Up!

I have officially started my required graduate internship and I am really enjoying it. The last two days, I have been doing a little research for the partner, on 70 Pine Street in downtown NYC. Interestingly enough, I had never heard of this building, but its Art Deco architectural features are absolutely fabulous ... you all know how I am a sucker for Art Deco. 

This photo is showing one of the two grand, 4-story entrances, which have limestone reliefs, floral geometric floral patterns, and a full story high model of the building. How cool is that? 

Originally built as the Cities Service Building in 1930, the top of the building is accented with Deco-style railings on all of the setbacks. 

In addition, the building is topped with a solarium, meant to be part of the penthouse apartment of the Cities Services CEO and Founder, Henry Latham Doherty.  

The views from the solarium are unparalleled--looking both up the East River and across the bottom of Lower Manhattan. 

When it was built, it was the third tallest building in the world, behind only the Empire State Building and the Chrysler Building. Today, as a result of 9/11, it is the tallest building in Lower Manhattan, at 950 feet.  When the building was originally built, it had double-decker elevators to service its 67 floors. 

What strikes me most about 70 Pine Street, is not its ornate architectural elements (although they're spectacular), its that I had never heard of this building until yesterday. This building is a reminder that there are amazing pieces of architecture all around us, and all we have to do is occasionally take a minute out of our busy days to look up ... you might be surprised what you see.