The Radio Tower and Hotel, the first completed US design by Dutch architecture firm MVRDV, has opened in Manhattan with colourful, irregularly stacked structures.

It was designed jointly by Dutch firm MVRDV and local firm Stonehill Taylor, who acted as the lead architect. The 23-story tower was completed this year and opened in September, four years after the project started in 2018.

The radio tower and hotel feature stacked colorful boxes

The primary occupier of the building in the Washington Heights neighborhood of Upper Manhattan is a 221-room hotel. The tower also contains a restaurant, shopping and office space for rent.

The different volumes of the building were dimensioned in such a way that they each have the same scale as the surrounding neighborhood buildings.

The building includes different rectilinear volumes

Each was also clad in a different color of brick, ranging from yellow, blue, orange, and green. According to the architects, this prevents the building construction from “overwhelming” the adjacent streets.

“The property is designed to stand out from the crowd and serve as a welcoming beacon for out-of-towners coming to Manhattan,” said Stonehill Taylor.

It is the first full-service hotel in Washington Heights, Manhattan

According to MVRDV, the colorful bricks in green, yellow, blue, orange and magenta also stand for the “diverse and lively” character of the district.

“The design of Radio Hotel and Tower is inspired by this character – we took the smaller blocks that are typical of the neighborhood and stacked them into a vertical village,” said MVRDV founding partner Winy Maas.

Colored accents can be found in the common rooms

According to the team, the Radio Hotel is the first full-service hotel to be built in Washington Heights.

“Although the neighborhood is the fifth largest in New York City, the Radio Hotel is the first-ever full-service hotel to open in the area,” said Stonehill Taylor.

The guest rooms have a restrained interior

Visitors to the building have access to a ground-floor courtyard that includes a small park, benches, and cafe tables.

A new Dominican restaurant, Jalao, occupies part of the ground floor and is open to both hotel guests and the general public.

The roof offers views of the surrounding neighborhood

A rooftop bar and observation deck offer views of the surrounding neighborhood and the nearby George Washington Bridge.

“The roof offers an expansive, 360-degree view of Lower Manhattan and Queens while providing a landmark at the George Washington Bridge’s connection to the Bronx,” the team said.

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The hotel’s guest rooms feature restrained interiors in the sleeping areas. Bathrooms, however, have light-colored walls and tiling that nod to the building’s colorful facade.

Similar pops of color can be found throughout the common spaces, including the lobby, corridors, and restrooms.

The hotel is MVRDV’s first project in the United States

Other upcoming projects for the company include contributing to the development of San Francisco’s Mission Rock district and an office building in Detroit dubbed the “Glass Mural,” whose facade is painted with vivid, cartoon-like graphics.

The Dutch company was founded in 1993 by Winy Maas, Nathalie de Vries and Jacob van Rijs.

The photograph is by Ossip van Duivenbode.

Project credits:

Stonehill Taylor design team: Paul Taylor (Managing Director), Steve Oakley (Director), Patrick Hebert (Architect), Victoria Janok-Scarpaci (Architect)
MVRDV design team: Fedor Bron, Mick van Gemert, Mark van den Ouden, Samuel Delgado, Ronald Kam, Fouad Addou, Daniele Zonta, Yassin Matni, Giuseppe Carosini and Giuseppe Campo Antico
landscape architect: Johanna Pertz
Interior design: APD Workshop, Simple Architecture
Client: Youngwoo & Partners

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The Radio Tower and Hotel, Dutch architecture studio MVRDV’s first completed US design, has opened in Manhattan, featuring colourful, irregularly stacked volumes.

It was designed collaboratively by Dutch firm MVRDV and local firm Stonehill Taylor, which acted as the architect of record. The 23-storey tower was completed this year and opened in September, four years after the project kicked off in 2018.

The Radio Tower and Hotel features stacked, colorful boxes

Located in the Upper Manhattan’s Washington Heights neighborhood, the building’s primary occupant is a hotel with 221 rooms. The tower also contains a restaurant, shopping spaces and for-rent office space.

The building’s various volumes were sized to each have the same scale as the surrounding neighborhood buildings.

The building includes various rectilinear volumes

Each was also clad in a different brick colour, ranging from yellow, blue, orange and green. According to the architecture studios, this prevents the tall building from “overwhelming” the adjacent streets.

