Hines Interests has filed a new set of plans for its controversial mixed-use tower just to the west of the Museum of Modern Art whose planned 1,250-foot height was reduced by the Department of City Planning two years ago to 1,050 feet allegedly so that it would not infringe on the visual turf of the Empire State Building, according to an article today at observer.com by Matt Chaban.

The "decapitation" of the tower, which is known as Tower Verre," by 200 feet prompted Justin Davidson of New York magazine to observe that "Approving the design of Tower Verre while lowering the height was not a compromise but an example of curatorial caution run amok, an attempt to turn midtown into an architectural preserve."

The observer.com article indicated that new renderings of the tower, which has been designed by Jean Nouvel, the architect of 40 Mercer Street and 100 Eleventh Avenue, were not yet available.

"Two weeks ago, Hines quietly filed a new set of plans with the Department of City Planning. They are compliant with two special permits that the commission and the City Council approved in the fall of 2009, which enforce the 1,050-foot height along with restrictions on things like a loading dock for the new building and the museum's sculpture garden fence - something that has been bothering the neighbors ever since the 2003 renovations. According to a department spokesperson, the application is a chair certification, which does not require public approvals. The process is meant to ensure that the project is in accordance with what was previously agreed upon; a review has no set timeframe.

"How much the new design resembles the old one, just shorter, is not immediately clear. Initially, Hines said it had filed no new plans, but when The Observer pointed to a notice on the City Planning website, spokesman George Lancaster admitted that the project was back on and imminent. 'We DID file revised plans with City Planning for the shorter tower adjacent to MoMA,' he wrote in an email. 'We aren't going to release drawings or details just yet but will in the near future.' He would not say whether the project had financing yet," the article said.

"MoMA was equally taciturn. 'The filing is Hines' so I don't have any details on it here. Our plans with regard to the project remain unchanged,' emailed Margaret Doyle, the museum's communications director. When asked about something Hines would not discuss, the recently acquired Folk Art Museum and how it might factor into the project, she replied, 'MoMA has not yet announced any plans for the Folk Art Museum building,'" the article continued.

The Landmarks Preservation Commission unanimously approved in May, 2008, the transfer of development rights from two landmarks on Fifth Avenue, the University Club and St. Thomas Church, to a site near Sixth Avenue formerly owned by MoMA, more than 500 feet to the west, where the new tower is scheduled to rise.

The commission effectively decided that the development rights transfer would not have a negative impact on the landmarked buildings and that the proposal instead would aid the restoration of the University Club and St. Thomas Church.