Architecture – Page 2

Impressions of Via 57 West

Posted on July 17, 2016July 17, 2016 by georgefattell

One of the buildings that I was most interested in seeing in person during my recent trips to NYC was Via 57 West, the first building in NYC designed by celebrated Danish architect Bjarke Ingels and his firm BIG (Bjarke Ingels Group). As the name of the building implies, it located on West 57th street. To be specific, 57 West is located at 625 West 57th Street, which is all the way over on the far West Side, right on the West Side Highway.

The building’s shape is very distinctive and it really stands out from a distance because of it’s size and shape. The building is pyramid shaped and rises 35 stories. You can very clearly see the building from the New Jersey side of the Hudson River. I think the building’s unique design is indeed very impressive, especially at a time when many much more conventional boxy glass lined high rises are popping up all over Manhattan.I hope the this building inspires other daring innovative designs both in and out of New York City.

I think one thing that is less than ideal about West 57 is it’s location. One of the most attractive features of the building is that many units have terraces that are designed to take advantage of spectacular views of Manhattan and the Hudson. I honestly think a better location for this building would have been Jersey City or Brooklyn or Queens, so it faced the Manhattan skyline, instead of being part of it. Some of the 750 units do face south, so the residents do look out upon Midtown West and lower Manhattan. They also face the Jersey’s Gold Coast, which isn’t a bad view, but it cannot compare to the view that Manhattan would provide from the other side of the Hudson river. If it had been built on East River, in Queens or Brooklyn, it also would have had superior views. However, this is also a very high end luxury building and the rents are quite high, with studio’s starting at $3500.00 per moth and some two/three bedroom units going north of 10k per month. The building could probably not command those kind rents in Jersey City or Queens, so in that respect I can understand why the developers would want West 57 right where it is. You have to have a Manhattan address to take advantage of the truly high end of the Manhattan Real Estate market.

V57W fr view V57W ENTRANCE Via57West V57W Rear V

Hoboken Terminal Photos

Posted on July 15, 2016July 15, 2016 by georgefattell

During one of my recent trips to NYC I took quick trip over to Hoboken so I could snap a few shots of Manhattan’s West Side from the Jersey side of the Hudson. I took the Path train over to NJ and took a stroll through the historic Hoboken Terminal, one of my all-time favorite train stations. It was a Saturday when I visited so the station was largely vacant because the vast majority of the NJ Transit trains it serves only run Monday to Friday.

The Beaux-Arts style Rail and Ferry Terminal buildings were built in 1907. The building was designed by architect Kenneth M Murchison. A lot of work has been put in over the course of the last decade or so to restore this building. I remember what the terminal was like back in the 80’s and 90’s and was no where near as nice as it is now.

Here are a few the pictures I took at the Terminal that day. All photos were taken with my iPhone SE.

Van Vleck House and Gardens

Posted on July 6, 2016July 6, 2016 by georgefattell

I visited the Van Vleck House and Gardens in Montclair, New Jersey about 6 weeks ago. The 5.8 acre estate is open 365 days a year and entrance is free. It is a very tranquil and beautiful place. I have visited Gardens many times and always enjoy walking through the exquisite gardens.

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The Stunning Oculus at the World Trade Center

Posted on July 3, 2016July 3, 2016 by georgefattell

I made a few trips in New York City after a fairly long absence. It always enjoy seeing the progress that has been on various major construction projects that are under way all over the city. There are several fascinating developments in projects in Manhattan, including several Super-Tall skyscrapers and elaborate complexes, such as the Hudson Yards project. However, no project is more important to NYC than the new World Trade Center. The rebuilding of the WTC has been a very long and painstaking process since the attack on 9/11/01, but it has been truly gratifying to see the new WTC slowly come together piece by piece in the last few years. A major milestone was reached with the opening of the WTC Transportation Hub on March 3rd of this year. I have been very eager to see the new building in person since it opened, but I wanted to wait until the weather was a little nicer before making the trip to lower Manhattan. The centerpiece of the Hub, is a soaring, white building, called the Oculus, that in many ways seems like a modern cathedral.

The Oculus is positioned to the east of the North Pool of the WTC, which occupies the spot where the North Tower of the WTC once stood. Behind the Pool you can see the Oculus. The neofuturistic Oculus was designed by the famed Spanish architect Santiago Calatrava. The building opened to mixed reviews from architectural critics, but I love it after seeing it in person. It is a truly inspiring building that I think will stand the test of time well.

