Quick Clicks> Greenways Coast to Coast
Planned pedestrian and bike path under the Hells Gate Bridge (Courtesy NYCEDC)
Hell’s Gate. Gothamist reports that the NYC Economic Development Corporation is planning to spruce up a trail beneath the Hell’s Gate Bridge railroad trestle on Randall’s Island. The pedestrian and bike path will eventually connect to the South Bronx Greenway.
Portlandia Greenway. A multi-use path planned since 2004 is finally getting underway in Portland, according to Bike Portland. The South Waterfront Greenway Trail might not feature those great archways from the Hell’s Gate Bridge, but it does offer another innovation: separated pedestrian and bike paths.
Biking JFK. Golden Gate Park could be much more bikable this spring. StreetsBlog says a bright green dedicated, bi-directional bike lane is planned along San Francisco’s John F. Kennedy Drive and will eventually connect western neighborhoods with downtown and park attractions.
Have you’re say. The Brooklyn Greenway Initiative and the Regional Plan Association are hosting a visioning workshop for a planned greenway in Red Hook, Brooklyn. You can voice your suggestions for the Columbia Street Waterfront Park tomorrow, February 2 at 6:30PM.
Bunshaft Deconstructed?
Manufacturer’s Trust Company, Fifth Avenue, Skidmore, Owings & Merrill, New York, NY, 1954 Gelatin Silver Print © Ezra Stoller, Courtesy Yossi Milo Gallery, New York
The Landmarks Preservation Commission has put the Gordon Bunshaft-designed Manufacturers Hanover Trust Company Building onto its Public Meeting/Public Hearing agenda for tomorrow morning at 9:30AM. Up for discussion will be the building’s first and second floor interiors, including the entrance lobby, escalators, teller counters, and floor and ceiling surfaces.
The iconic vault designed by Henry Dreyfuss, which is visible from Fifth Avenue, and Harry Bertoia’s multifaceted metallic screen both made it on to the agenda. But according to Theodore Grunewald of the Coalition to Save MHT, the Bertoia has already been removed by Chase Bank, the sculpture’s owner.
Quick Clicks> He′s Back, Pay Up, On Fire, Sale!
Rahm Emanuel is on track for election. (Courtesy chicagoforrahm.com)
On Track. The mayor of Chicago holds sway in a big way. That’s why we’re keeping an eye on the ballot, and, as of today, Rahm Emanuel is back in business, reports The Chicago Tribune. Emanuel has stated that one of his first priorities is to expand Chicago Transportation Authority’s Red Line.
Street price. Speaking of getting around town, a new coalition called the Sustainable Transportation Campaign is reviving the idea of congestion pricing for New York City, reports Andrea Bernstein at Transportation Nation.
Change of Hearth. Curling up by a roaring fire sounds idyllic on a snowy day, but do the realities of a fireplace outweigh the romance? We’re still debating the subject following this piece in The New York Times.
Bookmark it. MoMA’s Design Store book sale is in full swing, says Curbed NY. Architecture and design classics and new releases over 50% off! Visit the stores in New York or online.
Condo Cluster at the Cloisters?
Four proposed residential towers near The Cloisters in Northern Manhattan could transform the uptown skyline. (Courtesy Quadriad)
Quadriad Reality is in negotiations to acquire land at Broadway and 190th Street in order to build four towers ranging from 22 to 44 stories. If the proposals go forward they could represent the one of the largest residential developments above 155th Street in more than a generation.
World Trade Weekly: White Out Edition
[ As the World Trade Center continues its ascent, AN stops by the massive construction site for a weekly update, nevermind the weather! ]
This week, through a haze of snow, we got a glimpse of the last bits of the former Deutsche Bank building. Shrouded behind a fence covered in blue nylon, the once 41-story tower is the last remaining physical remnant of 9/11 to be cleared away piece by piece.
With visibility low, the sounds of the site take over. From this vantage, the groaning sound of metal being bent and twisted distinguishes itself from sounds of construction, the swirl of cement inside mixers, the hum of truck engines, and the rhythmic clang of metal banging on metal.
Quick Clicks> Zigzag, Walking, Movies, Retro, Rail
VDOT's zigzag road striping (Mike Salmon/VDOT via Washington Post)
[ Quick Clicks> AN's guided tour of links from across the web. And beyond. ]
Zigzag. In April 2009, the Virginia Department of Transportation installed a painted zigzag stripe where a road and a bike trail intersect. Wash Cycle reports that VDOT has since studied the effects of the experimental installation and determined the lines have improved safety and reduced speeds at the trail crossing. These zigzags common overseas, but could they be coming to a street corner near you?
Seward Park Redevelopment Clears Major Hurdle
Residents took to the floor before the CB3 Land Use Committee approved the SPURA guidelines.
Last night, the Seward Park Urban Renewal Area (SPURA) took a giant step forward after 44 years of contentious debate. Community Board 3′s Land Use, Zoning, Public and Private Housing Committee approved guidelines for development of the city-owned land at the foot of the Williamsburg Bridge.
Pictorial> Marc Jacobs Builds a Lantern in Tokyo
Marc Jacobs flagship Tokyo store by Stephan Jaklitsch Architects (Liao Yusheng)
New York firm Stephan Jaklitsch Architects (SJA) has completed the latest jewel box on Tokyo‘s premiere shopping street, the Omotesando-dori in the Aoyama shopping district. The richly textured Marc Jacobs flagship store is comprised of three masses each of glass, stone, and perforated metal, the latter two appearing to float above the sidewalk.
World Trade Weekly: White Dots Edition
At first glance, it seems that the riot of square white panels suddenly appeared on the base of One World Trade, but photos from the past few weeks show that they were going up all along. Closeup shots taken today reveal metal bolts protruding out from the panels. The curtain wall fasteners for the metallic scrim?
New Boldface Names from the League
LentSpace in New York by Interboro Partners (photo: Michael Falco/The New York Times)
The Architectural League of New York’s Emerging Voices program is one of the country’s most prestigious venues for showcasing significant design talent. This years list is no exception, with a mix of young and more established firms, working in a variety of scales and formal and social approaches. The lecture series will begin on Wednesday, March 9 with Brooklyn’s Interboro Partners and Lateral Office of Toronto. Read More
Robert Moses Goes to the Opera
Robert Moses in 1938 (Courtesy CUNY)
This Saturday, January 15, the Knickerbocker Chamber Orchestra will lift their bows and the ghost of Robert Moses will flood the World Financial Center Winter Garden. Gary S. Fagin composed Robert Moses Astride New York from which the music will be drawn. A vocal performance by Rinde Eckert will accompany the score, but best of all, it’s free.
The New Whitney Museum Takes Flight
Whitney Museum rendering (Courtesy Renzo Piano Building Workshop in collaboration with Cooper, Robertson & Partners)
The Whitney Museum, set on an outpost far from Manhattan’s posh Upper East Side and in the midst of the hip yet historic Meatpacking District, is forging ahead with its grand plans to make a bold architectural statement with a new building by Renzo Piano, which will sit adjacent to Gansevoort Market Historic District and the post-industrial High Line park.
First they must get their approvals, including the non-governmental, but not unimportant, local community board, which is “charged with representing community interest on crucial issues of development and planning, land use, zoning and City service delivery.”
Yesterday officials from the Whitney presented the large, probably not shiny new museum design to the Arts & Institutions Committee of Community Board 2 with a zippy video that flies viewers through the iceberg-like structure. The big change from earlier manifestations seems to be the addition Breuer-like fenestration facing the High Line.
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