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University Village (Manhattan)
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University Village (Manhattan)
University Village is a building complex owned by New York University in the Greenwich Village neighborhood of Manhattan in New York City, New York, U.S. University Village includes three residential towers built in the 1960s: 505 LaGuardia Place, a housing cooperative, and 100 Bleecker Street and 110 Bleecker Street (collectively referred to as the Silver Towers), which house NYU faculty and graduate students. The buildings were designed by modern architects James Ingo Freed and I. M. Pei, and they surround a central plaza featuring the Bust of Sylvette sculpture by Carl Nesjar and Pablo Picasso. The complex also includes the John A. Paulson Center, a multipurpose building at 181 Mercer Street that was completed in 2021. The complex's original buildings and courtyard are a New York City designated landmark.
The redevelopment of the site was first proposed in 1949; a revised proposal called Washington Square Southeast was announced in 1953. The current site of University Village was originally the southernmost of three superblocks in Washington Square Southeast and was supposed to be part of the Washington Square Village project. Due to difficulties in developing Washington Square Village, NYU bought the southernmost superblock in 1960. University Village was developed between 1964 and 1966, and tenants moved into the buildings starting in 1967. The two NYU towers were renamed the Silver Towers in 1974, after NYU alumnus Julius Silver, and the Coles Sports and Recreation Center was built on the eastern portion of the site in 1981. During the 2000s, a fourth tower was proposed as part of a wide-ranging, controversial expansion plan for NYU. The original towers and central courtyard were protected as city landmarks in 2008, and the John A. Paulson Center was developed on the Coles site between 2016 and 2022.
University Village is bounded by Houston Street to the south, Mercer Street to the east, Bleecker Street to the north, and LaGuardia Place to the west. At the center of the complex is a courtyard with Bust of Sylvette. The grounds also include various pathways and lawns. The three original brutalist–style towers are 30 stories high, with concrete facades and recessed windows; they are arranged around the courtyard in a pinwheel configuration. The towers have a combined 535 apartments, each with one to four bedrooms. The John A. Paulson Center, at the eastern end of the site, is 23 stories tall and includes a sports center, academic space, faculty apartments, and student dormitories. The original buildings won several awards when they were completed, and they have received design commentary over the years.
New York University (NYU) has occupied buildings near Washington Square Park since the 1830s. The university's original Washington Square building was replaced with the Silver Center in 1895, and NYU leased the Brown Building in the 1910s. After World War II, NYU sought to expand its Washington Square campus significantly. Meanwhile, the urban planner Robert Moses—who chaired the Mayor's Commission on Slum Clearance—was looking to redevelop parts of Greenwich Village by the early 1950s. At the time, at least 20 apartment houses were being built in the neighborhood, many of which were on the north side of Washington Square Park. Furthermore, as part of the Housing Act of 1949, the U.S. government could fund the redevelopment of areas that local governments had deemed "blighted".
In July 1949, the Mayor's Committee on Slum Clearance identified five sites across New York City that were eligible for redevelopment under the 1949 Housing Act, including a site south of Washington Square. The following year, the New York City Board of Estimate allowed the committee to request federal funds for several sites, including Washington Square South. The 40-acre (16 ha) Washington Square South site was bounded by Houston Street to the south, Sixth Avenue to the west, Third Street to the north, and Mercer Street to the east. The committee announced in January 1951 that it would seek private investors for Washington Square South and several other development sites. The Washington Square South site was to be developed in two sections, both designed by Eggers & Higgins. The portion south of Bleecker Street—the present site of University Village—would become Houston Houses, a group of eight New York City Housing Authority buildings with 900 apartments. The portion north of Bleecker Street would become Washington Square Gardens, a group of 13 privately funded apartment buildings with 1,956 apartments.
The New York Times and The American City praised the Washington Square South project's bold scale but also warned about its impact on the street grid and surrounding buildings. Local residents, on the other hand, were largely opposed to it. The Board of Estimate, which had to approve the development, postponed a decision on the site after over 100 people spoke out against it. The design journal Interiors wrote that the Washington Square South project would result in the demolition of a thriving neighborhood, and several local architects and urban planners expressed doubt about the project's necessity. Moses was initially unconcerned about the opposition, saying that it was to be expected of such a large project.
In August 1953, Moses announced a revised proposal for 2,148 apartments on a 14-acre (5.7 ha) site bounded by West Broadway (now LaGuardia Place) and Fourth, Mercer, and Houston streets. The proposal, known as Washington Square Southeast, entailed replacing 191 buildings, most of them commercial. Nine existing city blocks would have been combined into three superblocks. The northern superblock was given to NYU, becoming the site of NYU's Bobst Library, Tisch Hall, and Warren Weaver Hall. The central and southern superblocks were given to the Washington Square Village Corporation. In conjunction with the creation of the superblocks, West Broadway would have been widened and renamed "Fifth Avenue South". Though the street-widening was later dropped, the city government retained ownership of a narrow strip on the eastern side of West Broadway, facing the superblock.
Supporters of the Washington Square Southeast proposal hoped it would preserve much of Greenwich Village's character, but they were outnumbered by opponents, who argued that the site was not a blighted area. Hortense Gabel, a lawyer for 17 groups who opposed the project, requested that the Board of Estimate give them time to study the plans. The New York City Planning Commission approved Washington Square Southeast in December 1953. The same month, the federal government gave the New York City government $20 million for Washington Square Southeast and two other developments. The plan was endorsed by NYU's chancellor Henry T. Heald and the Washington Square Association. The Board of Estimate approved the plan in January 1954, at which point the city government was planning to relocate 132 families and 1,100 businesses.
