The latest rendering from the Ismael Leyva Architects P.C. website shows a glass-clad residential condo tower rising very tall over the southwest corner of Eighth Avenue and West 48th Street. How tall? This tall: 556 feet! Just recently a big crane arrived at the site. The Leyva gang must have done some clever calculating to get this sliver of a tower onto one of the oddest shaped lots we've come across. Is it an octagon? A complex-polygon? Perhaps a mathematician in the crowd can figure it out.
[Zoning Map from the Department of City Planning showing the site]
The 785 Eighth Avenue lot has a mere 25' frontage on Eighth Avenue; on West 48th the frontage measures a measly 16'8". So, how does a developer squeeze a big tower like this into such a small site? First, buy some air rights from the lot next door. Next, toss in the recently-enacted Theatre Sub-District zoning regs. Then dig a deep foundation and put up a crane. Voila! 42 stories. 120 Units.
As can be seen on the Zoning Map above (and from info at the NYC Department of Buildings) the plot for this tower is sort of "T" shaped. Word is that there will be a private garden tucked away at the left in the southwest corner. The rendering shows what appears to be a cantilevered bump-out on the south facade. The east facade facing Eighth Avenue shows a series of balconies rising almost the full height of the tower. But the north facade remains a mystery. One thing is for sure: The crane on this site will be growing by the week We'll keep readers posted as construction moves forward. Tip: With the way that crane is hanging out over the street, pedestrians in this vicinity might be wise to keep a hard hat handy.
· New Projects - Residential Tower, NY [Ismael Leyva Artchitects P.C.]