VIA 57 WEST - Greenroofs.com Featured Project

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Comprised of VIA, FRANK and Helena, the 57 WEST Superblock is an oasis in one of New York’s most vibrant neighborhoods. Designed by Bjarke Ingels Group (or BIG), the multi-award winning 35-floor VIA 57 WEST is redefining green living with a vision of sustainability that both respects nature and promotes wellbeing. And its gleaming tetrahedron shape is an immediately recognizable presence on Manhattan’s West Side. A hybrid between the European perimeter block and a traditional Manhattan high-rise, VIA 57 West combines the advantages of both typologies: the compactness and efficiency of a courtyard building with the airiness and the expansive views of a skyscraper. By keeping three corners of the block low and lifting the north-east corner up towards its 450 foot peak, the courtyard opens views towards the Hudson River, bringing low western sun deep into the block and graciously preserving the adjacent Helena Tower’s views of the river. The form of the 77,202 square meter building shifts depending on the viewer’s vantage point. While appearing like a pyramid from the West-Side-Highway, it turns into a dramatic glass spire from West 58th Street.

Designed by Starr Whitehouse, the design of the open-air landscaped green roof courtyard shares the exact proportions as Olmsted’s Central Park, planted with 47 species of native plant material, including over 80 trees and lawn. Starting in a grove of fern and birch, the path meanders up one story into a plaza that recalls a forest glade. Crossing through a fog feature, the path climbs a flight of stairs to arrive on a platform overlooking the Hudson. At this rocky summit, residents can barbecue, enjoy the view, or sunbathe on a grassy knoll beneath a honey locust, surrounded by sumac, pine, and meadow grasses. The single-source greenroof system chosen for Via 57 West is the Garden Roof Assembly with Waterproofing Monolithic Membrane 6125 from American Hydrotech. Built with an array of sustainable features and materials – not to mention stunning, unsurpassed vistas across the Hudson River and Manhattan – the alfresco courtyard sky garden beckons to become a part of the engaging VIA 57 West community.

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Greenroofs.com Featured Project 9/24/18 video photo credits: Courtesy of BIG, ©Iwan Bann and ©Nic Lehoux; Starr Whitehouse, ©Iwan Bann and others; and American Hydrotech, ©Kirsten Bucher.