20 Exchange Place

20 Exchange Place
General information
Location New York, New York USA
Coordinates 40°42′20″N 74°0′35″W / 40.70556°N 74.00972°W / 40.70556; -74.00972Coordinates: 40°42′20″N 74°0′35″W / 40.70556°N 74.00972°W / 40.70556; -74.00972
Construction started 1930
Completed 1931
Height
Antenna spire 741 ft (226 m)
Technical details
Floor count 57
Design and construction
Architect Cross and Cross
Main contractor George A. Fuller Company
References
[1][2]

20 Exchange Place is a 57-story Art Deco building in New York City. Formerly known as the City Bank-Farmers Trust Building, it was built between 1930–1931, for the newly merged National City Bank of New York and the Farmers' Loan and Trust Company, predecessor firms of Citigroup. It remained the company's headquarters until 1956 and was ultimately sold in 1979.

Overview

Closeup

The building was designed by the architectural firm of Cross and Cross. Although Cross and Cross described the building as having no particular architectural style, it was described at the time as being in the style then known as "modern classic", with minimal art deco ornamentation. Originally designed in 1929 to be the world's tallest building at 846.4 feet (258.0 m), with a pyramidal top and a budget of $9,500,000,[3] Depression era realities resulted in a scaled back, 741-foot (226 m) tall building, New York City's fourth tallest building at the time. It remained among the top ten tallest buildings in New York until 1970. Today, as the sixth tallest building in downtown Manhattan, and the 33rd tallest in New York City, it is still among the most prominent buildings in the city skyline.

In 1996, the building was designated a City Landmark by the New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission.[4] In 2006, the building served as a fictional branch location of the "Manhattan Trust Bank", in the movie Inside Man, and, in 2009, it served as several different bank locations in the Fringe episode "Safe". The building also makes an appearance in the film Wall Street, and features in The Amazing Spider-Man 2.[5]

The 16th through 57th floors of the building have been converted from commercial to residential space by Manhattan developers and real estate managers Metro Loft Management.[6][7][8] As a part of this conversion, the building's exterior is being restored, including cleaning the building's bricks, which had turned black over the years, to their original white color.

Notable residents

See also

References

  1. 20 Exchange Place at Emporis
  2. 20 Exchange Place at SkyscraperPage
  3. "New Bank Skyscraper Is to Cost $9,500,000". New York Times. 1929-10-03. Retrieved 2009-09-04.
  4. , NYC Landmarks Preservation Commission Order
  5. "'Amazing Spider-Man 2' to Film Downtown in April". DNAInfo.com. 2013-03-13.
  6. The Real Deal - New Residential Developments
  7. MBA Commercial/Multifamily NewsLink - A Publication of the Mortgage Bankers Association
  8. - Metro Loft Management
  9. Olivier O’Mahony (9 July 2010). "Anna: le visage d’ange du nouveau KGB" [Anna: the angel face of the new KGB]. Paris Match (in French). Archived from the original on 12 August 2010. Retrieved 23 September 2012. Elle avait jeté son dévolu sur la tour résidentielle la plus haute de Manhattan. Le 20 Exchange Place. Cinquante-neuf étages sur 226 mètres de haut, construits en 1931 pour abriter le siège de la City Bank-Farmers Trust Company, ancêtre de Citigroup. Récemment reconverti en appartements, ce bijou d’Art déco a servi de décor à une scène de « Wall Street », le film d’Oliver Stone. Son hall d’entrée, aux plafonds voûtés recouverts de fresques, ressemble à la nef vertigineuse d’une cathédrale façon Gotham City. Situé en plein quartier financier de New York, l’endroit est idéal pour qui veut conquérir l’Amérique.

External links

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