62 William Street (New York City, New York)

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9-story Renaissance-revival office building completed in 1896, renovated in 1984. Designed by Lamb & Rich for the Germania Fire Insurance Company, it is clad in limestone and brick with terra-cotta ornament. Both elevations are organized as a 3-story base, 4th transitional story, 4-story shaft set under an arcade, attic story and projecting cornice. The two facades meet at a curving corner.

The rusticated, stone-faced base is designed to suggest a 3-story arcade, with large round-arches at the 3rd floor, wide flat-headed windows at the 2nd floor, and shop windows at the ground floor. The corner has an ornamental storefront entrance, above which instead of an arch there are two narrow rectangular windows topped by a curving balustrade supported on console brackets. Slightly projecting dentiled sills line the bases of each round arch, and continue around the corner as a cornice. The base is capped by a modillioned cornice, except at the corner where the balustrade is.

The transitional floor imitates the rustication of the base, but in brick, and has pairs of segmental-arched windows in each bay. The 5th, 6th & 7th floors are unified by 3-story tall brick piers supporting the round-arched openings at the 8th floor. Within each bay is a pair of slightly-recessed, square-headed windows united by a stone balustrade. The recessed brick in each bay, between the wide piers, is rusticated. The piers terminate at the top of the 7th floor with ornate capitals, connected by a dentiled band course. The windows in the top floor are organized as groups of three in each bay, separated by short columns from which spring brick arches,a above which projects the roof cornice, supported on console brackets. The ground floor is occupied by Oriental Express restaurant, and Koyzina Kafe.