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CBS Building
The CBS Building, also known as Black Rock and 51W52, is a 38-story, 491-foot-tall (150 m) tower at 51 West 52nd Street in the Midtown Manhattan neighborhood of New York City, New York, U.S. The building was constructed from 1961 to 1964 and was the only skyscraper designed by Eero Saarinen, who referred to the building as the "simplest skyscraper statement in New York". The interior spaces and furnishings were designed by Saarinen and, after his death, Florence Knoll Bassett. Built as the headquarters of the CBS broadcasting network, the building was also the headquarters of CBS Records (later Sony Music Entertainment) before the early 1990s.
The building is located on the eastern side of Sixth Avenue (Avenue of the Americas) between 52nd and 53rd streets, with its main entrances on the side streets. The "Black Rock" nickname is derived from the design of its facade, which consists of angled dark-gray granite piers alternating with dark-tinted glass. The facade was designed to make the building appear as a continuous slab. The building has a gross floor area of approximately 800,000 square feet (74,000 m2). The building's superstructure is made of reinforced concrete, and steel beams are only used below ground; the concrete frame uses polyurethane insulation.
The design was finalized in 1961, and, despite Saarinen's death shortly afterward, construction started in 1962. The first employees moved into the building in late 1964 and it was completed the following year. The building initially served as the headquarters of CBS, which occupied all the above-ground space until the early 1990s, when it started leasing some stories to other tenants. The New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission designated the CBS Building as a city landmark in 1997. CBS attempted to sell the building twice between 1998 and 2001, and ViacomCBS again attempted to sell it in early 2020. Harbor Group International agreed to buy the structure in August 2021 and renovated it in 2023.
The CBS Building is at 51 West 52nd Street in the Midtown Manhattan neighborhood of New York City, New York, U.S. It is on the eastern side of Sixth Avenue (officially Avenue of the Americas) between 52nd and 53rd streets. The lot covers 47,725 square feet (4,433.8 m2). The site has a frontage of 255 feet (78 m) on 52nd Street to the south, with a depth of 200 feet (61 m) between 52nd and 53rd streets. Nearby buildings include the Credit Lyonnais Building to the west, the New York Hilton Midtown to the northwest, 53W53 to the north, the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) to the northeast, the 53rd Street Library and 21 Club to the east, and 75 Rockefeller Plaza to the southeast. The CBS Building stands directly above a New York City Subway tunnel connecting the Sixth Avenue and 53rd Street subway lines.
The building, developed for broadcasting company CBS, was designed to occupy only 60 percent of its site. It is three blocks north of Rockefeller Center, the headquarters of CBS's rival NBC. By the late 1950s, the midtown section of Sixth Avenue was being developed with office towers and hotels, including the Hilton hotel, the Time-Life Building, and the Equitable Building at 1285 Avenue of the Americas. The CBS Building had replaced five apartment buildings of four stories each, as well as a 25,000-square-foot (2,300 m2) parking lot. CBS had acquired these structures in July 1960 from developer William Zeckendorf, who had been forced to sell the site to pay off increasing debts.
The CBS Building was designed by Eero Saarinen, whose other designs ranged from the Gateway Arch, the General Motors Technical Center, and the Dulles International Airport Main Terminal to chairs for the Knoll company. The George A. Fuller Company was the general contractor for the project. Cosentini Associates was the mechanical engineer, while Paul Weidlinger was the structural engineer. Carson, Lundin & Shaw planned the interior layout of the building, designing the mechanical systems and interior partitions. Acoustical engineer Paul Veneklasen advised the firm on how to design different spaces in the building, based on varying acoustical requirements for different divisions. The furnishings were manufactured by Florence Knoll Bassett, whom Saarinen had invited to the project shortly before his death in 1961. CBS's design director Lou Dorfsman and president Frank Stanton worked with Knoll to arrange the art in the building.
The building measures 135 by 160 feet (41 by 49 m) and is 491 feet (150 m) tall, with 38 stories. It does not contain any setbacks on intermediate levels. The building is recessed 25 feet (7.6 m) from the lot line on the north, west, and south and is recessed the same distance from an auxiliary building to the east. A separate structure with a loading area was provided east of the building, allowing the main structure to be a standalone slab. The building's massing evoked those of earlier standalone buildings, such as the unbuilt Tribune Tower design by Eero Saarinen's father Eliel, as well as Louis Sullivan's Guaranty Building. By contrast, the uniform treatment of the CBS Building's facade differed from these earlier designs, which were divided horizontally into three sections.
Surrounding the building is a plaza that is about 3.5 feet (1.1 m) below the Sixth Avenue sidewalk. It is reached by a flight of five steps from that street. The eastern part of the plaza is slightly lower, being six steps below 52nd Street and seven steps below 53rd Street. The plaza contains Canadian black granite pavers, the same material used in the facade. In contrast to the nearly contemporary Seagram Building, which had a decorative plaza with fountains and plants, the CBS Building's plaza was designed solely as a backdrop for the tower. Consequently, the plaza was not designed with seating, and there were no storefronts at plaza level. Before his death, Saarinen had written of his belief that a tower should stand as a solitary mass, detached from shorter buildings.
