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Chapter 5: Visual and Aesthetic Considerations

A. INTRODUCTION AND METHODOLOGY This chapter considers the effects of the 50th Street facility on the urban design and visual character of the project site and immediate area. It has been prepared in accordance with the guidelines for visual analyses contained in federal documents for such analyses prepared by the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) including Guidance for Preparing and Processing Environmental and 4(f) Documents (1987), Environmental Impact Statement Visual Impact Discussion (undated), and Guidance Material on the Preparation of Visual Impact Assessments (1986). In addition, this analysis has been prepared in accordance with the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation’s The SEQR Handbook (1992) and New York City’s City Environmental Quality Review (CEQR) Technical Manual (2001).

This revised supplemental Environmental (EA) Assessment considers the effects of the proposed project on locations from which it would be visible. Due to the densely developed urban design of the area, which includes tall buildings and buildings built contiguous to one another, views to the site are primarily limited to the streets immediately surrounding the project site. Therefore, the study area—intended to encompass areas from which a building on the project site might be visible—has been defined to extend along both sides of East 50th Street between Lexington and Fifth Avenues, both sides of 49th and 51st Streets between Park and Madison Avenues, and the north side of 49th Street between Madison and Fifth Avenues and between Park and Lexington Avenues, as well as the portions of Fifth, Madison, Park, and Lexington Avenues within that area (see Figure 5-1). Within this area, the focus of the analysis is on those areas that are accessible to the public and that could be affected visually by the proposed project. These include open space and garden areas associated with St. Patrick’s Cathedral and St. Bartholomew’s Church, public plazas, and streets and sidewalks. Information for this analysis was collected through field visits. Visually sensitive locations and viewer groups are identified, and duration of views assessed to determine any potential effects.

B. EXISTING CONDITIONS

PROJECT SITE

URBAN DESIGN

The project site is occupied by the East 50th Street paved roadbed and its narrow concrete sidewalks, four attached turn-of-the-century former townhouses fronting on East 50th Street that have been substantially altered, and a two-story building on East 49th Street (see Figure 5-2). Though similar in massing, the four buildings on East 50th Street vary greatly in their exterior appearance. All four buildings have a common height: all were designed as five-story townhouses though the easternmost and westernmost buildings currently have modern six-story additions that likely house elevator and other mechanical functions. The four buildings are

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Views of the Project Site

2View north of the project site on East 49th StreetView southeast of the project site on East 50th Street 1

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between approximately 60 and 70 feet tall. The buildings are each approximately 20 feet wide, and, with the exception of 48 East 50th Street, which has a contemporary façade, are set back from the sidewalk by approximately 5 feet. The buildings are clad in brick of different colors and all contain either vacant space or stores and restaurants at the ground and second floors.

As a result of numerous alterations over time, the buildings have varied exteriors; remnants of original classical ornament contrast with rooftop additions and modern storefronts. Some buildings have been reclad. Specifically, the easternmost building contains its original façade at the second through fifth stories, composed of red brick with classical ornament including stone window surrounds and a cornice. Above the fifth floor is a modern brick addition, above which is a smaller windowless addition. The first two floors are occupied by an Italian restaurant, Cinquanta, which has a modern glass and metal façade and canopy above the entrance that extends out over the sidewalk.

Adjacent to the west is 48 East 50th Street, which is built to the sidewalk so that it extends farther than the other buildings on the site. It is clad in red brick above the second story with windows only at the third and fourth floors. The bottom two floors contain a vacant retail space set in a glass and metal opening that fills the facade. 46 East 50th Street is also a plain red brick building. Its bottom two floors, occupied by the Giambelli Restaurant, extend out to the sidewalk line. This building is capped by a tall water tower set on a steel support structure. The westernmost building on the site is clad in buff brick at the third through fifth floors. It contains original architectural detailing including stone ornament and a cornice. The east windows have been sealed with concrete block. The ground floor and second story façades are composed of a variety of glass storefronts; the ground-floor stores have canopies that advertise the names of the businesses. This building is capped by a concrete block addition that appears to house mechanical or elevator functions.

The project site for the 50th Street facility in Alternatives C and D also includes the property at 45 East 49th Street. This site is occupied by a two-story, approximately 20-foot-wide building that contains the ING Direct Café. The building has a transparent glass and metal-clad façade of a geometric design. The interior, which includes an asymmetric balcony and decorative, suspended orange orbs, is visible through the façade from the street.

VISUAL RESOURCES, VIEWER GROUPS, AND VIEW DURATIONS

FHWA’s Guidance Material on the Preparation of Visual Impact Assessments defines visual resources as those physical features that make up the visible landscape, including land, water, vegetation, and man-made elements to which viewers attach visual value. New York City’s CEQR Technical Manual defines visual resources as an area’s unique or important public view corridors, vistas, or natural or built features. Visual resources may include historic buildings, open spaces such as parks and landscaped plazas, and views to natural resources such as water features and natural vegetation. As described above, the project site contains a portion of East 50th Street, a typical, paved Manhattan street bordered by concrete sidewalks. On East 50th Street, the four turn-of-the-century buildings on the project site have been altered over time. Neither the street nor any of these buildings constitute visual resources. However, the small, two-story ING Café on East 49th Street is eye-catching. Its visual interest lies both in its asymmetrical modern glass and metal façade and its transparency, which offers unencumbered views into the building.


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STUDY AREA

The topography of the area gently slopes upward to the north. The study area contains a mix of building types, heights, and uses, though buildings in the area predominantly have large massings. Buildings range in height from two to 51 stories, with six buildings in the study area rising at least 30 stories in height. Uses are predominantly office, commercial, hotel, and religious; with the exception of the churches, many of the buildings have ground-floor commercial space—such as restaurants, bank branches and delis. Unique urban design features include the study area’s prominent historic landmarks and tourist attractions, two of which—St. Patrick’s Cathedral and the Waldorf-Astoria Hotel—occupy entire blocks.

The discussion below focuses first on the area’s urban design—its basic layout and structures—then describes its visual resources and identifies viewer groups and view durations.

