Rossella Failla

New York City has been described as the mecca for skyscrapers. Any shape and size, you best believe we got it. However, when it comes to luxury architecture, NYC pays particular attention to slenderness. In the last couple of decades, the New York City skyline has gone skinny. These slender and lean high rises portray the dream that every New Yorker has, an unobstructed view of the city (well maybe just mine). But with that being said, these buildings allow many affluent New Yorkers to pay whatever price for a simple view, making these projects economically feasible.

One of the most intriguing things that I came upon was the idea of zoning and air rights. Although I think the exhibition could have done a better job at explaining the monopoly of air rights and their relevancies to these slender buildings, it did however bring about the issue. Essentially, because of the scarceness of air rights, a monopoly forms. The central idea behind these slender buildings is the elevation, which allow them to have some of the most incredible views of the city. The purchasing and transferring of air rights effectively allow these skyscrapers to maintain their farfetched, but nonetheless worthy values.

Although the exhibition tends to stress the extravagance in these slender buildings, I can’t help but wonder if there are other motivations behind this new trend. What if behind this fad, was disguised a bigger issue? In my opinion, these slender buildings are made to masquerade the increasing problem of scarcity of land in New York City. Since architects keep encountering narrower parcels of land, a new technique had to be created to allow new high rises.