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About 100 Gateway Plaza, 345 South End Avenue
This complex, which consists of three 34-story towers and three smaller buildings with a total of 1,712 apartments, was the first component to be built at Battery Park City. The buildings were completed in 1983.
The project was designed by Jack Brown and Irving E. Gershon for The Lefrak Organization, which had been famous for its huge Lefrak City apartment complex in Queens and which would later be a major developer in Jersey City directly across the Hudson River from Battery Park City.
The development was not universally admired: in their book, "The A.I.A. Guide to New York City, Third Edition," (Harcourt Brace Jovanovich, 1988), Elliot Willensky and Norval White rather harshly described the buildings as "the scullery maids of Battery Park City residences." They did add, however, that "the central green space (except for the enclosed pool), however, is quite pleasant." Abel, Bainnson & Associates were the landscape architects.
While the complex's architecture is spartan, almost Brutalist, it is not as pedestrian as many "white-brick monstrosities" and it has spectacular views. Early residents, of course, suffered a very real lack of amenities at Battery Park City apart from views, but that situation changed dramatically with the completion of the awesome World Financial Center and its glorious Wintergarden, all designed by Cesar Pelli for Olympia & York, and the adjacent North Cove Marina. It could well be argued that this complex has the finest residential location in the city because of the superb esplanade along the Hudson River and the impressive marina. This is the only residential project at Battery Park City that fronts on the marina.
While the decision of the Lefrak Organization to go ahead with such a large project was a tremendous boon to Battery Park City, which struggled in its early years, its bland design dramatically highlighted the city's failure to foster great modern design since the 1960's. On the other hand, disappointment with the design of Gateway Plaza was certainly an impetus to the adoption of design guidelines for the remaining development at Battery Park City, especially since another major large residential complex, Independence Plaza North, designed by Oppenheimer, Brady & Vogelstein and John Pruyn and completed in TriBeCa along the river north of Battery Park City in 1975 was very stunning. The architectural firm of Cooper Eckstut, led by Alexander Cooper and Stanton Eckstut, drew up those guidelines, which sought to extend the city's existing street pattern and to promote designs based in large part on the popular styles found along Riverside Drive. At the end of the 20th Century, Battery Park City is still a long way from completion but the south and middle portions are nearly completed and urbanistically are delightful, even if they are not as thrilling as the original plans.
These buildings have doormen and concierges, bicycle rooms, storage space, valet service and video security and there is a health club and pool.
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