URBAN DESIGN

Block Forms, Street Pattern and Hierarchy, Streetscape Elements, and Natural Features

Located in Midtown Manhattan, the study area is developed in the typical Manhattan grid pattern, with wide avenues running north-south and narrow streets running east-west, creating rectangular blocks measuring 400 feet long and 200 feet wide. East 48th, 49th, and 50th Streets are approximately 60-foot-wide streets that carry one-way traffic. Madison Avenue is 80 feet wide and also carries one-way traffic. Park Avenue is a wide boulevard that carries two-way traffic. The streetscape of the study area is urban in character with wide sidewalks on the avenues and narrow ones on the side streets. Sidewalks are concrete, and contain typical street furniture such as traffic lights, standard metal streetlamps, fire hydrants, and metal mailboxes. For security purposes there are also bollards and planters at various locations on these streets. Round planters with shrubs are in front of a number of the area’s landmarks, including in front of the Waldorf-Astoria Hotel on East 50th Street, at the northeast corner of Park and East 50th Streets in front of St. Bartholomew’s Church, and in front of the Villard Houses on Madison Avenue between East 50th and 51st Streets. There are also square planters in front of the office building at 437 Madison Avenue immediately west of the project site.

Other streetscape elements include awnings, a few historic reproduction bishop’s crook lampposts, and some street trees, which are planted in the sidewalks on the side streets and on Madison Avenue. Park Avenue contains an approximately 60-foot-wide, central median landscaped with trees, shrubs, and flowers.

The streetwall consists of buildings typically built to the sidewalks, although in the study area the streetwall is broken in several instances. Several plazas are located in the study area, including the approximately 20-foot-wide plaza surrounding the office building at 437 Madison Avenue west of the project site (see view 3 of Figure 5-3), the plaza adjacent to 350 Park Avenue on the north side of 51st Street between Park and Madison Avenues, and the small covered plaza created by the chamfered (diagonal) corner of 560 Lexington Avenue at the northwest corner of Lexington Avenue and East 50th Street. These plazas typically have seating. In addition, the 437 Madison Avenue Plaza has decorative lighting and the plaza on East 51st Street has a fountain and a central, circular landscaped feature with trees and flowers. A plaza created by the setback of 280 Park Avenue allows for outdoor seating for the Prince Grill on 49th Street during warm weather months.

In particular, three prominent historic and visual landmarks break the streetwall and provide the area with a sense of openness. These are the garden and outdoor café—Café St. Bart’s—

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View east on 50th Street from Madison Avenue 3

St. Bartholomew’s Church complex, view northeast from Park Avenue and 50th Street

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Views of the Study AreaFigure 5-3

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associated with St. Bartholomew’s Church at the northeast corner of Park Avenue and East 50th Street, St. Patrick’s Cathedral, and the open courtyard in front of the Villard Houses on Madison Avenue between 50th and 51st Streets. The area in front of St. Bartholomew’s Community House is an open area raised above the street level that houses Café St. Bart’s (see view 4 of Figure 5-3). Access to this area is through a garden with fenced planting beds fronting on Park Avenue. In warm weather months, the café offers outdoor seating; in colder weather the outdoor area is enclosed by a tent. The setback of St. Patrick’s Cathedral and its elevation on a stone plinth on Fifth Avenue and East 50th and 51st Streets allows for landscaped swathes of ivy beds with trees and shrubs on the side streets (see view 5 of Figure 5-4). On Fifth Avenue, the steps and elevated plaza of St. Patrick’s Cathedral provide a popular seating and gathering place for visitors (see view 6 of Figure 5-4). Across Madison Avenue from the rear façade of St. Patrick’s Cathedral, the Villard Houses form a U around an open courtyard on Madison Avenue that is paved in stone and enclosed by a decorative stone and wrought iron fence. Access to the walled courtyard is through a wide decorative iron gateway; inside the wall, the courtyard has trees in large planters.

Other features that disrupt streetwall continuity in the study area are loading docks and garage and vehicular drop-off entrances. These are located throughout the study area, including on both sides of both 49th and 50th Streets on the project block.

Building Uses, Bulk, and Arrangements Project Block. Immediately surrounding the project site are office and commercial uses. The project block is developed with two large office buildings. Contiguous to the project site to the east, the Colgate-Palmolive Building at 300 Park Avenue is a 25-story green glass and metal-sheathed building of a contemporary design (see view 7 of Figure 5-5). The building is built to the lot lines, filling the eastern end of the block to Park Avenue. It steps back from Park Avenue and East 49th and 50th Streets in a series of setbacks commencing at the 12th floor. The ground-floor façade of the building is designed as a glass curtain wall; the main entrance to the building is on Park Avenue and set within a recess. There is a loading bay at the western end of the building with an associated curb cut on East 50th Street, adjacent to the project site.

West of the project site, the office building at 437 Madison Avenue is a 40-story skyscraper that fills the western end of the block to Madison Avenue. It is separated from the project site by an approximately 50-foot-tall, 5-foot-wide façade. Designed in the 1960s, this building is set back from Madison Avenue and East 49th and 50th Streets behind an approximately 20-foot-wide, stone-paved plaza that contains combined decorative lighting and seating features (see view 3 of Figure 5-3). The building, clad in limestone and glass, rises 13 stories before setting back. It is capped by a mechanical penthouse with venting louvers. The ground floor of the building contains an arched arcade inset with glass and metal windows. The main entrance of the building is on Madison Avenue. There are loading bays on East 49th and 50th Streets at the eastern end of the building, adjacent to the project site, with associated street curb cuts; the bays are covered with roll-down metal grates when not in use. There is also an entrance to the building’s subterranean parking garage on East 49th Street. On East 50th Street there is room for delivery vehicles to be parked in front of the bays (see view 3 of Figure 5-3).

East 50th Street and Immediately Surrounding Streets. The north blockfront on East 50th Street facing the project site consists of four attached buildings built to the sidewalk (see view 8 of Figure 5-5). The building directly across from the project site at 35 East 50th Street is two stories and contains a restaurant. Clad in stone block, it has Art Deco reliefs at the parapet. Filling the remainder of the block to Park Avenue is a 33-story skyscraper of a contemporary


6View northeast from Fifth Avenue and 50th Street5View east on 50th Street from St. Patrick’s Cathedral’s 50th Streetentrance. The west wall of 40 East 50th Street is visible in the distance.

Views of the Study Area - St. Patrick’s CathedralFigure 5-4

PROJECT SITE

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8View northeast on 50th Street from Madison AvenueView northwest on 50th Street from in front of St. Bartholomew’s Church’s Cafe and garden. The project site is visible in

the middle of the block.

