252 East 57th Street

Client World Wide Group
Expertise Interiors, Residential
Location New York, New York, United States

This mixed-use residential tower is a visual essay on glass—a shimmering addition to the New York skyline with high-end residences that also enlivens the streetscape and local community.

Project Facts

Completion Year 2017
Design Finish Year 2016
Size Building Height: 700 feet Number of Stories: 65 Building Gross Area: 650,000 square feet
Rental Units 169
Condo Units 95
Awards

2018, Excellence in Mixed-Use Development, Urban Land Institute New York Chapter (ULI NY) 2018, NYCxDESIGN Multi-Unit Residential, Interior Design 2018, Shortlisted for Best Tall Building Project, ABB LEAF
Collaborators

SLCE Architects DeSimone Consulting Engineers Benson Lynbrook WSP Joel Trace Architects Flack + Kurtz, Inc. Daniel Romualdez Architects SBLD Studio Gilsanz Murray Steficek Mathews Nielsen Landscape Architects AutoMotion Parking Systems Lendlease

Project Facts

Completion Year 2017
Design Finish Year 2016
Size Building Height: 700 feet Number of Stories: 65 Building Gross Area: 650,000 square feet
Rental Units 169
Condo Units 95
Awards

2018, Excellence in Mixed-Use Development, Urban Land Institute New York Chapter (ULI NY) 2018, NYCxDESIGN Multi-Unit Residential, Interior Design 2018, Shortlisted for Best Tall Building Project, ABB LEAF
Collaborators

SLCE Architects DeSimone Consulting Engineers Benson Lynbrook WSP Joel Trace Architects Flack + Kurtz, Inc. Daniel Romualdez Architects SBLD Studio Gilsanz Murray Steficek Mathews Nielsen Landscape Architects AutoMotion Parking Systems Lendlease

A dynamic mix

252 East 57th Street is a 65-story luxury mixed-use tower in Midtown Manhattan that rests atop two public schools and commercial retail. The project—the result of a public-private partnership with the Educational Construction Fund and the World Wide Group with Rose Associates—organizes its residential program with rental units on the lower floors and condominiums on the 36th floor and above. The unit mix, 169 rental apartments and 95 condominiums, is positioned to maximize long-term value. By locating school entrances on the quieter side streets while placing retail and residential entrances along 57th Street and 2nd Avenue, the development brings activity to the streets and serves the community—realizing the full potential of a previously underutilized parcel.

Taking glass to new heights

The building’s presence is shaped by its distinctive facade, with a glazing geometry that employs inversions in the exterior wall. From the highest floors, inverted bay windows on the west and north elevations offer spectacular views of Central Park, while the east and south elevations overlook the Queensboro Bridge and the East River. View analysis and unit type synthesis informed the inverted bay window concept, as well as the curving form of the tower, which becomes more dramatic as it rises further from the street. Six distinct glass treatments on the facade, including acid-etched, fritted, and cast glass, come together in a refined manner to become a study on the material itself.

The residential experience

The experience of the tower begins with an elegant porte cochère, which gives residents a degree of privacy and security atypical of similar buildings. A 60-car automated parking vault is attached. SOM’s interior design practice was involved in the space planning of the entire tower. SOM led the interior design of the rental units and amenities, including the reception area, business center, lounge, and adjoining garden. Daniel Romualdez led the design of the condominium interiors and amenities, including a double-height residents’ lounge, theatre, and private spa with a 75-foot indoor swimming pool.