SCRIBBLINGS – August 2022
SCRIBBLINGS – August 2022
From Bill Miller
Aug 2022
Above: During a winter cruise, the Nieuw Amsterdam passing through the Panama Canal
Fri Aug 19th New York City: Almost touching the clouds! The City has at least two new observatories. Last October, we visited the Summit, 85 floors above Madison Ave & East 42nd St. Today, as a long delayed birthday present (from Michael, Tony & Des, actually from back on May 3rd — but yes, my own travels & the extremely hot summer weather got in the way), we were off to Hudson Yards, the extraordinary complex over on West 33rd St & the Hudson River. We were soon off to the very top – 101 floors above the West Side. First, it was lunch at The Peak Grill; then it was out on the specially created deck. And happily, the weather assisted – a very clear & bright summer’s day. (Was that really Paris I could see on the eastern horizon?)
I love skyscrapers & skyscraper views – and my “collection” currently includes the likes of the World Trade Center (105 floors), Empire State Bldg (102), One Vanderbilt (85) and Top of the Rock (the former RCA Bldg at 60 stories); and the John Hancock Tower in Chicago & the Terminal Tower in Cleveland; and over the seas, the Shard in London, the Eiffel Tower (well, of course) and tallest of all – up to 146 floors at ther Burj Khalifa in Dubai.
Above with extended deck, now The Edge is added to the list and clearly visible – 101 floors at Hudson Yards.
The summer weather was brilliant!
Looking south, we could see all the way to the Jersey seashore …
Quick Review: Lunch was excellent, service superb, of course the setting brilliant!
By mid-summer, the Hudson Yards complex was said to be renting with a fury – a 50% increase in commercial rentals!
The mighty Hudson River just below …
Looking west – to New Jersey & beyond …
The $25 billion Hudson Yards is an almost staggering addition to the Manhattan skyline. (But what does the stately 91-yr-old Empire State Bldg really think!)
Scheduled for final completion in two years, Hudson Yards – begun a decade ago and replacing the old rail yards & some gritty warehouses & factories – covers 28 acres and contains no less than 16 skyscrapers. The current tallest is 30 Hudson Yards at 1,337 ft and 102 floors. Even taller, the 106-floor The Spiral, a residential tower and located at 520 West 41st St, but is now delayed.
Manhattan’s West Side
Hudson Yards on a September evening …