Demolition is underway at 308 West 43rd Street, the site of a two-building residential project in Midtown, Manhattan. Designed by Handel Architects and developed by Taconic Partners under the 311 West 42nd Street Associates LLC, the 373,133-square-foot development will rise directly to the north of Port Authority Bus Terminal and will yield 321 apartments averaging 839 square feet apiece as well as 25,202 square feet of retail space.
Since our last update in February, the tallest structure on the plot has been completely enshrouded in plastic sheets for its demolition, while construction machinery continues to sit nearby awaiting the start of excavation.
Looking north at the site of 308 West 43rd Street from the Port Authority Bus Terminal. Photo by Michael Young
The taller 33-story building at 308 West 43rd Street will stand around 399 feet tall and yield 284,616 square feet facing West 42nd Street in the “Special Clinton District.” A full rendering of the structure hasn’t been released, but the below massing diagram shows a fairly conventional tower. The roof will have room for an open-air deck with planters, seating, and unspecified recreational area. The shorter building lining West 42nd Street will span 89,808 square feet and top out at seven stories. The two structures will be joined by a podium with frontage along both West 42nd and West 43rd Streets.
Scope of the demolition includes an existing low-rise office building and an adjacent street-level parking facility. The taller building on the site, the Martin Luther King Jr. Union Building, had been given eligibility for the National Register of Historic Places by the Landmarks Preservation Commission. However, that designation was never achieved, and the developers are proceeding with its demolition.
The sectional programmatic diagram below lays out where where the residences, amenities, retail, and mechanical space would go.
Elevation diagram of 314 West 43rd Street looking east.
A preliminary rendering showing the northern elevation of the property is seen below. The curtain wall appears to be a uniform assembly of floor-to-ceiling windows and exterior panels in a staggered arrangement.
Contextual elevation diagram of 314 West 43rd Street looking south.
YIMBY last reported that construction on 308 West 43rd Street is planned to be done in a single phase over the course of three years, and could be completed as early as 2024.
Subscribe to YIMBY’s daily e-mail
Follow YIMBYgram for real-time photo updates
Like YIMBY on Facebook
Follow YIMBY’s Twitter for the latest in YIMBYnews
Construction site and no have construction workers, as well as material for construction purposes: Thanks to Michael Young.
Nice! I like it already. It’s too bad the MLK Union Building has to be demolished for this.
Your article says the tall building will be on West 43rd Street, but the elevation diagram and rendering show the shorter building on 43rd and the taller on 42nd.
Just dumb curiosity, but why would such a building with so much more frontage on 42nd rather than 43rd Street be assigned a 43rd Street address?
All this for a six story building?
It is kind of confusing.