There’s Nothing Extra About Extra Space

Yesterday my wife Alexandra and I were taking the ferry across Victoria Bay between Hong Kong and Kowloon. We were looking at the architecturally fascinating Hong Kong skyline, when I noticed a big building going up, right on the water, designed by architect Robert A. M. Stern.

The building is in its early stages and it was impossible to see if it would conform to the Stern paradigm we have become familiar with in New York, in which a graceful Neoclassical red brick tower articulated with limestone rises from a limestone base. But it did start me thinking about a certain sort of nouveau prewar product of which Stern’s building The Chatham, on 65th and Third, was an early example, and what distinguishes the newly constructed apartments of today from their counterparts of 20 years ago.

The distinction is space. Most apartments built in the 50’s and 60’s favored the notion of efficiency.  Hallway and foyer space were minimal, and ceilings were low. Formal dining rooms were abandoned in favor of the dining area. The architects of the time concentrated on fitting as many units as possible into the allotted floorplate. With very few exceptions even the “luxury” product of the period felt decidedly utilitarian.

Today’s new buildings have once again embraced the pre-war idea that space is the ultimate luxury. Their architects appreciate that there is no such thing as “wasted space.”  The sense of entry created by a spacious foyer, the sense of grace created by a formal dining room, and the understanding that height and volume are as important as square footage demonstrate the debt these architects feel to Rosario Candela, J.E.R. Carpenter, and Emery Roth, the Big 3 architects from the golden age of New York apartment construction in the 20’s and 30’s.

This change in design fundamentally altered buying patterns in the city. As better crafted, more spacious apartments like those in the Chatham became the norm in the new construction market, formerly die hard pre-war co-op owners began to flock to them, finally able to get contemporary amenities (and blister free walls!) without having to sacrifice space, ceiling height, or layout.  Nothing has been more significant in contributing to the democratization of the city’s many neighborhoods than this transformation in the planning and construction quality of new building inventory. Today, everyone lives everywhere, and this is a big part of the reason why!