15
Global
Height rank

Central Park Tower

New York City
Height
1
To Tip:
Height is measured from the level of the lowest, significant, open-air, pedestrian entrance to the highest point of the building, irrespective of material or function of the highest element (i.e., including antennae, flagpoles, signage and other functional-technical equipment).
472.4 m / 1,550 ft
2
Architectural:
Height is measured from the level of the lowest, significant, open-air, pedestrian entrance to the architectural top of the building, including spires, but not including antennae, signage, flag poles or other functional-technical equipment. This measurement is the most widely utilized and is employed to define the Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat (CTBUH) rankings of the "World's Tallest Buildings."
472.4 m / 1,550 ft
3
Occupied:
Height is measured from the level of the lowest, significant, open-air, pedestrian entrance to the highest occupied floor within the building.
431.8 m / 1,417 ft
1 2 3 Central Park Tower
  Floors
Above Ground
The number of floors above ground should include the ground floor level and be the number of main floors above ground, including any significant mezzanine floors and major mechanical plant floors. Mechanical mezzanines should not be included if they have a significantly smaller floor area than the major floors below. Similarly, mechanical penthouses or plant rooms protruding above the general roof area should not be counted. Note: CTBUH floor counts may differ from published accounts, as it is common in some regions of the world for certain floor levels not to be included (e.g., the level 4, 14, 24, etc. in Hong Kong).
98
Below Ground
The number of floors below ground should include all major floors located below the ground floor level.
4
Height 472.4 m / 1,550 ft
Floors 98
Official Name
The current legal building name.

Central Park Tower

Other Names
Other names the building has commonly been known as, including former names, common informal names, local names, etc.

217 West 57th Street, 225 West 57th Street, Nordstrom Tower

Type
CTBUH collects data on two major types of tall structures: 'Buildings' and 'Telecommunications / Observation Towers.' A 'Building' is a structure where at least 50% of the height is occupied by usable floor area. A 'Telecommunications / Observation Tower' is a structure where less than 50% of the structure's height is occupied by usable floor area. Only 'Buildings' are eligible for the CTBUH 'Tallest Buildings' lists.

Building

Status
Completed
Architecturally Topped Out
Structurally Topped Out
Under Construction
Proposed
On Hold
Never Completed
Vision
Competition Entry
Canceled
Proposed Renovation
Under Renovation
Renovated
Under Demolition
Demolished

Completed

Completion

2020

Country
The CTBUH follows the United Nations's definition of Country, and thus uses the lists and codes established by that organization.

United States

City
The CTBUH follows the United Nations's definition of City, and thus uses the lists and codes established by that organization.

New York City

Function
A single-function tall building is defined as one where 85% or more of its usable floor area is dedicated to a single usage. Thus a building with 90% office floor area would be said to be an "office" building, irrespective of other minor functions it may also contain.

A mixed-use tall building contains two or more functions (or uses), where each of the functions occupy a significant proportion of the tower's total space. Support areas such as car parks and mechanical plant space do not constitute mixed-use functions. Functions are denoted on CTBUH "Tallest Building" lists in descending order, e.g., "hotel/office" indicates hotel function above office function.

Residential / Retail

Structural Material
All-Steel
Both the main vertical/lateral structural elements and the floor spanning systems are constructed from steel. Note that a building of steel construction with a floor system of concrete planks or concrete slab on top of steel beams is still considered an “all-steel” structure as the concrete elements are not acting as the primary structure.

All-Concrete
Both the main vertical/lateral structural elements and the floor spanning systems are constructed from concrete which has been cast in place and utilizes steel reinforcement bars and/or steel reinforced concrete which has been precast as individual components and assembled together on-site.

All-Timber
Both the main vertical/lateral structural elements and the floor spanning systems are constructed from timber. An all-timber structure may include the use of localized non-timber connections between timber elements. Note that a building of timber construction with a floor system of concrete planks or concrete slab on top of timber beams is still considered an “all-timber” structure as the concrete elements are not acting as the primary structure.

Mixed-Structure
Utilizes distinct systems (e.g. all-steel, all-concrete, all-timber), one on top of the other. For example, a Steel Over Concrete indicates an all-steel structural system located on top of an all-concrete structural system, with the opposite true of Concrete Over Steel.

