Trinity Church has set plans in motion for the redevelopment of offices at 68-74 Trinity Place, with the original buildings to be replaced by a new 32-story tower designed by Pelli Clarke Pelli. The base will house Trinity Church’s administration offices, and will be topped by a 25-story residential component. Per Archpaper, the tower will cost $35 million, which is marginally more expensive than renovating the existing space up to the future building code, which would have cost $33 million.
Unfortunately for the neighborhood, the existing building is a historical beauty, though diminutive by New York standards. At 25 floors it certainly isn’t large, but the tower enjoys a vantage point overlooking Trinity Church and its cemetery, and creates a unified street wall with the neighboring American Stock Exchange Building. Together, the block’s buildings are a definite reminder of the Financial District’s architectural legacy, but the Pelli Clarke Pelli design will change that dynamic.
Renderings of the new tower show a fairly standard glass box rising above the administrative podium, which contrasts with adjacent historic structures – the visual continuity between the former buildings and the AMEX will be broken, as the residential portion of the new tower is set back from the street. Still, the ‘podium’ is visually cohesive – especially for new construction – and the enormous windows will create a far brighter space for Trinity’s use than the current structure allows.
The Church began the re-design with a competition, with Pelli Clarke Pelli’s proposal beating COOKFOX‘s submission; unlike the Pelli Clarke Pelli tower, the entirety of COOKFOX’s design was clearly inspired by neighborhood and context, and would have also woven greenery into the building. Nonetheless, Pelli Clarke Pelli’s building is certainly attractive, just not as historically minded.
With no landmarking in the way, Trinity expects groundbreaking to occur by next year, though 68-74 Trinity Place’s exact configuration and number of residential units have yet to be confirmed.
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