| 3 Times Square | |
|---|---|
 The southwest corner as seen from 42nd Street and Seventh Avenue | |
 Interactive map of 3 Times Square | |
| General information | |
| Status | Completed |
| Type | Commercial |
| Location | 3 Times Square Manhattan, New York 10036, U.S. |
| Coordinates | 40°45′24″N73°59′13″W / 40.75667°N 73.98694°W /40.75667; -73.98694 |
| Construction started | 1998 |
| Opening | 2001 |
| Owner | New York City Economic Development Corporation |
| Height | |
| Architectural | 555 ft (169 m) |
| Antenna spire | 659 ft (201 m) |
| Roof | 486 ft (148 m) |
| Top floor | 448 ft (137 m) |
| Technical details | |
| Floor count | 30 |
| Floor area | 855,000 sq ft (79,400 m2) |
| Design and construction | |
| Architect | Fox & Fowle |
| Developer | Rudin Management,Reuters |
| Structural engineer | Severud Associates |
| Main contractor | Tishman Construction |
| References | |
| [1][2] | |
3 Times Square, also known as theThomson Reuters Building, is a 30-storyskyscraper atTimes Square in theMidtown Manhattan neighborhood ofNew York City, New York, U.S. Located onSeventh Avenue between42nd and43rd Street, the building measures 555 feet (169 m) to its roof and 659 feet (201 m) to its spire. The building was designed byFox & Fowle and developed byRudin Management for news-media companyReuters. The site is owned by theNew York City Economic Development Corporation, though Rudin and Reuters have a long-term leasehold on the building.
Fox & Fowle planned a portion of thefacade as a glasscurtain wall, though the northeast corner and the south facade are made of masonry. The eastern facade has a curving curtain wall with a wedge atop the southeast corner, as well as a triple-height lobby facing Seventh Avenue. The building contains 855,000 square feet (79,400 m2) of floor space, much of which was originally taken by Reuters. The lowest three stories contain retail space and an entrance to theTimes Square subway station.
During the 1980s and early 1990s,Park Tower Realty and thePrudential Insurance Company of America had planned to develop a tower for the site as part of a wide-ranging redevelopment of West 42nd Street. After the successful development of the nearby4 Times Square, Reuters proposed consolidating its headquarters at Times Square in 1997, enlisting Rudin Management as a development partner. Work started in 1998 and the building was completed in 2001, with Reuters occupying the vast majority of the space. The building was jointly owned by Reuters and Rudin for two decades, and a renovation of the interior was announced in 2021.
3 Times Square is on the western side ofSeventh Avenue, between42nd and43rd Street, at the southern end ofTimes Square in theMidtown Manhattan neighborhood ofNew York City, New York, U.S.[3][4] Theland lot is L-shaped and covers 29,630 sq ft (2,753 m2),[3] with afrontage of 200 ft (61 m) on Seventh Avenue, 131 feet (40 m) on 42nd Street, and 164 feet (50 m) on 43rd Street.[5] 3 Times Square is at the eastern end of acity block that also contains theTodd Haimes,Lyric, andNew Victory theaters. Other nearby buildings include229 West 43rd Street and1501 Broadway to the north,1500 Broadway to the northeast,One Times Square and4 Times Square to the southeast, theTimes Square Tower and5 Times Square to the south, and theNew Amsterdam Theatre to the southwest.[3][4]
An entrance to theNew York City Subway'sTimes Square–42nd Street station, served by the1, 2, 3, 7, <7>, N, Q, R, W, and S trains,[6] is within the base of the building on 42nd Street.[7] The subway entrance in the building is on 42nd Street, about 75 feet (23 m) west of its original location at the corner with Seventh Avenue.[8] The entrance consists of a canopy extending above the sidewalk, as well as a staircase down to the station mezzanine.[7] It was originally planned with escalators, but the entrance was downsized during the building's construction. A "Low Headroom" sign had to be placed on the entrance because of its reduced size.[9]
3, 4, and 5 Times Square and the Times Square Tower comprise a grouping of office buildings that were developed at Times Square's southern end in the late 1990s and early 2000s.[10][11][12] The surrounding area is part ofManhattan'sTheater District and contains manyBroadway theaters. The site on the northwest corner of 42nd Street and Seventh Avenue had historically been occupied by theVictoria Theatre, which operated from 1899 to 1915.[13] The former theater then became theRialto Theatre, which opened in 1916.[14] The Rialto was rebuilt in 1935[15] and continued to operate until 1998, sharing a building at 1481 Broadway with several storefronts.[16] The theater building, in its final years of operation, had a 500-seat theater and 12,000 square feet (1,100 m2) in retail.[17]
