| VIA 57 West | |
|---|---|
 Via 57 West from theWest Side Highway | |
 | |
| Alternative names | Pyramid, West 57th, W57, West57, Tetrahedron |
| General information | |
| Status | Completed |
| Type | Residential |
| Architectural style | Modern |
| Address | 625 West 57th Street |
| Town or city | Manhattan,New York City |
| Country | United States |
| Coordinates | 40°46′17″N73°59′35″W / 40.77139°N 73.99306°W /40.77139; -73.99306 |
| Construction started | 2013 |
| Completed | 2016 |
| Height | |
| Architectural | 467 ft (142.3 m) |
| Tip | 467 ft (142.3 m) |
| Top floor | 355 ft (108.2 m) |
| Technical details | |
| Material | Concrete |
| Floor count | 34 |
| Floor area | 830,995 sq ft (77,200 m2) |
| Lifts/elevators | 11 |
| Design and construction | |
| Architect(s) | Bjarke Ingels Group |
| Developer | The Durst Organization |
| Engineer | Thornton Tomasetti |
| Main contractor | Hunter Roberts Construction Group |
| Awards and prizes | 2016 CTBUH Tall Building Awards: Best Tall Building Americas[1] |
| Other information | |
| Parking | 285 |
| References | |
| [2][3] | |
VIA 57 West (marketed asVIΛ 57WEST) is a residential building at 625 West57th Street, between11th and12th Avenues, in theHell's Kitchen neighborhood ofManhattan inNew York City. The pyramid shaped tower block or "tetrahedron", designed by the Danish architecture firmBjarke Ingels Group (BIG), rises 467 ft (142 m) and is 35-stories tall.[4]
Bjarke Ingels met the New York developerDouglas Durst Chairman ofThe Durst Organization in the early 2000s when he was in Denmark. Durst, who visited Ingels' Copenhagen studio in February 2010, found him very inventive, noting that unlike other architects, "What was striking about his work was that each design was so different, and designed for the locale."[4]
In spring 2009,Durst Fetner Residential commissioned BIG to bring a new residential typology to Manhattan. In 2011, BIG opened an office in New York to supervise W57's development and construction.[4][5] According toThe New York Times, the name was chosen "because the southboundWest Side Highway slopes down as drivers enter the city, right at the spot where the building is situated", serving as an entrance to Manhattan "via 57th".[6]
VIA 57 West is Ingels's first New York project. From Manhattan, the 709-unit building resembles a distortedpyramid with a steeply sloped façade, rising 467 feet (142 m) toward the northeast. Across the river inWeehawken, New Jersey, the building's sloped façade gives the appearance of an extra large sailing vessel making its way across the Hudson River.[7]
With its angular balconies around an integrated green plaza, the block connects with the waterfront andHudson River Park, taking full account of the surroundings while providing views with little traffic noise.[4][8] The building has a floor area of 861,000 square feet (80,000 m2) including residential and retail programming.[9] The northern façade of the building features a number of balconies skewed at a 45-degree angle, a pattern employed in Ingels's previous works, such as theVM Houses in theØrestad section ofCopenhagen.[10]
The triangular structure has been described as a hybrid between a Europeanperimeter block and a traditional Manhattan high-rise.[5] One reviewer described it as a torqued pyramid or "a quarter of a watermelon that’s had a large chunk surgically extracted from its center."[11] It was given the Emporis Best Skyscraper design award in 2016.[12]
Landmark Theatres ran an eight screen movie theater on the ground floor of the building.[7] The theater closed in August 2020 following nearly three years of operation after struggling to attract moviegoers, in part due to the location's distance from public transit.[13] Look Cinemas leased the theater in February 2023[14][15] and opened a "dine-in" theater there in May 2023.[16]
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