The developers for the 175 Park Avenue in New York City have submitted permits for the proposed supertall skyscraper by SOM in Midtown Manhattan, which would become the third-tallest in the city if completed.
Developers RXR Realty and TF Cornerstone have brought attention back to the project, which was originally announced in 2019.
Permits have been filed for 175 Park Avenue in Manhattan
The skyscraper would replace a Hyatt hotel next to Grand Central Station, taking advantage of 2010 zoning changes that allowed adjacent buildings to reuse the air rights of the station.
KFP’s 1 Vanderbilt supertall skyscraper sits on the other side of the station. SOM‘s design, originally released in 2021, has been preliminarily approved by the city, with a reduced height of 1,545 feet with 83 storeys of hotel and office programming.
SOM designed a steel lattice support system for the skyscraper
Because of the extremely complicated building conditions, with very few available points for ground penetration, the structure features an external steel lattice support system that comes together at condensed points at the base.
“The metal columns intertwine into two bundles on 42nd Street; below ground, they navigate a multistory tangle of underground rail tracks and anchor into the limited available bedrock,” said SOM.
Smaller steel cables would run between the large columns, coming together in “bundles” at the base.
“At street level, the bundles are set away from the edge of the property line, a configuration that widens the sidewalk to improve circulation outside Grand Central,” SOM said.
It would be built adjacent to Grand Central Station
The tower steps back with the steel lattices running parallel along the facade and coming to V-shaped supports at each setback, culminating in another lattice form at the bulkhead.
At the setbacks, the outdoor amenity space would be tucked under the slanting steel columns, and the studio has said that the interior would be mostly column-free.
175 Park Avenue would be the third-tallest skyscraper in New York City
Part of a more overarching restoration of the space around Grand Central, the building would come down right next to the storied transit terminal, with a partially covered entry programme connecting directly to the facade of the station.
The base would connect with a “new transit hall” featuring retail.
As of now, the studio has 2032 as the official completion date on the website, but no signs of construction or demolition are apparent at this time.
A series of setbacks would see the steel supports come to V-shaped trusses
The Hyatt Grand Central New York, which replaced the historic Commodore Hotel in the late 1970s, was a joint venture of the Hyatt Hotels Corporation and the Trump Organization. Trump was bought out in the late 1990s.
This structure would need to come down before any construction could start, a demolition which could take months if not years to carry out in the busy heart of Manhattan.
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As of now, the hotel’s website appears to be taking bookings through April 2027. The SOM skyscraper developers are still working to secure funding and tenants for the proposed building.
If completed, the skyscraper would be the third tallest in the city. Central Park Tower at 1,550 feet tall (472 metres tall) is currently the second tallest.
It would provide extra terminal space and retail for the transit centre
The Midtown rezonings of the 2010s have led to an explosion of skyscraper production, with a skyscraper by Russian studio Meganom being built just south of the SOM site on Park Avenue.
Nearby, JPMorganChase recently completed its Foster + Partners-designed supertall skyscraper headquarters, which was built after the demolition of an SOM structure.
The images are courtesy of SOM.Â