3 Times Square was designed byFox & Fowle and developed by the Rudin family underRudin Management.[8][18]Swanke Hayden Connell Architects designed the interiors.[19][20]Severud Associates was the structural engineer, whileTishman Construction was the main contractor. Other companies involved with the project included geotechnical consultant Langan Engineering, elevator contractorOtis Worldwide, andmechanical, electrical, and plumbing engineerJaros, Baum & Bolles.[1] The building serves as the New York City offices ofThomson Reuters.[21] Officially, theNew York City Economic Development Corporation owns the structure.[3]
3 Times Square has 30 usable floors above ground.[2] The building measures 555 feet (169 m) to its architectural tip[1][2] and 659 feet (201 m) to the top of the spire. The main roof is only 486 feet (148 m) high.[2] 3 Times Square has 855 thousand square feet (79,400 m2) of space.[22][23][24] The building is part of the 42nd Street Development Project and, thus, could bypass many cityzoning rules such as those relating tofloor area ratio (FAR).[25]Bruce Fowle of Fox & Fowle estimated that the building had a FAR of 31,[26] whileThe New York Times stated that the FAR was only 25.[27]
The building's form was intended in part as a homage to the former Rialto Theatre.[15][28] The Seventh Avenue portion of the facade is acurtain wall with a curve pointing southwest toward the nearby theaters on 42nd Street.[24][28][29] The curved wall was intended to represent Reuters's corporate identity.[30] At the top of the facade's southeastern corner is an illuminated blue wedge.[24][29][31] Originally, this wedge had the Reuters logo.[24][29] The wedge's presence allowed views of the nearby 5 Times Square from Times Square itself.[28][31] The roof of the building had several satellite dishes, representing the building's satellite broadcasts.[29]
Fox & Fowle designed a masonry facade on the corner of Seventh Avenue and 43rd Street, as well as along 42nd Street. The architects wanted the masonry facade to relate to surrounding masonry buildings such as 1501 Broadway and the New Victory Theatre.[29][32] In addition, the masonry facade contrasts with the curtain wall on Seventh Avenue.[32] The corner of Seventh Avenue and 42nd Street has a seven-story cylindrical "rotunda", which was intended to attract pedestrians to the retail base. The rotunda is made of cast stone andarchitectural terracotta.[24][32] The main entrance to the building is through the lobby, accessed from the middle of the Seventh Avenue facade. The lobby wall originally contained view of the fourth-floor newsroom.[29] The lobby on Seventh Avenue is being redesigned with a triple-height glass wall as of 2021[update]. The glass wall contains a screen that is intended to refract light from other parts of Times Square.[33][34] According to William Rudin of Rudin Management, the lobby was redesigned as a "sanctuary from all that's happening outside".[35]
The windows allow natural light to illuminate the offices, though it also serves to deflect much of the heat energy. According toRobert Fox of Fox & Fowle, the walls blocked heat so efficiently that, when considering the amount of heat generated by the building's occupants, the building did not need a heating system even during winter.[8][31] The walls deflect theultraviolet rays from sunlight.[36]
William Rudin had initially been opposed to exterior signage on 3 Times Square's facade. He said he changed his mind after seeing that the signage on theMorgan Stanley Building, several blocks north, had increased the value of that building.[37] Furthermore, the New York state government required the building to contain at least 14,000 square feet (1,300 m2) of signage.[38] Ultimately, 3 Times Square was designed with approximately 34,000 square feet (3,200 m2) of signage.[31][38][39][a] There were originally supposed to be numerousnews zippers on the facade, like those at One Times Square,[40] but Fox & Fowle ultimately decided to use full-screen displays rather than zippers.[8] The signs were designed byEdwin Schlossberg's firm,[38] thoughGeorge Stonbely helped make the signs.[41] Advertising agencyR/GA designed the programming for the signage.[38][42]
