Transportation Building (New York City, New York)

 office building, skyscraper, 1927_construction, Renaissance Revival (architecture)

545-foot, 44-story Renaissance-revival office building completed in 1927. Designed by York & Sawyer on the former site of the Astor House hotel, it has a 4-story limestone base with tall first and second floors. The ground floor is lined with storefronts while the 2nd floor has very large, multipaned windows. A narrow, dentiled string course separates the two. The 3rd floor begins the fenestration pattern of the rest of the building, with paired rectangular windows. This floor is capped by a modillioned string course, and the 4th floor has a narrow stone string course where the tan brick-clad portion of the tower begins. It rises straight to the 23rd floor, continues 8 stories with narrow setbacks, then a rectangular tower rises an additional 13 floors. Lombardic details are found at each setback. Small, copper pyramid roofs mark the corners of the 28th floor. The top of the tower is crowned by a large, sloping copper roof pierced by a rounded chimney.

The ground floor is occupied by a FedEx Office ship center, Continental Shoe Repair, Cohen's Fashion Optical, Illusions of Broadway, Renaissance Fine Jewelers, and 225 Bistro. Metropolitan Dental is on the 2nd floor.

hdl.handle.net/2027/mdp.39015038690122?urlappend=%3Bseq...