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CBS Building
The CBS Building, also known as Black Rock and 51W52, is a 38-story, 491-foot-tall (150 m) tower at 51 West 52nd Street in the Midtown Manhattan neighborhood of New York City, New York, U.S. The building was constructed from 1961 to 1964 and was the only skyscraper designed by Eero Saarinen, who referred to the building as the "simplest skyscraper statement in New York". The interior spaces and furnishings were designed by Saarinen and, after his death, Florence Knoll Bassett. Built as the headquarters of the CBS broadcasting network, the building was also the headquarters of CBS Records (later Sony Music Entertainment) before the early 1990s.
The building is located on the eastern side of Sixth Avenue (Avenue of the Americas) between 52nd and 53rd streets, with its main entrances on the side streets. The "Black Rock" nickname is derived from the design of its facade, which consists of angled dark-gray granite piers alternating with dark-tinted glass. The facade was designed to make the building appear as a continuous slab. The building has a gross floor area of approximately 800,000 square feet (74,000 m2). The building's superstructure is made of reinforced concrete, and steel beams are only used below ground; the concrete frame uses polyurethane insulation.
The design was finalized in 1961, and, despite Saarinen's death shortly afterward, construction started in 1962. The first employees moved into the building in late 1964 and it was completed the following year. The building initially served as the headquarters of CBS, which occupied all the above-ground space until the early 1990s, when it started leasing some stories to other tenants. The New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission designated the CBS Building as a city landmark in 1997. CBS attempted to sell the building twice between 1998 and 2001, and ViacomCBS again attempted to sell it in early 2020. Harbor Group International agreed to buy the structure in August 2021 and renovated it in 2023.
The CBS Building is at 51 West 52nd Street in the Midtown Manhattan neighborhood of New York City, New York, U.S. It is on the eastern side of Sixth Avenue (officially Avenue of the Americas) between 52nd and 53rd streets. The lot covers 47,725 square feet (4,433.8 m2). The site has a frontage of 255 feet (78 m) on 52nd Street to the south, with a depth of 200 feet (61 m) between 52nd and 53rd streets. Nearby buildings include the Credit Lyonnais Building to the west, the New York Hilton Midtown to the northwest, 53W53 to the north, the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) to the northeast, the 53rd Street Library and 21 Club to the east, and 75 Rockefeller Plaza to the southeast. The CBS Building stands directly above a New York City Subway tunnel connecting the Sixth Avenue and 53rd Street subway lines.
The building, developed for broadcasting company CBS, was designed to occupy only 60 percent of its site. It is three blocks north of Rockefeller Center, the headquarters of CBS's rival NBC. By the late 1950s, the midtown section of Sixth Avenue was being developed with office towers and hotels, including the Hilton hotel, the Time-Life Building, and the Equitable Building at 1285 Avenue of the Americas. The CBS Building had replaced five apartment buildings of four stories each, as well as a 25,000-square-foot (2,300 m2) parking lot. CBS had acquired these structures in July 1960 from developer William Zeckendorf, who had been forced to sell the site to pay off increasing debts.
The CBS Building was designed by Eero Saarinen, whose other designs ranged from the Gateway Arch, the General Motors Technical Center, and the Dulles International Airport Main Terminal to chairs for the Knoll company. The George A. Fuller Company was the general contractor for the project. Cosentini Associates was the mechanical engineer, while Paul Weidlinger was the structural engineer. Carson, Lundin & Shaw planned the interior layout of the building, designing the mechanical systems and interior partitions. Acoustical engineer Paul Veneklasen advised the firm on how to design different spaces in the building, based on varying acoustical requirements for different divisions. The furnishings were manufactured by Florence Knoll Bassett, whom Saarinen had invited to the project shortly before his death in 1961. CBS's design director Lou Dorfsman and president Frank Stanton worked with Knoll to arrange the art in the building.
The building measures 135 by 160 feet (41 by 49 m) and is 491 feet (150 m) tall, with 38 stories. It does not contain any setbacks on intermediate levels. The building is recessed 25 feet (7.6 m) from the lot line on the north, west, and south and is recessed the same distance from an auxiliary building to the east. A separate structure with a loading area was provided east of the building, allowing the main structure to be a standalone slab. The building's massing evoked those of earlier standalone buildings, such as the unbuilt Tribune Tower design by Eero Saarinen's father Eliel, as well as Louis Sullivan's Guaranty Building. By contrast, the uniform treatment of the CBS Building's facade differed from these earlier designs, which were divided horizontally into three sections.
Surrounding the building is a plaza that is about 3.5 feet (1.1 m) below the Sixth Avenue sidewalk. It is reached by a flight of five steps from that street. The eastern part of the plaza is slightly lower, being six steps below 52nd Street and seven steps below 53rd Street. The plaza contains Canadian black granite pavers, the same material used in the facade. In contrast to the nearly contemporary Seagram Building, which had a decorative plaza with fountains and plants, the CBS Building's plaza was designed solely as a backdrop for the tower. Consequently, the plaza was not designed with seating, and there were no storefronts at plaza level. Before his death, Saarinen had written of his belief that a tower should stand as a solitary mass, detached from shorter buildings.
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