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Reuters and subsidiaryInstinet were allocated 15,169 square feet (1,409.2 m2) of signage.[37][43] The Reuters sign, a 14-story-tall display at the corner of Seventh Avenue and 43rd Street,[24][38][40] is composed of 14 panels.[44] Near street level is a horizontal "crossbar" with nine screens just above the base. On the corner, above the "crossbar", is a screen measuring 28 by 46 feet (8.5 by 14.0 m); a balcony, originally designed for Instinet's president; and a vertical sign, measuring 13 by 169 feet (4.0 by 51.5 m). The Reuters signage has 5.6 millionLEDs and was used to display graphics, financial information, and other data.[38] Rudin rented out another 12,769 square feet (1,186.3 m2) of signage.[38] Some 6,000 square feet (560 m2) was forPrudential Financial, which had funded the project.[37][38][b] Prudential's sign is placed at Seventh Avenue and 42nd Street and consists of five types of illumination. It had a logo measuring 40 feet (12 m) high as well as Prudential's name on a banner measuring 120 feet (37 m) wide.[45] An additional sign forChase Bank, measuring 127 feet (39 m) wide, was installed on the corner "rotunda" in 2004.[46]
Rudin and Reuters had developed 3 Times Square withgreen building features in part because it was eligible for a green-buildingtax credit passed in 2000.[36][47] 3 Times Square is designed to reduce energy consumption by 30 percent compared to an office building of similar size.[48][47] The Rudin family initially decided against installingfuel cells orphotovoltaic panels in the building, as had been used at Fox & Fowle's previous design for 4 Times Square.[8][c] The building was designed so it could collect power from fuel cells or PV panels if they were installed in the future.[48] There are five generators on the roof, each capable of 750 kilowatts (1,010 hp), for powering Reuters's offices in case of emergencies. An additional generator powers the building's main mechanical systems during emergencies.[8]
The heating plant includes twoabsorption chillers.[49] The building is cooled by electric- and gas-powered cooling units, which can be activated or deactivated based on electrical rates.[8][50] The coolers consists of two 650-ton gas chillers and two 1,350-ton electric chillers, as well as water-sideeconomizers. There is also central air-handling equipment on each story.[49] In addition, the office stories' ventilation systems contain filters with aminimum efficiency reporting value of 15, making them among the most efficient filters on the MERV scale.[33] Air filters have been included in the building since its original design.[36][47]
Structurally, the underlying rock is capable of supporting 40 short tons per square foot (390 t/m2), which obviated the need forcaissons in thefoundation.[51] There is about 79,000 square feet (7,300 m2)[39] or 80,000 square feet (7,400 m2) of retail space at the base.[8][31] The retail space includes a lower concourse level, as well as the first three above-ground stories of the building. Because the retail space in 3 Times Square is smaller than in its predecessor building, the Rudin family decided to market the space toward large tenants.[8] On the 43rd Street side, the Rudin family also acquired a building facing 43rd Street, which had office space and a driveway for the adjacent New Victory Theatre.[52] New loading docks were built with 3 Times Square's construction, one of which was allocated for the New Victory.[8] The lobby has security checkpoints with turnstiles.[53]
The office stories each have 28 to 35 thousand square feet (2,600 to 3,300 m2) of space.[33][54][55] The floors of 3 Times Square are arranged around a mechanical core with elevators, stairways, and other functions.[8] The elevators contain adestination dispatch system, wherein passengers request their desired floor before entering the cab, and touchless entry points.[33][34] Generally, each story has a slab-to-slab height of 13.33 feet (4.06 m) as measured between the floor and ceiling. The 2nd and 4th stories are 18 feet (5.5 m) tall; the 3rd, 5th, 6th, and 7th stories are 14 feet (4.3 m); and the 8th and 9th stories are 16 feet (4.9 m).[55]
The ceilings contain theHVAC and lighting systems, allowing the office stories to be arranged flexibly. Reuters originally occupied 21 stories and arranged its offices in a modular layout.[20] The eighth story originally contained anInstinet trading floor with 200 workstations across 22,000 square feet (2,000 m2).[56][57] Two broadcast studios for Reuters were designed for the lower stories.[58] and a newsroom was on the 19th story.[59] Rudin and Reuters also installed high-speed communications wires connecting the building's offices.[20][60][61] As part of a 2021 renovation, an amenity space is being designed on the 16th floor, along a setback facing Times Square. The amenity space will have a lounge, cafe, and an event area that could seat 200 or 220 people.[33][34] A library and a fitness center are also planned for the space.[33] Outdoor spaces are also present at the eighth, 20th, and 22nd stories.[55]