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design (320 Park Avenue). Clad in metal, glass, and stone, the majority of the building sets back at the 13th floor and has a central pedimented tower element that faces Park Avenue; the western portion of the building on East 50th Street sets back at the fifth and seventh floors. The main entrance to the building is set within a recess on Park Avenue; a bank branch occupies the ground floor at the northwest corner of Park Avenue and 50th Street. The Madison Avenue half of the project block is occupied by the Palace Hotel, a modern 51-story stone and glass tower in the midblock that rises without setbacks above the historic four-story brownstone Villard Houses. Entrances to the Palace Hotel on East 50th and 51st Streets are through the brownstone houses. At the eastern end of the building, there is an entrance to the hotel’s subterranean parking garage from 50th Street. The Villard Houses is a group of attached four-story brownstone clad buildings dating to the end of the 19th century (see view 8 of Figure 5-5). This historic and visual resource, designed in the style of an Italian palazzo, is a U-shaped building oriented toward Madison Avenue (see Chapter 6, “Historic Resources,” for additional information). The East 50th Street façade contains rows of rectangular and round arched windows; a narrow raised planter with small shrubs and flowers is alongside the building.

East of the project site, large buildings occupying the full blocks front on the Park Avenue between East 49th and 51st Streets. On the west side of Park Avenue, these are the 25-story Colgate-Palmolive Building on the south side of 50th Street and the 33-story building at 320 Park Avenue on the north side of 50th Street. On the east side of Park Avenue, these blocks house the Waldorf-Astoria Hotel and St. Bartholomew’s Church.

The Waldorf-Astoria Hotel fills the full block between Park and Lexington Avenues and East 49th and 50th Streets (see view 9 of Figure 5-6). The grey limestone and brick-clad building is designed in the Art Deco style, with twin beacon-topped vertically massed towers rising to 47 stories (see Chapter 6, “Historic Resources”). The hotel’s main entrance on Park Avenue is marked by a bronze marquee topped by a geometrically patterned screen. Above this and flanked by flag poles, the name of the hotel in inscribed with gilded letters framed by reliefs of classically inspired figures. At the ground floor, the East 50th Street façade of the hotel contains banking services, vacant retail space, and a guest entrance, a midblock vehicular driveway extending through to 49th Street, and a number of loading bays with associated curb cuts on East 50th Street.

To the north, the St. Bartholomew’s Church complex occupies the blockfront between East 50th and 51st Streets (see view 4 of Figure 5-3). The church, designed in the Byzantine style with salmon-colored brick facades, large round-arched and rose stained-glass windows, and stone carvings representative of the life of St. Bartholomew, is at the corner of East 51st Street (see Chapter 6, “Historic Resources”). Its Park Avenue entrance consists of a single-story stone-clad structure with a triple-arched entry portal. The adjacent Community House is set back behind the garden and outdoor café at East 50th Street. This two- to five-story structure echoes the design of the church, clad in similar brick and with round arched windows and stone ornament. A stone retaining wall supports the raised outdoor café on East 50th Street. Behind and east of the community house, a 22-story brick office building extends to Lexington Avenue. The upper stories of the building cantilever over the building’s chamfered corner at Lexington Avenue, creating a triangular, triple-story covered plaza and arcade at the corner that houses an entrance to the Lexington Avenue Line subway, benches, and a small planted area.

West of the project site, the Madison Avenue blockfronts within the study area are also occupied by one large structure on each block. These include the office building at 437 Madison Avenue on the south side of 50th Street and the Villard Houses on the north. Across Madison Avenue are



9View southeast of the Waldorf-Astoria Hotel from Park Avenue and 50th Street

10St. Patrick’s Cathedral Complex, view northwest on Madison Avenue


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three of the St. Patrick’s Cathedral complex buildings; this religious complex fills the full block between Madison and Fifth Avenues and East 50th and 51st Streets (see Chapter 6, “Historic Resources”). From north to south these are the Rectory, the Lady Chapel, and the Cardinal’s Residence (see view 10 of Figure 5-6). The Rectory and Cardinal’s Residence are built to the sidewalk and are both three-and-a-half-story limestone clad mansions of similar Gothic Revival style designs, with pointed arched entrances and windows, buttresses, gables at the roofline, and slate roofs with dormer windows. Between these structures is the Lady Chapel, which contains narrow pointed-arch stained-glass windows and is capped by a copper roof with a delicate spire. It is surrounded by a small grassy area with trees. The Cathedral is oriented to the west, with its famous Gothic Revival façade composed of twin towers flanking a rose window facing Fifth Avenue (see view 6 of Figure 5-4). Along East 50th Street and Fifth Avenue, the Cathedral is set back and elevated from the streets on a granite plinth. The side wall is articulated with buttresses and pointed-arch stained-glass windows. An entrance to the Cathedral from 50th Street is set in a pointed arch with a stained glass window above. As described above, a landscaped path extends along the length of the Cathedral on East 50th Street, though the pathway east of the East 50th Street entrance is closed to pedestrians by movable metal police barricades (see view 5 of Figure 5-4). The 50th Street entrance and the main Fifth Avenue entrance are accessible from the streets by wide stone stairs, which provide gathering and seating spots for visitors in the warm weather months.

Just south of the Cathedral, the block between East 49th and East 50th Streets on the west side of Madison Avenue is occupied by a 42-story stone and brick-clad skyscraper (444 Madison Avenue). The building is built to the sidewalks and steps back in a series of setbacks commencing at the 13th floor. The ground floor of the building houses a number of retail spaces. The building’s main entrance is set within a triple-story height stone-framed entryway on Madison Avenue. The remainder of the East 50th blockfront is composed of three buildings built to the sidewalk. An 11-story building at 20 East 50th Street with an approximately 50-foot-wide street frontage is immediately contiguous to the west. Designed with Gothic Revival elements, this limestone-clad building has shallow relief stone ornament and a pointed arched arcaded entryway at ground level. West of this building, a 39-story stone-clad skyscraper of a contemporary design rises midblock. Its 50th Street entrance, composed of a recessed four-story tall glass and metal entryway, is set within the façade of Saks Fifth Avenue, which extends to and fills the Fifth Avenue blockfront. The eight- to 10-story Saks Fifth Avenue building has restrained classical ornament including Corinthian pilasters spanning the second through third floors facades, and stone shields and balustrades at the upper stories (see view 11 of Figure 5-7 and Chapter 6, “Historic Resources”). The ground floor is articulated with stone-framed entrances set between display windows capped by decorative iron cresting; the entrances on East 50th Street are covered by small iron marquees.

