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All eyes have been on Long Island City since its partial triumph in Amazon’s urban beauty pageant. [...]
Queens native Kris Graves has kept his eye on Long Island City continuously since moving there ten years ago. Photographing what presents itself outside his door in Hunters Point South and as he walks around the neighborhood, Graves never intended to create a record of a vanishing scene (RIP 5Pointz notwithstanding). Instead, his photos, accumulating over time, represent an additive process.
— Urban Omnibus
Also check out Kris Graves's other fascinating photographic explorations of New York City we've featured on Archinect:Civic beacon or bunker? Photographer Kris Graves documents all of New York City’s 77 police precincts.How the Bronx breaks New York's grid View full entry
Amazon could be a new tenant in the Chrysler Building, already increasing its upcoming presence in New York.
The tech giant, which is bringing half of its second headquarters to Long Island City, is close to signing a lease for about 10,000 square feet in the famed property, according to the New York Post. The building’s owners, Tishman Speyer and Abu Dhabi Investment Council, are putting the landmark tower at Lexington Avenue and East 42nd Street up for sale.
— The Real Deal
The intention of the Chrysler Building owners to sell the iconic property at 42nd Street and Lexington Avenue made headlines last week. Securing a commercially attractive retail tenant, such as Amazon, would certainly improve the aging skyscraper's market value. View full entry
New Public Hydrant uses design to overcome public misperceptions of the city’s hydrant water. The design prototypes bring attention to possibilities for improvement of overlooked, local water infrastructures on the one hand, while simultaneously engaging what it means to drink locally...How might publics reimagine these small-scale urban elements to serve in day-to-day situations, rather than solely in the case of emergency? — Urban Omnibus
Inspired by the NY Department of Environmental Protection’s Water on the Go initiative, Tei Carpenter and Christopher Woebken created the New Public Hydrant project, which explores how New York City's fire hydrants can be augmented to provide public access to the city's drinking water supply... View full entry
Abu Dhabi, the Persian Gulf Emirate that’s the Chrysler Building’s majority owner, is considering a sale of the 77-story tower after about a decade of ownership, people with knowledge of the matter said Wednesday. Abu Dhabi Investment Council, the government’s sovereign wealth fund, paid $800 million for a 90 percent stake in 2008. — Bloomberg
Roughly ten years after changing ownership to an Abu Dhabi sovereign wealth fund, the iconic Chrysler Building is back on the market again. But what is a trophy worth?, asks Bloomberg. Gorgeous automobile-inspired facade details, symbols of a bygone industrial era. Image via Wikipedia.Strictly... View full entry
New York City's cultural history includes a staggering array of musical talent, but only a handful of musicians get their names on street signs.
In its final meeting of the year, the New York City Council voted 48-0 to honor three music icons in their home boroughs: famed hip hop artists Biggie Smalls/Notorious B.I.G. (a.k.a. Christopher Wallace) and the Wu-Tang Clan, as well as folk singer Woody Guthrie.
— Gothamist
Don't program your GPS to take you to Christopher Wallace Way (Brooklyn), the Wu-Tang Clan District (Staten Island), or Woody Guthrie Way (Coney Island/Brooklyn) just yet—Mayor Bill de Blasio still has to sign off on the approved bill. View full entry
With 2019 quickly approaching, perhaps your New Year's resolution is to venture to the city that never sleeps. For this week's weekly job round up, Archinect has selected 9 architecture firms, based in New York, who are still searching for the right candidate to join their all star team. ... View full entry
While 2018 wasn’t quite the banner year for historic preservation like 2017—NYC got three rare, new interior landmarks last year—several beloved structures finally got the recognition (and protection) they deserve. Those include the Riegelmann Boardwalk along the Coney Island waterfront, and 550 Madison Avenue, Philip Johnson’s 37-story Postmdodern icon. — Curbed NY
Curbed New York has put together a handy map of all historically significant buildings that received landmark protection this year, including a number of structures in the outer boroughs as well as the iconic 550 Madison Avenue (formerly the AT&T Building), which just returned to the spotlight... View full entry
A year after Snøhetta’s first attempt at renovating Olayan America and Chelsfield’s office tower at 550 Madison Avenue ended in controversy and eventual landmarking, the architects are hoping their second attempt will be smoother. — The Real Deal
"The new proposal unveiled Tuesday features three stories of retail at the ground level and a new opening in the rear facade to allow sight lines from Madison Avenue into a new open-air garden that will replace the currently enclosed galleria," reports The Real Deal about Snøhetta's reworked... View full entry
The Port Authority's holiday decorations for the Holland Tunnel toll lanes have commuters outraged. For one local motorist, the failed attempt at festivity is so annoying that he even started a Change.org petition to have the display altered. As of Wednesday morning, over 1,200 supporters have... View full entry
One of ARO’s two concepts shows a huge white building emblazoned with the Amazon logo. [...] It’s a never-ending fulfillment center that the architects dub “Continuous Fulfillment.” According to ARO principals Adam Yarinsky and Stephen Cassell, the idea is an homage to a 1969 concept from the Italian radical architecture firm Superstudio called “The Continuous Monument.” The idea posits that technology will render the built environment uniform, turning buildings into white monoliths. — Fast Company
The billion-dollar cat is out of the bag, and Amazon will soon be ascending on Long Island City, New York and Crystal City/Arlington, Virginia to split its anticipated, tax-incentivized HQ2. As both regions prepare for the new neighbor to move in, Fast Company asked AIA New York State firm of the... View full entry
The Metropolitan Museum of Art is moving forward with ambitious plans for a massive renovation and redesign of the New York museum's Michael C. Rockefeller Wing. Devoted to Africa, Oceania and the Americas, the forty-thousand-square-foot wing will be designed by the architect Kulapat... View full entry
Underutilized space is an unfortunate yet reoccurring issue that takes place in densely populated cities, Manhattan being no exception. When Youngwoo & Associates decided to take on a large underutilized space at the intersection of Amsterdam Ave and Washington Bridge, the team at MDRDV took... View full entry
[...] the second supertall to result from the Midtown East rezoning is moving forward, with JPMorgan Chase filing a text amendment with City Planning for a 1,400-foot tower on the site of 270 Park Avenue. Designed by Foster + Partners Architects, the plans also come with the first renderings of the 2.4 million square foot supertall, and massing diagrams that offer a look at what’s in store for New York City’s most central business district. — New York YIMBY
After announcing Foster + Partners as design architect for its new 270 Park Avenue HQ tower a few days ago, JPMorgan Chase has now filed a zoning text amendment with NYC's City Planning department. The document shows two options for a massive supertall tower to replace the current building from... View full entry
NYPL's Riverside branch has initiated a new program called "Grow Up Work Fashion Library", loaning neckties, briefcases and handbags to assist library members in their job search. The items may also be loaned out for formal occasions, with the only requirement being that that the member owe less... View full entry
The esteemed works of the late Zaha Hadid and her practice traverse into all forms of conceptualized design. You name it, Zaha Hadid has probably made some sort of contribution. However, in exploring various forms of design from city plans, to furniture pieces, product design, and even jewelry... View full entry
