The most expensive city in the USA to live in, New York is the largest and most heavily populated city, best known for its Statue of Liberty, Wall Street, Beautiful Beaches, Time Square, Central Park, Tall Towers, and Skyscrapers.
Tourists from all over the world love to visit NYC. One such main attraction is One World Trade Center, the tallest building in NYC. It is reconstructed on the place of the Twin Towers that collapsed due to a terrorist attack.
The Tower symbolizes Unity in Diversity. It is made in the reminiscence of the innocent victims who got killed in the fatal incident of 9/11. With advanced technology and modern architecture, the tower holds the prestige of New York City, making it the tallest building in NYC and the western hemisphere.
History of Tall Skyscrapers
Around the middle of the 19th century, skyscrapers first appeared in Chicago and New York City and were initially used as offices. Architecture changed to focus on high-density structures to concentrate businesses and workers in one place as urbanization increased.
In order to provide natural sunshine and ventilation for the streets, New York City instituted zoning restrictions, which prompted the development of Art Deco architecture in the 1920s.
The Great Depression and World War II saw a halt in skyscraper building, but after the war, it was restarted, giving rise to the International Style. At one point in time, the Empire State and Chrysler Buildings were among the highest structures in both NYC and the entire world.
Many of the tallest buildings in NYC are residential skyscrapers, office and business spaces, and commercial and bank towers.
Let’s throw some light on the top ten tallest buildings in NYC!
10 Highest Buildings in NYC with Utmost Height
1. One World Trade Center, HEIGHT– 1,776 ft.
The elegant One world trade center is the tallest building in New York City. Formerly it is known as the “Freedom tower”, as the height of the building, which is 1776 ft., is symbolic of the same year in which the U.S. Declaration of Independence was signed, that was 4th July 1776, making 13 states free from the rule of United Kingdom of Britain.
The roof height is 417 meters (1,368 feet) tall, the same height as that of the original Twin Towers, but the antenna spire adds 124 meters (408 feet) to it, making the overall height of the tower 541 meters (1,776 feet), the tallest of all the existing tallest building in NYC, USA. It is the same as the North tower, the real twin tower that was destroyed during the attack.
2. Central Park Tower, HEIGHT – 1,550 ft.
Central Park Tower is considered the tallest residential building in the world, completed in 2020. It is located in Midtown Manhattan, from street 57th to 58th in the west, near central park.
The tower has 131 storeys that accommodate 179 luxurious apartments, including amenities like studio suites, a swimming pool, a children’s play area, entire floor space, a duplex, and triplex homes with a range of bedrooms starting from two to eight. Designed by the architects Adrian Smith and Gordon Gill, Central park’s tower height is 1550 ft. leaving behind the former tallest residential building, 432 Park Avenue, which is 1398 ft.
3. 111 West 57th Street, HEIGHT–1,428 ft.
The skyscraper in Billionaires row is lined up with Central park’s centerline. Popularly known as Steinway tower, 111 West 57th Street, is the thinnest residential skyscraper, with a width-to-height ratio of 1: 24 in Midtown, New York. Designed by SHoP Architects, the building has 82 floors. The first five floors are used for retail space and recreation areas, and the remaining 77 are premium residential apartments that offer a 360-degree view from every single home unit.
4. One Vanderbilt, HEIGHT–1,401 ft.
One Vanderbilt in New York City’s tallest office building in Midtown East. Vanderbilt’s height is 1401 ft., and its width equals the entire city block. It has 93 floors, making it the fourth tallest building in NY.
The location of the building is so perfect that it gives a beautiful view of the city’s other attractions, including Central Park, the Empire state building, the Chrysler Building, and lower Manhattan. One Vanderbilt provides you with giant glass elevators globally, with a maximum capacity of 4.5 tons.
5. 432 Park Avenue, HEIGHT– 1,396 ft.
432 Park Avenue is a residential skyscraper designed by Rafael Vinoly, situated in Midtown Manhattan at 57th street Park Avenue, New York City. It is the tallest apartment in the western hemisphere, with 85 floors. The tower has also acquired much slamming from New Yorkers for casting gloom, eventually overshadowing central park.
6. 30 Hudson Yards, HEIGHT–1,268 ft.
The third tallest office building in NYC. 30 Hudson Yards is a part of the United States’ most excellent private real estate development in history. It has the headquarters of famous global media and entertainment companies.
The tower has 137 apartment houses, an Equinox hotel, an Equinox gym, medical offices, and retail space for all-purpose uses. Located on the west side, 30 Hudson yards has the highest outdoor observation deck in the western hemisphere.
7. Empire State Building, HEIGHT– 1,250 ft.
Located in Midtown Manhattan, NYC, 102 storeys, completed in 1931, the Empire State building’s height is 1250 ft. and was considered the tallest skyscraper in the world till 1971. It is the finest example of Modernist Art Deco design. Even after facing the Great Depression, constructing the building took no less than 410 days. The Empire State building is notably the most liked and photographed building in NYC.
8. Bank of America Tower, HEIGHT– 1,200 ft.
The Bank of America tower, also called One Bryant park, is regarded as the first skyscraper of its type to accomplish the Platinum LEED certification in New York City. It is a universally acclaimed model promoting green architecture in buildings. Green roofs and an Urban Garden Room are made primarily by using recyclable things and natural lobby materials, incorporating the nearby park into the construction, merging all together, focusing on the nature that still can be found in city life.
9. 3 World Trade Center, HEIGHT– 1,079 ft.
