Build a topsy-turvy hotel on top of a delicate urban planning project, and expect some wonky things to happen. That appears to be the situation over on the High Line, where the Times' Glenn Collins checks in with the construction workers who are braving winter weather and high winds to bring Meatpacking District revelers their precious walkway-in-the-sky by next fall. The fascinating bit is in the accompanying video, when a site safety officer explains that the real danger for the crew is the construction around the actual High Line. While he describes some examples of falling equipment and debris, the camera not-so-subtly lingers on Andre Balazs' Standard Hotel, rising in the distance like a menacing Mordor, albeit with a bigger window wall. Are you a bad person if you're asking yourself how many injured hardhats is an acceptable amount if the end result is a completed Standard? Yes. Yes you are. But we understand.
· In Winds of Winter, Midair Park Takes Shape [NYT]
· High Line Construction Chronicles: Step into the Standard [Curbed]
[Standard Hotel photo via Curbed Photo Pool/NYCviaRachel]