TheEmpire State Development Corporation (ESDC), an agency of the New York state government, had proposed redeveloping the area around a portion of West 42nd Street in 1981.[62] Four towers designed byPhilip Johnson andJohn Burgee were to be built around 42nd Street's intersections withBroadway and Seventh Avenue, including one at the present-day site of 3 Times Square.[63][64][d] The tower on 3 Times Square's site would have been 29 stories tall with 705,000 square feet (65,500 m2).[26] These towers would have been redeveloped by George Klein ofPark Tower Realty, though thePrudential Insurance Company of America joined the project in 1986.[65][66][67] In 1988, the ESDC convinced Prudential to give up part of the 3 Times Square site toNew 42nd Street so the New Victory Theater could have a delivery entrance.[52] Furthermore, as part of the West Midtown special zoning district created in 1982, the New York City government had allowed new buildings in Times Square to be developed with an increased floor area ratio. To ensure the area would not be darkened at nightfall, the city passed zoning regulations that encouraged developers to add large, bright signs on their buildings.[63][68]
TheDurst Organization opposed the redevelopment for 15 years, citing concerns over the subsidies that were to be given to the developers, which in turn would decrease the value of the Dursts' buildings.[69][70] The Dursts' opposition, along with Prudential and Park Tower's inability to secure tenants for the proposed buildings,[71] led government officials to allow Prudential and Park Tower to postpone the project in 1992.[64][72] By then, Prudential had spent $300 million on condemning the sites througheminent domain.[69] The partners retained the right to develop the sites in the future,[73] and the ESDC's zoning guidelines remained in effect.[63] In exchange for being permitted to delay construction of the sites until 2002, Prudential and Park Tower were compelled to add stores and install large signage on the existing buildings.[74] The Rialto was thus renovated in 1995 as part of the interim plan for Times Square.[17][22]
Klein ceded decision-making power for the sites to Prudential, which decided to exit the real-estate market altogether, selling off all four sites.[75] Prudential and Klein dissolved their partnership in 1996.[31][76] The same year,Douglas Durst acquired the site at the northeast corner of Broadway and 42nd Street,[77] and he developed 4 Times Square there.[78]
Prudential decided to market the three other sites after the successful development of 4 Times Square.[22][79] In March 1997, Prudential indicated its intent to sell the sites' development rights or lease the sites to developers.[80][81] Among the interested developers was Durst, who was negotiating for the northwest corner of 42nd Street and Seventh Avenue.[82] Durst had hiredFox & Fowle, architects of 4 Times Square, to design an office building of up to 800,000 square feet (74,000 m2). He was discussing with news agency Reuters, publisherZiff Davis, and financial firmMorgan Stanley as possible anchor tenants for a building on that site.[83] Klein started discussing a possible partnership with Durst on the development of the site,[75] but Durst's proposal did not succeed.[84]
By August 1997, Reuters had become the primary contender for the site, planning a headquarters there. The company was looking to consolidate over 1,800 workers from 13 locations in New York City.[84] The following month, Reuters enlistedRudin Management as its development partner.[85][86] The building was to be 32 stories high and contain 855,000 square feet (79,400 m2).[85][87][e] The Rudin family had agreed to lease out some space that Reuters would not occupy.[86] Reuters planned to occupy 506,000 square feet (47,000 m2), while Rudin planned to lease out about 330,000 square feet (31,000 m2) of unused office space and 80,000 square feet (7,400 m2) of retail space.[8][31] The development would make Reuters one of several large companies to build their U.S. headquarters in Manhattan.[87] After the Rudin family and Reuters signed an agreement in October 1997, they realized the site was too small to accommodate an 855,000-square-foot building under zoning law. Having failed to convince Prudential to transfer development rights from a nearby site, Rudin and Reuters paidNew 42nd Street $2.8 million for an adjacent four-story building on 43rd Street.[52] The Rudin family and Reuters signed a modified agreement in February 1998.[39]
