Adrian Smith + Gordon Gill may be the ones designing the country's future tallest residential tower at 217 West 57th Street, but their vision for the site isn't the only one that's out there in the ether. YIMBY got their hands on designs proposed by two prolific architecture firms that were created and not chosen for the site's RFP. The first of the two designs, by Norman Foster, imagines the tower as an "ultra-contemporary...trident" of similar height to the incoming 1,522-foot tower. Foster's design also includes a long spire, on par with the roughly 250-foot spire that Smith + Gill plan to stick on top of the building. Notably missing in Foster's design is the cantilever over the Arts Students League building next door (as seen in the rendering below.)
The other design that YIMBY uncovered is by Rogers Stirk + Harbour. The building seems to nod to the nearby One57, also developed by Extell, with its angular roofline and multi-colored windows, and ends in three peaks of varying height. Stirk + Harbour's design is topped by telecommunications equipment rather than a plain ol' spire, which leads YIMBY to believe that the extra element might be more than the architectural equivalent of Viagra to the building's height.
· What Could Have Been: Norman Foster & Rogers Stirk Harbour's Submissions For Nordstrom Tower, 217 West 57th Street [YIMBY]
· All 217 West 57th Street coverage [Curbed]
· Thought Experiments archive [Curbed]
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