“The property is designed to stand out and serve as a welcoming beacon for out-of-towners coming into Manhattan,” said Stonehill Taylor.

It is the first full-service hotel in Washington Heights, Manhattan

According to MVRDV, the multi-colored bricks in green, yellow, blue, orange and magenta also represent the “diverse and vibrant” character of the neighborhood.

“The design of Radio Hotel and Tower is inspired by that character – we took the smaller blocks that are typical in the neighborhood and stacked them into a vertical village,” said MVRDV founding partner Winy Maas.

Colorful accents are found in the communal spaces

According to the team, the Radio Hotel is the first full-service hotel to be built in Washington Heights.

“Even though the neighborhood is the fifth largest in New York City, Radio Hotel is the first-ever full-service hotel to open in the area,” said Stonehill Taylor.

Guest rooms feature pared-back interiors

Visitors to the building have access to a ground-floor courtyard that includes a small park, benches and cafe tables.

A new Dominican restaurant, Jalao, occupies part of the ground floor and is open both to hotel guests and the public.

The rooftop features views of the surrounding neighborhood

On the rooftop, a bar and observation deck offer views of the surrounding neighborhood and the nearby George Washington Bridge.

“The rooftop offers sweeping, 360-degree views of lower Manhattan and Queens while providing a landmark gateway at the George Washington Bridge connection to the Bronx,” said the team.

Marble Arch Mound set to be repurposed in redevelopment of London estate

The hotel’s guest rooms feature pared-back interiors in the sleeping areas. The bathrooms, however, have bright walls and tiles that nod to the building’s colorful facade.

Similar colorful accents are found throughout the communal spaces, including the lobby, corridors and restrooms.

The hotel is MVRDV’s first project in the USA

Other upcoming projects by the firm include a contribution to the Mission Rock neighborhood development in San Francisco and an office building in Detroit dubbed “Glass Mural” with a facade painted with vivid, cartoonish graphics.

The Dutch firm was founded in 1993 by Winy Maas, Nathalie de Vries, and Jacob van Rijs.

The photography is by Ossip van Duivenbode.

Project credits:

Stonehill Taylor design team: Paul Taylor (managing principal), Steve Oakley (principal), Patrick Hebert (architect), Victoria Janok-Scarpaci (architect)
MVRDV design team: Fedor Bron, Mick van Gemert, Mark van den Ouden, Samuel Delgado, Ronald Kam, Fouad Addou, Daniele Zonta, Yassin Matni, Giuseppe Carosini and Giuseppe Campo Antico
Landscape architect: Joanna Pertz
Interior design: Workshop APD, Simples Arquitectura
client: Youngwoo & Associates

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“It’s going to be a big community. We range from independent, to assistant living, to memory care. We dedicated a support and care team trained through the Mayo clinic,” said Michael Pounsberry, Coterie Cathedral Hill’s General Manager.

Located at 1001 Van Ness Ave the Coterie Cathedral Hill luxury senior complex is three months from opening its doors.

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“Welcome to Coterie Cathedral Hill. We are right now standing in our 3,500 square foot living room and library space. It’s a beautifully designed space with hardwood floors, white oak throughout and accents of brass and leather,” said Tansy Mak, Related Companies Design Manager.

Waiting to move into one of the 208 units is Jim Meehan.

Luz Pena: “What was it about this specific community that attracted you here?”

Jim Meehan: “I’m in excellent health, but I live alone and I’ve reached the age where it’s sort of prudent for me to have assistance available, if I need it. I’m also looking forward to being part of a community of people.”

Residents will have access to an on-site nursing and wellness team.

“A lot of safety programs here at the property as well. We even have a watch called ‘Care Predict’ so residents will have a two-way communication should they need any assistance,” said Pounsberry.

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The units are on a month-to-month basis, ranging from $7,700 for a studio and more than $17,000 for a two bedroom.

“That price is all inclusive. Everything you see here at Coterie Cathedral Hill. We’ll have a concierge team downstairs, we’ll have 24 hour security. That includes transportation for our residents also in a 5 mile range of the city,” said Pounsberry.

Food and utilities are also included, “Michelin-inspired cuisine. Over five dining options throughout the community,” said Pounsberry.

The 14 story building is built by the two national developers Related and Atria Senior Living. This San Francisco location is the first of its kind, followed by a second location in New York City.

