Design Reserach Project
Page 5
Public Contribution in High-Rise Building Design
@ New York City
Citicorp Building
Citicorp Analysis
This 1977 Master Piece was an innovative in almost all aspects of high-rise building design and urban design. It was the most important new building project in New York in the 1970's because of its sheer size, the prominence of its developer and its high visibility. Citicorp Center is the most dramatic skyscraper to be erected in midtown since the Chrysler Building. And the raising of its tower on stilts was one of the most daring designs to be completed in the city's history.
To further enhance the sense of height at the base, the project has a sunken plaza, which contains an entrance to the ground level of the project's large atrium and also to a subway. The sunken plaza has a waterfall next to its broad staircase at the 53rd Street corner and is one of the few that works rather well urbanistically.
The multilevel atrium space is attractive and well laid out, but has been less than a booming success for the many retailers lining its sides. Conran's, a British home furnishings concern was the largest tenant, but announced it would close in 1994. Its leased space actually included two large terraces that extended well out under the tower's uplifted base facing Lexington Avenue and would have made for a visually very exciting location for an outdoor cafe, but my suggestion to the head of Conran's was never taken up.
The atrium not only has three entrances directly to the street, but most of its stores on the lowest level, which was the first basement level at Lexington Avenue, also had clerestory windows to permit passersby on the street to look down into the stores and also did not present deadened blank walls to the streetscape, a very nice urbanistic touch.
In the late 1990's, the building entrance and the base of the low-rise wing were redesigned in an effort to "upgrade" its stores. The unnecessary redesign is rather frilly and totally at odds with the clean lines of the project, but it was not a disaster. Indeed, Barnes & Noble, the bookstore, took over the large Conran's space and has become a very popular neighborhood attraction and many of the lower-level restaurants and shops have been replaced by Houston's, a very large and very popular restaurant with a very large bar.
Another admirable feature of this project was an extremely handsome new streetlamp that incorporated not only street lighting and, at the corners, "WALK/DON'T WALK" signs, but also trash receptacles, emergency city telephones for police and fire, and directional information.
Quotes,
“Citicorp Center is the most important New York skyscraper erected after World War II in that it pioneered a major redevelopment of an important area and was both an engineering marvel and an important and striking aesthetic statement. One Chase Manhattan Plaza and the sloping skyscraper at 9 West 57th Street were also very important in revitalizing their districts, but their architectural merits were not quite as much as Citicorp's. The World Trade Center, of course, cannot be neglected in this regard, especially since it ultimately was very influential in the development of Battery Park City and the World Financial Center, but its urbanistic influence, especially initially, was more negative than positive. The Seagram Building and Lever House, of course, were stupendous artistic achievements of great influence although their heights were much less than the other skyline skyscrapers.”
Picture: Atrium at east entrance
Picture: Skylight at Atrium Space
Picture: The heights of the floor and the position of the column in the middle of the floor plan has completely eliminate the sense of large scale building.
Picture: Barns and Noble Bookstore at the East Entrance
Picture: Public Sign Boards for public