Two Weeks with the iPhone SE

Posted on May 1, 2016 by georgefattell

I have been in the market for a new phone for quite a while, but after much deliberation I finally pulled the trigger and purchased a new Apple iPhone SE two weeks ago. So far, I am very pleased it. I bought the 64GB $499.00 model and think it is a terrific value. I will write a more detailed review in a few weeks, but I think it the “little” SE delivers great performance. One of the best things about the phone is it’s 12 MP camera, the exact same camera that is the top of the line iPhone 6S has. The SE also uses the same high performance A9chip as the 6S.

I have already taken quite a few pictures with the SE. Here are a few of my favorites of the last weeks..

Painters on the Lehigh River, Easton, PA

Zion’s Reformed United Church of Christ, Allentown, PA

Flower Power: Visiting Gardens in Montclair, NJ

Posted on September 8, 2015 by georgefattell

Back in May I had an opportunity to make a day trip to Montclair, NJ to visit two sites which feature beautiful collections of flowers and other plants. I was originally going to post a few pictures from my trip back in May and I started composing this blog post back then, but I never made final choices among all the pictures I took and I just let the post sit in Draft status for the past few months. Anyway, just decided to select a few pictures a liked and finish this post up. I really did enjoy this trip. I lived in Montclair at different points in the 1980’s and 1990’s, but it had been long time since I visited the Gardens at Mountainside Park.

First stop was at the Presby Memorial Iris Gardens at Mountainside Park. The Irises are in bloom from May 15th to June 5th, so late May is an ideal time to visit. I would highly recommend a visit to Mountainside Park at that time of the year if you want view the Irises

If you would like to learn more information about the Presby Gardens please click the link below:

http://presbyirisgardens.org/wordpress/

I took quite a few pictures at Mountainside. Here a few of my favorites…..

Next stop was the Van Vleck House and Gardens, which is located about two miles down the road from Mountainside Park. Just travel south on Upper Mountain Avenue, until you hit Van Vleck Street. Then you just make a left and the entrance to the Van Vleck estate’s parking lot on the right

http://vanvleck.org.

Visit to The World Trade Center

Posted on November 14, 2014December 10, 2014 by georgefattell

Another place I visited in NYC during my most recent trip to the city a couple of weeks ago was the World Trade Center. I must admit that find the new WTC complex a fascinating project. I remember the Twin Towers and the entire old WTC complex very well. As a kid growing up in northern NJ, about 15 miles away from Lower Manhattan, the old WTC defined the New York skyline for me as much as the Empire State Building. Later on in life I would pass by or through the WTC complex on a daily basis because I worked at several different places in lower Manhattan during the 90’s I passed through the old WTC complex hundreds of times because it was a major transit hub. Of course, I was saddened to see what happened to the WTC on 9/11, but I was confident that a new WTC would be built one day, one that would be even bigger and better than the original. It has been a long time in coming, but the new World Trade Center complex finally reached a major milestone with 1 WTC opening up for business a few weeks ago. The entire WTC complex remains a work progress, but things are really advancing now as major pieces are at or near completion. The opening of the nearby Fulton Street subway station a few weeks, after 10 years of construction, was another major milestone.

Here are a few pictures of the WTC from my most recent visit:

This is the view I had of 1 WTC as I emerged from the Fulton Street subway station.

The view of 1WTC from the Fulton Street subway station — The view of 1 WTC from the Fulton Street subway station

1 WTC view from the Hudson River Greenway

Manhattan’s new “Supertall” Skyscrapers

Posted on May 19, 2014May 21, 2014 by georgefattell

“The New York skyline is a medieval atrocity. … Good architecture shouldn’t have to depend on distance or the dark for its effects.”

Frank Lloyd Wright

I ran across the Frank Lloyd Wright quote above over the weekend and I could not help but wonder what he would think of the new crop of new “Supertall”, ultra high end luxury residential buildings that are scheduled to be completed in midtown Manhattan over the course of the next few years? I think it is safe to say he would not be lavishing praise on most of them.

