Brooklyn Tower vs Four Seasons New York Downtown

Comparing the Brooklyn Tower and the Four Seasons New York Downtown is interesting because they both rise in New York, NY, yet they were conceived by two different design teams, SHoP Architects and Robert A.M. Stern Architects, and were completed at different points in time. They were finished more than 7 years 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!

These two towers present an interesting contrast in their proportions. The Brooklyn Tower rises higher at 1033ft (315m), while the Four Seasons New York Downtown reaches 925ft (282m). However, the Four Seasons New York Downtown accommodates more floors with 82 levels above ground, compared to 74 floors in the Brooklyn Tower.

This suggests different approaches to interior space design. The Brooklyn Tower has an average floor-to-floor height of approximately 4.3m, while the Four Seasons New York Downtown has more compact floors averaging around 3.4m each. The taller building's more generous floor heights might indicate grander interior spaces, higher ceilings, or different programmatic requirements.

These different proportions likely reflect the specific needs each building was designed to serve, whether driven by zoning regulations, client requirements, or the intended use of the spaces within. The contrast shows how architects can achieve different spatial experiences even when working with similar overall building scales.

Both the Brooklyn Tower and the Four Seasons New York Downtown were designed in line with the aesthetic conventions of the Contemporary style.

At the time, this style was at the height of its popularity. So both SHoP Architects and Robert A.M. Stern Architects followed what was in many ways expected of them, producing designs that fit comfortably within contemporary architectural norms, rather than breaking with convention.

The Four Seasons New York Downtown follows a mixed-use model, combining residential and hotel. In contrast, the Brooklyn Tower has remained primarily residential.

The Four Seasons New York Downtown incorporates a 5-star hotel with 189 rooms. More information is available at the official website.

In terms of capacity, the Brooklyn Tower offers 550 apartments, while the Four Seasons New York Downtown provides 157 units.

Both towers share the same structural solution, a Frame 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.

However, when it comes to the facade, both buildings use different approaches. The Brooklyn Tower uses a Curtain Wall facade, while the Four Seasons New York Downtown uses a Modular facade.

A Curtain Wall facade like the one seen in the Brooklyn Tower uses a lightweight glass curtain wall hung from the structure, while a modular facade like the one seen in the Four Seasons New York Downtown employs prefabricated panels, often mixing solid surfaces with smaller windows.