Can the Rem Tower be built?

There is an interesting thread about this building on Wired New York. One of the commentators echoed your concern and, in fact, reported that the developer at One Madison even informed purchasers at One Madison that they may abandon the Rem tower (and return to the original 13-story building laid out in the offering plan) if the purchasers are able to argue that they can back out of One Madison because of the new Rem plans.

In this market, you would think that the developers would abandon the Rem tower if it gives the One Madison buyers a right to rescind, especially since they may not be able to get the prices that they expected to get for the Rem units. That said, it is odd that they spent all of this money to open a grand show room for the Rem tower, only to abandon it a few months later. Maybe they're testing the market to see what the potential appetite is for the units.

Any new information on this would be appreciated.

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I think that the Rem tower is another greed-based development scheme that will blight the skyline over Madison Sq. Park. The view of the beautiful clock tower is already compromised by the heinous giant sliver tower of OMP and the same developer now proposes to block even more of the 23rd St sky with another oversized building? Bad for the neighborhood, bad for the city. Is there anyone awake at the City Planning Commission or the Community Board? This development makes zero sense and I hope that it is killed.

"another greed-based development scheme"

You mean, like 99% of the housing built in NYC or the U.S.?

well, yes, obviously most development is "greed-based" but the point is that this building does not belong mid-block on a quiet residential street and literally next to an absurdly outsized AND ugly sliver building...AND the point is that the keys to the city have been handed over to real-estate developers to the detriment of the city AND it's high-time that the needs, concerns and interests of the city's residents are attended to by elected officials and administration appointees. developers short-term profits should not be prioritized over community interest. the developers of this site are literally creating a gigantic wall that will block light and views from uptown looking down and from downtown looking up...this should be stopped.

They blight the skyline? What? Is it a taste issue or is something wrong with your eyes? The Rem tower and the One Madison Park vastly improved that low-class block which is filled with filthy, slummy, disgusting buildings.

I can't believe anyone can call the stunning, sleek, luxury Rem Tower and OMP "blight". Who cares if it blocks the Clocktower? I guess NY should just be a city of a 3-4 good clearly visible iconic buildings and then the rest a cesspool of run-down buildings. Ugh, no wonder NY is severely lagging the rest of the world when it comes to good current architecture,

There are many ugly filthy buildings on Madison Park and I can' wait until their all razed and replaced with good "greed" buildings like the Rem/OMP

yeah, let's just build a 60 story wall across 23rd st, that will be so cool....PUHleeeeze! apparently there is no accounting for taste..."filthy and slummy buildings"?? really....why don't we just let people build monolithic and absurd buildings wherever they want? that's how the city ended up with hundreds of uninteresting condos and thoughtless developments. oh yeah, let's overdevelop tiny blocks like 22nd street between park and bway....that would really make the city great. i am ALL for sensible develpment of interesting buildings BUT in locations that make sense. give me a break, i mean...really...how anyone could call one madison an improvement over virtually any "slummy" building is a joke. unless someone was either the developer or perhaps someone in contract,haha... one madison is a disgusting eyesore and the rem building planned for the adjacent lot is just silly. it might look ok somewhere else but in this site, no way.

I think One Madison is WAY out of proportion in comparison to the surrounding buildings. It sticks out like a sore thumb and doesn't complement the surrounding area very well. Again, it's about proportion. If it were a shorter building, it might work, but the developers went overboard. The Rem tower also is out of proportion and won't complement the area well. It's a massive building and will hog up more space, creating a wall around a small park. I hope the developer's plans fail, and I think they will given this economic environment and the problems they're currently facing with buyers at One Madison trying to back out.

I think the Empire State building is WAY out of proportion in comparison to the surrounding buildnigs.

I think the Chrysler building is WAY out of proportion in comparison to the surrounding buildings.

I think the Clock Tower is WAY out of proportion in comparison to the surrounding buildings, after all, it is 50 feet taller than One Madison Park.

I thought the World Trade Centers were WAY out of proportion in comparison to the surrounding buildings.

You people are stupid. No wonder no good buildings are constructed in New York anymore; anything remotely creative, modern and without grime and digsuting HVAC units sticking out of the windows is "silly" says the low-life, tasteless NIMBYs.