East 51st and 49th Streets. East 51st Street is mostly developed with buildings with large footprints that range in height from four to 51 stories. There is also a plaza and two smaller buildings. On the south side of 51st Street are the north facades of the buildings that extend through the block to 50th Street, including the Villard Houses, the Palace Hotel, and the 33-story building at 320 Park Avenue. The East 51st Street façade of the Palace Hotel contains a similar guest entrance to that on East 50th Street. At the eastern end of the 51st Street block, there are a number of ground-floor stores and restaurants in the building at 320 Park Avenue. Between the hotel and 320 Park Avenue, a smaller nine-story building with a plain contemporary façade and a ground-floor bank occupies the midblock. The north side of the 51st Street is developed with three buildings and a plaza. The 30-story office building at 350 Park Avenue occupies the



View east on 50th Street from Fifth Avenue. In the foreground are St. Patrick’s Cathedral (left corner) and Saks Fifth Avenue (right corner). The project site is

visible in the distance.

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View south on Park Avenue from 50th Street 12


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eastern third of the block. The building has glass and metal curtain wall facades, with stores at the ground floor. The building sets back from Park Avenue and East 51st Street commencing at the 10th floor. In the middle of the block, the glass and metal, 24-story office tower at 40 East 52nd Street rises behind a plaza. Bordering the plaza to the west is a turn-of-the-century brick townhouse (39 East 51st Street). This five-story building has classical ornament, including a stone-clad base, a cornice, and dormer windows (see Chapter 6, “Historic Resources,” Figure 6-4). The eastern wall of the building is a blank, former party wall now exposed to the plaza. The western third of the East 51st Street blockfront, at Madison Avenue, is filled by a 23-story office building. This buff-colored brick building has numerous “wedding cake” setbacks and is topped by a mechanical penthouse with venting louvers. Loading dock facilities and an associated curb cut are located at the eastern end of the building.

Between Park and Madison Avenues, the north side of 49th Street contains the south facades of the buildings on the project block, including the office building at 437 Madison Avenue and plaza occupying roughly the western half of the block, the Colgate-Palmolive Building occupying approximately the eastern half of the block, and the two-story ING Bank building in between. The south façade of the office building at 437 Madison Avenue is similar to its East 50th Street façade, and the plaza contains similar lighting and seating features. The south façade of the Colgate-Palmolive Building contains a café. The south side of 49th Street between Park and Madison Avenues is occupied primarily by 280 Park Avenue, a 17- to 42-story office tower that occupies the eastern two-thirds of the block and is set back from Park Avenue and East 49th and 48th Streets. Along Park Avenue, this building is set on a 17-story base with a grid-like stone cladding and a narrow tower above that rises an additional 11 stories. Midblock, a larger tower rises approximately 42 stories; a 17-story bridge connects the Park Avenue and midblock towers, creating a through-block pedestrian walkway between East 48th and 49th Streets. As described above, a restaurant in the ground floor of the 42-story tower, the Prince Grill (60 East 49th Street) provides outdoor seating in the warm weather months. Immediately west of 280 Park Avenue, a 20-story office building stands at the corner of 49th Street and Madison Avenue. It is set on a two-story base with ground-floor retail stores and a polished stone façade; the upper stories are clad in buff-brick and set back from Madison Avenue by approximately 20 feet.

VISUAL RESOURCES, VIEWER GROUPS, AND VIEW DURATIONS

Viewer groups in the area consist of motorists and pedestrians. Within the study area, traffic is typically heavy on the avenues and somewhat lighter on the side streets. Motorists on the avenues typically have expansive, though fleeting views of visual resources in the area, since traffic lights are typically synchronized to allow for traffic to flow quickly. Traffic is slower on the side streets and is at times congested, allowing for more sustained views. Motorists on Fifth, Madison, and Park Avenues have views of such conspicuously visible visual resources in the area, such as St. Bartholomew’s Church, St. Patrick’s Cathedral, and the Waldorf-Astoria Hotel (see Figures 5-3, 5-4, and 5-6). Since the study area is located within Midtown Manhattan, the area is also bustling with pedestrians, including office workers and tourists. Pedestrian traffic is typically heavier on the avenues than on the side streets; there are heavy concentrations of tourists at the area’s numerous landmark buildings, including St. Patrick’s Cathedral, St. Bartholomew’s Church, and at Saks Fifth Avenue (see Figures 5-3, 5-4, and 5-7). Tourists tend to stand in groups and have sustained views of visual resources in the area. Workers are typically in a hurry, although they do look up and around on their way to and from the office.

In terms of visual resources, viewer groups may be divided into two categories, those that have views of visual resources and those that have views from visual resources or visually sensitive


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locations. Within the study area there are a large number of visual resources. These include the area’s historic and visual landmarks, including St. Patrick’s Cathedral, St. Bartholomew’s Church, the Villard Houses, the Waldorf-Astoria Hotel, and Saks Fifth Avenue, as well significant view corridors.

The preeminent visual resource and tourist destination in the study area is St. Patrick’s Cathedral, an imposing late 19th century Gothic-Revival Church (see Figure 5-4). Its design, a combination of massive stone walls and delicate stained glass windows and spires, as well as its surrounding landscaped areas, provides the area with a unique historic and visual landmark. The St. Patrick’s Cathedral complex is prominently visible to motorists and pedestrians on the immediately surrounding streets; its Fifth Avenue spires are visible at a greater distance due to their height. The steps of St. Patrick’s Cathedral, especially at its Fifth Avenue entrance, are typically filled with visitors standing in groups or resting (see view 6 of Figure 5-4). The viewers on Fifth Avenue have expansive views up and down the avenue and directly across East 50th Street to the Saks Fifth Avenue display windows. A smaller number of pedestrians congregate outside the Cathedral’s East 50th Street entrance. The viewers on these steps as well as on the landscaped pedestrian walkway have views east and west on 50th Street, including of the project site. From this location, the project site is visible at an angle; the most visible element is the west blank wall of the building at 44 East 50th St, the westernmost building on the site (see view 5 of Figure 5-4). Viewers on the steps of the Cathedral at the corner of Fifth Avenue and East 50th Street also have views of the project site; these are similar to those views from the East 50th Street entrance, though they are at a greater distance.

