flexiblefullpage
billboard
interstitial1
catfish1
Currently Reading

Construction on the world’s skinniest tower halts due to ballooning costs

High-rise Construction

Construction on the world’s skinniest tower halts due to ballooning costs

The planned 82-story tower has stalled after completing just 20 stories.


By David Malone, Associate Editor | August 1, 2017
A rendering of the completed 111 West 57th Tower by SHoP Architects

Rendering courtesy of SHoP

When completed, 111 West 57th Street will tower over New York City’s Central Park. At a height of 1,421 feet and a height-to-width ratio of 24:1, the SHoP Architects-designed residential building will hold the title of world’s skinniest skyscraper.

However, it may no longer be a matter of when the tower is completed, but if it is completed. After rising just 20 stories, construction on 111 West 57th Street has ground to a halt due to ballooning costs.

As the New York Post reports, the skyscraper is already $50 million over budget and a legal battle may be brewing. In an effort to save what is left of its $70 million investment, AmBase, a real estate investment corporation, is suing the project sponsors Kevin Maloney and Michael Stern and lender Spruce Capital Partners.

AmBase’s attorney, Stephen Meister, told the New York Post Maloney and Stern “omitted some very significant items in their budget including cranes, which are very expensive in New York and can run into the millions of dollars.” Currently less than one-quarter complete, the latest Billionaires’ Row project is facing imminent foreclosure.

Related Stories

| Aug 19, 2014

Goettsch Partners unveils design for mega mixed-use development in Shenzhen [slideshow]

The overall design concept is of a complex of textured buildings that would differentiate from the surrounding blue-glass buildings of Shenzhen.

| Aug 15, 2014

First look: RMJM’s 'jumping fish' tower design for the Chinese Riviera

The tower's fish-jumping gesture is meant to symbolize the prosperity and rapid transformation of Zhuhai, China.

| Aug 12, 2014

Shading prototype could allow new levels of environmental control for skyscraper occupants

Developed by architects at NBBJ, Sunbreak uses a unique three-hinged shade that morphs from an opaque shutter to an abstract set of vertical blinds to an awning, depending on what is needed.

| Aug 6, 2014

Vegetated residential tower breaks ground in Taiwan

With vegetated balconies reaching the full height of the 100-meter tower, the One More residential development aims to establish a relationship between its residents and nature.

| Aug 5, 2014

New bomb-proof concrete mixture used in One World Trade Center

The new concrete mix deforms instead of breaking, removing the threat of flying debris in an explosive attack. 

| Jul 30, 2014

Wolf Point high-rise development begins construction in Chicago

Designed by Pelli Clarke Pelli Architects, the 48-story luxury residential tower is part of a three-tower mixed-use development along the Chicago River.

| Jul 24, 2014

High-rise 'slum' in Venezuela to be shuttered

Authorities have decided to move 4,400 squatters out of Venezuela's third-tallest skyscraper, allegedly to investigate the structural soundness of the tower. 

| Jul 17, 2014

A harmful trade-off many U.S. green buildings make

The Urban Green Council addresses a concern that many "green" buildings in the U.S. have: poor insulation.

| Jul 17, 2014

A high-rise with outdoor, vertical community space? It's possible! [slideshow]

Danish design firm C.F. Møller has developed a novel way to increase community space without compromising privacy or indoor space.

| Jul 11, 2014

First look: Jeanne Gang reinterprets San Francisco Bay windows in new skyscraper scheme

Chicago architect Jeanne Gang has designed a 40-story residential building in San Francisco that is inspired by the city's omnipresent bay windows.

boombox1
boombox2
native1

More In Category




halfpage1

Most Popular Content

  1. 2021 Giants 400 Report
  2. Top 150 Architecture Firms for 2019
  3. 13 projects that represent the future of affordable housing
  4. Sagrada Familia completion date pushed back due to coronavirus
  5. Top 160 Architecture Firms 2021