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“We have 25,000 square feet of amenities which is amazing,” said Mak and added, “We have a fitness center with an outdoor pool, which is unique for San Francisco. It has a yoga room, fitness equipment. We also have a 6,000 square foot roof deck with a bocce ball and a pet run for all of our pet guests and BBQ’s throughout.”

Luz Pena: “How did San Francisco inspire some of the rooms here?”

Michael Pounsberry: “Now we are staying in the beautiful cocktail lounge. This is actually called Karl after Karl the fog.”

The luxury complex will open March 1st, 2022.

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At MX3 Fitness, Kevin Mcspadden was one of the first clients to train indoors on Monday morning. He hasn’t been to a gym since March.

We haven’t seen the following in San Francisco in 6 months: Someone working out in a gym! This is allowed from today – but no group classes. Just one on one training or an individual training. And the gym can only allow 10% of its capacity inside for the time being. pic.twitter.com/tJcGUiGn2J

– Amy Hollyfield (@amyhollyfield) September 14, 2020
“It feels good,” he said between bench presses.

The owner of MX3 Fitness is thrilled to see people back in the house. He had set up an outdoor area for customers while waiting for the city’s permission to open inside. The outdoor exercise room worked fine until smoke covered the city.

“We can’t ignore the air quality, can we? It was really difficult. We’ve had so many outdoor cancellations for our outdoor gym over the past week. So it’s nice to have that other option. But it’s also nice to know.” “The rain is coming. And we’re finally back inside,” said co-owner Dave Karraker.

San Francisco only allows a limited number of people in the gyms and only for one-on-one personal training or individual training. Group fitness classes are still not allowed, leaving some large fitness chains closed.

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“Group fitness is still not allowed indoors. So don’t expect to go to your Barry’s boot camp or spin classes just yet. For now, only one-on-one personal training and then individual training is allowed indoors. We expect that . ” Change in the coming months as we do better as a city on our COVID-19 response, but right now it’s only those limited services at 10%, “Karraker said.

He said this new facility was great for his business, but he was fine with the larger training facilities.

“It’s very difficult right now for the big box gyms because they have these huge leases they sit on and 10% doesn’t help them. But 10% for a small neighborhood gym really helps being a little bit outside / doing a little bit inside – can help pay the rent, “Karraker said.

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His personal trainers were fully booked on Monday, an indication that many San Franciscans are ready to be back.

“Everyone I know in my community has always wanted to go to the gym. It’s one of the two things they talk about – going to restaurants and going back to the gym. I think it’s good and important.” Mcspadden said.

Some salon and gym owners, like Karraker, said they will continue to provide outdoor service to customers who are uncomfortable with being indoors with others.

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Tracy Chavez owns Eye Candy SF. She crossed Union Street with a sign in her hand and was thrilled to be reopening her beauty salon.

“So happy to be back, so happy to be able to open again. I’m really excited,” she said. “I’m really looking forward to everyone coming back and I’ve missed everyone so much. It’s been a busy year but we’re going through.”

Chavez had to move in with her family because she couldn’t afford to stay where she lived.

The salon is now set up to keep the recommended number of clients at a distance, and Chavez complies with the requirements by wearing a mask, face shield, and specialized clothing.

Tracy Stanwick is another salon owner eager to reopen.

“It’s been stressful, but we’re all happy. It’s also a relief for our customers,” said Stanwick. The first customer of the day has already been served in her salon.

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“Months and months and months. I’m so happy to be here,” said the customer.

Everyone told us the city had waited too long for it to reopen.

Danielle Rabkin, owner of Cross Fit Golden Gate, agrees.

“We saw counties like San Diego and Los Angeles reopen, but San Francisco, which had much better metrics, stayed closed and that was really hard to see.

RELATED: SF Business Owners Look Forward to Reopening After Losing Thousands of Dollars on Shutdown

Gyms may only be opened with a capacity of 10%. Rabkin says the majority of her clients, young tech professionals, have moved out of town.

“I don’t know if I can recover from six months of closure but I’m going to fight like hell, I sure will try,” Rabkin said.

Hotels were also allowed to attract tourists for the first time today. Still, some hotels decided to wait a few days, knowing that few people would be willing to visit San Francisco under these conditions.

INTERACTIVE: Here’s the reopening status of each county in the Bay Area

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