The first of these buildings, One57, located on West 57th street, just recently opened, but there are at least half a dozen more of these towers on the way along 57th street as well as other parts of midtown north. Several of the these buildings will be significantly taller than the 90 story One57, believe it or not. I saw the completed One57 for the first time during my visit to NYC last February. I must admit I was a bit stunned by the shear height of the tower as I emerged from the subway stop at Columbus Circle. I have mixed feelings about the design of the building. I don’t mind the height, but I wish it was located 3 to 5 blocks south of where it is now located so it didn’t loom over the significantly shorter buildings that occupy Central Park South and 58th street.

In the May 2014 edition of Vanity Fair there is a very interesting article about these next gen skyscrapers appropriately titled Too Rich, Too Tall, Too Thin?

http://www.vanityfair.com/culture/2014/05/condo-towers-architecture-new-york-city

Visit to New York City

Posted on February 13, 2014February 18, 2014 by georgefattell

I made a trip to New York City and the Lehigh Valley in PA last week to visit family and friends. I had a great time in both places and took quite a few pictures. The picture above is one my favorites. I love this view of Lower Manhattan from the Brooklyn Bridge. The striking Freedom Tower, aka World Trade Center 1, has redefined the skyline. Great to see that building nearly complete after all these years. I have seen the building on prior visits to NYC, but this was the first time I have seen it since the top floors were completed. If you blow up the picture below you will notice that there is one small section of the top of the building that is still exposed. Glass panes are still being installed on the top eastern corner of WTC 1, but other than that the exterior of the building seems to be finished.

I know that the design of the WTC 1 has not received universal praise, but I like it. I think WTC 1 projects power and strength and that the new World Trade Center complex gives lower Manhattan a true 21st Century look.

I took the PATH train over to Hoboken to take some pictures of WTC 1 from the west side of the Hudson. I will post more pictures soon.

Views of San Diego’s New Central Library

Posted on October 20, 2013October 27, 2013 by georgefattell

San Diego’s magnificent new Central Library opened a few weeks ago and I’ve spent quite a few hours at the new building since it opened. I’ve been closely following the progress of this building since construction started back in August of 2010 and I was genuinely excited to finally see it open. Now that I have throughly explored the building from top to bottom I can honestly say that it has exceeded my high expectations. I think the design of the building is striking, but it is also highly functional. Every floor has plenty of work space and seating, as well as numerous power outlets for laptops, tablets, phones, etc. It is a library built for the 21st century.

Library facts:
9 floors
497,652 square feet
350 seat Auditorum
The 6th and 7th floors are occupied by the e3 Civic High Charter school
2,000 square foot main reading room at the top of the building
250 space underground parking garage
The Library cost $185,000,000.00 (35% Private donations)
Architects: Rob Wellington Quigley, FAIA and Tucker Sadler & Associates

The Main Lobby of the San Diego Central Library

Why did San Diego build a new library? Well, here is picture of the former Central Library, which was built in 1954, back when San Diego had a population of less than 400,000.

San Diego's Central Library 1954-2013 — San Diego’s Central Library 1954-2013

The old library was a perfectly fine building, but it was simply too small to serve as a library for the major city that San Diego has become and it was hopelessly out of date technologically. I visited the old library many times and it seemed like a building that had hardly changed from the 1950’s era. It did have a few computers and free wifi, but still seemed to be very antiquated. The furniture, for the most part, looked like original equipment, straight from 1954. It even had a 1950’s/1960’s era phone booth off the main lobby.

I think the new library is a building that the people of San Diego can be very proud of. It is arguably the most important new building to be built in downtown San Diego since neighboring Petco Park was completed in 2004 because it is an iconic structure that has immediately become one of the most distinctive buildings in the entire city and it will play an invaluable role as a major academic and cultural asset for the city. Both of the structures have helped transform the East Village section of downtown San Diego, from an ugly unattractive part of the city which was dominated by warehouses, parking lots and run down buildings to a very modern and attractive residential area. The East Village is still a work in progress, large parts of that section of town still need to be improved, but the Library was a major step forward for the neighborhood. It has added character to the East Village in a way no other building could.

If you would like to see more pictures of the Central Library, both inside and out, please click the link below. That will take you to a slideshow that I recently put together which is comprised of pictures I took during my visits to the library over the course of the past few weeks.

http://george718.zenfolio.com/p994372937/slideshow