Those comments are something else lol. I feel like Iâm the only one who likes this building in that location
ESB: Iâm not happy
15 Penn Plaza and the ESC towers: Allow us to introduce ourselves
You cant compare those tower to this one because they arent along a street that had a viewpoint directly towards the ESB, theres a difference if they are just rising infront of it somewhere on an adjacent block vs the curvature of a street making a clear path towards the building and a building being built on that street that then blocked the tower.
PENN 15 definitely doesnt count because Hotel Penn had already blocked the ESB before outside of the fact that it was built before the ESB so that view never existed anyways.
I understand. I put that small meme there because I thought those new towers may have a significant effect of people seeing ESB from different viewpoints due to their height
Thatâs true that theyâll be blocking some existing views in other ways (other views have already been blocked long ago by other buildings and those built before the ESB as mentioned), but none of the views show that much of the ESB anyways or they arent significant.
It also doesnt really matter because the ESC buildings are in a cluster, they wont block anymore views than Hudson Yards or Manhattan West already blocked. Views from the W 33rd St corridor will actually remain intact for the most part.
Thanks for this information. 
For this building I think most people wouldnât care that much for it anyway eventually once itâs completed IMO
Does it seem to anyone else that this building might be stalled? Has there been any crane activity lately?
No cladding, and no visible progress on the crown that I can tell in quite some time. I hope this isnât going to end up like one of the stalled Lower Manhattan towers.
The building definitely isnt stalled, they were/are finishing out the last portion of the concrete superstructure before continuing with the crown steel because it is embedded in the concrete. This just happened in the last 2 weeks so that isnât that long ago.
There has definitely been progress with cladding in terms of installing the substructure to hang it.
Now that the concrete portion of the tower has been completed its safe to say that the form work around the core will be removed, itâs hard to say for the main portion of the tower though.
The cladding support progress I was mentioning, I also want to mention that the crane (in any instance) doesnât have to move to indicate progress.
My only concern at this point is the question of the âexposed concreteâ. I use the term âexposed concreteâ here instead of the industry term âArchitectural Concreteâ because the finish we see here is not Architectural/Attractive. I do not know the aesthetic qualifications that merit the status of âarchitectural concreteâ - but the concrete finish on this facade looks sub-standard.
I am comparing the finish with what is shown in this article, and many other examples that can be seen online when searching the term âArchitectural Concreteâ. This building will be a resounding Architectural success regardless of the ârough lookingâ exposed concrete: but it will be much better received if this section is actually done to the high aesthetic standards of âArchitectural Concreteâ.
I am reminded of 125 Greenwich; and all the negative responses about the exposed concrete on that facade - letâs not have a repeat of that fiasco⊠
I hope the finished results turn out better than what we see now in these photos of 262 Fifth Ave. In most cases in these progress photos; what you see, is what you get.
I hope this is not - what we get.
Excerpt -
âAchieving an architectural or decorative appearance usually requires that something different be done to the concrete,â explains the Portland Cement Association. âWhether that involves special forms, special finishing techniques, or special ingredients, the variety of effects is almost unlimited.â
Sort of confused, no one ever said this building will have an exposed concrete facade, it is being covered with an aluminum rainscreen facade.
Also, not that it pertains to this tower, but there is no difference between exposed and architectural concrete, architectural concrete is exposed. The terms most frequently used are finished and raw concrete, not architectural concrete. There are no qualifications on how to categorize what is considered âarchitecturalâ concrete because that differs between architects, there is no one âfinishâ on concrete that makes it architectural, your standards are not the same as someone elseâs standards and etc.
Good to know - thanks. I thought the exposed concrete was the final finish on that section of the facade.
My use of the term is âexposed concreteâ was my special way of saying - crappy looking âarchitectural concreteâ⊠
This is good news - no âexposed concreteâ on this building⊠
I tried to see if there was actually âexposedâ concrete on this building: but the statue of William Seward is blocking the âsight linesâ⊠
BTW - IN all seriousness - I see there will be plenty of âexposed concreteâ on this building. My convoluted point in the above post was my concern about âugly lookingâ exposed concrete. I like everything about this buiding; but I am fairly sure the elevator core will be exposed concrete.
Here is hoping they do a better (more decorative) finish on that part of the facade than what is typically done with what is generally called âarchitectural concreteâ.
It will not be, they are unable to waterproof the 3 sides of core because of the construction elevator and the crane. A side lift like the one on the east side is being built on the south side of the core visible in my images to begin waterproofing, there will be no exposed concrete.
Not sure Iâd say the first pieces are going up today specifically, that weird lookin long rectangular piece has been there for a month or so now. Im not sure what that is.