55 Water Street Building vs Lever House

55 Water Street Building
Lever House

Comparing the 55 Water Street Building and the Lever House is interesting because they both rise in New York, NY, yet they were conceived by two different design teams, Emery Roth & Sons and Skidmore, Owings & Merrill, and were completed at different points in time. They were finished over two decades apart.

This contrast within the same city allows us to see how different creative minds interpreted the evolving needs of New York across time.

Let's take a closer look!

Height
209m
Floors
53

Height & Size

Height
93.57m
Floors
21

The 55 Water Street Building is clearly the larger tower of the two, both in terms of height and number of floors. It rises to 686ft (209m) with 53 floors above ground, while the Lever House reaches 307ft (93.57m) with 21 floors above ground.

Of course, each project may have faced different briefs or regulatory constraints, which we don't really know about and could also explain the outcome.

Style
International Style

Architectural Style

Style
International Style

Both the 55 Water Street Building and the Lever House were designed in line with the aesthetic conventions of the International Style style.

The 55 Water Street Building was designed at a moment when the International Style style was already in decline, making it more of a lingering expression of the movement. In contrast, the Lever House style was already in decline, making it more of a lingering expression of the movement. In contrast, the Lever House was built when the style still carried greater cultural weight.

Main use
Commercial

Uses

Main use
Commercial

Both the 55 Water Street Building and the Lever House were designed to serve as commercial towers, and that has remained their main use since their completion, serving similar roles in the urban fabric.

The 55 Water Street Building also provides 600 parking spaces.

Structure
Frame
Facade
Curtain Wall

Structure & Facade

Structure
Frame
Facade
Curtain Wall

Both the 55 Water Street Building and the Lever House rely on a Frame structural system.

A frame structure uses a grid of columns and beams to carry the building's loads. This frees the walls from structural duties, allowing for flexible floor plans and larger windows.

They also employ the same type of facade, a Curtain Wall facade.

A curtain wall is a non-load-bearing facade hung from the structural frame. It is anchored to floor slabs and transfers only its own weight and wind loads, allowing for sleek, glassy exteriors.

55 Water Street Building Lever House
Emery Roth & Sons Architect Skidmore, Owings & Merrill
1969 Construction Started 1950
1972 Year Completed 1952
International Style Architectural Style International Style
Commercial Current Use Commercial
53 Floors Above Ground 21
3 Floors Below Ground 1
209 m Height (m) 93.57 m
Frame Structure Type Frame
Steel Vertical Structure Material Steel
Reinforced Concrete Horizontal Structure Material Reinforced Concrete
Yes Facade Structural? No
Concrete, Glass Main Facade Material Glass, Aluminum, Steel
Jaros Baum & Bolles MEP Engineer Jaros, Baum & Bolles
NY State NY
New York City New York
55 Water Street Address 390 Park Ave