There are fewer visitors along the Cathedral complex’s eastern end on Madison Avenue (see view 10 of Figure 5-6). The project site is only partially visible from the small set of stairs leading to the Cardinal’s Residence at the northwest corner of Madison Avenue and East 50th Street; only a portion of the west wall of 44 East 50th Street and the tall water tower above 46 East 50th Street are visible. In any case, the Cardinal’s Residence building is not publicly accessible and the steps do not provide an inviting seating location. North of the Cardinal’s Residence, the project site is not visible, since the Villard Houses and Palace Hotel block views.

St. Bartholomew’s Church, including its garden and café in the warm weather months, is another prominent visual resource in the study area (see view 4 of Figure 5-3). Though of a smaller scale and massing than St. Patrick’s Cathedral, the church’s distinctive Byzantine design with its large stained glass windows are arresting and easily catch the viewer’s eye. The garden and café, especially in warm weather months when the café is not enclosed, provide a pleasant open and green oasis within a densely built area with few large open spaces. The St. Bartholomew’s Church complex is prominently visible up and down Park Avenue; this avenue’s width of approximately 140 feet, including its wide landscaped median, allow for expansive views of this resource. The project site is visible from the church’s garden (see view 7 of Figure 5-5). It is also visible in the warm weather months from the café when it is not enclosed by a tent. These views are also at an angle; the Colgate-Palmolive Building partially blocks views of the eastern building on the project site (50 East 50th Street).

Other historic and visual landmarks in the area are the Villard Houses, the Waldorf-Astoria Hotel, and Saks Fifth Avenue. The Villard Houses recollect a previous century by virtue of their small height and U-shaped plan that creates an attractive courtyard on Madison Avenue (see “Historic Resources,” Figure 6-2). The Waldorf-Astoria Hotel is a massive and imposing building with eye-catching Art Deco ornament including bronze entrance marquees and gilding (see view 9 of Figure 5-6). Its twin 625-foot tall towers are visible to the viewer when looking


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up. While the Saks Fifth Avenue building is itself not of an architectural quality comparable to other historic buildings in the area, its ground floor, including its storefronts with iron cresting and festive displays within, provide visual interest at street level (see view 11 of Figure 5-7). In addition, shoppers gazing at the windows and entering and exiting the store provide a cheerful, bustling atmosphere.

Within the study area, visual resources also include typical street-level views from the sidewalk. While views tend to be short on the narrow cross streets, they are more expansive on the avenues. Views on Lexington, Madison, and Fifth Avenues include the various types, heights, and designs of the buildings that line them, including various stores at ground level and a variety of building crowns. Views north on all the avenues continue indefinitely; views south on Madison Avenue eventually terminate at the buildings on 23rd Street, where Madison Avenue dead-ends. The views on Park Avenue are especially expansive due to its width and its design as a boulevard with a wide landscaped median. Park Avenue offers a north-south vista that includes all its sidewalks, roadways and median, building plazas, and a variety of office buildings, all focusing at its southern end at the Helmsley Building, with its grand pyramidal roof capped by an ornate cupola silhouetted against the 58-story, concrete, steel, and glass 1960s Metropolitan Life Building (see view 12 of Figure 5-7).

The project site is visible on East 50th Street between Park and Madison Avenues; it is scarcely visible from Lexington Avenue since the Colgate-Palmolive Building partially blocks views and most of the buildings on the site are slightly set back from the street. It is more visible—though at a distance—from Fifth Avenue, since the setback of the office building at 437 Madison Avenue behind a plaza allows for views of the west wall of 44 East 50th Street and the water tower and sixth story additions above the buildings east of it (see view 11 of Figure 5-7). The site is visible from the intersection of East 50th Street with Madison and Park Avenues (see view 7 of Figure 5-5); it is more visible from the opposite side of the street than the same side. The project site is not visible on East 51st Street since buildings on the intervening block obstruct views.

Only the very top of the mechanical penthouse above 44 East 50th Street on the project site is visible to pedestrians above the two-story ING Café on the project site on East 49th Street. Because of the narrow width of the ING building and the height of the Colgate-Palmolive Building and office building at 437 Madison Avenue that flank it, this small portion of the project site is only visible to the pedestrian from directly in front of the two-story building. The small, narrow ING building itself is only visible to passing traffic and pedestrians in the immediate vicinity of East 49th Street between Park and Madison Avenues. It is also visible from an outdoor café—The Prince Grill—across the street (described below), though views from this location are in context with passing traffic on East 49th Street, including trucks, that partially obstruct views.

The urban plazas in the area also provide visual amenities where there are seating areas, greenery, and other pedestrian-friendly features such as decorative lighting and fountains. Within the study area, the plazas typically provide limited views due either to location or design. The urban plaza at East 51st Street contains the most amenities, with a fountain, trees, flowers, and seating. However, this plaza is located midblock, and, therefore, only allows for views on East 51st Street. Similarly, the plaza at 437 Madison Avenue, by virtue of its provision of seating only on the side streets, also provides for limited views, though its location at the corner of Madison Avenue allows for greater views to the west on East 50th Street, including views of the south façade of the Villard Houses and the southeastern portion of the St. Patrick’s Cathedral


April 2006 5-10

complex. In views east on East 50th Street, the blank west wall of 44 East 50th Street on the project site is visible to viewers in the plaza (see view 3 of Figure 5-3). A portion of the St. Bartholomew’s Community House and Café St. Bart’s is also visible. Views from the covered plaza at 560 Lexington Avenue are the most limited; the facades of the building, subway entrance, and brick support piers obstruct most views from the plaza. From this location, the project site is not visible.

ALTERNATIVE A (NO ACTION ALTERNATIVE)

The East Side Access Project as analyzed in the Final Environmental Impact Statement (FEIS) envisioned an underground ventilation facility near 50th Street, with grates in the sidewalks on 49th and 50th Streets between Madison and Park Avenues to provide fresh air and for exhaust. These grates would be similar in appearance to other grates throughout the city.

Alternative A, the no action alternative, assumes the buildings on the 50th Street site would remain. The visual character of the buildings on the site fronting East 50th Street could change somewhat; vacant space in the buildings may be filled resulting in improvements to the appearance of the buildings, e.g., concrete block within the window openings at 44 East 50th Street could be replaced with glass if this space is occupied by a new tenant. In addition, development of an eye institute in the building at 48 East 50th Street could result in changes to the building’s appearance.

