The Excelsior, 303 East 57th Street: Review and Ratings
between Second Avenue & First Avenue View Full Building Profile
This 47-story white-brick apartment tower was the city's tallest residential tower when it was built in 1967 and a precursor of many major mixed-use buildings as its lower five floors contain offices. Designed by Philip Birnbaum, who moved his offices into the building, many of the cooperative building's apartments have balconies. Over the years, the building has often had scaffolding around it to repair the brick façade as it and many buildings of its generation used a glazed brick that did not survive well in the city's freeze/cycles that caused water to freeze behind the glazing, expand and pop off the glazed facing. Many of the tower's units have impressive views, especially looking west down 57th Street. The building has a spacious lobby and attractive retail spaces, but its location suffers from noise heavy traffic on and off the nearby Queensborough Bridge.
