We live in Manhattan, and when we moved to West 57th Street ten years ago, it was a quite district, filled with business people rushing in the morning to the offices, but by the early evening, it became quite and secluded. With the exception of concerts in Carnegie Hall where you could see elegant people in nightgowns and stylish suits, the area was widely asleep. Architecturally, it has been one of favorite neighborhoods, because it was filled with exquisite prewar small, landmark, white glove buildings, attracted performing artists, creatives, and lots of city dogs, just perfect for us.
But soon things started to change dramatically when massive construction of the tallest and most expensive towers in New York had turned the hood into New York’s center of new developments, which quickly became known as the Billionaires row. To some people, these towers became intimidating, clashing with the fabric and sensibilities of everything this hood stood for. Architecture critic Martin Filler has published a remarkable article in the New York Review of Books where he analyzes the politic, zoning, aesthetic, and what has made these condominiums happened.