Within the study area, no new development, or zoning or public policy changes are anticipated. Therefore, it is expected that the urban design character and visual resources in the study area will remain unchanged.

C. PROBABLE IMPACTS OF BUILD ALTERNATIVES

ALTERNATIVE B (50TH STREET FACILITY WITHOUT THROUGH DRIVE)

PROJECT SITE

Urban Design The programmatic requirements of the 50th Street facility, which include ventilation, cooling, and loading dock functions for the new LIRR concourse, largely dictate the appearance of the facility. In Alternative B, the 50th Street facility would replace the four significantly altered former townhouses on East 50th Street with a six-story, approximately 153-foot-tall facility of a unified design (see Figure 5-8). The facility’s setbacks would conform to New York City’s zoning requirements for commercial buildings; it would set back 10 feet from East 50th Street at the fifth floor, 90 feet above street level (for more information on zoning, see Chapter 3, “Land Use, Zoning and Public Policy, and Social Conditions”). The mechanical screen on the roof would step back an additional 7 feet.

The 50th Street facility in this alternative would be clad in metal panels, metal louvers, translucent or transparent glass, and stone. The ground floor would contain two loading bays with roll-down metal doors, where trucks would back in to make deliveries to the Grand Central Terminal complex and new LIRR concourse. A combination of stone panels, metal panels, and translucent glass would frame the entrances. Also on the ground floor, the west corner would be clad in glass, as would a pedestrian entryway east of the vehicular entrances. It is possible that either translucent or transparent glass may be used in this location. Recessed lighting may be



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Alternative B

Figure 5-8


5-11 April 2006

used to illuminate the western glazed corner of the facility. Translucent or transparent glass panels would also be used at the upper stories in addition to aluminum cladding. These materials would frame bands of metal venting louvers located above the second story on the East 50th Street façade. A narrow strip of venting louvers, extending from the second to fifth floors, would be located on the western façade of the facility. The vertical heights and areas of the venting louvers are largely dictated by the requirements of the mechanical equipment inside.

Three cooling tower cells, which would be part of the air conditioning system for the new Long Island Rail Road (LIRR) concourse would be located atop the facility behind an approximately 21-foot-high screen of metal panels. The screen wall would be set back from the façade below, similar to the 50th Street facility’s other setbacks. The screen wall would be clad in metal panels of the same material, color, and dimensions as the rest of the facility.

The cooling tower would emit a mist consisting of microscopic droplets of condensed water vapor at certain times of year when warm temperatures are combined with high humidity. This mist would resemble that produced by other cooling towers on buildings throughout Midtown Manhattan. Most of time, the mist would be confined to the region immediately above or beside the cooling tower, according to the results of a dispersion modeling analysis conducted as part of the cooling tower’s design. The mist would be visible from nearby windows. For approximately 300 hours per year, out of a total of 8,760 hours, the mist would extend beyond the 50th Street facility’s rooftop.

New curb cuts in the sidewalk in front of the facility would allow vehicles to back into the loading dock. Connections to the new LIRR terminal at Grand Central Terminal would be below grade beneath East 50th Street and therefore not visible when the project is complete.

Visual Resources, Viewer Groups, and View Durations As described above, the buildings on the project site, which present a discordant appearance due to a variety of rooftop additions and modern façade alterations including storefronts, do not constitute visual resources. Therefore, the proposed demolition of these structures would not result in adverse impacts to visual resources on the project site.

STUDY AREA

Urban Design The 50th Street facility’s modern glass and metal design in Alternative B would be consistent with nearby modern office buildings, particularly the building at 300 Park Avenue immediately east of the project site and to other office buildings in the study area, which are stone, metal, and glass. In addition, the horizontal panel divisions and fenestration of the new building are similar in size to those of adjacent buildings. Though most of the tall buildings that front on East 50th Street between Park and Madison Avenues have setbacks commencing at the 13th and 15th floors (300 and 320 Park Avenue and 437 Madison Avenue), the massing of the 50th Street facility in Alternative B would be somewhat comparable to that of the western portion of 320 Park Avenue located diagonally across the street from the project site, as both would have a number of setbacks commencing beneath the 10th floor. The height of the facility, at approximately 153 feet, would be in keeping with the existing built context of the immediately surrounding buildings and remainder of the study area, which contains tall skyscrapers as well as shorter buildings. The 50th Street facility would retain the pattern of shorter buildings on midblocks adjacent to taller buildings on the avenues, as typical in the study area.


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The presence of louvers on the façade of the facility for exhaust functions and loading bays would add elements also found on other buildings throughout the study area. The 50th Street facility would be more utilitarian in character than others found elsewhere in the study area. The venting louvers would be located on the main portion of the facility’s façade instead of being located in a rooftop mechanical penthouse, which is more typically found on the office towers in the study area, including the adjoining building at 437 Park Avenue. However, the proposed loading bays and associated sidewalk curb cuts would not be out of character on East 50th Street. Both of the buildings adjoining the project site, 300 Park Avenue and 437 Madison Avenue, have loading bays on East 50th Street with roll-down metal gates similar to the ones proposed on the 50th Street facility; a loading bay is also located directly across 50th Street from the project site in the 320 Park Avenue building. On East 49th Street, 437 Madison Avenue has a loading bay as well. Similarly, the building’s cooling tower would be consistent with the numerous other rooftop cooling towers throughout the study area. The 50th Street facility would not have height, massing, or materials that are significantly different from those found in the study area, and its overall appearance would not be out of character in the study area. For these reasons, the proposed project is not expected to have a significant adverse impact on the urban design of the study area.

Visual Resources, Viewer Groups, and View Durations Because of its relatively small (80-foot-wide) midblock site, the 50th Street facility would be visible to pedestrians and motorists in a way that is comparable to the four buildings now on the site. Although it would be taller than the existing buildings on the project site, the new facility would still be substantially shorter than 300 Park Avenue (25 stories) and 437 Madison Avenue (40 stories), and therefore its visibility would not increase in views from East 50th Street and Park and Madison Avenues. As a streetwall building with setbacks beginning at 90 feet in height, the 50th Street facility in Alternative B would be consistent in bulk to other midblock office buildings in the surrounding area.

