The Landmarks Preservation Commission held a hearing this afternoon on plans by Lewis J. Brandolini III to erect a 20-story residential condominium building at 224 Fifth Avenue between 26th and 27th Streets.
The building would contain only 11 apartments and the proposal requires no special permits or zoning variances.
Mr. Brandolini is a principal of the Brandolini Companies, which was founded in 1936 and is a diversified real estate development organization located on the Main Line of suburban Philadelphia in Berwyn, Pennsylvania,
The mid-block site falls within the Madison Square North Historic District and is half a block north of Madison Square Park and directly across Fifth Avenue from the Grand Madison condominium project.
The rigorous and bold design by Fred Bland of the architectural firm of Beyer Blinder Belle would have full floor units on the second through the fifth floors of the building's base and duplex 7 duplex apartments in the tower above, which would be set back 10 feet.
The tower's design would be glass-clad with alternating, angled windows facing the avenue.
The building would replace a mid-19th Century townhouse that was altered for commercial use in 1893 by Berg & Clark and then altered again in 1981-3.
The proposal was described by most commissioners as "elegant," but no action was taken by the commission and the developer was asked to check if the facade of the existing building on the site hid any salvageable elements from the 19th Century structure. Chairman Robert Tierney indicated that is nothing remarkable was discovered, he was not opposed to demolition of the existing building, which the commission has already described as being a "non-contributing" building of "no style."
Mr. Tierney reported that Community Board 5 had voted against the design by a vote of 28 to 6 and he suggested that the developer work with the commission's staff on the design with attention to the design of the base and the top of the proposed tower.
Several commissioners praised the design of the middle section of the tower as well as indicating that they were not opposed to a tall, thin building on the site, which they described as "book-ended" by taller, masonry-clad buildings at either end of the block.
Rick Bell of the New York Chapter of the American Institute of Architects spoke in favor of the application, stating that it filled "a significant gap on the avenue.
Simeon Bankoff, executive director of the Historic Districts Council, however, told the commission that "this is a handsome, well-thought-out project, but one that we feel does not, in this incarnation, fit into" the historic district, adding that his organization "is extremely dubious in regards to a glassy sliver building in a historic district."
"While zoning allows sliver buildings in this area, will a tall, very narrow glass building be considered appropriate fill-in for historic districts?" Mr. Bankoff said the base needed more articulation, adding that "The alternating chamfered corners in the glassy tower give it a wobbly form."
Commissioner Stephen Byrns observed that the tower's setback makes for a more "recessive setting" that he liked, adding that its height was "acceptable" and that it would become "a crystalline center to the masonry perimeter." He described the mid-section of the tower as "wonderful and very interesting," but said he had "trouble with the top," which he described as "syncopated."
Commissioner Roberta Brandes Gratz declared that the building was "much more elegant" than many other recent proposals that she suggested could use "a good dose of slimming," adding that some recent projects like Sir Norman Foster's design of an addition to the Hearst Building on Eighth Avenue at 57th Street.
Commissioner Jan Hird Pokorny said that it was "a beautiful building but too nervous."
The building would contain only 11 apartments and the proposal requires no special permits or zoning variances.
Mr. Brandolini is a principal of the Brandolini Companies, which was founded in 1936 and is a diversified real estate development organization located on the Main Line of suburban Philadelphia in Berwyn, Pennsylvania,
The mid-block site falls within the Madison Square North Historic District and is half a block north of Madison Square Park and directly across Fifth Avenue from the Grand Madison condominium project.
The rigorous and bold design by Fred Bland of the architectural firm of Beyer Blinder Belle would have full floor units on the second through the fifth floors of the building's base and duplex 7 duplex apartments in the tower above, which would be set back 10 feet.
The tower's design would be glass-clad with alternating, angled windows facing the avenue.
The building would replace a mid-19th Century townhouse that was altered for commercial use in 1893 by Berg & Clark and then altered again in 1981-3.
The proposal was described by most commissioners as "elegant," but no action was taken by the commission and the developer was asked to check if the facade of the existing building on the site hid any salvageable elements from the 19th Century structure. Chairman Robert Tierney indicated that is nothing remarkable was discovered, he was not opposed to demolition of the existing building, which the commission has already described as being a "non-contributing" building of "no style."
Mr. Tierney reported that Community Board 5 had voted against the design by a vote of 28 to 6 and he suggested that the developer work with the commission's staff on the design with attention to the design of the base and the top of the proposed tower.
Several commissioners praised the design of the middle section of the tower as well as indicating that they were not opposed to a tall, thin building on the site, which they described as "book-ended" by taller, masonry-clad buildings at either end of the block.
Rick Bell of the New York Chapter of the American Institute of Architects spoke in favor of the application, stating that it filled "a significant gap on the avenue.
Simeon Bankoff, executive director of the Historic Districts Council, however, told the commission that "this is a handsome, well-thought-out project, but one that we feel does not, in this incarnation, fit into" the historic district, adding that his organization "is extremely dubious in regards to a glassy sliver building in a historic district."
"While zoning allows sliver buildings in this area, will a tall, very narrow glass building be considered appropriate fill-in for historic districts?" Mr. Bankoff said the base needed more articulation, adding that "The alternating chamfered corners in the glassy tower give it a wobbly form."
Commissioner Stephen Byrns observed that the tower's setback makes for a more "recessive setting" that he liked, adding that its height was "acceptable" and that it would become "a crystalline center to the masonry perimeter." He described the mid-section of the tower as "wonderful and very interesting," but said he had "trouble with the top," which he described as "syncopated."
Commissioner Roberta Brandes Gratz declared that the building was "much more elegant" than many other recent proposals that she suggested could use "a good dose of slimming," adding that some recent projects like Sir Norman Foster's design of an addition to the Hearst Building on Eighth Avenue at 57th Street.
Commissioner Jan Hird Pokorny said that it was "a beautiful building but too nervous."
Architecture Critic
Carter Horsley
Since 1997, Carter B. Horsley has been the editorial director of CityRealty. He began his journalistic career at The New York Times in 1961 where he spent 26 years as a reporter specializing in real estate & architectural news. In 1987, he became the architecture critic and real estate editor of The New York Post.
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