Laurence Towers

USA / New Jersey / West New York / East 33rd Street, 200
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327-foot, 33-story mid-century modern residential building completed in 1973. Designed by Philip Birnbaum & Associates, the slab tower is set back behind a small plaza on the south side and clad in light-tan brick. On the north side, a wide set of grey granite stairs is placed between granite retaining walls enclosing landscaping (with glass railings at the rear) and leads to the main entrance, which has glass double-doors and sidelights set in a black granite surround. The entry along with the bay to the east, which contains a large, square plate-glass window, are both covered by a metal and frosted-glass canopy. There is another similar window bay to the east and two to the west, for a total of five bays; each of the window bays is slightly recessed. The upper floors on the north facade have triple-windows in each of the five bays, with projecting balconies with grey metal railings fronting the 2nd bay from the east, beginning at the 3rd floor, and extending all the way up the facade. There are metal air-conditioning vents below the four bays without balconies.

The longer west facade on the avenue is lined with storefronts on the ground floor, located down several wide sets of steps from the sidewalk, for 13 bays. The southern half have metal louvers above them, while the northern half has triple-windows above each storefront. The upper floors have triple-windows, with metal air-conditioning vents below them, except for the end bays which have double-windows. Projecting balconies front the center bay and next-to-end bays. At the south end, a set of steps winds up to the plaza level, enclosed by a metal railing. Behind it, the ground floor has five bays filled by brick, with metal louvers at the tops. A metal service door is located in the center bay. The upper floors match the north facade, with the balconied bay the 2nd from the east.

The east facade has eight bays of triple-windows, with none at the edges. There is a metal vent pipe attached to the south end of this facade that runs up to the roof line.

The building contains 320 apartment units. The ground floor along the avenue is occupied by On Time Cleaners, JHU Comic Books, and Biscuits & Bath dog day care center.
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Coordinates:   40°44'40"N   73°58'42"W
This article was last modified 2 years ago