Photos of Bergamo’s by Rachel Vanni
Busy but relatively dry Midtown East got a new cocktail bar last week with Bergamo’s at 26 Vanderbilt Avenue. Located on the ground floor of the Company building—a tech incubator designed by SHoP Architects—the sprawling 8,530-square-foot lounge was inspired by old New York glamour and features a vaulted ceiling with custom tiles that nod to the historic Guastavino vaults at nearby Grand Central Terminal.
A new bar/terrace at 335 Madison overlooking Grand Central, © SHoP Architects
Since the announcement of One Vanderbilt more than four years ago, much attention has been paid to the controversial Midtown East Rezoning, which was approved last summer. Howard Milstein was one of many developers looking to take advantage of the rezoning, proposing a plan to raze the Grand Central-adjacent office tower 335 Madison and replace it with a modern structure that would expand the building’s tech incubator. But he ultimately decided to forego the demo and undertake a $150 million renovation by SHoP Architects that more than doubles the square footage of Grand Central Tech and creates a new lobby and retail/amenity spaces for tenants. Renderings for the new “vertical tech campus” known as Company have now been revealed by Arch Daily.
Image: One Vanderbilt via SL Green/KPF
Foes of One Vanderbilt could soon find themselves with choice words for a new supertall enemy on the rise in the Midtown corridor. The Post reports that developer Howard Milstein is now looking to design and develop a brand new tower at 335 Madison Avenue. Millstein’s move takes advantage of the new Vanderbilt corridor zoning that would allow a building of 30 FAR with various bonuses.
Currently in its place, however, is a 1.1 million square-foot tower from 1984. The new project would require knocking down the existing building and constructing anew. Although that sounds like an impossible task, The Post notes that the tower was actually a redevelopment of the 1913-era Biltmore Hotel that the Milstein family started razing before preservationists could react—meaning there’s far less architectural significance here than there once was. While the current building does host tenants, roughly 500,000 square feet is already vacant. A new tower would also take several years to plan and develop. Milstein’s new plan could include a high-end hotel which would harken back to the site’s hotel past.
[Via NY Post]
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