Glass Construction Towering Over Brooklyn
An article in yesterday’s NY Sun takes a look at the wave of glass-sheathed high-rises under construction in the outer boroughs, with shout-outs to two of Brooklyn’s biggest new towers o’ transparency, Williamsburg’s Northside Piers and Prospect Heights’ On Prospect Park. The article notes that developers say the contemporary aesthetic of glass towers does not…
An article in yesterday’s NY Sun takes a look at the wave of glass-sheathed high-rises under construction in the outer boroughs, with shout-outs to two of Brooklyn’s biggest new towers o’ transparency, Williamsburg’s Northside Piers and Prospect Heights’ On Prospect Park. The article notes that developers say the contemporary aesthetic of glass towers does not detract from typical brownstone neighborhoods’ charm. Done correctly, we’d agree. On Prospect Park’s developers believe the condo will enhance its surroundings because Richard Meier’s design is an opportunity to have an impact on the urban landscape. A spokesman for Toll Brothers, meanwhile, says 20 percent of Northside Piers buyers are from Brooklyn, suggesting that Brooklynites are hungry for translucent architecture. Of course, the Williamsburg waterfront is hardly a typical brownstone ‘hood like Prospect Heights, so it’s difficult to compare how Northside Piers and OPP gel with their respective surroundings. Where do you come down on the great glass debate?
Glass Towers on the Rise Outside of Manhattan [Sun]
No, I agree, 1:17. It would have been too high. I was just giving an example of a building that probably a lot of people in Brooklyn would have liked to have seen at this site (albeit smaller) given all of the negative talk about OPP.
I just think this building gives GAP more prominence and allows the eye to see the beauty in the library, the park, the arch, the fountain, the glass, etc.
Just like at Columbus Circle you have a variety of architecture….limestone, brick, glass, etc to add to the diversity of styles.
I LOOOOVVE 15 CPW.
The problem with replicating 15 CPW in PH would be the height. Otherwise, it’s a beautiful building for the UWS.
I really like OPP. And I am a brownstone lover. I’m not going to deny that at least part of the love I have for it is what this building means for GAP and Prospect Heights and Brooklyn. It is a beacon that this area is one that is valued and thought of to be a jewel. I think that is special. I also happen to like the way it looks in its surrounding, nestled amongst the trees when looking at it from inside Prospect Park, but also like that it enables me to more fully appreciate the pre-war beauties all around it even more.
I think this building is a great thing for Brooklyn whether you like the look of the glass or not. For that, we should embrace it as much as possible. For that location, I think it is the best possible thing we could have hoped for.
The most successful building in Manhattan this year was 15 Central Park West. I believe that if that had been replicated here at this location, it would not have been nearly as successful as OPP will be in the long run. It IS something different for this neighborhood. And we needed something different, not another massive hulking building. I love them, but we’ve got plenty along the park and the surrounding areas.
Eh, it’s alright. Nothing impressive really. It just kinda sits there like a refugee from a suburban office park. And I find myself wondering why it could not have been designed in such a way as to not have the terraces screwed up with concrete columns running though them.
So strong statements from Ghery are a no-no because they are out of context, eminent domain abuse, etc., but this bland box (OPP)which already looks dated is OK?
I have gone to see the building several times, and each time I am disappointed. I was excited at the prospect of new architecture in this spot, but the proportions of this building lack elegance. It sits, squat and lumpen, in disharmony with its surroundings. Too bad, really. But I have not been impressed by the other Meier buildings in Manhattan, so I am not surprised.
For what it’s worth, Frank Lloyd Wright also built leaky buildings.
What is so special about glass? It is the architecture that inspires or not, not so much the transparency of the sheathing.
NYC deserves great architecture or at least innovative or at worst impressive architecture. OPP is far from great or innovative but IMO squeaks by on impressive.
But to get a good idea on comparative value, (to the overall architecture of the neighborhood), just look at the library across the street and then look back at OPP.
I actually like it. The Prospect Park building, that is. I was very very skeptical, and, granted, I have no training in architecture, so it might not be on the cutting edge of residential design and I wouldn’t know the difference. But it looks kinda sharp, and I don’t think it ruins the neighborhood at all… And this is coming from someone who would rather live in a 100-year-old shingle shack with an outhouse than a contemporary stainless-steel-appliance condo.