The new facility would generally be visible from the same locations as the existing buildings on the project site, including locations from the east and west down 50th Street between Fifth and Lexington Avenues. From those locations, the 50th Street facility in Alternative B would appear as part of the typical Midtown Manhattan streetscape, similar to views of the site today.

The only location in the study area where the facility in Alternative B would be visible while the existing buildings on the project site are not is in views north from East 49th Street above the two-story ING Café. Views of an approximately 20-foot-wide band of the upper stories of the rear façade of the facility (the width of the existing ING building on the site), consisting of a portion of the rooftop screen and glazing that would enclose a pedestrian staircase, would be visible across East 49th Street in close proximity to the ING Café, including from the Prince Grill outdoor café. However, since the rear façade of the new facility would be visible in the distance behind the ING Café and views of the ING Café are already partially blocked by traffic from the Prince Grill, this change would not constitute a significant adverse effect on visual resources.

The mist that would rise under certain atmospheric conditions from the facility’s rooftop cooling tower in Alternative B would only be clearly visible to viewers in close proximity to the facility on East 50th Street, since most views of the rooftop area are blocked by the tall office buildings at 300 Park Avenue and 437 Madison Avenue. This mist would be similar in appearance to that associated with other cooling towers found on many buildings throughout Midtown Manhattan. Cooling towers, which all emit such mist, are common visual elements in Midtown Manhattan.


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With a bulk typical of other buildings in the area and with the same streetwall façade as the existing building on the project site, the 50th Street facility would not block any views to visual resources or block important view corridors.

For the reasons described above—namely the project site’s midblock location and the height of the immediately surrounding buildings—the 50th Street facility would be similarly visible from prominent visual resources in the area—St. Patrick’s Cathedral and St. Bartholomew’s Church and Café St. Bart’s—as are the existing buildings on the site. In views southeast from the East 50th Street entrance and walkway around St. Patrick’s Cathedral, views of the blank brick wall of the westernmost building on the project site (44 East 50th Street) would be replaced by views of the western wall of the 50th Street facility, including the western glazed corner and strip of venting louvers. Views from St. Bartholomew’s Church and from its outdoor café (in warm weather when there is no tent) and garden would include the western portion of the façade at an angle; the Colgate-Palmolive Building at 300 Park Avenue would partially block views of the eastern corner of the building. Since these views would be at a distance, and the proposed facility would be designed with height, massing, and materials that are comparable to other buildings on East 50th Street and the remainder of the study area, the 50th Street facility would simply become part of the larger views of East 50th Street available from these resources.

Based on the analysis presented above, the 50th Street facility in Alternative B would not result in any significant adverse impacts to the visual resources or urban design of the study area.

ALTERNATIVE C (50TH STREET FACILITY WITH THROUGH DRIVE)

PROJECT SITE

Urban Design In addition to demolishing 44-50 East 50th Street, the 50th Street facility in Alternative C would have a through-drive entrance from 49th Street, which would entail the demolition of the ING Café building at 45 East 49th Street. This building would be replaced by a vehicle entrance set within a structure of approximately the same height as the existing two-story building (see Figure 5-9). The 50th Street facility would be clad in aluminum and possibly also glazed panels. The size and shape of the panels would be designed to match those of the adjoining Colgate-Palmolive Building to the east. A guard booth, likely to be partially clad in bulletproof glass, would be located within the facility adjoining the centrally located vehicular entrance. The door to this entrance would also be clad in metal panels similar to those to be used on the façade of the 50th Street facility and the Colgate-Palmolive Building. A pedestrian doorway would also be located within the central opening.

The addition of the through drive would alter the placement and configuration of the mechanical functions within the portion of the facility on East 50th Street compared to Alternative B. Though the height and general massing of the 50th Street facility in Alternative C would be comparable to Alternative B, the reconfiguration would somewhat change the appearance of the facility’s façade on East 50th Street. In Alternative C, the ground-floor façade would contain only one vehicular entrance. The west corner, which in Alternative B would contain a glass-clad emergency pedestrian corridor, would instead consist of an air shaft and be clad in stone in Alternative C (see Figure 5-10). It is still possible that the ground floor of the west façade of the 50th Street facility could be lit in a similar fashion as in Alternative B. Also, additional glazing would be placed at the pedestrian entrance east of the vehicular driveway. At the upper stories, the configuration and placement of the venting louvers would change somewhat; however,


Alternative C, East 49th Street Facade 5 0 t h S t r e e t F a c i l i t y E A

Figure 5-9

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Figure 5-10

Existing Conditions

View Southeast on 50th Street

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Alternative C Preferred Alternative D


April 2006 5-14

louvers would commence at the second floor as in the design option without the through driveway. Aluminum and glazed panels would compose the remainder of the façade at the upper stories; a mechanical screen to obstruct views of the cooling tower would be similar to that of Alternative B. It is expected that there would be mist above the cooling tower of a similar visibility as described above for Alternative B.

Visual Resources, Viewer Groups, and View Durations The proposed demolition of the ING Café would remove a building of visual interest from the project site. This change would change views to the project site from the study area, as discussed below.

STUDY AREA

Urban Design In Alternative C, since the design of the facility’s 50th Street façade in terms of height, massing, and use of materials would not differ substantially from that of the design for the 50th Street facility in Alternative B, the proposed effects on the urban design of the study area would be similar to those described above for Alternative B. The design of the entranceway on 49th Street, with metal cladding and possible glazing, would be in keeping with the materials of the adjacent buildings. The vehicular entrance with a curb cut would not be of a significantly different urban design character than the adjacent garage entrance at 437 Madison Avenue, or other existing loading docks on East 50th Street or East 49th Street, between Park and Madison Avenues. Therefore, the 50th Street facility in Alternative C would not result in significant adverse impacts to the urban design of the study area.

Visual Resources, Viewer Groups, and View Durations Since the height and massing of the facility in Alternative C would be comparable to that in Alternative B, the visibility of the 50th Street facility from the surrounding area would also be similar. Views from visual resources, including the St. Bartholomew’s Church garden and St. Patrick’s Cathedral would not be significantly altered. (Figures 5-11 and 5-12 show comparative views from these resources under existing conditions and the future with Alternative C.)

