Tall & Urban News

Developer Youngwoo & Associates challenged MVRDV to design an innovative project that accommodates a large volume of program while fitting the surrounding context - a challenge that was solved through the project's distinctive massing and colorful exterior. The building’s design draws inspiration from the diversity and vibrancy of the existing neighborhood, which is home to a mix of families, creative professionals, and institutions.

Each of the eight boxes are being finished in a different color ceramic brick to create carefully detailed and beautiful façades that draw hues from street-level storefronts up to the sky. Combined, the building’s external elements form a condensation of the characteristics unique to Washington Heights’ existing urban fabric.

Filling a local need for hotel space, the 212-room hotel will serve as an important hub for events hosted by the local communities and for those traveling to the New York Presbyterian Hospital and conferences hosted by the Yeshiva University and, both of which are located nearby.

“Our intention with Radio Tower & Hotel was to become a part of – to strengthen, even – the character of a neighborhood that is wonderful in its color, diversity, and atmosphere," says MVRDV founding partner Winy Maas. “Now that the structure has reached its highest point, we start to see the ‘vertical village’ coming together, with the blocks of different sizes. Washington Heights is the fifth largest New York neighborhood with a population of 150,000 inhabitants, a mixed-use building like Radio Tower & Hotel is a first for this neighborhood. Our building shows that new high-rise developments don’t have to overwhelm their surroundings and be disconnected from their neighborhoods. They can be a good neighbor, a friendly neighbor, instead. It makes for a colorful, welcoming sign on the thinnest part of Manhattan.”

Inside, Radio Tower & Hotel provides an answer to the area’s need for a diverse range of hotel rooms, workspaces, event spaces, and retail units. The event space located in the building’s blue volume will add a facility that did not previously exist in the neighborhood, offering the community a space to host weddings and other parties. The ground floor functions are positioned to support an active street level, and the hotel entry leads to a publicly-accessible ground-level courtyard, recognizing the importance of high-quality outdoor space in neighborhoods and communities.

The topping-out of the building offers a glimpse at the spectacular views it commands of lower Manhattan. Upon completion, several roof terraces will provide space for outdoor events and offer users – from hotel guests and office tenants to visitors making use of the event space – the chance to enjoy the views for themselves. Construction of the building started in November 2018, and completion is expected in 2021.

For more on this story, go to MVRDV.