The administration of mayorRudy Giuliani agreed to give Reuters tax exemptions to encourage the development of the $400 million headquarters.[88] This consisted of a $12.5 million, 20-year sales tax exemption on materials and equipment, as well as a $13.5 million exemption, to be granted if Reuters created new jobs during this time.[89] The tax breaks were controversial, with one critic saying that Times Square had become the "corporate welfare capital of the world".[89] As part of 3 Times Square's construction, Rudin Management was compelled to add a new entrance to the Times Square–42nd Street station, with a stairwell at least 12 feet (3.7 m) wide, as well as two escalators. In April 1998, theMetropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) allowed the Rudin family to be exempt from adding escalators in exchange for a $1.3 million payment. In addition, the MTA would pay for a canopy above the entrance for $250,000.[7] An MTA inspector subsequently alleged that the Rudins should have paid $4 million to $5.9 million for not including the escalators.[90][91]
By early 1998, demolition of buildings on the site of the Reuters Building was underway.[8][31] Tishman Construction, the main contractor for the building, subcontracted the substructure work to Urban Foundation. The work consisted of excavating the 32,000-square-foot (3,000 m2) site to a depth of 32 feet (9.8 m). The basements of the old buildings on the site, which extended 10 feet (3.0 m) deep, were removed. The excavation process was complicated by the presence of two nearby historic structures, the subway tunnels, and the three streets bordering the site. While the underlying rock was strong enough that it could bear the weight of the building, Urban Foundation reinforced the foundations of the nearby buildings with concrete.[51]
Agroundbreaking ceremony for the building occurred on January 11, 1999.[92] 3 Times Square and its three neighboring developments would collectively add almost 4 million square feet (370,000 m2) of office space.[93] All four projects were being marketed with a Times Square address, which until the early 1990s had not been popular in the city's real estate market.[94] At the time, rents for commercial space around Times Square were increasing drastically.[95] Prudential loaned $270 million to Rudin for the building's construction.[96] By August 1999, the building's steel superstructure was being erected, despite a shortage in skilled ironworkers citywide.[97] Chinese "sidewalk artists" hung their portraits on the plywood construction fence that surrounded the site, prompting theNew York City Police Department to clear the artists from the sidewalk every night.[98]
The buildingtopped out on December 10, 1999.[99] The next month, the surrounding section of Seventh Avenue was closed temporarily after a debris and a piece of wood fell from the construction site.[100] Reuters ultimately expanded its space to 625,000 square feet (58,100 m2).[20] The vacant office space was taken byBain & Company, which leased 50,000 square feet (4,600 m2) in February 2000,[101] and theBank of Montreal (BMO), which leased 102,000 square feet (9,500 m2) that June.[102][103] After BMO's lease, all of the office space was signed for.[103] About 50,000 square feet of retail space and 15,000 square feet (1,400 m2) of signs remained to be leased.[102]
The Instinet trading floor opened on May 7, 2001, with 700 employees.[56][57] Reuters opened its 19th-floor newsroom two weeks later on May 22.[59] The Reuters headquarters officially opened on June 4, 2001, with speeches from former U.S. Treasury secretaryLawrence Summers and former UN ambassadorRichard Holbrooke.[104] In addition to Instinet's employees, Reuters had 1,100 workers at the building.[104] Despite theSeptember 11 attacks inLower Manhattan shortly after the building's opening, Chase Bank took some retail space by the end of 2001.[105] After the attacks, Instinet decided to open offices in New Jersey.[106][107] Though Instinet still occupied 300,000 square feet (28,000 m2) at 3 Times Square,[107] Reuters took some of Instinet's space.[106] Shoe storeSkechers had signed for another retail unit by mid-2002,[108] and Europa Cafe also took some retail space.[109] The Prudential sign at Seventh Avenue and 42nd Street started illuminating in December 2002.[45]