The demolition of the ING Café in Alternative C would remove a visual resource from the study area, a building that is of a unique design and transparency and that is of interest to passing pedestrians on East 49th Street and viewers seated at the Prince Grill across the street. The removal of this building and its replacement by a structure with a vehicular entrance would adversely affect views to the project site. However, this change would not be expected to be significant, since it would only affect views within a very small area; as described above, the small size of the 50th Street facility and its midblock location limit views to within the immediate proximity of it. In addition, views to ING Café from the outdoor Prince Café, where viewers have the most sustained views, are in context with passing traffic including large trucks on East 49th Street. It is expected that this traffic would also partially block views to the 50th Street facility and the vehicular entrance. Therefore, while Alternative C would result in an adverse impact to visual resources—namely the demolition of the ING Café—the limited nature of the views to the site as a result of the existing built context and the anticipated minimal visibility of the 50th Street facility to the surrounding area (the height of the facility on 49th Street would be similar to that of the existing ING Café building) would not result in a change that is significant.


Figure 5-11

Alternative CExisting Conditions

View West on 50th Street from St. Bartholomew’s Church’s Garden

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E A S T S I D E A C C E S S 5 0 t h S t r e e t F a c i l i t y E A View East on 50th Street from St. Patrick’s Cathedral

Figure 5-12

Alternative CExisting Conditions

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5-15 April 2006

Overall, the 50th Street facility in Alternative C would not result in significant adverse impacts to the urban design and visual resources of the study area.

PREFERRED ALTERNATIVE D (50TH STREET FACILITY WITH THROUGH DRIVE AND PUBLIC OPEN SPACE)

PROJECT SITE

Urban Design Preferred Alternative D would differ from Alternatives B and C by creating a smaller 50th Street facility and an open space on East 50th Street (see Figures 5-10 and Figure 5-13). Above grade, the facility would be L-shaped and range in height from approximately 40 to 65 feet. Fronting on East 50th Street, the facility would consist of an approximately 40-foot-wide and 65-foot-tall structure located on the western half of the project site. It is expected that the 50th Street facility would be clad in metal panels of a similar size and shape as those of the adjoining Colgate-Palmolive Building to the east (see Figure 5-13).The East 50th Street façade would contain a vehicle entrance at the ground floor and rows of metal exhaust louvers above. The eastern façade of the facility would also be clad in metal panels, with louvers at the upper floors.

The eastern half of the project site (approximately 40 feet of frontage on 50th Street) would consist of a landscaped public open space in front of an approximately 50-foot-high structure at the rear of the property. A water feature on the north façade of this structure would form the south wall of the new open space. The open space would have decorative paving, plantings, and seating areas. A wall with a stone clad veneer would frame the open space on the east side of project site next to the Colgate-Palmolive Building, to approximately the height of the new 50th Street facility. It is expected that the open space would be closed at night by metal gates, as are other such small plaza areas in the city, including Paley Park.

Like Alternative C, described earlier, the Preferred Alternative D would also include an approximately 20-foot-high enclosed through drive from East 49th Street, replacing the existing ING Café building with a vehicle entrance set within a structure of approximately the same height as the existing two-story building and clad in aluminum panels.

As described in Chapter 2, the new East Side Access Project cooling tower in Preferred Alternative D would be located on the roof of the adjacent Colgate-Palmolive Building, more than 250 feet above the street. The three cooling tower units would be placed in the current location of that building’s existing cooling tower units, which are located near the building’s 49th Street façade. Three new cooling tower units would be added to the rooftop of the Park Avenue portion of the Colgate-Palmolive building to serve that building.

Visual Resources, Viewer Groups, and View Durations The removal of the ING Café to create the through drive on East 49th Street would have similar effects as those described above for Alternative C, in that it would remove a structure of visual interest on the project site.

E A S T S I D E A C C E S S 5 0 t h S t r e e t F a c i l i t y E A Preferred Alternative D

Figure 5-13

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April 2006 5-16

STUDY AREA

Urban Design Preferred Alternative D would result in a 50th Street facility with a height comparable to that of the buildings presently on the project site and a small open space containing amenities similar to those present in other small parks and plazas located in the study area and elsewhere in Midtown Manhattan. It is expected that the massing and use materials would not differ substantially from other buildings in the study area, and that the new facility would become part of an urban context that includes older and shorter structures, and more recently erected office buildings with vehicular entries. It is further expected that the new open space would provide an attractive urban design amenity to 50th Street. Therefore, Preferred Alternative D would not result in significant adverse impacts to the urban design of the study area.

Visual Resources, Viewer Groups, and View Durations Due to the substantial reduction in height and scale of the 50th Street facility in Preferred Alternative D, it is expected that it would be less visible in the surrounding area than Alternative B or C. However, as described above, the construction of a larger facility in Alternative B or C is not anticipated to result in any significant adverse impacts on visual resources. The new cooling tower units added to the Park Avenue portion of the roof of the Colgate-Palmolive Building at 300 Park Avenue in Preferred Alternative D would likely be visible from some locations on Park Avenue, where they would appear similar to the numerous other cooling towers on office buildings throughout Midtown Manhattan. As described earlier, the new cooling tower units, like all cooling towers, would emit condensed water vapor during certain weather conditions. This mist would resemble that produced by other cooling towers on buildings throughout Midtown Manhattan.

As has been described above, the demolition of the ING Café would not be expected to result in significant adverse impacts to visual resources.

The proposed open space would provide a welcome visual resource on the street, which has limited greenery and landscaping elements. Therefore, Preferred Alternative D would not result in significant adverse impacts to visual resources in the study area, and in fact would positively affect visual resources by creating a new visual amenity in the study area.

CONCLUSIONS

The new 50th Street facility under any of the build alternatives is not expected to result in significant adverse impacts to the visual character of the surrounding area. In all three alternatives, the new facility would be of modern design, with similar materials (metal and glass) to the modern office buildings nearby. Alternative C and Preferred Alternative D would require the demolition of 45 East 49th Street (the ING Café), would remove a building of visual interest from the project site and would be considered to be an adverse impact. Overall, however, because of the limited nature of the views to the site as a result of the existing built context and the anticipated minimal visibility of the proposed structure to the surrounding area, removal of this building would not constitute a significant adverse impact on urban design and visual resources. Preferred Alternative D would be substantially smaller in height and scale than Alternatives B and C and therefore would be less visible in the surrounding area. Preferred Alternative D would also bring a new open space to 50th Street, creating a positive benefit for the area’s streetscape.