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University Village (Manhattan)
University Village is a building complex owned by New York University in the Greenwich Village neighborhood of Manhattan in New York City, New York, U.S. University Village includes three residential towers built in the 1960s: 505 LaGuardia Place, a housing cooperative, and 100 Bleecker Street and 110 Bleecker Street (collectively referred to as the Silver Towers), which house NYU faculty and graduate students. The buildings were designed by modern architects James Ingo Freed and I. M. Pei, and they surround a central plaza featuring the Bust of Sylvette sculpture by Carl Nesjar and Pablo Picasso. The complex also includes the John A. Paulson Center, a multipurpose building at 181 Mercer Street that was completed in 2021. The complex's original buildings and courtyard are a New York City designated landmark.
The redevelopment of the site was first proposed in 1949; a revised proposal called Washington Square Southeast was announced in 1953. The current site of University Village was originally the southernmost of three superblocks in Washington Square Southeast and was supposed to be part of the Washington Square Village project. Due to difficulties in developing Washington Square Village, NYU bought the southernmost superblock in 1960. University Village was developed between 1964 and 1966, and tenants moved into the buildings starting in 1967. The two NYU towers were renamed the Silver Towers in 1974, after NYU alumnus Julius Silver, and the Coles Sports and Recreation Center was built on the eastern portion of the site in 1981. During the 2000s, a fourth tower was proposed as part of a wide-ranging, controversial expansion plan for NYU. The original towers and central courtyard were protected as city landmarks in 2008, and the John A. Paulson Center was developed on the Coles site between 2016 and 2022.
University Village is bounded by Houston Street to the south, Mercer Street to the east, Bleecker Street to the north, and LaGuardia Place to the west. At the center of the complex is a courtyard with Bust of Sylvette. The grounds also include various pathways and lawns. The three original brutalist–style towers are 30 stories high, with concrete facades and recessed windows; they are arranged around the courtyard in a pinwheel configuration. The towers have a combined 535 apartments, each with one to four bedrooms. The John A. Paulson Center, at the eastern end of the site, is 23 stories tall and includes a sports center, academic space, faculty apartments, and student dormitories. The original buildings won several awards when they were completed, and they have received design commentary over the years.
New York University (NYU) has occupied buildings near Washington Square Park since the 1830s. The university's original Washington Square building was replaced with the Silver Center in 1895, and NYU leased the Brown Building in the 1910s. After World War II, NYU sought to expand its Washington Square campus significantly. Meanwhile, the urban planner Robert Moses—who chaired the Mayor's Commission on Slum Clearance—was looking to redevelop parts of Greenwich Village by the early 1950s. At the time, at least 20 apartment houses were being built in the neighborhood, many of which were on the north side of Washington Square Park. Furthermore, as part of the Housing Act of 1949, the U.S. government could fund the redevelopment of areas that local governments had deemed "blighted".
In July 1949, the Mayor's Committee on Slum Clearance identified five sites across New York City that were eligible for redevelopment under the 1949 Housing Act, including a site south of Washington Square. The following year, the New York City Board of Estimate allowed the committee to request federal funds for several sites, including Washington Square South. The 40-acre (16 ha) Washington Square South site was bounded by Houston Street to the south, Sixth Avenue to the west, Third Street to the north, and Mercer Street to the east. The committee announced in January 1951 that it would seek private investors for Washington Square South and several other development sites. The Washington Square South site was to be developed in two sections, both designed by Eggers & Higgins. The portion south of Bleecker Street—the present site of University Village—would become Houston Houses, a group of eight New York City Housing Authority buildings with 900 apartments. The portion north of Bleecker Street would become Washington Square Gardens, a group of 13 privately funded apartment buildings with 1,956 apartments.
The New York Times and The American City praised the Washington Square South project's bold scale but also warned about its impact on the street grid and surrounding buildings. Local residents, on the other hand, were largely opposed to it. The Board of Estimate, which had to approve the development, postponed a decision on the site after over 100 people spoke out against it. The design journal Interiors wrote that the Washington Square South project would result in the demolition of a thriving neighborhood, and several local architects and urban planners expressed doubt about the project's necessity. Moses was initially unconcerned about the opposition, saying that it was to be expected of such a large project.
In August 1953, Moses announced a revised proposal for 2,148 apartments on a 14-acre (5.7 ha) site bounded by West Broadway (now LaGuardia Place) and Fourth, Mercer, and Houston streets. The proposal, known as Washington Square Southeast, entailed replacing 191 buildings, most of them commercial. Nine existing city blocks would have been combined into three superblocks. The northern superblock was given to NYU, becoming the site of NYU's Bobst Library, Tisch Hall, and Warren Weaver Hall. The central and southern superblocks were given to the Washington Square Village Corporation. In conjunction with the creation of the superblocks, West Broadway would have been widened and renamed "Fifth Avenue South". Though the street-widening was later dropped, the city government retained ownership of a narrow strip on the eastern side of West Broadway, facing the superblock.
Supporters of the Washington Square Southeast proposal hoped it would preserve much of Greenwich Village's character, but they were outnumbered by opponents, who argued that the site was not a blighted area. Hortense Gabel, a lawyer for 17 groups who opposed the project, requested that the Board of Estimate give them time to study the plans. The New York City Planning Commission approved Washington Square Southeast in December 1953. The same month, the federal government gave the New York City government $20 million for Washington Square Southeast and two other developments. The plan was endorsed by NYU's chancellor Henry T. Heald and the Washington Square Association. The Board of Estimate approved the plan in January 1954, at which point the city government was planning to relocate 132 families and 1,100 businesses.
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