Not long after the Reuters Building opened, Instinet indicated it would downsize its staff and sublet 100 to 200 thousand square feet (9,300 to 18,600 m2) at the building.[110] Subsequently, six of Instinet's floor were listed for sublease in May 2003.[111] Among the other tenants were pharmaceutical companyEyetech,[112] as well as consulting firmFTI Consulting, the latter of which subleased part of its space to brokerage firm Integro.[113] There was controversy in October 2003 when Reuters refused to air an advertisement by theMethodist Episcopal Church,[114] though Reuters ultimately reversed its policy prohibiting religious advertising.[115][116] The next year, Chase added a sign around the rotunda at Seventh Avenue and 42nd Street.[46] Reuters announced a partnership withNasdaq in 2006, in which companies could display advertisements across both 3 Times Square's northeast corner andNasdaq MarketSite across the street at 4 Times Square. Advertisers could choose between splitting their advertisement across the two buildings, running the same ad across both buildings, or displaying different messages on either building.[117]
Following the September 11 attacks, Reuters had placed 13 planters on the sidewalk to protect the building against car bombs.[118] The planters were removed in late 2006 after counterterrorism experts said the planters could turn into projectiles during vehicular attacks.[119][120] Reuters merged in 2007 with Canadian media companyThomson Corporation to formThomson Reuters,[54] and some Thomson offices relocated to 3 Times Square.[121] The lower stories' retail space was taken up by anAT&T phone store,[113] as well as temporarypop-up stores in the 2010s.[122] After Bain & Company announced its plans to relocate in late 2013, it subleased the space to BMO.[123] In 2018, Thomson Reuters subleased some of its space toKind Snacks, a manufacturer of protein bars and health foods.[113][124] By October 2020, Thomson Reuters was looking to sell its 50 percent stake in the building, which it co-owned with Rudin Management. With Reuters's stake listed at $800 per square foot ($8,600/m2), this placed the building's valuation at about $700 million.[125][126]
Rudin Management announced in April 2021 that it would be renovating the building for $25 million.[33][54] Rudin had hired FXCollaborative (which had been renamed from Fox & Fowle) to redesign the lobby and add a 16th-story amenity area.[33][35] Rudin also hiredCushman & Wakefield to market the space. The renovation came after BMO and FTI vacated large amounts of space in the building.[54] In January 2022,Touro College and University System leased 243,305 square feet (22,603.8 m2) on the third to ninth floors, allowing the college to consolidate seven of its schools at one location.[127][128] As part of the lease, a separate entrance would be built at Seventh Avenue and 43rd Street, and staircases, classrooms, laboratories, and meeting areas would be built within the college's space.[128]
When the building plans were announced in 1998,Herbert Muschamp wrote forThe New York Times that the design "is decent, well mannered and deferential, and if you were a gentleman, you would tip your hat."[29][30] Several architectural critics pointed out the use of masonry on some parts of the building and glass elsewhere.[31] William Morgan wrote forOculus: "...the Reuters building is too fussy, too busy, and laden with too many historical references. But it is also a lot of fun; glitzy is appropriate here."[129] Joseph Giovannini ofNew York magazine expressed his appreciation for the design, saying that "the Reuters Building does not strive to be a perfect whole" but was instead influenced by its setting.[31][130] Giovannini likened it to a "fraternal twin" of 4 Times Square, adding that 3 Times Square "fits seamlessly here because Fox & Fowle has opened the normally closed skyscraper form to a part of the city that’s already layered in short and tall, new and old buildings".[130] Karrie Jacobs ofNew York magazine also likened the building to 4 Times Square.[26]
Some critics viewed the mixture of facades as a negative attribute.Paul Goldberger ofThe New Yorker wrote that the building "sometimes seems like a bunch of unintegrated pieces".[131] Ned Cramer wrote forArchitecture magazine in 2000: "What they built is more of an identity crisis—a mish-mash of forms and materials utterly lacking in finesse or wit or higher meaning."[31][132] Cramer concluded that describing the building as a "skyscraper" would be a "diminishment of its predecessors".[132]
Media related to3 Times Square at Wikimedia Commons