One Madison Park and the Rem Building will quickly turn Madison Park into the upper-class block it deserves be. I hate all those low-class, dingy, ghetto fast food shops/retail and some of those nasty buildings occuping the immediate area.

comparing iconic buildings like the ESB or Chrysler to a completely uninteresting luxury condo like one madison is just so utterly absurd that it's barely worth responding too. get a life, poser. i've heard numerous architects deride the one madison development as disturbing and out of place. nobody wants a street full of fast food restaurants but it makes absolutely no sense IN ANY WAY to say that building a giant luxury condo improves the street. this moron probably also likes donald trump's contributions to the city's neighborhoods. yuck, what a jerk.

What does the iconic status of the ESB or the Chrysler have to do with anything? They're still both tall and out of proportion to its neighbors and were too bereated and seen as "out of scale" to the then NIMBYs when they were being erected.

Truth is, you just lack taste and are just bitter, poor and jealous of One Madison Park and the Rem since you obviously lack the funds to ever live such a lifestyle. You prefer the unattractive, slummy, dingy storefrons and low-class tenants, but I like luxury and sophistication.

What will they contribute to the neighborhood, you ask? Beauty, wealth, raised property vaues, pure luxury transformation of the block by way of the stunning Rem Tower and OMP and the destriction of more low-class retail and disgusting looking buildings like that absolute travesty on the corner of E 23rd and Broadway.

That is hilarious, as if an illiterate fool like you would have the funds to live either in One Madison or anywhere near the park. More likely, you are somehow involved with selling that nasty project and are desperately trying to save the Rem building, which is going down in smoke. NIMBY, hahahaha...very intelligent comment....let's just build hi-rises wherever "STAR" architects want to, that will make the city so great! Look how beautiful Donald Trump has made the riverside rail yards....what a freakin' fool...

That is hilarious, as if an illiterate fool like you would have the funds to live either in One Madison or anywhere near the park. More likely, you are somehow involved with selling that nasty project and are desperately trying to save the Rem building, which is going down in smoke. NIMBY, hahahaha...very intelligent comment....let's just build hi-rises wherever "STAR" architects want to, that will make the city so great! Look how beautiful Donald Trump has made the riverside rail yards....what a freakin' fool...

Bonvivant, you have a very New York perspective which is less concerned about aesthetics than about maintaining housing for the middle class and poor, maintaining disgusting buildings since they apparently "fit in with the neighborhood", maintaining slummy neighborhoods (I can't believe you're even lamenting the absolutely yucky riverside rail yards before that dump was developed), anti-development, anti-"starchitect".

However, part of the reason that I vastly prefer London is that the Brits prize aesthetics and raze unattractive, post WWII buildings without worrying that low-end shops will be replaced by expensive ones.

Too much of NY is incredibly ugly and could withstand a makeover. New Yorkers just don't seem to regard that as a priority. You are a prime example.

BRABUS, I think much of the issue here depends on your aesthetics. I love a lot of new developments and think many of them have improved their surrounding areas (e.g., Time Warner Center; 15 CPW; The Link in Hell's Kitchen; 260 and 240 Park Avenue South, etc.), and I dislike a lot of existing buildings in NYC (e.g., some of the ugly buildings on Central Park South).

On the other hand, I think a lot of new developments do not look nice (e.g., Sky House, 785 8th avenue). Personally, I don't think One Madison Square or the Rem Koolhaas tower look that nice. Part of my issue with them is that I find them too large for the area and not aesthetically pleasing. You obviously disagree, so we can leave it that.

Back to the original purpose of this post... Does anyone know about the status of Rem tower and whether the developer is backing out or whether the developer has received approval from the attorney general's office for it? I presume the sales office for the Rem Tower is still open?

How is One Madison Park too big for it's surrounding area when the MetLife/Clock tower is taller? Do you not like the MetLife Tower?

The Rem tower is not even tall! It's short. It's creative. It's beautiful and it will immensely imporve the existing dumpy streetscape of that immediate front (with that ghetto Wendys') and transform it into an upscale area.

And I hope this Daniel Libeskind masterpiece is in the area too http://www.treehugger.com/libeskind.jpg

Is built in the area*

BRABUS... Please reread my post. I said that I don't think One Madison Square is aethetically pleasing. If it were, maybe I wouldn't mind the height, but I don't find it nice, so I wish it were shorter. I like the MetLife clock tower much more; looks nicer in my opinion. I think the Daniel Libeskind building looks atrocious. Again, this isn't about low class/high class or new development/existing buildings; it's about what I find to be aesthetically pleasing. People often have different opinions. Different opinions -- especially when it comes to aesthetics -- doesn't mean that people are "stupid" or that they're somehow "poor" or "jealous" of you. Quite the opposite.

Good riddance to this piece of trash project, now dead as of today.