Composite
A combination of materials (e.g. steel, concrete, timber) are used together in the main structural elements. Examples include buildings which utilize: steel columns with a floor system of reinforced concrete beams; a steel frame system with a concrete core; concrete-encased steel columns; concrete-filled steel tubes; etc. Where known, the CTBUH database breaks out the materials used within a composite building’s primary structural elements.

All-Concrete

Height
Architectural
Height is measured from the level of the lowest, significant, open-air, pedestrian entrance to the architectural top of the building, including spires, but not including antennae, signage, flag poles or other functional-technical equipment. This measurement is the most widely utilized and is employed to define the Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat (CTBUH) rankings of the "World's Tallest Buildings."

472.4 m / 1,550 ft

To Tip
Height is measured from the level of the lowest, significant, open-air, pedestrian entrance to the highest point of the building, irrespective of material or function of the highest element (i.e., including antennae, flagpoles, signage and other functional-technical equipment).
472.4 m / 1,550 ft
Occupied
Height is measured from the level of the lowest, significant, open-air, pedestrian entrance to the highest occupied floor within the building.
431.8 m / 1,417 ft
Floors Above Ground
The number of floors above ground should include the ground floor level and be the number of main floors above ground, including any significant mezzanine floors and major mechanical plant floors. Mechanical mezzanines should not be included if they have a significantly smaller floor area than the major floors below. Similarly, mechanical penthouses or plant rooms protruding above the general roof area should not be counted. Note: CTBUH floor counts may differ from published accounts, as it is common in some regions of the world for certain floor levels not to be included (e.g., the level 4, 14, 24, etc. in Hong Kong).

98

Floors Below Ground
The number of floors below ground should include all major floors located below the ground floor level.

4

# of Apartments
Number of Apartments refers to the total number of residential units (including both rental units and condominiums) contained within a particular building.

179

# of Elevators
Number of Elevators refers to the total number of elevator cars (not shafts) contained within a particular building (including public, private and freight elevators).

11

Top Elevator Speed
Top Elevator Speed refers to the top speed capable of being achieved by an elevator within a particular building, measured in meters per second.

10.16 m/s

Tower GFA
Tower GFA refers to the total gross floor area within the tower footprint, not including adjoining podiums, connected buildings or other towers within the development.

117,053 m² / 1,259,948 ft²

Rankings

#
15
Tallest in the World
#
2
Tallest in North America
#
2
Tallest in United States
#
2
Tallest in New York City

Construction Schedule

2010

Proposed

2014

Construction Start

2020

Completed

Owner/Developer
Architect
Design

Usually involved in the front end design, with a "typical" condition being that of a leadership role through either Schematic Design or Design Development, and then a monitoring role through the CD and CA phases.

Architect of Record

Usually takes on the balance of the architectural effort not executed by the "Design Architect," typically responsible for the construction documents, conforming to local codes, etc. May often be referred to as "Executive," "Associate," or "Local" Architect, however, for consistency CTBUH uses the term "Architect of Record" exclusively.

Structural Engineer
Design

The Design Engineer is usually involved in the front end design, typically taking the leadership role in the Schematic Design and Design Development, and then a monitoring role through the CD and CA phases.

WSP
Contractor
Main Contractor

The main contractor is the supervisory contractor of all construction work on a project, management of sub-contractors and vendors, etc. May be referred to as "Construction Manager," however, for consistency CTBUH uses the term "Main Contractor" exclusively.

Other Consultant

Other Consultant refers to other organizations which provided significant consultation services for a building project (e.g. wind consultants, environmental consultants, fire and life safety consultants, etc).

Building Monitoring
Damping
Environmental
Geotechnical
Material Supplier

Material Supplier refers to organizations which supplied significant systems/materials for a building project (e.g. elevator suppliers, facade suppliers, etc).

Formwork
Developer
Architect
Design

Usually involved in the front end design, with a "typical" condition being that of a leadership role through either Schematic Design or Design Development, and then a monitoring role through the CD and CA phases.

Architect of Record

Usually takes on the balance of the architectural effort not executed by the "Design Architect," typically responsible for the construction documents, conforming to local codes, etc. May often be referred to as "Executive," "Associate," or "Local" Architect, however, for consistency CTBUH uses the term "Architect of Record" exclusively.

Structural Engineer
Design

The Design Engineer is usually involved in the front end design, typically taking the leadership role in the Schematic Design and Design Development, and then a monitoring role through the CD and CA phases.

