Each and every day, immediately after emerging from the 23rd Street N&R Station, I am greeted by a fantastic sight–the Flatiron building. Sitting on the corner of 5th Avenue and Broadway, its magnificently unique structure commands everyone’s attention, from tacky tourists to native New Yorkers. Although I’ve been passing it by for approximately three months now, it still manages to catch my eye every time I walk to and from school.
Arguably, the Flatiron building’s most famous feature is its peculiar shape–a perfect right triangle. Despite shooting up 22 stories high, it only measures six feet across along the narrow end. In taking the time to admire this curious yet majestic design, I’ve noticed that the building’s architecture appears to be much older than many of the tall, rectangular skyscrapers surrounding it. Subsequently, I assumed it was built during the early 19th century, as it’s been deemed an icon of New York City for quite some time. Upon doing more research, my suspicions were confirmed; drawing inspiration from French and Italian Renaissance architecture, it was designed and eventually built in 1902 by Chicago architect Daniel Burnham.
According to the Gotham Zoning website, the Flatiron building is located in a C6-4M zone, or a “Central Business District”. Buildings in C6 zones–more specifically C6-4 through C6-9 zones–are allowed to have a maximum floor area ratio of 10.0 or 15.0, and were primarily built for commercial purposes. From department stores to large hotels, the Flatiron district exists as a major hub for restaurants, shopping, sight-seeing, etc. However, this wasn’t always the case. The Flatiron building was initially utilized as office space for the George A. Fuller Company until 1929, and the area surrounding it remained relatively empty for almost 60 years. It wasn’t until the late 1990s that the building’s enduring popularity finally propelled the neighborhood into commercial success. In fact, if it weren’t for the Flatiron building’s distinctive appearance, this particular district of Manhattan would undeniably look and feel completely different than it does today. For that very reason, I don’t think I’d change anything about this influential building. Would you?
