Features

Cantilevers, among the showiest feats of architecture, are now abundant in the city. As readily available development sites become scarcer and smaller, as zoning height limits become more pervasive, and as air rights transfers have grown commonplace, the cantilever is a tool used by some developers and designers to expand a building's floorplate to provide more desirable internal layouts. However, as many of ODA Architecture's works have shown, some cantilevers exist to provide visual interest to passersby while bestowing outdoor space opportunities to residents within.

Aesthetically, the city's cantilevers are a mixed bag and are often derided by preservationists and NIMBYs alike. Large, "Hey, look me over" cantilevers can be dramatic, though some of the less graceful ones resemble urban bullies. Nevertheless, flaunting structural ingenuity has long been hallowed by modern architects. Frank Lloyd Wright used cantilevers in several of his most famous houses as early as 1910, though he is best known here for his cantilever-free 1959 Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum. In 1966, Marcel Breuer designed the Brutalist Whitney Museum of American Art on Madison Avenue at 75th Street, with its impressive and rather ominous cantilevers along the avenue. In 1977, Hugh Stubbins designed Citicorp Center to soar partially above St. Peter's Church in one of the city's most dramatic spatial experiments where 59 floors of offices placidly suspend over Lexington Avenue.

Prior to the city's great condo boom of recent decades, the city's most iconic cantilevers were in office buildings. To that end, we take a look at some of the most interesting cantilevering residential constructs of recent times.

100 Norfolk Street's glassy, cantilevered facade came about as a result of strict zoning laws and a narrow lot. No two units are identical, but all feature floor-to-ceiling windows, oak flooring, and custom kitchens with Gaggenau appliances.

Located on the cusp of Greenwich Village and Chelsea, 101 West 14th Street has been described as "Tetris-inspired," and the tastefully reflective facade was designed to maximize both privacy and interior square footage. Nearly half the apartments inside will be duplexes with private terraces, and all units will feature design by Whitehall Interiors and top-of-the-line appliances and finishes.

From the listing: This generous 3,055 square-foot corner 4 bedroom, 4.5 bath Tower Residence designed by Jeffrey Beers is wrapped in floor-to-ceiling windows showcasing river and city views to the north and east. A rich walnut residential entrance door invites one into a generous foyer, where you are greeted by by soaring 10-1/2 foot ceilings and seven-and-a-half-inch wide walnut plank flooring throughout. The Italian-crafted Scavolini kitchen custom-designed by Jeffrey Beers is adjacent to the corner living room and outfitted with dark-stained walnut cabinetry accented by champagne matte glass panels. See floor plan and full details here.