In the Canyon of Heroes
0 Comments Published by Cedric Benetti on Saturday, August 1, 2009 at 8/01/2009 05:45:00 AM.
Opponents of the buildings were outraged at the unprecedented volume of the building, which cast a 7 acre (28,000 m²) shadow on the surrounding streets. Many New Yorkers feared that further construction of buildings like it would turn Manhattan into an unpleasant and dark maze of streets.
In response, the city adopted the 1916 Zoning Resolution which limited the height and required setbacks for new buildings to allow the penetration of sunlight to street level.
Specifically, new buildings were afterwards required to withdraw progressively at a defined angle from the street as they rose, in order to preserve sunlight and the open atmosphere in their surroundings.
As a consequence of the new restrictions, the building remained the largest office building by volume in the world until the construction of the Empire State Building in 1931.
The stretch of lower Broadway where the building sits has since become the traditional route of ticker-tape parades in Manhattan. The route past the building is known as the Canyon of Heroes, in part because of the sheer verticality of the building and others around it.
Labels: Architecture Instant Love, Architecture shot, New York, New York street stuff, photography
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