judging by this 2D model, they most certainly increase in size so don't assume I make shit up, here's proof to back it up. If the design changed and called for congruent window sizes all around, then that's a different story.

No I'm 99% sure the windows are all supposed to be the same size. The footprint of the building doesn't change any all the way up.

The building might end up turning into a high class piece of uninspired work, with many expensive, luxurious, and auspicious materials/cladding (ala International Gem Tower), but in the end the key word stands tall UNINSPIRED.

I can't believe everyone is beating up on the design all of a sudden, you really think an award winning architect is that stupid.

[NYguy]

Originally Posted by THE BIG APPLE

Judging by this 2D model...

Which you shouldn't be doing - at all.

Originally Posted by RoldanTTLB

I don't see how any tower in this area can go down like 15CPW again.

You misunderstand. When I compare it to 15 CPW, I'm talking about the popularity of the building and sales from American buyers.

[RobEss]

Manhattan is starting to fill up with too many "inspired" buildings from architects that seem to think that any geometrical anomaly and splash of colored glass is Good Architecture. What's more, these buildings are usually built with no thought given to the surrounding architecture, a severe case of egotism in my opinion. It seems like nearly every building going up relies on some sort of gimmick to look anywhere near good. We've been rehashing the same sleek metallic designs for the last several decades, too mired in money and ego to make something truly "inspired".

To me, 432 Park breaks that awful mold. It bucks the trend of brash angles and curtain walls, mixing elements of the new and old city to make something simple and genuine. I've seen countless buildings from China, Dubai etc. that resemble One57 or 1WTC (of which I am fans), but I've never seen a pale, pencil-thin grid cast into the sky like this.

I only hope that they clad it in white travertine like the W. R. Grace Building!

[THE BIG APPLE]

Use this edited pic (by me) to compare the footprint of two different floors. One in the ground floor (left), and the other is an upper floor (right). The six spaces between the re-bar columns represent the window spaces. The blueprint on the right seems to have smaller spaces than the one on the left.

[MarshallKnight]

Whoa. I've never noticed that. It's hard to imagine that's just a mistake or something. But, that render doesn't seem to address/incorporate the open spaces, so there's the possibility that it's out of date. Good catch, either way. I only have to wonder WHY they wouldn't just make all the windows the same size. It's a subtle difference, but it seems like you should be able to charge more for a unit with bigger windows...

As for my own feelings about the tower, I've come to appreciate it since we first saw those sketchy renders... not necessarily for the design itself, but because it seems to symbolize a shift in what we can consider the new normal.

It's daring other developers to raise the plateau. Imagine, in 20 years, a time when we'll consider this 1400ft tower to be filler, above which 1600ft, 1700ft, 2000ft towers -- a new generation of iconic towers, of which I expect 225 W. 57th to be the first -- will soar. THAT is what's exciting about this tower for me.