599 Lexington Avenue Building vs One Astor Plaza

Comparing the 599 Lexington Avenue Building and the One Astor Plaza is interesting because they both rise in New York, NY, yet they were conceived by two different design teams, Edward Larrabee Barnes and Kahn & Jacobs, and were completed at different points in time. They were finished more than a decade 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!

The One Astor Plaza is clearly the larger tower of the two, both in terms of height and number of floors. It rises to 745ft (227m) with 54 floors above ground, while the 599 Lexington Avenue Building reaches 653ft (199m) with 51 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.

Both the 599 Lexington Avenue Building and the One Astor Plaza were designed in line with the aesthetic conventions of the Modern style.

Both buildings were completed when the Modern style was already past its peak. This makes them feel like late echoes of the movement, more reflective of continuity or nostalgia than of cutting-edge design at the time.

Both the 599 Lexington Avenue Building and the One Astor Plaza 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 One Astor Plaza also provides 225 parking spaces.

The two towers rely on different structural systems, reflecting distinct engineering strategies.

The 599 Lexington Avenue Building uses a Frame structural system, which relies on a regular grid of columns and beams to sustain its weight, while the One Astor Plaza uses a Framed Tube In Tube system, that combines a strong central core with a perimeter tube of columns.

Yet, when it comes to their facade, they both employed the same solution, 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.