Skyline Tower

The tallest building in Long Island City, Skyline Tower will rise 67 stories.  The 800 condominium units will have unparalleled 360 degree views of Manhattan and the surrounding skyline.  This all glass curtainwall building is a sleek, monolithic structure with re-entrant corners articulating the form and creating a place for balconies.  The designers used two shades of glass, a neutral blue on the broader faces of the building and a clear green on the edges.  The result is a building that appears to expose its special interiors beyond its glassy exterior. The base and crown are screened with metal fins that add lightness and conceal parking at the base.  This language of metal fins allows the private residential entry and the public MTA entry at the building base to both relate to each other and be separate.

The building features a double-height sky-lit amenity space with a mezzanine lounge overlooking a pool on the 3^rd floor. On the 5^th floor amenities overlook an exterior terrace. A fitness center, sauna, spa, yoga room, parking, and storage round out the luxury experience.

The Rockwell

Gemma Gramercy

Gemma is the first time that Hill West has designed to Passive House standards, merging sustainability with forward-thinking, luxurious and efficient design to set an example for a more eco-conscious New York City skyline. Developed by SMA Equities, Gemma Gramercy’s 108 rental units range from studios to two-bedrooms to showcase sweeping views of Gramercy and the surrounding neighborhoods.

Tower 28

Tower 28 in Long Island City was designed to be a 58-story residential rental tower inclusive of a luxury amenity experience to rival any vacation destination.  The building is comprised of two connected segments; the tower on 28^th Street houses all of the 451 residential units, while the smaller building on 27^th Street houses amenities including a pool, a fitness center, spa, sauna and yoga studio. The two segments are connected on the 2^nd floor by a covered breezeway and share a roof deck that can be opened in summer months via a Nanawall to the pool in the amenity building.

The tower’s mass is broken into lighter volumes to create a slender volumetric expression.   A combination of spandrel glass and fritted glass panels in a variety of different colors and patterns, are layered to create compositions that move up the building in shifting, dynamic movements.  The observation deck on the 60^th floor of the building allows residents to take in the incredible views.

1 Flatbush

1 Flatbush Avenue, a 19-story, 183-unit rental building, sits at a busy intersection in Brooklyn on a wedge-like site. This corner site called for a contextual building with a large, three story, double-height retail base.  Hill West created a masonry building with glass structures pushing out as they rise above the base.  Referencing industrial language, columns rise from the storefront to the third story where a setback allows for a recessed amenity terrace.

The residential entrance is on Fulton Street with convenient nearby subway access. A two story vestibule with a grand chandelier is set apart from the retail entrances by a bronze marquis.  Some units have private terraces and all residents enjoy the rooftop amenity terrace with BBQs, a shuffleboard court and views of the Manhattan Bridge to the South.  The terrace parapets were designed with a view gap specifically to allow enjoyment of the views at the 3rd floor and rooftop.

Ocean Drive

Ocean Drive, 3514 Surf Avenue is a 21-story, 425-unit, market-rate apartment building that brings “Miami sophistication” to the Coney Island Boardwalk. Located outside of the gated communities in the surrounding neighborhood, Ocean Drive enhances the area with a large retail space set to house a quality neighborhood food store, improves the boardwalk and street ends, and ushers in a rebirth to the area.

The beach and boardwalk informed the placement of the structural elements and the program of the building’s foundation. The heavier two towers were shifted back toward Surf Avenue while the lighter garage structure was moved towards the beach to mitigate erosion and depths of excavation required for the foundation. Ocean Drive’s garage location presented a challenge, but ultimately allowed our design team to develop a creative and effective solution. Our team cladded the garage with the goal of creating a landmark while providing a playful, 3-dimensional façade appropriate for the boardwalk and beachfront.

The design team and landscape architect collaborated on a design that serves the community with a public space for food, activity centers, shade, seating, and lush plantings allowing the building and boardwalk to become a destination in the neighborhood.

As the first market-rate building in the area in two decades, Ocean Drive is a renaissance in the community of Coney Island.

Chelsea 29

Chelsea 29 will be a 21-story, 95-unit residential rental building with both retail and parking at West 29^th Street, west of 7^th Avenue. The building’s form is an updated take on the setback, “wedding cake” aesthetic of the pre-war commercial high-rises that line the blocks of the Garment District.   The façade has an elegant vertical emphasis and is organized into three bays of windows separated by vertical limestone piers that start at the base and rise to the top through a series of setbacks and terraces.  Each pier is capped by a decorative T-shaped metal finial in a dark metal finish.  A series of thinner mullions clad in a matching metal rise between the limestone piers to create each of the three window bays.  Dark metal grills and limestone bars make up the spandrels between the windows.

A series of setbacks between the 13th and 16th floors create landscaped terraces fronted by glass balustrades. The building meets the street with two lower floors that embrace an aesthetic of polished and textured metal surfaces along with glass. The entrance sits underneath a glass canopy suspended by two steel rods and surrounded by metal mesh.  The resulting composition is not an imitation of the past, but rather a modern reinterpretation of the district’s historic spirit that recalls a time when commercial high-rises shared their urban space with light manufacturing facilities.

7 Penn Plaza

Working with our affiliated interiors firm, Whitehall, Hill West created a new entry canopy and lobby for this corporate office tower. The lobby was transformed into a 16 foot, grand space clad in honed and textured limestone. The new reception desk, wrapped in polished marble and onyx mosaic sits in a central location accentuated by a strategically dropped ceiling. Cove lighting and warm hand applied Venetian plaster finish add warmth to this serene space that is classic, clean and fresh all at once.

1399 Park Ave

Rising to 22 stories with 78 condominium units, 1399 Park Avenue emerges as a beacon alongside the Park Avenue Railroad viaduct in East Harlem.  The sculptural form is composed of architectural concrete, metal and glass.  The building rises through a “Mondrian-like” composition of interlocking cubes and volumes.  The building is a true expression of New York City urban design traditions, merging zoning, function and aesthetics into a singular sculptural form.  David West, the project’s lead designer and premiere NYC zoning expert was the perfect counterpart to a client who encouraged excellence beyond the typical hurdles.  Despite its height and size, the building has the ambiance of a boutique residence.  The scale of the lobby and the amenities provide all that a resident could hope for without sacrificing a feeling of intimacy. An integral part of the 5^th floor amenity space is a lounge that spills out onto a terrace and seamlessly blends interior and exterior space. Even the furniture defies boundaries as the bar/table/grill element penetrates the glass between the lounge and the terrace.

The site’s zoning challenges led to some unique moves that helped to shape the form while also still allowing for function.  The building resembles a series of nested cubes suspended from a solid vertical spine.  The mass was first informed by zoning needs but then took sculptural form with deliberate manipulation by the designers.  A cube hovers above other forms as the central shape around which other forms wrap.  Large exposed columns and a recessed amenity terrace at the 5^th floor augment the impression of a hovering cube separated from other forms by voids all around.  Glass surfaces increase as the building rises to allow for views.  Private terraces wrap the building at multiple levels and capture spectacular views of a vibrant neighborhood including such hidden gems as the community garden to the south.

Hill West created a landmark in the Harlem skyline by combining function and aesthetic in a tower that Harlem can be proud of.