The skyscraper is on the east side of the World trade center, lower Manhattan, NYC. It was constructed along with the reconstruction of the World trade center. The building has 80 floors designed by Rogers Stirk Harbour and Partners. The tower’s all corners are column-free, and an external bracing system ensures that the office floors’ holders have a comprehensive 360-degree beautiful view of New York.
10. The Brooklyn Tower, HEIGHT– 1,066 ft.
Formerly known as 9 Dekalb, the Brooklyn tower is 93 storeys mixed-use but mainly residential skyscraper located in Downtown Brooklyn and is currently under construction. It is a project of JDS Development. The tower is started constructed in 2018 and is expected to be completed by 2022. Manhattan now is not new to tall skyscrapers, as Brooklyn tower has reached its full extreme height. It is constructed on top of The Dime Saving bank, dated late back to the 1990s.
Significance of the One World Trade Center:
Although we looked at the top 10 tallest buildings in New York City, it is important that we discuss the One World Trade Center is not only the tallest building in NYC, in the United States but also in the entire western hemisphere and the seventh-tallest building in the world. It is bounded by West Street in the west, Fulton Street, and Vesey Street in the Financial District of New York City.
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History and Construction
The Twin Towers place has been reconstructed into a memorial devoted to the lives of innocent people who died in the tragic incident of 9/11. Adjacent to the tower’s south, you will also find a museum conserving the past remembrances of the event!
It took approximately a year or more to clean up Lower Manhattan’s debris and destruction caused by the attack, a year or two for its planning and designing, and approximately 13 years for its construction.
On 4 July 2004, the symbolic cornerstone of One World Trade Center was laid by Mayor Michael Bloomberg, engraved with “the enduring spirit of freedom” in a ceremony. The famous David Childs, a consulting design partner at Skidmore, Owings & Merrill, NY, designed the building.
2. Design and Structure
It has 104 storeys divided into Basement- 5, Base- 19 floors, 68 offices, 4 public spaces, and 13 Mechanical floors, with 71 elevators that take less than a minute to reach the top of the tower. It has a total of 325279 sq. meters of floor space. It has 2.6 million sq. ft. office space and a lobby with a height of 55 ft.
It has a minimum of 3 million rentable sq. ft. of space. The spire on the top of the skyscraper is 408 ft. long. The eccentric shape of the tower consists of 8 glass triangles that make two squares, one at the top of the building and the other at the base. It costs $3.9 billion for its construction and expects to have more than 3 million visitors annually.
One World Trade Center starts with a 200 ft. square footprint, identical to the original twin towers’ measurements. The top of the tower ends with a square-shaped parapet. The One World Trade center used 14000 psi concrete for the first time, making it the first project in NYC. The tower’s strength lies in its solid concrete foundation and structural steel moment frame that holds the building.
From the 20th floor, high-performance curtain walls start and rise higher to the observation deck. Stairwells, elevators, gas and water pipes, communication systems, and an emergency lift for firefighters are all housed in the core. Water, generators, and ventilators are also housed in the central core as emergency supplies.
3. Sustainability
Much of the building’s structure and interior is made of recycled materials, such as gypsum boards and ceiling tiles; around 80% of the tower’s waste products are recycled. Windows of the skyscraper are composed of ultra-clear glass, which enables maximum sunlight to pass through, and lights have dimmers that diminish electricity consumption on sunny days. Therefore, the tower has attained Gold LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) certification for its sustainability.
4. Artworks
Untapped New York also discovered an interesting fact during the visit in 2013. They found an abundance of fun graffiti and drawing scribbled over the walls and wooden floorboards of the tower by construction workers. There were signatures, quotes, philosophical thoughts, and so on. It will always remain hidden underneath the beautiful walls of the skyscraper.
Intriguingly, the wall paintings and murals of the skyscraper are inspired and influenced by graffiti. Jose Parla, an American artist, installed and displayed in the lobby of the tower a mural named ‘ONE: Union of Senses‘ in 2015.
It is notably one of the most significant paintings in the city. It is selected for its diversity of colors, referring to the diversity of New York City’s people, bound with a sense of unity. It took him nearly eight months to finish his project, as he considers it the laborious piece of art of his lifetime. Along with it, the lobby also features two more paintings by Donald Martiny, named Lenape and Unami.
Many of the previous artworks were demolished in the deadly incident of 9/11, bringing losses of more than $100 million to the skyscraper. Some famous paintings include Bent Propeller by Alexander Calder, Sky Gate, New York by Louise Nevelson, The World Trade Center Tapestry by Joan Miró and Josep Royo, and several other sculptures.
5. Safety and Security
Last but not least, the skyscraper is not only the tallest but the safest building in New York after considering the 9/11 attack. The tower adopted new security techniques and measures to ensure the safety of the people inside the building.
It has approximately 400 CCTV cameras, kept under the surveillance of NYPD. Any vehicle entering the tower is also thoroughly screened. It was not initially open for the general public and visitors, and everyone just had to go to undergo checking and screening. In addition, suspicious bags and other threats are adequately monitored.
Putting All Together
The city’s tallest building symbolizes peace, unity in diversity, freedom, and optimism. Undoubtedly, along with the other tallest building in NYC, One World Trade Center stands above all. Through the people’s high spirits, determination, and continuous efforts, New York City paved its way to shine again after the deadliest incident of 9/11.
It is the most exquisite and secure skyscraper in the city. It not only adds worth to the city but also holds an emotional value in tangible form; therefore, one should capture its beauty.
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Last Updated on March 7, 2023 by Steffy Michael