WSP
MEP Engineer
Design

The Design Engineer is usually involved in the front end design, typically taking the leadership role in the Schematic Design and Design Development, and then a monitoring role through the CD and CA phases.

AKF Group LLC
Contractor
Main Contractor

The main contractor is the supervisory contractor of all construction work on a project, management of sub-contractors and vendors, etc. May be referred to as "Construction Manager," however, for consistency CTBUH uses the term "Main Contractor" exclusively.

Other Consultant

Other Consultant refers to other organizations which provided significant consultation services for a building project (e.g. wind consultants, environmental consultants, fire and life safety consultants, etc).

Building Monitoring
Damping
Energy Concept
AKF Group LLC
Environmental
Geotechnical
Interiors
Rottet Studio
Marketing
Material Supplier

Material Supplier refers to organizations which supplied significant systems/materials for a building project (e.g. elevator suppliers, facade suppliers, etc).

Formwork

CTBUH Awards & Distinctions

Best Tall Building, by Height, 400 meters and above 2021 Award of Excellence

2021 CTBUH Awards

 

CTBUH Initiatives

The Current State of Slender Buildings in NYC

30 July 2015 - Event

 

Videos

20 October 2016 | New York City

Singularly Slender: Sky Living in New York, Hong Kong, and Elsewhere

Thursday October 20, 2016. Hong Kong, China. Carol Willis of The Skyscraper Museum in New York City presents at the 2016 China Conference Plenary 7:...

Research

12 January 2021

Interactive Study on Tall Buildings in 2020: COVID-19 Contributes To Dip in Year-On-Year Completions

CTBUH Research

The Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat has released its annual report, CTBUH Year in Review: Tall Trends of 2020, part of the Tall...

Global News

18 September 2019

Two Supertalls Top Out in New York City

The Grand Central Terminal-adjacent supertall One Vanderbilt officially topped out this week, reaching its full 1,401-foot (427-meter) height. Designed by Kohn Pedersen Fox, the tower...

20 October 2016 | New York City

Singularly Slender: Sky Living in New York, Hong Kong, and Elsewhere

Thursday October 20, 2016. Hong Kong, China. Carol Willis of The Skyscraper Museum in New York City presents at the 2016 China Conference Plenary 7:...

19 October 2016 | New York City

From San Diego to Guangzhou: The Story of Marketing Tall Buildings

One of the keys to attracting buyers and tenants for a contemporary tall building is a succinct marketing strategy and a robust understanding of how...

26 October 2015 | New York City

Developing Tall in the New York Context

Gary Barnett, Extell Development Corporation; Ric Clark, Brookfield Properties; Joseph Moinian, Moinian Group; and Larry Silverstein, Silverstein Properties, discuss development in New York City and...

12 January 2021

Interactive Study on Tall Buildings in 2020: COVID-19 Contributes To Dip in Year-On-Year Completions

CTBUH Research

The Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat has released its annual report, CTBUH Year in Review: Tall Trends of 2020, part of the Tall...

25 June 2020

Curtain Wall Façades on the New Generation of Supertall Buildings Present and Future Directions

Sae Hwang Oh, Adrian Smith + Gordon Gill Architecture

Beginning in the late 19th century, construction of skyscrapers spread throughout Chicago, New York City, and then the world as demand of space in buildings...

17 October 2016

Singularly Slender: Sky Living in New York, Hong Kong, and Elsewhere

Carol Willis, The Skyscraper Museum

This paper highlights a new 21st-century skyscraper typology – the very tall and slender residential tower – and analyzes the economic, engineering, and urbanistic forces...

22 October 2015

New York: The Ultimate Skyscraper Laboratory

CTBUH Research

A timeline of skyscraper completions in New York uncannily resembles the boom and bust cycles of the United States in the 20th and early 21st...

18 September 2019

Two Supertalls Top Out in New York City

The Grand Central Terminal-adjacent supertall One Vanderbilt officially topped out this week, reaching its full 1,401-foot (427-meter) height. Designed by Kohn Pedersen Fox, the tower...

21 January 2019

“Tower Fifth” Could Become New York City’s Second-Tallest

For decades, the New York City skyline was dominated by one building, the 1,250-foot-tall (381-meter) Empire State Building. But 17 “supertall” skyscrapers — defined as...